A Leaky-Wave Beam Scanning Antenna with PIN Diodes

In this paper, a reconfigurable digital modulation leaky-wave antenna (LWA) is proposed. This antenna does not require additional ADC/DAC modules and mixing circuits, which simplifies the antenna structure design. By introducing diodes, the proposed antenna realizes digital beam scanning and digital modulation of the leaky-wave. By inputting different digital codes, the multi-beam switching functionality is achieved, thereby realizing the purpose of beam reconfigurability. A low-cost and easy-to-manufacture metasurface radiator is fabricated, which can achieve the leaky-wave radiation effect. In summary, the proposed antenna is a promising candidate for realizing beam reconfigurability in future intelligent wireless communications.