Microwave and Optical Technology Letters最新文献

In this letter, a novel reconfigurable filter with multifunction of continuous tunable frequency, bandwidth (BW), and attenuation is proposed. The tunable filter is integrated designed based on a fully tunable filtering coupling structure with external quality factor (Q_e) control and a tunable attenuation unit with impedance transformation capability. The fully tunable filtering coupling structure is deigned using terminal varactor loaded half-wavelength microstrip resonator with tunable center frequency and coupling coefficient. Adjustment of Q_e is realized through the addition of a varactor at the feedline port. Tunable attenuation is achieved by loading PIN diodes through a coupling structure. To improve the efficiency of impedance transformation, an asymmetric structure is employed. The performance degradation of the bandwidth and center frequency due to the tunable attenuation can be compensated by the fully tunable filtering coupling structure. The measurements show that the reconfigurable filter can be tuned from 0.99 to 1.61 GHz with tunable attenuation and bandwidth. The attenuation can be tuned over a range of 30.6 dB at 1.4 GHz, and the fractional bandwidth (FBW) can be tuned from 10% to 30% at 1.3 GHz.

This letter presents a novel frequency-reconfigurable aperture-coupled circular patch antenna based on substrate-integrated suspended line (SISL) technology, designed for single-/dual-band switching and frequency tuning in the C-band. The proposed antenna consists of an aperture-coupled circular patch with a sectoral slot and a biasing circuit to control a single PIN diode or a pair of varactor diodes. The characteristic mode analysis (CMA) was instrumental in the design of the reconfigurable patch and the feeding. The first antenna configuration can switch between single and dual-band operation, with a single band operating at 5.6 GHz with 11.62% fractional bandwidth (FBW) and a peak realized gain of 9.01 dBi, and a dual-band at 5.3/6 GHz with 6.04%/6.17% FBW and 8.57 dBi peak realized gain. The second antenna configuration (with the same physical structure) can tune the operational frequency between 4.84 and 5.89 GHz based on varactor diode reverse bias voltage with a frequency ratio (FR) of 1.22 and achieve a peak realized gain of 9.44 dBi within the tuning range. Both antenna configurations exhibited stable broadside radiation. The total antenna size is $��0.8�\; �{\lambda }_0�\; �\times �\; �0.8�\; �{\lambda }_0�\; �\times �\; �0.06�\; �{\lambda }_0�$, where $��{\lambda }_0�$ is the free space wavelength corresponding to the lowest operating frequency. This study provides a comprehensive solution for next-generation wireless systems by combining a compact platform, innovative feeding mechanisms, and state-of-the-art analysis techniques.

A wideband dual-polarization magneto-electric (ME) dipole antenna for mobile communications is presented. A crossed-dipole feed mechanism is used to inspire the ME dipole antenna for achieving a wide frequency band. The radiation arm of the electric dipoles is developed by two square patches having different dimensions, thus enhancing the impedance matching at the higher frequency range. To enhance the isolation, two metal pillars are used and embedded between the cross-dipole feed mechanism and ground plane. By using above-detailed scheme, a wideband ME dipole antenna was designed, analyzed and measured. Our antenna has a broad bandwidth of 65.38% (1.39–2.74 GHz), and high isolation beyond 28.5 dB over the operating band. It achieves stable unidirectional radiation pattern and the gain is 9.3 ± 1.3 dBi within the operating band. These characteristics make the proposed design a promising candidate for mobile communication systems.

In this study, we propose a novel all-dielectric metasurface polarization converter to realize interconversion of linear and circular polarization in inter-satellite laser communication systems, which function as a quarter-wave plate (QWP). The metasurface exhibits a high transmittance (> 0.8) over the 1500–1600 nm wavelength range, with a peak value exceeding 0.9 at 1550 nm. Additionally, the reflectance is maintained below 0.1 throughout this spectral region. It efficiently transforms y-polarized light into left-handed circularly polarized (LCP) light with an ellipticity exceeding 0.99 and converts right-handed circularly polarized (RCP) light into x-polarized light with a linear polarization degree approaching unity, thereby achieving near-perfect polarization conversion efficiency. Furthermore, we investigate the effects of structural parameters, polarization, and incidence angle on the polarization conversion performance of the metasurface. The results demonstrate that the proposed all-dielectric metasurface achieves dual functionality: efficient interconversion between linear and circular polarization states, while simultaneously enhancing laser communication system efficiency through effective stray light suppression. These results suggest broad applicability of the all-dielectric metasurface in advancing inter-satellite laser communication technologies.

