Advancements in RF, Microwave, and Millimeter-Wave Circuits and Devices

A special issue of Electronics (ISSN 2079-9292). This special issue belongs to the section "Microwave and Wireless Communications".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 September 2021) | Viewed by 21078

Special Issue Editors


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Guest Editor
School of Engineering, University of Greenwich, London SE10 9LS, UK
Interests: radio frequency identification; wireless sensors; RFID data fusion; smart healthcare; fil-tering devices; RF power dividers; antennas
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

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Guest Editor
Department of Electrical Engineering and Electronics, University of Liverpool, Liverpool L69 3GJ, UK
Interests: wireless power transfer; energy harvesting; RF devices; metamaterials
Special Issues, Collections and Topics in MDPI journals

Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

Microwave is a term used to describe electromagnetic (EM) waves with frequencies ranging from 300 MHz to 300 GHz. This frequency range corresponds to the free space wavelengths of 1 m to 1 mm, respectively. EM waves with frequencies ranging from 30 to 300 GHz are commonly known as millimetre-waves because their wavelengths fall above 1 mm and below 10 mm. The radio frequency (RF) spectrum lies below the microwave spectrum. However, the boundary between RF and microwave spectrums is arbitrary and depends on the technology developed for the exploitation of the specific spectrum.

This Special Issue is to focus on the recent developments in the analysis, design, implementation and measurement of RF, microwave and millimeter-wave circuits and devices including (but not limited to) filters, amplifiers, antennas, diplexers/multiplexers, power dividers/combiners, couplers, antennas, wireless power transfer and energy harvesting, etc. for modern communication systems. Research works based on all transmission line technologies including slotline, stripline, coplanar waveguide (CPW), waveguide, microstrip and substrate-integrated waveguide (SIW) are welcomed for this Special Issue. Authors are invited to submit their latest research findings (including simulation and measurement results) for publication. Both regular articles and review papers are welcomed.

Dr. Augustine O. Nwajana
Dr. Jiafeng Zhou
Guest Editors

Manuscript Submission Information

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Submitted manuscripts should not have been published previously, nor be under consideration for publication elsewhere (except conference proceedings papers). All manuscripts are thoroughly refereed through a single-blind peer-review process. A guide for authors and other relevant information for submission of manuscripts is available on the Instructions for Authors page. Electronics is an international peer-reviewed open access semimonthly journal published by MDPI.

Please visit the Instructions for Authors page before submitting a manuscript. The Article Processing Charge (APC) for publication in this open access journal is 2400 CHF (Swiss Francs). Submitted papers should be well formatted and use good English. Authors may use MDPI's English editing service prior to publication or during author revisions.

Keywords

  • multiport networks;
  • filters;
  • amplifiers;
  • antennas;
  • power dividers/combiners;
  • diplexers/multiplexers;
  • frequency selective surfaces;
  • metamaterials;
  • wireless power transfer and energy harvesting;

Published Papers (8 papers)

