What does this research mean for the field?

A Reconfigurable Intelligent Surface (RIS) utilizing a 20 μm thin liquid crystal layer can achieve a phase shift of over 180° at 10 V, providing a cost-effective and scalable method to enhance wireless communication coverage. Novelty: ClaimNovelty.METHODOLOGICAL. Consensus alignment: ConsensusAlignment.NEUTRAL.

May 16, 2026Open Access

Implementing an active reconfigurable intelligent surface with a thin liquid crystal layer through 1-bit quantization

Key Points

To propose a new design for a Reconfigurable Intelligent Surface (RIS) using liquid crystals to improve wireless communication.
Designed a RIS with a 20 μm liquid crystal layer sandwiched between Corning glass sheets.
Implemented 1-bit quantization to control the phase shift of the liquid crystal layer.
Applied 10 V to achieve a phase shift greater than 180° within the operating frequency band.
Achieved a phase shift of more than 180° using a 20 μm liquid crystal cell, which is significantly thinner than previous designs.
Demonstrated that the RIS can reflect electromagnetic waves directionally to enhance signal coverage.
Proposed concept is more cost-effective and scalable compared to traditional semiconductor and PCB technologies.

Abstract

This paper proposes a proof-of-concept design for a Reconfigurable Intelligent Surface (RIS) using Liquid Crystals (LC) and Corning glass for wireless communication applications. The proposed RIS consists of specially designed copper-coated glass substrates and LC materials sandwiched between the two glass substrates. The LC layer, which is 20 μm thick, is positioned between the upper and lower Corning glass sheets. Although the 20 μm cell gap is very thin compared to the operating frequency (previous research used gaps greater than 100 μm), we achieved a phase shift of more than 180° by applying 10 V within the designed frequency band. Our proposed concept can enhance wireless communication coverage by reflecting incident electromagnetic waves in the desired direction, thereby securing a propagation path by simply changing the alignment of LC molecules under different driving voltages. Additionally, conventional LCD manufacturing technology can significantly reduce costs and support larger sizes compared to existing semiconductor-based electronics and Printed Circuit Board (PCB) processing.

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