An LTCC Beam-switching Antenna with High Beam Overlap for 60-GHz Mobile Access Points
Abstract
We present a flat switched-beam antenna that achieves a wide angular coverage (+/- 38 degrees) and limited scan losses in V-band. The system features two broadband continuous transverse stub (CTS) arrays, each fed by a pillbox beamformer. The two antennas are designed so that the radiated beams are interleaved. In this way, high beam overlap levels (3 dB) and low side lobe level are simultaneously attained. A switch network excites one of the two apertures at a time and selects the desired beam. The system is fully integrated in a low-profile multilayer low temperature co-fired ceramic (LTCC) module. The proposed architecture and technology are suitable for millimeter-wave access points in next generation mobile networks.