Design of a 3D Printed Wide Band Metasurface Antenna for High Power Applications

Abstract

Weight-size optimization is the main challenge of high-power antenna design. This letter presents a low-profile, metasurface-based wideband antenna. The proposed antenna comprises an N-type-to-waveguide transition to excite the metasurfaces and handle high-power excitations. A metasurface array of 4×4-unit cells is integrated into the waveguide. The proposed waveguide is 3D printed, and its internal faces are covered by copper tape to maintain a low weight (less than 0.5 lb.). The prototype is experimentally tested, and the results confirm the prototype’s functionality from 2.1 GHz to 3.6 GHz with a bandwidth of 52.6 % and a peak gain of 8.5 dBi. Furthermore, the high-power handling capability of the proposed design has been experimentally confirmed by exciting it with a 7 kV pulsed source. These results demonstrate the applicability of the proposed antenna in satellite communication, radar communication, and wireless communication between Unmanned Aerial Vehicles (UAVs).