Microfluidically-Tunable Metamaterial Lenses for Wideband, High-Power, Phased-Array Applications

这项研究的目的是从根本上推动经济实惠的高功率相控阵天线技术的发展。该方法是利用微波超材料和微流体领域的最新进展来开发一种新型的高功率、可调谐、真延时微波透镜。知识优势：成本、功率处理能力、热管理和效率之间存在的基本权衡阻碍了大功率、可负担的相控阵天线技术的发展。这个项目试图用一种以前未被探索过的跨学科方法来解决这些基本的缺点。一种新的超材料将用于开发能够处理非常高功率水平的真延时微波透镜。在基于透镜的相控阵中，微流控机制将用于快速重新配置透镜响应并实现动态光束转向。更广泛的影响：该项目预计将通过在未来的无线系统中大量使用相控阵技术，对社会和经济产生积极影响，旨在解决重大的社会和经济挑战，包括有效获取无线电频谱和经济上可行的太阳能传输。这项工作的教育目标与研究目标密切相关，包括让代表性不足的本科生和研究生参与研究活动，将研究纳入本科和研究生水平的工程教学，以及开发和广泛传播基于研究的教育材料。这项工作的研究成果将与威斯康星大学麦迪逊分校现有的课程相结合，以提高本科和研究生的工程课程。

The objective of this research is to fundamentally advance the development of affordable, high-power phased-array antenna technology. The approach is to use the recent advances in the areas of microwave metamaterials and microfluidics to develop a new class of high-power-capable, tunable, true-time-delay microwave lenses.Intellectual Merit: The fundamental tradeoffs that exist between cost, power handling capability, thermal management, and efficiency have hindered the development of high-power, affordable phased-array antenna technology. This project seeks to address these fundamental shortcomings using a previously unexplored interdisciplinary approach. A new class of metamaterials will be used to develop true-time-delay microwave lenses capable of handling very high power levels. A microfluidic mechanism will be used to rapidly reconfigure the lens response and achieve dynamic beam steering in lens-based phased arrays.Broader Impacts: This project is expected to positively impact the society and the economy by proliferating the use of phased-array technology in future wireless systems that aim at addressing grand societal and economic challenges, including efficient access to the radio spectrum and economically viable solar power transmission. Educational goals of this work are intimately linked to the research objectives and include involvement of underrepresented undergraduate and graduate students in research activities, integration of research into the teaching of engineering at the undergraduate and graduate levels, and development and broad dissemination of research-based educational materials. The research findings of this work will be integrated with existing University of Wisconsin-Madison courses to enhance the undergraduate and graduate engineering curricula.