3D Microwave Research Articles

Vacuum-filling of liquid metals for 3D printed RF antennas

This paper describes a facile method to fabricate complex three-dimensional (3D) antennas by vacuum filling gallium-based liquid metals into 3D printed cavities at room temperature. To create the cavities, a commercial printer co-prints a sacrificial wax-like material with an acrylic resin. Dissolving the printed wax in oil creates cavities as small as 500μm within the acrylic monolith. Placing the entire structure under vacuum evacuates most of the air from these cavities through a reservoir of liquid metal that covers a single inlet. Returning the assembly to atmospheric pressure pushes the metal from the reservoir into the cavities due to the pressure differential. This method enables filling of the closed internal cavities to create planar and curved conductive 3D geometries without leaving pockets of trapped air that lead to defects. An advantage of this technique is the ability to rapidly prototype 3D embedded antennas and other microwave components with metallic conductivity at room temperature using a simple process. Because the conductors are liquid, they also enable the possibility of manipulating the properties of such devices by flowing metal in or out of selected cavities. The measured electrical properties of fabricated devices match well to electromagnetic simulations, indicating that the approach described here forms antenna geometries with high fidelity. Finally, the capabilities and limitations of this process are discussed along with possible improvements for future work.

Characterization of low loss microstrip resonators as a building block for circuit QED in a 3D waveguide

Here we present the microwave characterization of microstrip resonators, made from aluminum and niobium, inside a 3D microwave waveguide. In the low temperature, low power limit internal quality factors of up to one million were reached. We found a good agreement to models predicting conductive losses and losses to two level systems for increasing temperature. The setup presented here is appealing for testing materials and structures, as it is free of wire bonds and offers a well controlled microwave environment. In combination with transmon qubits, these resonators serve as a building block for a novel circuit QED architecture inside a rectangular waveguide.

2D microwave metallic photonic crystal point‐defect‐cavity resonator

AbstractNovel microwave high‐Q point‐defect‐cavity (PDC) resonators based on metallic photonic crystals (M‐PhCs) are experimentally studied. After the illustration of the band structure of M‐PhCs, the first two resonant modes of a PDC are computed by supper‐cell methods. The results show that the Q‐value of M‐PhC PDCs is almost the same as that of the traditional waveguide cavity resonators. Moreover, the PDC is then fabricated and experimentally measured. The measured resonant frequencies and Q‐factors are compared with the calculated ones to validate our computation and show the property of the proposed PDC.

A split-cavity design for the incorporation of a DC bias in a 3D microwave cavity

We report on a technique for applying a DC bias in a 3D microwave cavity. We achieve this by isolating the two halves of the cavity with a dielectric and directly using them as DC electrodes. As a proof of concept, we embed a variable capacitance diode in the cavity and tune the resonant frequency with a DC voltage, demonstrating the incorporation of a DC bias into the 3D cavity with no measurable change in its quality factor at room temperature. We also characterize the architecture at millikelvin temperatures and show that the split cavity design maintains a quality factor Qi ∼ 8.8 × 105, making it promising for future quantum applications.

Single-ion microwave near-field quantum sensor

We develop an intuitive model of 2D microwave near-fields in the unusual regime of centimeter waves localized to tens of microns. Close to an intensity minimum, a simple effective description emerges with five parameters that characterize the strength and spatial orientation of the zero and first order terms of the near-field, as well as the field polarization. Such a field configuration is realized in a microfabricated planar structure with an integrated microwave conductor operating near 1 GHz. We use a single 9Be+ ion as a high-resolution quantum sensor to measure the field distribution through energy shifts in its hyperfine structure. We find agreement with simulations at the sub-micron and few-degree level. Our findings give a clear and general picture of the basic properties of oscillatory 2D near-fields with applications in quantum information processing, neutral atom trapping and manipulation, chip-scale atomic clocks, and integrated microwave circuits.

Three-Dimensional Microwave Imaging for Concealed Weapon Detection Using Range Stacking Technique

Three-dimensional (3D) microwave imaging has been proven to be well suited for concealed weapon detection application. For the 3D image reconstruction under two-dimensional (2D) planar aperture condition, most of current imaging algorithms focus on decomposing the 3D free space Green function by exploiting the stationary phase and, consequently, the accuracy of the final imagery is obtained at a sacrifice of computational complexity due to the need of interpolation. In this paper, from an alternative viewpoint, we propose a novel interpolation-free imaging algorithm based on wavefront reconstruction theory. The algorithm is an extension of the 2D range stacking algorithm (RSA) with the advantages of low computational cost and high precision. The algorithm uses different reference signal spectrums at different range bins and then forms the target functions at desired range bin by a concise coherent summation. Several practical issues such as the propagation loss compensation, wavefront reconstruction, and aliasing mitigating are also considered. The sampling criterion and the achievable resolutions for the proposed algorithm are also derived. Finally, the proposed method is validated through extensive computer simulations and real-field experiments. The results show that accurate 3D image can be generated at a very high speed by utilizing the proposed algorithm.

