On Understanding the Radiation Mechanism of Reflectarray Antennas: An Insightful and Illustrative Approach

This article presents a unique point of view for microstrip reflectarrays. Through the effective utilization of graphical visualization of the scattered fields from the reflectarrays, one can gain insightful understanding into the fundamental workings of these antennas. The most important part of the reflectarray analysis and design is the accurate characterization of the individual reflectarray element for reflection phase performance. Using this visualization approach, reflectarray elements are characterized in unit-cell environments. This exercise aids in identifying the important geometrical parameters of the element that contribute to the reflection phase shift. These elements are then placed in an actual reflectarray environment, and the performance of the reflectarray is evaluated through full-wave electromagnetic simulations and measurements. It is validated that this technique can be successfully used to analyze, design, and potentially diagnose reflectarray antennas.