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Research

12 pages, 3079 KiB  
Article
Design of a Compact Ultra-Wideband Bandpass Filter Using Inductively Compensated Parallel-Coupled Lines
by Meechai Jamsai, Niwat Angkawisittpan and Adisorn Nuan-On
Electronics 2021, 10(21), 2575; https://doi.org/10.3390/electronics10212575 - 21 Oct 2021
Cited by 12 | Viewed by 2338
Abstract
An ultra-wideband bandpass filter (UWB-BPF) using inductively compensated parallel-coupled lines (ICPCL) is presented in this article. It consists of three circuits: a high-pass filter (HPF), a lowpass filter (LPF), and a transmission line. The HPF and the LPF are independently synthesized from the [...] Read more.
An ultra-wideband bandpass filter (UWB-BPF) using inductively compensated parallel-coupled lines (ICPCL) is presented in this article. It consists of three circuits: a high-pass filter (HPF), a lowpass filter (LPF), and a transmission line. The HPF and the LPF are independently synthesized from the ICPCL. The proposed filter can suppress unwanted frequencies in the upper stopband and increase the skirt slope of the frequency response in the transition bands. The fabricated UWB-BPF with compact size provides good passband performances, with insertion loss of better than −0.49 dB and return loss of better than −12 dB in the frequency range of 2.92–10.95 GHz (the bandwidth of 8.03 GHz). The 107% bandwidth is achieved. In addition, the proposed filter can suppress the spurious frequencies at 2f0, which is greater than 30 dB. The measured results accord well with the simulation results. The novelty of the paper is the introduction of the ICPCL for the construction of the compact UWB-BPF. Full article
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13 pages, 4070 KiB  
Article
Compact Size of an Interdigital Band-Pass Filter with Flexible Bandwidth and Low Insertion-Loss Using a Folded Spiral and Stepped Impedance Resonant Structure
by Kicheol Yoon and Kwanggi Kim
Electronics 2021, 10(16), 2003; https://doi.org/10.3390/electronics10162003 - 19 Aug 2021
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 3217
Abstract
A conventional interdigital bandpass filter (BPF) is characterized by coupled and tapped lines and affords low insertion loss (IL) and easy fractional bandwidth (FBW) adjustment. However, the maximum FBW of the filter is limited to 30%, beyond that, its gap size increases, thereby [...] Read more.
A conventional interdigital bandpass filter (BPF) is characterized by coupled and tapped lines and affords low insertion loss (IL) and easy fractional bandwidth (FBW) adjustment. However, the maximum FBW of the filter is limited to 30%, beyond that, its gap size increases, thereby rendering filter fabrication impractical on a standard printed circuit board. In addition, the filter size cannot be changed because it dictates the operational frequency of the filter. Hence, in this study, we propose a compact interdigital BPF based on a spiral and folded stepped impedance resonator (SIR), which affords low IL and excellent group delay. The spiral, folded structure facilitates drastic FBW adjustment: the center frequency and adjustable range of the FBW of the designed BPF are 800 MHz and 80 to 180%, respectively. Additionally, the proposed BPF can adjust the FBW by k-factor which can adjust from 80 to 180%. The insertion and return losses of the proposed filter are 0.043 dB and 17.1 dB, respectively, and the group delay is 0.098 ns. The total filter size is only 13.8 mm × 5.98 mm, which corresponds to a size reduction by factors of >2/8 relative to a conventional filter and 2.1 relative to the latest BPF design. The group delay difference between the BPF and other filters is 0.15 ns. In addition, the range of adjustable FBW for the filter is 1.36 times different than for other filters. Full article
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11 pages, 4387 KiB  
Article
Broadband Reflective Polarization Rotator Built on Single Substrate
by Xiaofan Yang, Tao Qi, Yonghu Zeng, Xiaoming Liu, Gan Lu and Qing Cai
Electronics 2021, 10(8), 916; https://doi.org/10.3390/electronics10080916 - 12 Apr 2021
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 1712
Abstract
A broadband polarization rotator built on single substrate is presented in this work. The device is designed for operation in the K and Ka bands. A slant array is used to achieve polarization rotation by 90° in a reflective manner. Broadband has been [...] Read more.
A broadband polarization rotator built on single substrate is presented in this work. The device is designed for operation in the K and Ka bands. A slant array is used to achieve polarization rotation by 90° in a reflective manner. Broadband has been obtained, with the operation frequency range covering 15–45 GHz for 3 dB criteria, which is almost 100% fractional bandwidth. In addition, the insertion loss is less than 0.3 dB over a moderate broad incident angle from 0°–20°. Furthermore, the polarization conversion ratio can be as high as 0.95. By using a bi-static method, the fabricated prototype is measured, and the measured results demonstrate satisfactory agreement with the simulation ones. In comparison with other reflective designs in the literature, this design provides good bandwidth as well as polarization conversion ratio. Miniaturization can be investigated to increase the angular stability. Full article