Sub-Surface Microwave Imaging Using Four-Slot Vivaldi Antenna with Improved Directivity

Abstract The conventional tapered slot Vivaldi antenna is well known for its ultra-wide band characteristics with low directivity. To improve the directivity of the conventional Vivaldi antenna, a four-slot Vivaldi antenna (FSVA) is proposed here to operate in the frequency range of 2–11 GHz. For feeding the FSVA, a binomial three-section V-shaped even mode power divider with progressing T-junctions is also designed and tested here, which is then integrated with the antenna. The proposed antenna prototype is designed and fabricated on a 1-mm thick FR-4 substrate (ɛr=4.3, tanδ=0.025), and the return loss and radiation characteristics are investigated in the anechoic environment. The measured result shows a good agreement with the numerical simulation performed using the EM Simulator i. e. CST MWS-2015. It is found that the directivity of FSVA is approximately doubled as compared to that of the conventional Vivaldi antenna having the same dimensions. From the application point of view, the fabricated antenna is used to image various metallic objects hidden inside the sand using a vector network analyzer and associated RF components. The obtained 2D microwave images of the test media successfully show that the hidden objects can effectively be located and detected using the proposed FSVA in conjunction with a simple imaging scheme.

3D microwave cavity with magnetic flux control and enhanced quality factor

Three-dimensional (3D) microwave cavities have been extensively used for coupling and interacting with superconducting quantum bits (qubits), providing a versatile platform for quantum control experiments and for realizing hybrid quantum systems. While having high quality factors (>106) superconducting cavities do not permit magnetic field control of qubits. In contrast, cavities made of normal metals are transparent to magnetic fields, but experience lower quality factors (∼104). We have created a hybrid cavity which is primarily composed of aluminium but also contains a small copper insert reaching the internal quality factor of ≃105, an order of magnitude improvement over all previously tested normal metal cavities. In order to demonstrate precise magnetic control, we performed spectroscopy of three superconducting qubits, where individual control of each qubit’s frequency was exerted with small external wire coils. An improvement in quality factor and magnetic field control makes this 3D hybrid cavity an attractive new element for circuit quantum electrodynamics experiments.

Study of the cavity-magnon-polariton transmission line shape

We experimentally and theoretically investigate the microwave transmission line shape of the cavity-magnon-polariton (CMP) created by inserting a low damping magnetic insulator into a high quality 3D microwave cavity. While fixed field measurements are found to have the expected Lorentzian characteristic, at fixed frequencies the field swept line shape is in general asymmetric. Such fixed frequency measurements demonstrate that microwave transmission can be used to access magnetic characteristics of the CMP, such as the field line width $\Delta H$. By developing an effective oscillator model of the microwave transmission we show that these line shape features are general characteristics of harmonic coupling. At the same time, at the classical level the underlying physical mechanism of the CMP is electrodynamic phase correlation and a second model based on this principle also accurately reproduces the experimental line shape features. In order to understand the microscopic origin of the effective coupled oscillator model and to allow for future studies of CMP phenomena to extend into the quantum regime, we develop a third, microscopic description, based on a Green's function formalism. Using this method we calculate the transmission spectra and find good agreement with the experimental results.

Piezoelectric tunable microwave superconducting cavity.

In the context of engineered quantum systems, there is a demand for superconducting tunable devices, able to operate with high-quality factors at power levels equivalent to only a few photons. In this work, we developed a 3D microwave re-entrant cavity with such characteristics ready to provide a very fine-tuning of a high-Q resonant mode over a large dynamic range. This system has an electronic tuning mechanism based on a mechanically amplified piezoelectric actuator, which controls the resonator dominant mode frequency by changing the cavity narrow gap by very small displacements. Experiments were conducted at room and dilution refrigerator temperatures showing a large dynamic range up to 4 GHz and 1 GHz, respectively, and were compared to a finite element method model simulated data. At elevated microwave power input, nonlinear thermal effects were observed to destroy the superconductivity of the cavity due to the large electric fields generated in the small gap of the re-entrant cavity.

유방 조직형태에 따른 유방암 진단 2차원 마이크로파 영상복원

유방 조직형태에 따른 유방암 진단 2차원 마이크로파 영상복원

Voltage control of cavity magnon polariton

We have experimentally investigated the microwave transmission of the cavity-magnon-polariton (CMP) generated by integrating a low damping magnetic insulator onto a 2D microwave cavity. The high tunability of our planar cavity allows the cavity resonance frequency to be precisely controlled using a DC voltage. By appropriately tuning the voltage and magnetic bias, we can observe the cavity photon magnon coupling and the magnetic coupling between a magnetostatic mode and the generated CMP. The dispersion of the generated CMP was measured by either tuning the magnetic field or the applied voltage. This electrical control of CMP may open up avenues for designing advanced on-chip microwave devices that utilize light-matter interaction.

