THz Photo-Polymeric Lens Antennas for Potential 6G Beamsteering Frontend

Abstract

This paper presents a 3D-printed THz hemispherical lens antenna integrated with the open-ended rectangular waveguide at WR-10 band for antenna characteristics enhancement, e.g., gain and half-power beamwidth (HPBW). The digital light processing (DLP) technique, which is one of the famous 3D printing techniques, is chosen for fabricating the hemispherical lens antenna. The proposed design can be integrating the 3D-printed lens antenna without any extra assistant tools during assembly lensantenna with an open-ended WR-10 waveguide. In the simulation, the lens radiuses are investigated by varying from 2 mm to 5 mm in step with 1 mm. The optimum dimensions of the 3D-printed hemispherical lens antennas are obtained by using the 3D electromagnetic simulation tools. Based on the simulation results, at 90 GHz, the lens radiuses of 2 mm, 3 mm, 4 mm, 5 mm, and 6 mm, provide the maximum realized gain of 11.7 dBi, 13.1 dBi, 14.8 dBi, 15.8 dBi, and 16.3 dBi, respectively. The proposed technique gives many advantages, including ease of design, inexpensive material, low-cost fabrication process, rapid prototyping, etc. Moreover, the narrow HPBW and high gain of the proposed lens antenna can be applied to the 6G beamsteering frontend system.

Exploring Next-Generation Antenna Designs: A Literature Review on Antenna Design for 6G Applications

“…This approach highlights the versatility and effectiveness of 3D printing technology in antenna fabrication. Several other studies have also adopted 3D printing technology for antenna fabrication, as evidenced by references [38][39][40], [41].…”

220–325-GHz Horn-Type Adapter for Terahertz Microstructured Fiber Measurements

“…ECENTLY, the most widely accepted definition of the THz band is that it extends from approximately 10 THz to 100 GHz (0.03-3.00 mm in wavelength) and is located between the microwave and infrared (IR) frequency bands [1]- [3]. Terahertz technology advancements and growing interest in applications have increased the demand for developing new sources [4]- [8], detectors, waveguides, and other components for efficient terahertz wave control [9].…”