Traveling-wave Antenna Research Articles

Topological traveling-wave radiation based on chiral edge states in photonic Chern insulators.

Topological chiral edge states in photonic Chern insulators, which exhibit the one-way propagation property with reflection-free behavior and excellent robustness against perturbations, have become an important frontier in topological photonics. Currently, there have been many studies on its robust propagation behavior, but few studies have focused on its radiation properties. In developing functional photonic devices (e.g., topological antennas) for real-world applications, studying traveling-wave radiation characteristics based on chiral edge states deserves more attention. In this Letter, we propose a topological traveling-wave radiation system based on chiral edge states in photonic Chern insulators that show a steerable beam and reflection-free property. By introducing the perturbation controlled by magnetic fields, we demonstrate that exploiting a certain strength of perturbation can flexibly manipulate the radiation beam. In particular, the proposed dual-channel topological traveling-wave radiation system can not only improve the gain but also overcome the issue of impedance matching. The proposed configurations provide a novel way to manipulate topological-wave radiation and have potential applications for designing topological traveling-wave antennas with a reflection-free property.

First high-power helicon results from DIII-D

Abstract More than 0.6 MW of rf power at 476 MHz has been coupled to DIII-D plasmas by launching helicon (whistler) waves with a traveling-wave antenna (comb-line) in the fast-wave polarization (Van Compernolle et al 2021 Nucl. Fusion 61 116034) which resulted in the observation of electron heating of the core plasma with single-pass absorption based on ray-tracing in L-mode discharges. The coupling performance of the 1.5 m wide 30-element comb-line traveling-wave antenna has been consistent with expectations based on the 2015–2016 experiments on DIII-D with a low-power 12-element prototype (Pinsker et al 2018 Nucl. Fusion 58 106007). The conditioning process that was necessary to carry out high-power experiments is discussed; rf-specific impurities have not been observed. Parametric decay instabilities have been observed and are being investigated as a potential edge absorption mechanism (Porkolab et al 2023 AIP Conf. Proc. 2984 070004).

Phase-controlled pattern-tunable optical traveling wave antenna array

An optical phased array is designed based on equally spaced identical Au waveguides serving as optical traveling wave antennas (OTWAs). Phased surface plasmon polaritons are fed through the Au waveguides and partly radiate out at the terminals. The simulation results indicate that the pattern maximum of a 7-element OTWA array can be dynamically steered over a range of up to 60.6° by changing the excitation phase differences between the elements, and the main lobe is narrowed compared to the single-element case. A theoretical analysis about the tunable pattern by the pattern multiplication principle is carried out, which is basically consistent with the simulations. Such an OTWA array should have potential applications in nano-optics due to its ability to steer the pattern without mechanical motion.

Analysis of Near-Field Characteristics on Improved Structures of Double-Slot Antipodal Vivaldi Antenna.

A characterization of near-field impulse responses based on electromagnetic (EM) near-field data from an EM solver to explore features of the propagation process on a well-known wideband traveling wave antenna-double-slot Vivaldi antenna-is presented in this article. The intensity, propagating time and partitional response characteristics facilitate interpretation of the propagation process and impacts of the antenna partitions on the process. The EM energy flows guided, reoriented and scattered along a sequence of antennas transmitting and radiating segments were recognized. The geometric features of near-field wavefront surfaces supported evaluation of the EM flow proportions and antenna directivity. Impact of the structural section on radiation was also assessed by the partitional far-field response characteristic in frequency and time domains. Supported by many complementary characteristics in the analyses, inherent features of the propagation process were emphasized and false flags were minimized. By this approach, the simplification for the near-field propagation model contributed to enhancing the insight of near-field propagation processes on the double-slot antipodal Vivaldi antennas and enabled optimizing the antenna structure details.

