3-D-Printed Monolithically Integrated Waveguide Polarizer

Abstract

This article proposes three monolithically integrated waveguide polarizer novel designs, Devices I–III, using masked stereolithography (MSLA) additive manufacturing (AM) technology. A customized waveguide acts as a standard transmission line (TL), and septa are introduced at various locations within the waveguide to convert the linear polarization (LP) to circular polarization (CP). Device I demonstrates the successful proposed fabrication, with the largest size and the broadest axial ratio (AR) bandwidth. Device II brings compactness versus Device I, with the smallest size and the narrowest AR bandwidth. Device III features a comparable AR bandwidth to Device I, with reduced dimensions. Our novel configuration approach, realized by a single MSLA fabrication run, simultaneously employs the resin’s mechanical and dielectric properties, permitting the avoidance of additional fixtures and assembly misalignments in the standard metallic polarizers. An in-house conductive spraying and copper coating followed the MSLA process, and all Devices I–III exhibit reasonable agreement between measurements and simulations in the Ku band. The proposed polarizers offer a new way of using the material in emerging processing technologies.