The development of high-performance optically transparent radio frequency(RF)radiators is limited by the intrinsic loss issue of transparent conductive films(TCFs).Instead of pursuing expensive endeavors to improve th...The development of high-performance optically transparent radio frequency(RF)radiators is limited by the intrinsic loss issue of transparent conductive films(TCFs).Instead of pursuing expensive endeavors to improve the TCFs'electrical properties,this study introduces an innovative approach that leverages leaky-wave mode manipulation to mitigate the TCFs'attenuating effect and maximize the RF radiation.Our finding reveals that the precise control of the mode confinement on glass-coated TCFs can create a low-attenuation window for leaky-wave propagation,where the total attenuation caused by TCF dissipation and wave leakage is effectively reduced.The observed low-attenuation leaky-wave state on lossy TCFs originates from the delicate balance between wave leakage and TCF dissipation,attained at a particular glass cladding thickness.By leveraging the substantially extended radiation aperture achieved under suppressed wave attenuation,this study develops an optically transparent antenna with an enhanced endfire realized gain exceeding 15 dBi and a radiation efficiency of 66%,which is validated to offer competitive transmission performance for advancing ubiquitous wireless communication and sensing applications.展开更多
Large-element-spacing(LES)antenna arrays present an attractive proposition with their cost-effectiveness and sim-plified structures.However,they often encounter the challenge of high-level grating lobes.This paper pro...Large-element-spacing(LES)antenna arrays present an attractive proposition with their cost-effectiveness and sim-plified structures.However,they often encounter the challenge of high-level grating lobes.This paper proposes a novel meta-lens methodology to effectively address the grating lobe issue in fixed-beam LES arrays.The proposed approach involves strategically positioning a meta-lens above the LES arrays at a suitable vertical distance.This setup enables precise manipulation and compen-sation of the near-field phase,resulting in the suppression or elimination of grating lobes without introducing additional design com-plexity.Comprehensive theoretical analyses,meticulous design calculations employing efficient numerical methods,rigorous field simulations,and practical experiments are conducted.The results demonstrate that our meta-lens solution achieves significant grating-lobe suppressions and substantial gain enhancements with only a marginal increase in system profile or volume.The proposed meta-lens approach is versatile and applicable to various LES antenna arrays,including sparse/thinned arrays,regardless of their size,element spacing,and configuration(uniform or non-uniform,periodic or aperiodic).展开更多
基金the support partially from the National Natural Science Foundation of China(62301162,62401386,62071125,62071187,62022045,and U22B2016)partially from the Industry–Education Cooperation Project of Fujian Province(#2022H6018)+2 种基金partially from the Fujian Provincial Natural Science Foundation of China(2023J01058)partially from the National Key Research and Development Program of China(2021YFA0716601 and 2022YFE0115500)partially from the Startup Funding of Fuzhou University(XRC-23007)。
文摘The development of high-performance optically transparent radio frequency(RF)radiators is limited by the intrinsic loss issue of transparent conductive films(TCFs).Instead of pursuing expensive endeavors to improve the TCFs'electrical properties,this study introduces an innovative approach that leverages leaky-wave mode manipulation to mitigate the TCFs'attenuating effect and maximize the RF radiation.Our finding reveals that the precise control of the mode confinement on glass-coated TCFs can create a low-attenuation window for leaky-wave propagation,where the total attenuation caused by TCF dissipation and wave leakage is effectively reduced.The observed low-attenuation leaky-wave state on lossy TCFs originates from the delicate balance between wave leakage and TCF dissipation,attained at a particular glass cladding thickness.By leveraging the substantially extended radiation aperture achieved under suppressed wave attenuation,this study develops an optically transparent antenna with an enhanced endfire realized gain exceeding 15 dBi and a radiation efficiency of 66%,which is validated to offer competitive transmission performance for advancing ubiquitous wireless communication and sensing applications.
基金National Natural Science Foundation of China(Grant Nos.62071187,62071125,and 62301162)Natural Science Foundation of Fujian Province,China(Grant No.2023J01058)+1 种基金Industry-Education Cooperation Project in Fujian Province,China(Grant No.2022H6018)Fujian Province Major Special Topic Project(Grant No.2022HZ026007).
文摘Large-element-spacing(LES)antenna arrays present an attractive proposition with their cost-effectiveness and sim-plified structures.However,they often encounter the challenge of high-level grating lobes.This paper proposes a novel meta-lens methodology to effectively address the grating lobe issue in fixed-beam LES arrays.The proposed approach involves strategically positioning a meta-lens above the LES arrays at a suitable vertical distance.This setup enables precise manipulation and compen-sation of the near-field phase,resulting in the suppression or elimination of grating lobes without introducing additional design com-plexity.Comprehensive theoretical analyses,meticulous design calculations employing efficient numerical methods,rigorous field simulations,and practical experiments are conducted.The results demonstrate that our meta-lens solution achieves significant grating-lobe suppressions and substantial gain enhancements with only a marginal increase in system profile or volume.The proposed meta-lens approach is versatile and applicable to various LES antenna arrays,including sparse/thinned arrays,regardless of their size,element spacing,and configuration(uniform or non-uniform,periodic or aperiodic).
