Design and Analysis of Reconfigurable Patch Arrays for Angle-of-Arrival Sensing and Perfect Anomalous Reflection

We propose and numerically validate a reconfigurable patch antenna array concept that enables simultaneous incident wave sensing and anomalous reflection without requiring prior knowledge of the transmitter position. We synthesize anomalous reflection by suppressing parasitic scattering through accurate and efficient optimization of induced load currents and by varying impedances of reactive loads. By mitigating parasitic scattering lobes, we illustrate the feasibility of accurately detecting the incoming illumination angle via the spatial Fourier transform of the optimized load current distribution, computed through numerically tunable reactive loads. This approach eliminates the need for additional RF chains, pre-computed data, or calibration measurements. The developed strategy, which integrates arithmetic load optimization with angle-of-arrival sensing, is applicable to general finite-size arrays.