Additive Manufacturing of Non-homogenous Dielectric Waveguide Structures and Filters

Abstract

This paper investigates the use of 3D-printed alumina ceramics to achieve variable dielectric constants for novel microwave applications. An introduction to lithography-based ceramic manufacturing exhibits the novel process and material properties, while detailing printing techniques for achieving gradient and equivalent dielectric constants. Printed samples of non-homogeneous dielectrics are presented and briefly discussed. Potential end-use for microwave components are discussed with emphasis on future filter applications.

Development of a Sealed 3D Printed Dielectric Filled Waveguide Filter with Embedded Lattices

“…The proposed four pole bandpass filter [6] was designed with a center frequency of 8.8 GHz and a 600 MHz bandwidth. This filter was manufactured using Lithography-based Ceramic Manufacturing (LCM) 3D printing of alumina with an ε r = 9.5 and a tanδ =8•10 −5 .…”

“…The porous lattice concept was taken further and embedded in an alumina dielectric-filled waveguide, to implement bandpass filtering in [6]. The work presented in this paper aims to highlight some of the challenges experienced in the fabrication stage and propose design solutions to overcome these.…”

3D-Printed Dielectric Resonators for Quasi-TE112 Mode Singlets, Doublets and Dual-Mode Filters

“…For that reason, architectures that are known for high quality factors like microwave cavities and dielectric resonators have widely been used in satellite communication systems [3]- [5], and in addition, several different approaches to improving the quality factor of these types of filters are extensively described in the literature [6]- [16].…”

“…In reference [15], more success was achieved by the inclusion of a metal mask/backplate on which the tuning elements could be attached so that the manufacturing defects could be more easily compensated. In [16], the ability to print variable dielectric constants inside waveguide structures to achieve bandpass filtering was proposed.…”