High gain antipodal meander line antenna for point-to-point WLAN/WiMAX applications

This paper introduces a planar antipodal meander line antenna fabricated using RO3003 substrate. The proposed antenna is designed to radiate in the end-fire direction, achieving a maximum measured gain of 10.43 dBi within its working bandwidth, which ranges from 2.24 GHz to 2.7 GHz, covering long-range WLAN/WiMAX applications. A systematic procedure is adopted in the design process to prove its tunability to cover other application requirements in terms of gain and bandwidth. The proposed design steps show that the bandwidth and the gain can independently be controlled by adjusting specific design parameters such as the number of radiators and the scaling factor. The antenna is fine-tuned using sensitivity analysis and parametric study to guarantee optimum operation at the desired bandwidth. Experimental measurements of the fabricated design demonstrate a high degree of correlation with simulations conducted using CST and HFSS. In comparison to other end-fire antennas presented in the literature, the proposed design manifests its capability to provide high gain for WLAN/WiMAX nodes connectivity. The measurements show that the proposed traveling wave antenna exhibits a high radiation efficiency with maximum value of 99.8% at 2.35 GHz. The measured side lobe level is found to be below -18\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$-18$$\\end{document} dB and -20\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$-20$$\\end{document} dB at 2.45 GHz along the E\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$E$$\\end{document}- and H\\documentclass[12pt]{minimal} \\usepackage{amsmath} \\usepackage{wasysym} \\usepackage{amsfonts} \\usepackage{amssymb} \\usepackage{amsbsy} \\usepackage{mathrsfs} \\usepackage{upgreek} \\setlength{\\oddsidemargin}{-69pt} \\begin{document}$$H$$\\end{document}-planes, respectively. Apart from its excellent radiation performance, the antenna is characterized by its low profile and fabrication simplicity.

A Millimeter-Wave Broadband Multi-Mode Substrate-Integrated Gap Waveguide Traveling-Wave Antenna with Orbit Angular Momentum.

Orbit angular momentum (OAM) has been considered a new dimension for improving channel capacity in recent years. In this paper, a millimeter-wave broadband multi-mode waveguide traveling-wave antenna with OAM is proposed by innovatively utilizing the transmitted electromagnetic waves (EMWs) characteristic of substrate-integrated gap waveguides (SIGWs) to introduce phase delay, resulting in coupling to the radiate units with a phase jump. Nine "L"-shaped slot radiate elements are cut in a circular order at a certain angle on the SIGW to generate spin angular momentum (SAM) and OAM. To generate more OAM modes and match the antenna, four "Π"-shaped slot radiate units with a 90° relationship to each other are designed in this circular array. The simulation results show that the antenna operates at 28 GHz, with a -10 dB fractional bandwidth (FBW) = 35.7%, ranging from 25.50 to 35.85 GHz and a VSWR ≤ 1.5 dB from 28.60 to 32.0 GHz and 28.60 to 32.0 GHz. The antenna radiates a linear polarization (LP) mode with a gain of 9.3 dBi at 34.0~37.2 GHz, a l = 2 SAM-OAM (i.e., circular polarization OAM (CP-OAM)) mode with 8.04 dBi at 25.90~28.08 GHz, a l = 1 and l = 2 hybrid OAM mode with 5.7 dBi at 28.08~29.67 GHz, a SAM (i.e., left/right hand circular polarization (L/RHCP) mode with 4.6 dBi at 29.67~30.41 GHz, and a LP mode at 30.41~35.85 GHz. In addition, the waveguide transmits energy with a bandwidth ranging from 26.10 to 38.46 GHz. Within the in-band, only a quasi-TEM mode is transmitted with an energy transmission loss |S21| ≤ 2 dB.

Design and Characterization of a Traveling-Wave Antenna for Millimeter Applications in the Sub-THz Band

The main challenge in manufacturing antennas in the sub-THz band is their small size, which requires adapted manufacturing tools. This paper proposes a uniform linear 3 × 1 traveling-wave antenna array (ULTWAA) for millimetre applications in the sub-THz band. The designed array allows a continuous beam orientation of ±46.1° in the E-plane. A small quarter-wave line added to the ends of the antenna allows the beam to be oriented towards the inside of the antenna, cancelling out surface waves and adapting the impedance to the scanning angle. Thanks to this device, the waves produced are progressive. The antenna manufactured at 100 GHz measures 13 × 9.7 × 0.125 mm. The measured peak gain is 14.2 dBi with 70% bandwidth. For in-phase radiation, the distances between the antenna units have been adjusted, but the adjustment process is tedious due to the interdependence between the antenna units.

Unified framework for terahertz radiation from a single- or two-color plasma filament.

