A Wide-Angle Scanning Phased Array With Microstrip Patch Mode Reconfiguration Technique

A method based on the microstrip patch mode and reconfiguration technique is analyzed, studied, and applied to wide-angle scanning phased arrays. First, a summative evaluation of microstrip patch modes available for wide-angle scanning or near endfire has been made. Second, to validate this new method, a multilayer microstrip patch element is established and its resonant modes TM01 and TM20 are excited. Third, a reconfigurable technique is used to reconfigure the above resonant modes and a wide joint 3-dB beam coverage is obtained. Fourth, a prototype of 1 × 4 uniform linear phased array with the above reconfigurable elements is proposed. The prototype operates at 5.8 GHz and its main-beam direction can scan from -75° to +75° in the elevation plane with a gain fluctuation less than ±1 dB. Finally, in order to reduce the sidelobe levels, a hybrid particle swarm optimization algorithm is used to optimize the excitation amplitudes and phases. The measured results show an excellent wide-angle scanning performance, which validates the effectiveness of the proposed method.