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1 140-GHz Planar Broadband LTCC SIW Slot Antenna Array Junfeng Xu, Zhi Ning Chen, Xianming Qing, and Wei Hong
AbstractA planar slot antenna array operating at 140-GHz band is presented and implemented using a low-temperature co-fired ceramic (LTCC) process. The array comprises a substrate integrated waveguide (SIW) feeding network and slot radiators with a dielectric loading. Considerations associated with the 140-GHz design and the effects of the dielectric loading on antenna performance are investigated. Measured results show that the boresight gain of a 4 4 antenna array including a transition from SIW to a waveguide is 16.3 dBi at 140 GHz and higher than 13.8 dBi over the operating bandwidth of 130152 GHz. Therefore, the LTCC process offers one more option of planar broadband antenna array designs operating at upper millimeter wave bands. Index TermsMillimeter wave antenna array, substrate integrated waveguide (SIW), low temperature co-fired ceramic (LTCC), slot antenna array.

(Layers 1 and 2) with via fences and apertures are utilized to improve the bandwidth and gain. The radiators, dielectric loading, feeding network, and a transition for measurement are integrated into the LTCC substrate without any cavity. The LTCC material with tan = 0.002 at 100 GHz (from Ferro) and process used are the same as those in Ref. 6.

I. INTRODUCTION 140-GHz band with a wide bandwidth is available for future communications, imaging systems, sensors, and radars. A planar antenna on a substrate is attractive because of its low profile, easy integration, low fabrication complexity, and low cost. The design of a planar antenna with a broad bandwidth and a high gain at 140-GHz band is a challenging task due to the increased losses, cost, and the difficulties from fabrication and measurements. Planar antennas at 140-GHz band have been reported. A double-dipole antenna using thin film technology was proposed at 122.5 GHz [1]. A 140-GHz on-chip slot antenna using CMOS technology was proposed [2]. A 196-GHz micromachined patch antenna on SI-GaAs substrate was presented [3]. A 135-GHz patch array was fabricated using a photolitography process [4]. A linear slot array fed by a waveguide was fabricated in low-temperature co-fired ceramic (LTCC) using a special process at 159 GHz [5]. We have demonstrated the 60-GHz substrate integrated waveguide (SIW)-fed antenna array in LTCC [6]. In this communication, we extend such an array design methodology to 140 GHz. A 4 4 antenna array is designed using CST Microwave Studio, fabricated using the LTCC process, and measured using a self-built setup in Institute for Infocomm Research (I2R). The prototype shows the measured impedance matching bandwidth, boresight gain, and radiation patterns. II. ARRAY CONFIGURATION AND DESIGN CONSIDERATIONS Consider a six-layer LTCC slot antenna array as shown in Fig. 1. The power divider (Layers 5 and 6) and the couplers distribute the incident power in parallel into 4 4 radiating slots. On the top of the radiating slots, a dielectric loading
Manuscript received October 11, 2011. The work was partially supported by Agency for Science, Technology and Research (A*STAR), Singapore, Components and Circuits Integration for Terahertz Applications project under Grant 082 141 0040, and China National 973 project under grant 2010CB327400. J. F. Xu, Z. N. Chen and X. Qing are with the Institute for Infocomm Research, A*STAR, Singapore. (e-mail: jxu@i2r.a-star.edu.sg) W. Hong is with the State Key Laboratory of Millimeter Waves, Southeast University, Nanjing, China. Fig. 1. 3D schematic view of the SIW antenna array.

The 140-GHz array is designed using the similar methodology in Ref. 6. The 140-GHz design, however, is not a simple scaling up of the 60 GHz array in Ref. 6. Critical dimensions in Ref. 6 are the minimum ones under LTCC limits [7], including the via diameter, d, via pitch, p, and the spacing between the via and the metal edge, c. The electrical dimensions of these parameters at 140 GHz are larger than those at 60 GHz, which cause differences regarding the 140-GHz design. For instance, the electrically larger d and p result in different guided-wave characteristics of the SIW [8]. And the configurations of the vias of the SIW should be elaborated for leakage suppression. The detailed dimensions are labeled in Fig. 2 and tabulated in Table I.

(a)

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2 In Fig. 3, the |S21| of the model with Plane A suggests the loss caused by the transition and the 7.8-mm long SIW. The transmission line loss is determined by the difference between the |S21| of the two models divided by l2. Such a simple calculation is only valid in the band with less reflection. The simulated transmission line loss is 0.133 dB/mm at 140 GHz.
Tranmission line loss (dB/mm)
Boresight gain (dBi)
0 0.4 0.2

S-parameters (dB)

-5

|S21|_A
-10

|S21|_B |S11|_A |S11|_B

Loss

0.0 -0.2 -0.4 -0.6 160

-15

(b)

-20 120

130

Frequency (GHz)

140

150

Fig. 3. Simulated S-parameters for the transition part and the transmission line loss.

