Investigation of high performance transmission line phase shifters based on liquid crystal

In this paper a novel transmission line topology partially filled with liquid crystal is investigated in terms of its usability as a high performance continuously tunable phase shifter. At first the special properties of liquid crystals are described briefly. Then theoretical results based on a developed simulation tool are discussed in order to explain the advantages of this waveguide structure compared to other techniques. Experimental results confirm the expected performance by showing an excellent Figure-of-Merit in the Ka-band region.