The plasma filament induced by photo-ionization in transparent media (e.g., air) is a competitive terahertz (THz) source, whose mechanism has been widely studied in two separate schemes, i.e., the one- or two-color femtosecond laser filamentation. However, the physical commonality of these two schemes is less explored currently, and a common theory is in urgent need. Here, we proposed the traveling-wave antenna (TWA) model applicable to both single- and dual-color laser fields, which successfully reproduced the reported far-field THz angular distribution/dispersion from different filament lengths with either a constant or a varied plasma density. This work paves the way toward a deeper understanding of the important laser-filament-based THz sources within the same theoretical framework.

A Multipolarized Traveling-Wave Series-Fed Antenna Array Based on Patch

In this paper, a simple broadband multipolarized traveling-wave series-fed antenna array is proposed. The radiation unit cells are multiple squares. The square unit cell will change between circular polarized (CP) and linear polarized (LP) through a reasonable feeding mode. By adjusting the equivalent length of the unit cell, the Q value of the antenna can be reduced, resulting in the increase of the bandwidth of the array. The array consists of seven-unit cells and dual-port feeding. The unit cells which are connected by a microstrip line are arranged in a circular array. A reasonable layout of unit cells can achieve good port isolation of the array. The polarization performance of the array antenna is the same as that of the unit cell. The antenna is fabricated and measured. The measured results are consistent with the simulated results.

RF design of helical long-wire traveling wave antenna for helicon current drive in KSTAR

This paper presents the development, fabrication, and implementation of a state-of-the-art helical long-wire traveling wave antenna (LW-TWA) for the Korea Superconducting Tokamak Advanced Research (KSTAR) helicon wave current drive (HCD). A multi-stage design approach has been employed incorporating schematic and simplified radio frequency (RF) modeling, to fulfill critical antenna performance criteria, such as parallel refractive index, while maintaining low electric field properties and load resilience. The advanced design includes a Faraday shield and a structurally rigid support for mechanical stability and minimal RF performance distortion. The sophisticated design and megawatt (MW)-class RF power handling capability of the LW-TWA hold the potential to improve HCD performance in KSTAR plasma.

Waveguide Antenna Topologies for Distributed High-Frequency Near-Field Communication and Localization

High-frequency near-field communication is an inherently short-range technology. However, the total capture volume can be increased with traveling-wave antennas. Here, we report on analysis, design, and measurements of flexible waveguide antennas and discuss their performance for near-field communication and localization. The antennas comprise sections of coaxial transmission lines loaded periodically with field-generating inductive networks. Several topologies were compared to each other theoretically and the best-performing candidate was selected to fabricate antennas between 5 and 48 meters long, each containing 15 read nodes. Waveguiding properties of the antennas were measured and agreement with theory was demonstrated. Afterwards, each antenna was integrated with a custom NFC reader and shown to be capable of near-field communication with and localization of commercial off-the-shelf transponders compliant with ISO 14443 Type A protocol. The transverse detection range was 10 cm with 1 W input RF power. Both one-dimensional and quasi two-dimensional configurations were tested. The proposed antennas are flexible, scalable, have low loss, and could be used for near-field communication, identification, and tracking of distributed and mobile tags.

RF conditioning to suppress multipactor discharge for helicon wave current drive in KSTAR

The efficient off-axis non-inductive current drive using auxiliary power is essential for the steady state operation of tokamaks. In previous studies, a helicon wave current drive has been proposed for high beta plasma in several fusion devices, and the 476-MHz radio-frequency (RF) system for the proposed helicon wave has been installed in KSTAR. However, multipactor discharge occurred inside the waveguide system, including the vacuum feedthrough (VFT), and it interrupted the normal RF propagation to plasma. Thus, for successful helicon wave current drive, suppressing the multipactor discharge in the waveguide system, including the 6–1/8″ coaxial type VFT and the newly manufactured helical type traveling wave antenna (TWA) is essential before installation in KSTAR. RF conditioning utilizing a short pulse modulation during a long period helps suppress the multipactor discharge, enabling the 1-MW 476-MHz RF to pass through the entire waveguide system despite the existence of multipactor discharge. Following RF conditioning in VFT with a short pulse modulation, the newly manufactured helical type TWA and VFT for helicon wave current drive have been successfully installed in KSTAR.

