A Photonic Transmitter for Beam Switching in mm-wave Wireless Links

Abstract

This abstract describes the first design and assembly of a photonically-excited antenna at E-band for beam switching in millimeter-wave wireless links. The designed antenna consists of two arrays of stacked patches, with one photodiode feeding each array. The stacked patch provides an impedance bandwidth larger than 23 % and a stable radiation pattern over the E-band. The array is combined with a lens to increase the overall gain. Excitation of either patch array allows beam steering between ±2.7° for accurate beam alignment.