Hybrid linear and circular polarization high-efficiency metasurface-based converter for X, Ku, and Kbands

This study presents a high-efficiency metasurface-based reflective polarization converter capable of dual-function operation: linear-to-circular polarization and linear-to-linear polarization conversion, enabling versatile polarization manipulation. The proposed metasurface consists of a symmetric single-slit “H”-shaped metallic structure, a dielectric slab, and a metallic ground plane. Numerical simulation results demonstrate that under y-polarized wave incidence, the metasurface achieves efficient right-handed circularly polarized conversion in the X band (7.19–11.76 GHz) with an axial ratio consistently below 3 dB across the entire bandwidth. Additionally, it exhibits wideband linear polarization conversion in the Ku- and K bands (13.43–21.36 GHz) with a polarization conversion ratio remaining steadily above 90%. To elucidate the physical mechanism of polarization conversion, this study employs Jones Matrices, Stokes parameters, and characterization of surface current distributions to analyze the proposed metasurface. Furthermore, based on the theoretical calculations, the numerical results of co- and cross-reflection coefficients show remarkable consistency with the simulation data. In addition, the prototype of the designed metasurface was fabricated by printed circuit board technology. The measured data are in good quantitative agreement with the simulation results, further validating the experimental accuracy and reliability of the design. This dual-function converter features a broad operational bandwidth, simple geometric structure, and compact dimensions, thereby holding great promise for applications in communication systems, radar identification, and electronic countermeasure technologies.