A Self-adapting Pixel Antenna - Substrate Lens System for Infrared Frequencies

Abstract

In this work, we propose a concentrator lens - antenna arrangement, potentially suitable for infrared sensing and energy harvesting rectenna systems. The structure consists of a pixel antenna, self-adapting for the direction of the incident infrared radiation, and a concentrator lens, both optimized for the mid-infrared spectrum. The silicon substrate lens is situated above the pixel antenna, enabling the concentration of the incident light on the antenna; silicon was chosen due to its transparency in the IR spectrum. We examine how various parameters of the lens, in conjunction with the different states of the pixel antenna, affects the performance of the system. The simulations show that the gain of the arrangement increases considerably in correlation with the radius of the lens. The results suggest that the energy conversion efficiency of infrared rectenna systems can be enhanced by several orders of magnitude with the utilization of the proposed arrangement.