Hemisphere lens-loaded Vivaldi antenna for time domain microwave imaging of concealed objects

The hemisphere lens-loaded Vivaldi antenna for the microwave imaging applications is designed and tested in this paper. The proposed antenna is designed to work in the wide frequency band of 1–14 GHz, and is fabricated on the FR-4 substrate. The directivity of the proposed Vivaldi antenna is enhanced using a hemispherical shape dielectric lens, which is fixed on the end-fire direction of the antenna. The proposed antenna is well suited for the microwave imaging applications because of the wide frequency range and high directivity. The design of the antenna is carried out using the CST microwave studio, and various parameters such as the return loss, the radiation pattern, the directivity, and input impedance are optimized. The maximum improvement of 4.19 dB in the directivity is observed with the designed hemisphere lens. The antenna design is validated by fabricating and testing it in an anechoic environment. Finally, the designed antenna is utilized to establish a setup for measuring the scattering coefficients of various objects and structures in the frequency band of 1–14 GHz. The two-dimensional (2D) microwave images of these objects are successfully obtained in terms of the measured wide band scattering data using a novel time domain inverse scattering approach, which shows the applicability of the proposed antenna.

2D microwave tomography system for imaging of multiphase flows in metal pipes

The accurate measurement of multiphase flows is a major challenge in the process industry. In this paper, we present an experimental 8-port microwave tomography system for imaging of multiphase flows in metal pipes, primarily intended for oil–gas–water flows. A special sensor design is proposed which accounts for the requirements of the process industry and allows for broadband measurements in the frequency range from 0.7GHz to 5.5GHz. The electromagnetic behaviour of the sensor can be accurately modelled by a 2D model based on the finite element method (FEM) resulting in a moderate computational effort for image reconstruction. The hardware for data acquisition and the algorithm for image reconstruction are reported, focussing on the sensor design and the modelling of sensor's electromagnetic behaviour. The permittivity distributions in case of different static dielectric phantoms modelling oil/water-in-gas and gas/water-in-oil flow distributions were successfully reconstructed at frequencies between 1.25GHz and 2.5GHz using the one-step Gauss–Newton method.

3D microwave tomography of the breast using prior anatomical information.

The authors have developed a new 3D breast image reconstruction technique that utilizes the soft tissue spatial resolution of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) and integrates the dielectric property differentiation from microwave imaging to produce a dual modality approach with the goal of augmenting the specificity of MR imaging, possibly without the need for nonspecific contrast agents. The integration is performed through the application of a soft prior regularization which imports segmented geometric meshes generated from MR exams and uses it to constrain the microwave tomography algorithm to recover nearly uniform property distributions within segmented regions with sharp delineation between these internal subzones. Previous investigations have demonstrated that this approach is effective in 2D simulation and phantom experiments and also in clinical exams. The current study extends the algorithm to 3D and provides a thorough analysis of the sensitivity and robustness to misalignment errors in size and location between the spatial prior information and the actual data. Image results in 3D were not strongly dependent on reconstruction mesh density, and the changes of less than 30% in recovered property values arose from variations of more than 125% in target region size-an outcome which was more robust than in 2D. Similarly, changes of less than 13% occurred in the 3D image results from variations in target location of nearly 90% of the inclusion size. Permittivity and conductivity errors were about 5 times and 2 times smaller, respectively, with the 3D spatial prior algorithm in actual phantom experiments than those which occurred without priors. The presented study confirms that the incorporation of structural information in the form of a soft constraint can considerably improve the accuracy of the property estimates in predefined regions of interest. These findings are encouraging and establish a strong foundation for using the soft prior technique in clinical studies, where their microwave imaging system and MRI can simultaneously collect breast exam data in patients.

An Accurate Method for Measuring Airplane-Borne Conformal Antenna’s Radar Cross Section

AbstractThe airplane-borne conformal antenna attaches itself tightly with the airplane skin, so the conventional measurement method cannot determine the contribution of the airplane-borne conformal antenna to its radar cross section (RCS). This paper uses the 2D microwave imaging to isolate and extract the distribution of the reflectivity of the airplane-borne conformal antenna. It obtains the 2D spatial spectra of the conformal antenna through the wave spectral transform between the 2D spatial image and the 2D spatial spectrum. After the interpolation from the rectangular coordinate domain to the polar coordinate domain, the spectral domain data for the variation of the scatter of the conformal antenna with frequency and angle is obtained. The experimental results show that the measurement method proposed in this paper greatly enhances the airplane-borne conformal antenna’s RCS measurement accuracy, essentially eliminates the influences caused by the airplane skin and more accurately reveals the airplane-borne conformal antenna’s RCS scatter properties.

