3D Printed Antennas for 5G Communication: Current Progress and Future Challenges

With the advent of 5G and future trends for communication systems moving to millimeter wave (MMW) and higher frequencies, antennas will be required to have high gain, wide bandwidth, and low losses. 3D printing realizes structures by sequential stacking layer-by-layer, which enables the manufacturing of antennas with arbitrary shapes in a cheaper, faster, and flexible manner. This study provides a review of current state-of-the-art 3D printed antennas for different frequencies. First, an overview of 3D printing technology is presented. A huge number of 3D printed antennas, categorized by their material composition, have been described, including polymer, metallic, ceramic, composite material, and multi-material integrated antennas. Finally, the main challenges and prospects are discussed to provide insight into how 3D printing can be further progressed in antenna manufacturing.