Ku-Band Lightweight Aluminium Waveguides Fabricated by Direct Metal Laser Sintering Process

This paper attempts to establish a good base for weight-reduction technique of microwave devices using 3D printing techniques. Experimental studies to minimize the weight of radiofrequency waveguides printed using additive manufacturing techniques are presented. Two types of Ku-band rectangular waveguides (perforated and full-metal) have been printed using direct metal laser sintering (DMLS) process. The insertion losses increased by $\sim 1.2$ dB/m after applying 1 mm grids which reduces the weight of Ku-band rectangular waveguide by $\sim 17.5$%. Comparison between these measurements and those of a waveguide manufactured by conventional method was used to determine process loss. The insertion losses of full-metal waveguide manufactured using DMLS process increase by $\sim 0.7$ dB/m compared to the conventional one. Finally, RF measurements of waveguides manufactured using DMLS process show a good agreement with the simulation results.