A single layer wideband Vivaldi antenna with a novel feed structure

AbstractAn increase of 7 GHz in the industrial, scientific and medical ISM band around 60 GHz has opened it up for many modern wireless applications such as 5G. This means that new component designs that can cater for this large bandwidth are the need of the hour. The design of a large bandwidth, completely planar and high gain novel Vivaldi antenna is presented. Being a travelling wave antenna and implemented using single metal layer make it an excellent candidate for not only Printed Circuit Board based applications but also the lossy Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor technology. For the first time, the feed of the antenna is integrated on the same conductor layer as the antenna itself. Using this design technique the problem of thin gap between the metal layers has been mitigated. The final measured results show that the antenna goes above and beyond ISM band with excellent matching performance from 55 to 84 GHz. A high gain of 7 dBi is maintained over a bandwidth of 57–75 GHz with a radiation efficiency of almost 80%. The results show that the design is quite suitable for integration in a millimetre‐wave transceiver system that can support high data rate applications.

Universal and Non-Iterative Design Method for In-Phase Radiation of Microstrip Traveling-Wave Series-Fed Antenna Arrays

Microstrip traveling-wave series-fed antenna arrays (MTSAAs) have been popularly developed for radar systems in the millimeter-waveband. Because the antennas are connected and fed in series in MTSAA, in-phase radiation of the antenna elements with properly tapered amplitude for achieving a broadside beam with a low sidelobe level (SLL) is challenging. Although the reported series-fed patch and comb-line arrays accomplished the goal, design equations for the optimum distances between antenna elements in the series-fed array do not guarantee in-phase radiation due to the mutual coupling in array structures. Therefore, optimization of the distances in the array using full-wave simulations is inevitable. In this article, we propose the first universal and non-iterative design equation that compensates for the phase offset generated in patch and comb-line MTSAAs and successfully found optimum distances for broadside beams with low SLLs without optimization. Finally, we fabricated both MTSAAs with ten elements operating at 76.5 GHz and demonstrated almost 13 dB boresight gain and low SLLs near −18 dB without a beam tilt.

Generation of orbital angular momentum multiplexing millimeter waves based on a circular traveling wave antenna.

Orbital angular momentum (OAM) has recently attracted extensive attention in the radio frequency domain due to its potential applications in various areas. In the OAM-based communication system, the development of the OAM-generating antennas lies at the heart of the matter to generate and receive vortex beams. In this work, a multiplexing/demultiplexing millimeter-wave OAM antenna based on the traveling-wave circular loop structure is proposed and experimentally demonstrated. The feeding networks are implemented using waveguide ports which are inherent integration in millimeter wave communication systems. A prototype with OAM states l = ±3 carried by the z polarization and l = ±2 for the x and y polarizations at 60 GHz is fabricated and measured. Measured near-field distributions and far-field radiation patterns show excellent agreement with the simulated ones. Furthermore, based on the designer strategy, four coaxially propagating waves with OAM modes l = ±3 and ±5 for the z polarization component and l = ±2 and ±4 for the x, y polarization components are investigated, respectively. The antenna will have a positive effect on the application potential of OAM-based wireless communication.

Novel Design Methodology for 3D-Printed Lenses for Travelling Wave Antennas

A novel methodology is introduced for designing bespoke homogeneous and graded index lenses for enhancing the gain of travelling wave antenna arrays (TWAs). 3D-printed lenses in the literature are majorly explored with standing wave antennas (SWAs) such as a microstrip or a horn antenna for gain enhancement. As there is progressively less power radiated from each slot in a TWA, as well as the successive phase delay between slots, the existing lens design approaches used for SWAs is not optimal for TWAs. Accordingly, we present a new approach of introducing a curvature to the lens that is derived from studying the power radiation profile of each slot of the TWA. This new methodology is demonstrated on a dielectric filled waveguide (DFW) slot array antenna operating at 26 -30 GHz band. An optimized dielectric graded lens and an optimized homogeneous lens have both been designed, fabricated, and measured with the DFW slot array. The new lens demonstrated a gain enhancement of more than 7 dB compared to less than 4 dB with conventional dielectric lenses. The proposed lens theory has been further verified with a bespoke optimized lens for a periodic stub-loaded microstrip leaky-wave antenna with a beam-scanning of 65∘. Design rules are included that can be applied for any TWA.

