Integrated antenna/electro-optic modulator for RF photonic front-ends

Author

Waterhouse, Rodney B. ; Novak, Dalma

Author_Institution

Pharad, LLC, Glen Burnie, MD, USA

fYear

2011

fDate

5-10 June 2011

Firstpage

1

Lastpage

4

Abstract

We present an efficient, integrated antenna/electro-optic modulator assembly for RF photonic front-ends in phased array applications. The integrated radiator/photonic device incorporates a non-contact fed stacked patch antenna that has been designed to radiate efficiently between 9 - 11 GHz and is easily coupled to the Lithium Niobate Mach-Zehnder modulator, requiring minimal modification to the electrode structure of this photonic device. We discuss the design procedure for the integrated assembly, the predicted characteristics of the antenna in this environment and test a proof-of-concept version of the module. Finally we verify the performance of the module through a link demonstration.

Keywords

antenna feeds; antenna phased arrays; electro-optical modulation; electrodes; integrated optoelectronics; lithium compounds; microstrip antenna arrays; microwave photonics; radio equipment; RF photonic front ends; electrode structure; frequency 9 GHz to 11 GHz; integrated antenna-electrooptic modulator assembly; lithium niobate Mach-Zehnder modulator; microwave photonics; noncontact fed stacked patch antenna; phased array application; Antenna measurements; Modulation; Optical fibers; Radio frequency; Reflector antennas; Transmission line measurements; Microwave photonics; integrated antennas; optical modulators; phased arrays; printed antennas;

fLanguage

English

Publisher

ieee

Conference_Titel

Microwave Symposium Digest (MTT), 2011 IEEE MTT-S International

Conference_Location

Baltimore, MD

ISSN

0149-645X

Print_ISBN

978-1-61284-754-2

Electronic_ISBN

0149-645X

Type

conf

DOI

10.1109/MWSYM.2011.5972826

Filename

5972826