To investigate the effects of the dielectric loading, an antenna array without the loading is simulated for comparison. The optimized dimensions for impedance matching are ls = 0.64 mm, ws = 0.3 mm, and es = 0.34 mm. Port 1 of both arrays is set as Plane B. Fig. 4 (a) shows the simulated |S11| and boresight gain of the antenna arrays with/without the dielectric loading. The dielectric loading greatly improves the bandwidth from 2% to 17% for |S11| less than -10 dB, and the 3-dB gain bandwidth from 8% to 24%, respectively. The maximum gain is increased from 16.7 dBi to 18.2 dBi as well.
30 20 20

(c)
|S11| (dB)

|S11|_loaded |S11|_unloaded Gain_loaded Gain_unloaded

10

10 0 -10

Fig. 2. Top view of proposed antenna array using LTCC. (a) Dielectric loading. (b) Subarrays. (c) Power divider. TABLE I DIMENSIONS OF THE SIW ANTENNA ARRAY USING LTCC (in mm)

-10 -20 -30 120 -20 160

d la w1 d1 c

0.1 1.3 1.1 0.185 0.1

p wa w2 d2 l2

0.25 0.7 0.77 0.42 2.5

s ls w3 d3

1.5 0.42 0.72 0.27

lf ws wc d4

1.5 0.27 0.07 0.21

wf es lc d5

0.9 0.5 0.5 0.43

130

140 150 Frequency (GHz)

(a)

The input port in Fig. 1 is linked to a transition for measurement. The transition uses Layers 7 and 8, following the design in [6] but removing all height steps in the SIW. We describe three reference planes for port definitions in various models. Planes A and B (in xz plane) are labeled in Fig. 2 (c). Plane A is located at the edge of the array. Plane C is the ground plane on the bottom of the array, on which a feeding aperture is connected to an external waveguide. In simulation, a 0.3-mm long external waveguide is used as the excitation. The insertion loss and reflection of this external waveguide are negligible so that Port 1 can be extended to Plane C. The optimized dimensions are W3 = 0.72 mm, W4 = 0.9 mm, l1 = 1.5 mm, cal = 1.45 mm, caw = 0.7 mm, cl = 0.39 mm, cw = 0.24 mm, and cend = 0.43 mm [6]. By setting Port 2 as Plane A or B, we simulated the S-parameters of the transition part with different SIW lengths, as shown in Fig 3.

(b) Fig. 4. Simulated performance of the antenna array with/without the dielectric loading. (a) |S11| and boresight gain. (b) Input impedances over 130155 GHz.

Dielectric loading with a thickness of s/4 (s is the

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3 wavelength in the substrate at the center operating frequency) acts as a transition between the radiating slot and the free space. The input impedance loci are plotted on the Smith chart as shown in Fig. 4(b). Utilization of the dielectric loading transforms the initially dispersive loci (narrow bandwidth) to more centralized ones (broad bandwidth). If the thickness is not s/4, the bandwidth will be degraded. The electrically larger d and p at 140 GHz cause larger leakage from the via wall of the SIW [8]. The leakage can be suppressed by adding an external row of vias as shown in Fig. 5. We simulated the two arrays with single-row SIWs and double-row SIWs, respectively, both of which include Plane C as Port 1. The difference between the boresight gains of the two arrays is within 0.3 dB in the design band of 130155 GHz, as shown in Fig. 5. The choice of the two arrays depends on the tradeoff between the leakage level and the additional fabrication burden caused by the external rows of vias. In this work, the single-row array is adopted for fabrication ease because the leakage is within an acceptable level.

Fig. 6. Photograph of the measurement setup with a standard horn and the antenna under test (AUT) in an anechoic chamber. The gain reference plane is the ground plane on the bottom of the AUT (Plane C).

