Centimeter-wave passive electronically scanned array using movable short phase shifters

Abstract This paper proposes an electronically controlled reconfigurable scanned array that uses movable short phase shifters suitable for 6G applications. Excellent performance is demonstrated by the passive electronically scanned array (PESA) operating in the centimeter-wave frequency region (13–17 GHz). Four digitally controlled variable reflect-type phase shifters, each built with a 90 ring $90^\circ$ <mml:math xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xmlns:mnf="http://cambridge.org/core/manifest" xmlns:cup="http://contentservices.cambridge.org" xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:m="http://cambridge.org/core/metadata" xmlns:core="http://cambridge.org/core" xmlns:c="http://cambridge.org/core/content" display="inline"> <mml:mrow> <mml:msup> <mml:mn>90</mml:mn> <mml:mo>∘</mml:mo> </mml:msup> </mml:mrow> </mml:math> hybrid coupler with a movable short circuit, are integrated with a 2 times 2 $ 2 \times 2$ <mml:math xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xmlns:mnf="http://cambridge.org/core/manifest" xmlns:cup="http://contentservices.cambridge.org" xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:m="http://cambridge.org/core/metadata" xmlns:core="http://cambridge.org/core" xmlns:c="http://cambridge.org/core/content" display="inline"> <mml:mrow> <mml:mn>2</mml:mn> <mml:mi>×</mml:mi> <mml:mn>2</mml:mn> </mml:mrow> </mml:math> horn antenna array. The assembly also has E–H feeding networks, which help the antenna array receive a uniform signal distribution. Outstanding performance is demonstrated and verified by time and frequency domain simulation results of the full PESA, which show continuous main-lobe scanning in the azimuth and elevation planes. Over the operating bandwidth, the proposed PESA maintains a steady gain of 14 plus or minus 2 $14 \pm 2$ <mml:math xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xmlns:mnf="http://cambridge.org/core/manifest" xmlns:cup="http://contentservices.cambridge.org" xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:m="http://cambridge.org/core/metadata" xmlns:core="http://cambridge.org/core" xmlns:c="http://cambridge.org/core/content" display="inline"> <mml:mrow> <mml:mn>14</mml:mn> <mml:mi>±</mml:mi> <mml:mn>2</mml:mn> </mml:mrow> </mml:math> dBi while achieving a matching level below minus $-$ <mml:math xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink" xmlns:mnf="http://cambridge.org/core/manifest" xmlns:cup="http://contentservices.cambridge.org" xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:m="http://cambridge.org/core/metadata" xmlns:core="http://cambridge.org/core" xmlns:c="http://cambridge.org/core/content" display="inline"> <mml:mrow> <mml:mo>−</mml:mo> </mml:mrow> </mml:math> 12 dB.