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9 pages, 2099 KiB  
Article
Unbalanced Two-Way Filtering Power Splitter for Wireless Communication Systems
by Augustine O. Nwajana, Gerald K. Ijemaru, Kenneth L.-M. Ang, Jasmine K. P. Seng and Kenneth S. K. Yeo
Electronics 2021, 10(5), 617; https://doi.org/10.3390/electronics10050617 - 6 Mar 2021
Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2772
Abstract
A compact unbalanced two-way filtering power splitter with an integrated Chebyshev filtering function is presented. The design is purely based on formulations, thereby eliminating the constant need for developing complex optimization algorithms and tuning, to deliver the desired amount of power at each [...] Read more.
A compact unbalanced two-way filtering power splitter with an integrated Chebyshev filtering function is presented. The design is purely based on formulations, thereby eliminating the constant need for developing complex optimization algorithms and tuning, to deliver the desired amount of power at each of the two output ports. To achieve miniaturization, a common square open-loop resonator (SOLR) is used to distribute energy between the two integrated channel filters. In addition to distributing energy, the common resonator also contributes one pole to each integrated channel filter, hence, reducing the number of individual resonating elements used in achieving the integrated filtering power splitter (FPS). To demonstrate the proposed design technique, a prototype FPS centered at 2.6 GHz with a 3 dB fractional bandwidth of 3% is designed and simulated. The circuit model and layout results show good performances of high selectivity, less than 1.7 dB insertion loss, and better than 16 dB in-band return loss. The common microstrip SOLR and the microstrip hair-pin resonators used in implementing the proposed integrated FPS ensures that an overall compact size of 0.34 λg × 0.11 λg was achieved, where λg is the guided-wavelength of the 50 Ω microstrip line at the fundamental resonant frequency of the FPS passband. Full article
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15 pages, 5416 KiB  
Article
A Compact Component for Multi-Band Rejection and Frequency Coding in the Plasmonic Circuit at Microwave Frequencies
by Wenxuan Tang, Yujie Hua and Tie Jun Cui
Electronics 2021, 10(1), 4; https://doi.org/10.3390/electronics10010004 - 23 Dec 2020
Cited by 7 | Viewed by 2164
Abstract
Plasmonic circuits, which support the propagation of spoof surface plasmon polaritons (SSPPs) at microwave frequencies, have been developed in recent years as an expected candidate for future highly integrated systems, mainly because of their extraordinary field confinements and sub-wavelength resolution. On the other [...] Read more.
Plasmonic circuits, which support the propagation of spoof surface plasmon polaritons (SSPPs) at microwave frequencies, have been developed in recent years as an expected candidate for future highly integrated systems, mainly because of their extraordinary field confinements and sub-wavelength resolution. On the other hand, artificial electromagnetic (EM) resonators are widely adopted in metamaterial design for flexible resonance and band gaps. In this work, an electrically small complementary spiral, which is made up of six helix branches sculptured in the ground, is proposed to achieve independent resonances at six different frequency bands. Combined with the grounded corrugated transmission line (TL), the proposed component can provide designable multi-band rejection, and compose frequency coding circuits with a compact size (less than λ0/4). The complementary spirals excited with the bending TL and the straight one are both investigated, and independence band rejections and designed 6-bit coding sequences in the frequency spectrum are demonstrated numerically and experimentally. Hence, it is concluded that such compact components can be adopted to flexibly control the rejection of waves in multi-frequency bands, and benefits the development of frequency-identification circuits and systems. Full article
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11 pages, 5044 KiB  
Article
Switchable DBR Filters Using Semiconductor Distributed Doped Areas (ScDDAs)
by Rozenn Allanic, Denis Le Berre, Cédric Quendo, David Chouteau, Virginie Grimal, Damien Valente and Jérôme Billoué
Electronics 2020, 9(12), 2021; https://doi.org/10.3390/electronics9122021 - 30 Nov 2020
Cited by 5 | Viewed by 1592
