Electronically reconfigurable microwave lens and shutter using cascaded frequency selective surfaces and polyimide macro-electro-mechanical systems

• Main Authors: Crawford, Thomas M, Kelly, P. Keith, Lalezari, Farzin, Boone, Theresa C
• Format: Patent
• Language: English
• Published: 23.11.2004

The present invention relates to reconfigurable microwave lenses and shutters. In particular, the present invention relates to reconfigurable microwave lenses and shutters using cascaded frequency selective surfaces and polyimide-macro-electro-mechanical systems. A radio frequency reconfigurable lens is provided. In particular, a lens comprising at least two opposed frequency selective surface sheets is provided. A relative phase shift may be imparted to an incident radio frequency wave by varying the distance between at least some of the unit cells of a first of the FSS sheets and adjacent unit cells on a second of the FSS sheets. In order to provide a desired phase taper across the width of a lens, and/or to provide different phase shift amounts, pairs of FSS surfaces having controllable columns or rows can be cascaded together. According to an additional aspect of the present invention, radio frequency waves can be scanned by cascading multiple tunable stages. The present invention also provides a radio frequency shutter.