A novel filtering antenna based on spoof surface plasmon polaritons (SSPPs) is presented. The antenna has high suppression performance and tunable radiation nulls. The proposed antenna mainly consists of four parts, a metal ground, an SSPP-based transmission line etched with slots, two driving elements on the upper and bottom surfaces, and three parasitic elements on the upper surface. By using the proposed SSPP-based transmission line, good out-of-band suppression performance is achieved. Moreover, the out-of-band resonances are suppressed by etching slots in the SSPP structure. Besides, the radiation nulls of the antenna can be tuned by adjusting the key geometrical dimensions, which would be useful to fit different interference. The measured operating band is 2.130–2.606 GHz (20.1% at f₀ = 2.368 GHz), the in-band average gain of the proposed antenna is 8.89 dBi with the peak realized gain of 10.55 dBi. The upper out-of-band suppression level is larger than 23.708 dB over 3.2–7.4 GHz band, while the gain response decreases rapidly from the maximum value (10.55 dBi at f = 2.52 GHz) to the minimum value (−67.315 dBi at f = 3.4 GHz).

We propose a novel and robust bias control method for Mach–Zehnder modulators that enables precise stabilization using low-amplitude pilot tones without requiring the detection of second- or higher-order harmonics. The technique relies on the ratio of the partial derivative of the direct current component to that of the first-order pilot tone with respect to the bias voltage, serving as a high-sensitivity feedback signal. Simulation and experimental results verify that the method significantly lowers the required pilot tone power, mitigates intermodulation distortion, and improves system linearity. Furthermore, it ensures stable and accurate bias control even under optical power fluctuations, making it particularly well-suited for microwave photonic links that demand high signal-to-noise ratios.

This paper innovatively proposes a phase-tunable phase shifter with filtering functionality, which utilizes the concept of transversal signal-interaction. It further achieves the extension of phase adjustment by cascading with switch-type phase shifters. The structure is analyzed using even- and odd-mode analysis and validated through full-wave simulations and measurements. Experimental results demonstrate 373° phase shift at 1.75 GHz with 7.4% bandwidth, ± 10.3° phase error, and 4.9 dB maximum insertion loss. The design achieves precise phase control in a miniaturized layout suitable for 5G beamforming systems.

This letter presents a 2–17 GHz low-noise amplifier (LNA) Monolithic Microwave Integrated Circuit (MMIC) with a temperature compensation circuit, implemented in a GaAs depletion-mode (D-mode) process using a single power supply. A temperature-compensated bias circuit using a source diode is introduced, followed by a negative feedback circuit to extend the bandwidth. The design employs a single power supply for enhanced practicality. Measured results show a gain exceeding 14 dB, a noise figure (NF) below 3 dB, and input/output return losses greater than 10 dB. The gain variation remains within ±0.001524 dB/°C from −55°C to +125°C. This LNA exhibits ultra-wideband performance and excellent gain stability across a wide temperature range.

In this letter, an ultra-thin and broadband transmissive linear-to-circular polarization converter (LTCPC) is presented. This LTCPC consists of a single substrate with symmetrical metallic patterns on its surface, composed of split rings and an internally orthogonal crossed dipole. By orthogonal decomposition of linear polarized (LP) waves from different directions, this converter can realize circularly polarized (CP) transmission, and the type of CP transmitted wave can be switched by changing the incident LP direction. The proposed converter achieves a 3 dB axial ratio (AR) bandwidth of 32% (26.5–36.6 GHz) and maintains stable AR performance under oblique incidence angles up to $��\; ��4�\; �0^{\circ }��$. It features a low profile with a compact volume of 0.016$��\; ��{\lambda }_0^3��$, where $��\; ��{\lambda }_0��$ is the wavelength of the center frequency. After full wave simulation, a prototype of $��\; ��16�\; �\times �\; �16��$ cells was fabricated and tested. A comparison shows that the tested and simulated results are almost the same. With its good polarization conversion performance and ultra-thin profile, the proposed LTCPC can find wide applications in Ka-band satellite communications.