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Broadband radio wave absorbers with a large angle of incidence promote 5G and beyond applications

Manufactured radio wave absorber and measurement setup (a) at 30 GHz and (b) at 150 GHz. Measurement results at 30 GHz and (d) at 150 GHz. Photo credit: Science Tokyo

5G wireless communications services have expanded rapidly around the world, using millimeter wave (mmW) frequencies in the 24 GHz to 71 GHz range (referred to as frequency range 2 or FR2). Looking forward, Beyond 5G and 6G services are expected to be launched in the 2030s and are expected to offer ultra-fast connectivity of more than 100 Gbps.

Frequencies in the range from 150 GHz to 300 GHz are considered potential candidates for these future networks. However, critical components such as radio wave absorbers, essential for packaging and modularization, still need to be developed.

These absorbers play a key role in reducing unwanted reflections and emissions from chips and modules over wide bandwidths in the tens of gigahertz range. Additionally, modern mmW and terahertz (THz) absorbers must demonstrate strong performance at wide angles of incidence to support integration with advanced antenna technologies such as beamforming and steering.

A joint research team including the Institute of Science Tokyo (formerly Tokyo Institute of Technology), Hiroshima University, Tokyo University of Science, National Institute of Information and Communications Technology (NICT), and Maxell, Ltd. , has developed a wide-angle radio wave absorber for mmW and THz applications.

The team's research introduces radio wave absorbers that use loop-shaped frequency selective surfaces (FSS), which improve co-design with antenna beamforming and steering due to their large-angle-of-incidence absorption properties.

These absorbers are versatile and can be applied to lower frequency bands such as 4G LTE, 5G, Wi-Fi and Bluetooth. The loop-shaped FSS improves lower frequency transmission performance and reduces transmission loss to less than 7 dB (simulated at 0 degree incident angle) at 2.4 GHz.

The absorbers achieve 90% broadband absorption in the range of 26.5 GHz – 40 GHz (for 30 GHz absorbers) and 95.4 GHz – 181 GHz / 328 GHz – 431 GHz (for 150 GHz absorbers) at angles of incidence of up to 60 degrees.

Further information:
Sangyeop Lee et al. Absorber for radio waves with a large angle of incidence and a loop-shaped, frequency-selective surface. The 29th International Symposium on Antennas and Propagation (ISAP 2024).

Provided by the Institute of Science Tokyo

Quote: Broadband radio wave absorbers with wide angle of incidence promote 5G and beyond 5G applications (2024, November 8), accessed November 8, 2024 from

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