Abstract
This paper presents a novel way to switch dual-behavior resonator (DBR) filters without any additional active surface-mount components. By using a semiconductor substrate, we were able to simultaneously co-design the filters and semiconductor distributed doped areas (ScDDAs) with integrated N+PP+ [...] Read more.
This paper presents a novel way to switch dual-behavior resonator (DBR) filters without any additional active surface-mount components. By using a semiconductor substrate, we were able to simultaneously co-design the filters and semiconductor distributed doped areas (ScDDAs) with integrated N+PP+ junctions as active elements. These ScDDAs act as electrical vias in the substrate, which makes it possible to have an open-circuited resonator in the OFF state and a short-circuited resonator in the ON state, and, consequently, to control the transmission zeroes of the filters. This method offers degrees of freedom as the dimensions and positions of these doped areas can be chosen to obtain the best performances. In this study, four filters were simulated and fabricated to spotlight different possibilities for the dimensions and positions of the ScDDA to control the low- or high-frequency transmission zero of the filters. The simulations were in very good agreement with the measured results. All the filters present insertion losses lower than 2 dB in the OFF and ON states, a great flexibility in the frequency choice, and good agility compared with the state of the art. Full article
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9 pages, 6216 KiB  
Article
Dynamic Modulation Band Rejection Filter Based on Spoof Surface Plasmon Polaritons
by Weigao Yang, Lixiang Liu, Xiaoqiang Su, Lijuan Dong, Yanhong Liu and Zhanfeng Li
Electronics 2020, 9(6), 993; https://doi.org/10.3390/electronics9060993 - 13 Jun 2020
Cited by 8 | Viewed by 2181
Abstract
In this paper, we proposed a dynamic modulation band rejection filter based on the spoof surface plasmon polaritons (SSPPs) waveguide. The dynamic adjusting mainly derives from changing the capacitance between the U-shape and the waveguide configuration. The capacitance can modulate the cut-off frequency [...] Read more.
In this paper, we proposed a dynamic modulation band rejection filter based on the spoof surface plasmon polaritons (SSPPs) waveguide. The dynamic adjusting mainly derives from changing the capacitance between the U-shape and the waveguide configuration. The capacitance can modulate the cut-off frequency of fundamental mode. The rejection band is formed by the high order propagation mode and the cut-off frequency of fundamental mode. We analyzed the dispersion curve and transmission performance of the band rejection filter with different capacitances. Compared with the previous scheme, the design we proposed here has a simpler and more delicate configuration to process and decreases the mechanical error. We experimentally demonstrated the excellent performance of the device by changing the direct voltage loaded on the varactor diode and achieved real time modulation around 2 GHz. Full article
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16 pages, 5889 KiB  
Article
Simplified Modal-Cancellation Approach for Substrate-Integrated-Waveguide Narrow-Band Filter Design
by Sebastian Celis, Mohamed Farhat, Abdullah S. Almansouri, Hakan Bagci and Khaled N. Salama
Electronics 2020, 9(6), 962; https://doi.org/10.3390/electronics9060962 - 9 Jun 2020
Cited by 4 | Viewed by 2941
Abstract
Current substrate-integrated-waveguide (SIW) filter design methodologies can be extremely computational and time-inefficient when a narrow-band filter is required. A new approach to designing compact, highly selective narrow-band filters based on smartly positioned obstacles is thus presented here. The proposed modal-cancellation approach is achieved [...] Read more.
Current substrate-integrated-waveguide (SIW) filter design methodologies can be extremely computational and time-inefficient when a narrow-band filter is required. A new approach to designing compact, highly selective narrow-band filters based on smartly positioned obstacles is thus presented here. The proposed modal-cancellation approach is achieved by translating or eliminating undesired modes within the frequency of interest. This is performed by introducing smartly located obstacles in the maxima and nulls of the modes of interest. This approach is different from the traditional inverter technique, where a periodic number of inductive irises are coupled in a ladder configuration to implement the desired response of an nth-order filter, and significantly reduces the complexity of the resulting filter structure. Indeed, the proposed method may be used to design different filters for several frequency bands and various applications. The methodology was experimentally verified through fabricated prototypes. Full article
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