Liquid-Metal-Filled 3-D Antenna Array Structure With an Integrated Feeding Network

Abstract

This letter describes the fabrication and characterization of a microstrip patch array and a three-dimensional (3-D) coaxial feed network embedded within a 3-D printed part. Internal cavities within the acrylic structure are filled with a gallium-based liquid metal alloy using a vacuum-driven process to form conducting elements. In this way, four rectangular patch elements and a feeding network, including power dividers and vertical transitions, are embedded within a single 3-D printed acrylic geometry. Simulations and measurements of a 6 GHz array show that the array produces a matched response and moderate gain at the design frequency. This procedure can be employed to integrate numerous radiating elements and their corresponding feeding networks into a single monolithic acrylic structure, eliminating the need for separate fabrication of printed-circuit-board-based antennas and feeds. The procedure can serve as a convenient approach for rapid prototyping of complex array designs that exploit the additional spatial degrees of freedom to enhance their electromagnetic performance. Furthermore, manipulating the liquid-phase metallization inside these acrylic cavities can potentially be used to produce frequency- or pattern-reconfigurable arrays in the future.