Ming Su, Xilian Chen, Jiahua Liu, Zhaodong Gao, Ming-Chun Tang, Yuanan Liu
In this communication, a novel 1-bit programmable reflect-array antenna is proposed for wideband beam-steering applications in functionally integrated radio frequency (RF) systems. The proposed reflective element is characterized by a single-diode resonator with multiple resonant modes in both the ‘ON’ and ‘OFF’ states. By independently manipulating these modes to achieve an interleaved and equidistant distribution in the frequency spectrum, an extremely wideband 1-bit phase switching capability is realized. Simulation results indicate that the presented reflective element can generate a stable reflection phase reversal from 9.3 GHz to 21 GHz when the diode alternates between two states. For experimental validation, a 16 × 16 element reflect-array antenna was fabricated and measured. Measurement confirms that the proposed reflect-array antenna can achieve satisfactory radiation and beam-scanning performance over an 80% relative bandwidth. The flexible electromagnetic manipulation capability across a wide spectrum renders the proposed design highly applicable in advanced radiators and reconfigurable intelligent surfaces in next-generation RF systems.