A Standing-Wave Microstrip Leaky-Wave Antenna on EH₁/EH₃ Modes With Enhanced Broadside Gain

A conventional microstrip EH1-mode bidirectional leaky-wave antenna (LWA) usually works as a traveling wave antenna, and its typical maximum broadside gain is commonly obtained when the phase and leakage constants of the used EH1-mode are exactly equal to each other. In this article, it is, for the first time, revealed that this bidirectional LWA can alternatively operate under standing-wave states when its terminations may be open-circuited. Under some of these states, the open-terminated LWA attains higher efficiency due to the extremely small leakage constant. However, it is unfortunately illustrated that split beams are generated at these concerned states owing to the inherent opposite directions of equivalent magnetic current distributions along the two edges of the strip conductor. In order to transform the unwanted split beams into a single high-gain beam at the broadside, a novel standing-wave bidirectional LWA is presented under the operation of the hybrid EH1 and EH3 propagating modes. By analyzing the transversal electric fields of EH1- and EH3-modes, respectively, it is demonstrated that their leaky electric fields can be crucially made in an antiphase manner. Next, the EH3-mode electric field is employed to periodically replace the original EH1-mode counterpart, so as to reshape the electric fields along the two parallel radiating edges toward a desired in- phase pattern. In such a way, the appealing high-gain beam can be successfully achieved. As an example, such a hybrid-mode standing-wave bidirectional LWA is designed, simulated, and tested. The measured and simulated far-field radiation performances show excellent agreement, and they both powerfully indicate that our reported antenna has enhanced its radiation gain at the broadside compared to the conventional EH1-mode traveling-wave bidirectional LWA

Traveling-wave antenna model for terahertz radiation from laser-plasma interactions

Generation of terahertz (THz) wave from air plasma induced by femtosecond laser pulses with a single central frequency (the so-called "single-color") is one of the fundamental interactions between light and matter, and is also the basis of subsequent pumping schemes using two- or multi-color laser fields. Recently, more states of media beyond gas (e.g., atomic cluster and liquid) via photo-ionization have brought new experimental observations of THz radiation, which can no longer be simply attributed to the mainstream model of the transition-Cherenkov radiation (TCR), thus making the whole picture unclear. Here, we revisited the mechanism of this dynamic process in a new view of the traveling-wave antenna (TWA) model. By successfully reproducing the reported far-field THz radiation profiles from various plasma filament arrangements, the wide applicability of the TWA theory has been revealed. On the other hand in the microscopic view, we investigated the plasma oscillation during filamentation aiming at further bridging the plasma filament and the antenna. Accordingly, THz-plasma resonance has been theoretically and experimentally demonstrated as the elementary THz emitter, paving the way towards fully understanding this important single-color plasma based THz source.

Long-Slot Traveling-Wave Antenna Exhibiting Low Squint-Angle Variation Over Frequency

A 3-D-printed long-slot traveling-wave antenna (L-STA) design exhibiting a low output-beam squint-angle variation as a function of frequency is presented. The wave velocity within the rectangular waveguide is tailored by tuning the distance between the conductor’s surfaces. A surface is corrugated at the bottom of the waveguide for fine tunning and efficiency. WR-28 commercial launchers are used to connect the excitation of the antenna on one side of the waveguide and a matched load on the other side. The design is adapted to make a smooth transition between the WR-28 and the proposed antenna design. By properly choosing the direction of the main beam, the first mode excites the antenna and achieve the desired directivity angle. A prototype of the presented design as well as a reference design are fabricated, tested, and compared. Experiments confirm that the antenna performs as designed. The same directivity direction of the main beam is found at 31 and 35 GHz. In the simulations, the directivities for the reference antenna are 16.06 and 16.89 dBi for 31 and 35 GHz, respectively, while our design show directivities of 15.03 and 15.77 dBi for the same frequencies.

Low-Profile High-Gain Endfire Antenna With Circular Polarization

A circularly-polarized (CP) traveling-wave endfire antenna featuring low profile, high gain, and simple feeding structure is presented in this communication. Offset parallel strips with proper dielectric loading are employed in a low-profile substrate to achieve two orthogonal electric field components with equal magnitude and 90° phase difference for CP endfire radiation. Meanwhile, periodic phase-loading technique is used to achieve a proper phase constant for high endfire gain. A prototype is designed and fabricated to verify the proposed method. Experimental results demonstrate CP endfire radiation within a frequency band of 9.78–10.09 GHz. The average endfire gain is 10.3 dBic with an average efficiency of 62.5%.