Design and analysis of a metasurface-based wideband wide-angle scanning phased array

Abstract

This paper presents a wideband wide-angle scanning phased array, which employs Φ-shaped unit cells to form a metasurface (MS) for achieving wideband impedance matching. To optimize the impedance matching performance, a design procedure based on an equivalent circuit model is proposed. A quasi-analytical model based on the equivalent circuit model and the permittivity ϵ r and permeability μ r of the MS properly predicts the scan range of the full structure, and allows for an accelerated design process. The extensive analysis confirms the effectiveness of the MS as the wideband angle impedance matching layer for the antenna array. The MS has demonstrated a positive impact on the wideband wide-angle scanning performance. Finally, a prototype is fabricated and measured, and the experimental results agree well with the simulation results. The proposed array exhibits wide-angle scanning across a 3.5:1 impedance bandwidth (2–7 GHz) with ±60° scan volume in both E-plane and H-plane.