Reconfigurable Transmission‐Reflection‐Integrated Coding Metasurface for Full‐Space Electromagnetic Wavefront Manipulation

Abstract

AbstractReconfigurable metasurfaces exhibit the capability of flexibly controlling electromagnetic (EM) waves, and the real‐time manipulation of tailored EM wavefront in full‐space is one of the steadily increasing interests. This paper proposes a reconfigurable transmission‐reflection‐integrated (TRI) coding metasurface, combining the functionalities of reconfigurable transmission and reflection metasurfaces. The meta‐particle is composed of a multilayer structure integrated with three positive‐intrinsic‐negative (PIN) diodes. By dynamically controlling the states of these diodes with the direct‐current (DC) bias voltage from a field‐programmable‐gate‐array (FPGA), meta‐particles achieve switching between transmission mode and reflection mode and independently modulate phase response. Metasurfaces can manipulate the reflected and transmitted wavefront by array encoding, allowing for full‐space control of the EM wavefront. Additionally, this paper demonstrates various functions implemented on this metasurface, including mode switching, beam scanning, shaping, focusing, and spatial scattering. As a proof of concept, a metasurface array prototype is fabricated and experimented. The simulation and measurement results agree well, confirming the effective ability of reconfigurable TRI metasurfaces to manipulate EM waves throughout full‐space. The proposed reconfigurable TRI coding metasurface opens the door for flexible wavefront control in the full‐space domain, with broad application prospects in areas such as microwave imaging, EM stealth, and smart radomes.