Microwave drying of spheres: Coupled electromagnetics-multiphase transport modeling with experimentation. Part I: Model development and experimental methodology

To understand the effects of shape, size and property changes in a spherical sample during microwave drying, a fundamentals-based coupled electromagnetics and multiphase porous media model is developed and associated experimental details are described. Microwave drying of different sized spheres is carried out in a domestic microwave oven operating at 10% power level. Maxwell's equations for electromagnetics are solved inside a three dimensional (3D) microwave oven to obtain the electric field distribution inside the oven cavity and the spheres. The drying samples are treated as a porous media consisting of three phases: solid (skeleton), liquid (water) and gas (water vapor and air). Modes of transport for the fluid phases include capillary flow, binary diffusion between vapor and air, gas pressure driven flow and phase change between liquid water and vapor which is spatially distributed. An elaborate experimental system comprising of infrared camera, optical fiber probe and digital balance is built to validate the model in terms of temperature distribution, point temperatures, gas pressure generation and moisture loss from the samples at different times during the drying process. Results, validation, sensitivity analysis and “what-if” scenarios are presented in the companion paper. The work together would provide tremendous benefits when designing and developing microwave drying processes and products through a novel synergy between physics-based modeling and detailed experimentation.

A microwave imaging-based 3D localization algorithm for an in-body RF source as in wireless capsule endoscopes.

A microwave imaging-based technique for 3D localization of an in-body RF source is presented. Such a technique can be useful for localization of an RF source as in wireless capsule endoscopes for positioning of any abnormality in the gastrointestinal tract. Microwave imaging is used to determine the dielectric properties (relative permittivity and conductivity) of the tissues that are required for a precise localization. A 2D microwave imaging algorithm is used for determination of the dielectric properties. Calibration method is developed for removing any error due to the used 2D imaging algorithm on the imaging data of a 3D body. The developed method is tested on a simple 3D heterogeneous phantom through finite-difference-time-domain simulations. Additive white Gaussian noise at the signal-to-noise ratio of 30 dB is added to the simulated data to make them more realistic. The developed calibration method improves the imaging and the localization accuracy. Statistics on the localization accuracy are generated by randomly placing the RF source at various positions inside the small intestine of the phantom. The cumulative distribution function of the localization error is plotted. In 90% of the cases, the localization accuracy was found within 1.67 cm, showing the capability of the developed method for 3D localization.

Superconducting quantum node for entanglement and storage of microwave radiation.

Superconducting circuits and microwave signals are good candidates to realize quantum networks, which are the backbone of quantum computers. We have realized a quantum node based on a 3D microwave superconducting cavity parametrically coupled to a transmission line by a Josephson ring modulator. We first demonstrate the time-controlled capture, storage, and retrieval of an optimally shaped propagating microwave field, with an efficiency as high as 80%. We then demonstrate a second essential ability, which is the time-controlled generation of an entangled state distributed between the node and a microwave channel.

3D parallel-detection microwave tomography for clinical breast imaging.

A biomedical microwave tomography system with 3D-imaging capabilities has been constructed and translated to the clinic. Updates to the hardware and reconfiguration of the electronic-network layouts in a more compartmentalized construct have streamlined system packaging. Upgrades to the data acquisition and microwave components have increased data-acquisition speeds and improved system performance. By incorporating analog-to-digital boards that accommodate the linear amplification and dynamic-range coverage our system requires, a complete set of data (for a fixed array position at a single frequency) is now acquired in 5.8 s. Replacement of key components (e.g., switches and power dividers) by devices with improved operational bandwidths has enhanced system response over a wider frequency range. High-integrity, low-power signals are routinely measured down to -130 dBm for frequencies ranging from 500 to 2300 MHz. Adequate inter-channel isolation has been maintained, and a dynamic range >110 dB has been achieved for the full operating frequency range (500-2900 MHz). For our primary band of interest, the associated measurement deviations are less than 0.33% and 0.5° for signal amplitude and phase values, respectively. A modified monopole antenna array (composed of two interwoven eight-element sub-arrays), in conjunction with an updated motion-control system capable of independently moving the sub-arrays to various in-plane and cross-plane positions within the illumination chamber, has been configured in the new design for full volumetric data acquisition. Signal-to-noise ratios (SNRs) are more than adequate for all transmit/receive antenna pairs over the full frequency range and for the variety of in-plane and cross-plane configurations. For proximal receivers, in-plane SNRs greater than 80 dB are observed up to 2900 MHz, while cross-plane SNRs greater than 80 dB are seen for 6 cm sub-array spacing (for frequencies up to 1500 MHz). We demonstrate accurate recovery of 3D dielectric property distributions for breast-like phantoms with tumor inclusions utilizing both the in-plane and new cross-plane data.