Monne Mahmuda Akter, Grubb Peter Mack, Stern Harold, Subbaraman Harish, Chen Ray T, Chen Maggie Yihong
Materials Science Engineering and Commercialization, Texas State University, San Marcos, TX 78666-4684, USA.
Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering, University of Texas at Austin, Austin, TX 78712-1589, USA.
Micromachines (Basel). 2020 Sep 18;11(9):863. doi: 10.3390/mi11090863.
Low-cost and conformal phased array antennas (PAAs) on flexible substrates are of particular interest in many applications. The major deterrents to developing flexible PAA systems are the difficulty in integrating antenna and electronics circuits on the flexible surface, as well as the bendability and oxidation rate of radiating elements and electronics circuits. In this research, graphene ink was developed from graphene flakes and used to inkjet print the radiating element and the active channel of field effect transistors (FETs). Bending and oxidation tests were carried out to validate the application of printed flexible graphene thin films in flexible electronics. An inkjet-printed graphene-based 1 × 2 element phased array antenna was designed and fabricated. Graphene-based field effect transistors were used as switches in the true-time delay line of the phased array antenna. The graphene phased array antenna was 100% inkjet printed on top of a 5 mil flexible Kapton substrate, at room temperature. Four possible azimuth steering angles were designed for -26.7°, 0°, 13°, and 42.4°. Measured far-field patterns show good agreement with simulation results.
柔性基板上的低成本共形相控阵天线（PAA）在许多应用中特别受关注。开发柔性PAA系统的主要阻碍在于将天线和电子电路集成到柔性表面存在困难，以及辐射元件和电子电路的可弯曲性和氧化速率。在本研究中，由石墨烯薄片制成了石墨烯墨水，并用于喷墨打印辐射元件和场效应晶体管（FET）的有源通道。进行了弯曲和氧化测试，以验证印刷柔性石墨烯薄膜在柔性电子学中的应用。设计并制作了一种喷墨打印的基于石墨烯的1×2元相控阵天线。基于石墨烯的场效应晶体管被用作相控阵天线实时延迟线中的开关。该石墨烯相控阵天线在室温下100%喷墨打印在5密耳厚的柔性聚酰亚胺薄膜（Kapton）基板上。设计了四个可能的方位角转向角度，分别为-26.7°、0°、13°和42.4°。实测远场方向图与仿真结果吻合良好。