Fig. 7 shows a measured bandwidth of 130.2158.8 GHz for |S11| less than -10 dB, which agrees well with the simulated one. The measured and simulated boresight gains of the antenna array including the transition part are shown in Fig. 8. The input port is Plane C. The simulated and measured gain are 17.0/16.3 dBi at 140 GHz and higher than 14.4/13.8 dBi over 130155 GHz and 130152 GHz, respectively. The 23 dB measured gain drop in 153155 GHz might be caused by the tolerances from fabrication or measurements.
0

Measurement Simulation
-10

Fig. 5. Simulated boresight gains of the antenna arrays with single-row and double-row SIWs, respectively.

|S11| (dB)

-20

III. EXPERIMENTAL RESULTS The effects of the fabrication tolerances on the 140 GHz array are severer than the 60 GHz array in [6]. The criterion to check whether the negative effects are still acceptable at higher frequency is the agreement between the measured and simulated results because no tolerance is considered in the simulations. The array was measured in an anechoic chamber using an in-house far-field millimeter wave (mmW) antenna measurement system at I2R. The photographs of the measurement setup and the antenna prototype are shown in Fig. 6. The overall size of the antenna is 23 mm 20 mm 0.76 mm. The screw holes and positioning holes are used to fix the standard Flange (UG387/U) of WR-6 waveguide on the bottom of the antenna. Using Agilent network analyzer E8361A and OML V06VNA2-T/R-A mmW modules, the system can cover whole D-band (110170 GHz). The transmit signal is fed to the antenna under test by a WR-6 waveguide which is connected to the output of an OML module. A standard horn antenna with a gain of 22.323.4 dBi over 110170 GHz is positioned on the rotating arm and connected to the input of another OML module. The mmW modules are connected to the two ports of the vector analyzer, respectively. The return loss, gain, and radiation patterns are extracted from the measured S-parameters.
-30 120 130 140 150 160

Frequency (GHz)
Fig. 7. C. Measured and simulated |S11|. Port 1 is the feeding aperture on Plane

20 Boresight gain and directivity (dBi)

90 Simulated efficiency (%) 80 70

15

10 60 5 50 40 160

0 120
Measured gain

130

140 150 Frequency (GHz)

Simulated gain

Simulated directivity Efficiency excluding the transition

Efficiency including the transition

Fig. 8. Measured gain, simulated gain and directivity at boresight. Simulated efficiency with/without the transition loss (the loss from Plane C to A).

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4
0 -45
o o

0 45
o

-45

45

-45

45

-90

90 130 GHz (H-plane) Measurement -20 -10 0 dB Simulation

-90

90 140 GHz (H-plane) Measurement

0 -45
o o

-90

90 155 GHz (H-plane) Measurement

0
o

-20

-10 0 dB Simulation

-20

-10 0 dB Simulation

Fig. 9.

Measured and simulated H-plane radiation patterns. o 0

-45

45

45

-45

45

-90

90 130 GHz (E-plane) Measurement -20 -10 0 dB Simulation

-90

90 140 GHz (E-plane) Measurement -20 -10 0 dB Simulation

-90

90 155 GHz (E-plane) Measurement -20 -10 0 dB Simulation

Fig. 10. Measured and simulated E-plane radiation patterns.

The efficiency of the array plus the transition part is calculated based on the simulated directivity and gain shown in Fig. 8. The loss caused by the transition from Plane C to A as shown in Fig. 3 is then ignored to estimate the efficiency of the array itself. In Fig. 8, the transition decreases the efficiency because the length of the SIW between the feeding and the array is almost the radius of the Flange. A center-fed test configuration can avoid such a long SIW but needs an accurate customized adapter. It should be noted that the transition is just for measurement and not necessary when the array is integrated with other circuits. Fig. 8 shows that the simulated efficiency of the array without the transition is about 70% or 1.55 dB loss at 140 GHz. The 1.55 dB loss includes a conductor loss of 0.62 dB, a dielectric loss of 0.75 dB, a reflection loss of 0.08 dB, and a leakage loss of 0.1 dB. The measured and simulated radiation patterns of the antenna array in H- and E-planes are shown in Figs. 9 and 10, respectively. Over the band of 130155 GHz, the measured patterns are stable without any beam squinting even at its edge frequencies. In the H-planes, the measured side lobe levels (SLLs) are below -12, -10, and -12 dB at 130, 140, and 155 GHz, respectively. In the E-planes, the measured SLLs are below -11, -14, and -8 dB at the 130, 140, and 155 GHz, respectively. The measured SLL at 140 GHz in H-plane is 3 dB higher than the simulated one, which might be due to practical issues like the tolerances from fabrication and measurements. The measured maximum ratio of co- to cross-polarization level is higher than 30 dB over the operating bandwidth. IV. CONCLUSION The design technology of SIW slot antenna array in LTCC has been applied in 140-GHz band, in which the fabrication limits and tolerances have been taken into special considerations. Use of the dielectric loading has significantly improved the impedance matching bandwidth and gain of the slot array. The experimental results have verified the design of

the array. This work has provided engineers with one more option of planar broadband antenna designs at upper mmW bands. ACKNOWLEDGMENT Authors would like to thank Mr. Jonathan Koh from I2R in LTCC tapeout. REFERENCES
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