COMPOSITES FOR ANTENNAS AND OTHER APPLICATIONS

• US 20140253409A1
• Filed: 03/28/2014
• Published: 09/11/2014
• Est. Priority Date: 08/28/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation (Northrop Grumman Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Alliant Techsystems Incorporated (Northrop Grumman Corporation)
• Inventors: Fuller, Christopher C., Lamberg, John R., Gawronski, Michael J.
• Granted Patent: US 9,263,804 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 343/893
• CPC Class Codes: F41H 13/0043 Directed energy weapons, i.e. devices that direct a beam of high energy content toward a target for incapacitating or destroying the target
• CPC Class Codes: F42C 13/00 Proximity fuzes; Fuzes for remote detonation F42C9/148 takes precedence; constructional details F42C19/00; mounting of antennas F42B30/006
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 13/885 for ground probing prospecting or detecting using electromagnetic waves G01V3/12
• CPC Class Codes: G01S 7/414 Discriminating targets with respect to background clutter
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 1/007 made of negative effective refractive index materials
• CPC Class Codes: G02B 5/204 in which spectral selection is performed by means of a conductive grid or array, e.g. frequency selective surfaces for use with wavelengths longer than the infrared light H01Q15/0006
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/28 Adaptation for use in or on aircraft, missiles, satellites, or balloons
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/364 using a particular conducting material, e.g. superconductor
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 21/00 Antenna arrays or systems arrangements for changing or varying the orientation or the shape of the directional pattern of the waves radiated from an antenna or antenna system H01Q3/00
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 21/065 Patch antenna array
• CPC Class Codes: Y10T 428/31504 Composite [nonstructural laminate]

Abstract

Composite material, devices incorporating the composite material and methods of forming the composite material are provided. The composite material includes interstitial material that has at least one of a select relative permittivity property value and a select relative permeability property value. The composite material further includes inclusion material within the interstitial material. The inclusion material has at least one of a select relative permeability property value and a select relative permittivity property value. The select relative permeability and permittivity property values of the interstitial and the inclusion materials are selected so that the effective intrinsic impedance of the interstitial and the inclusion material match the intrinsic impedance of air. Devices made from the composite include metamaterial and/or metamaterial-inspired (e.g. near-field LC-type parasitic) substrates and/or lenses, front-end protection, stealth absorbers, filters and mixers. Beyond the intrinsic, applications include miniature antenna and antenna arrays, directed energy weapons, EMI filters, RF and optical circuit components, among others.

Claims

1-20. -20. (canceled)

21. An antenna system comprising:

at least one antenna, the at least one antenna including,

interstitial material having at least one of a select relative permittivity property value and a select relative permeability property value, and

inclusion material received within the interstitial material, the inclusion material having at least one of a select relative permeability property value and a select relative permittivity property value, the select relative permeability and permittivity property values of the interstitial material and the inclusion material providing an effective intrinsic impedance of the composite material that closely matches the intrinsic impedance of air.

22. The antenna system of claim 21, further comprising:

the at least one antenna being at least one receive antenna;

a receiver coupled to receive signals from the at least one receive antenna;

a processing circuit to process signals from the receiver; and

a controller to control operations of the processing circuit.

23. The antenna system of claim 22, further comprising:

at least one transmit antenna; and

a transmitter coupled to transmit signals out of the at least one transmit antenna, the controller coupled to control the operations of the transmitter.

24. The antenna system of claim 21, further comprising:

the at least one antenna being at least one receive antenna;

at least one transmit antenna, the at least one receive antenna and the at least one transmit antenna being part of a radar module.

25. The antenna system of claim 21, wherein the at least one antenna is at least one antenna array.

26. The antenna system of claim 25, further comprising:

the at least one antenna array including,

a transmitting array, and

a receiving array;

a transmitter in communication with the transmitting array;

a receiver in communication with the receiving array; and

a control circuit in communication with the transmitter and receiver.

27. The antenna system of claim 26, further comprising:

a modulator configured to apply a select amount of modulation to transmitter;

a coupler configured to pass transmit signals to the transmitting array and the receiver; and

the control circuit being a decision circuit configured to determine whether a signal is a valid return signal.

28. The antenna system of claim 21, further comprising:

a height of burst sensor in communication with the at least one antenna; and

a controller in communication with the height of burst sensor.

29. The antenna system of claim 28, wherein the height of burst sensor further comprises:

a target sensor; and

an image sensor.

30. The antenna system of claim 21, further comprising:

at least one filter formed in the at least one antenna.

31. The antenna system of claim 21, further comprising:

at least one mixer formed in the at least one antenna.

32. The antenna system of claim 21, further comprising:

wherein the select relative permeability property value is close in value to the relative permittivity property value.

33. The antenna system of claim 21, wherein the inclusion material is orientated along three dimensional axes to control anisotropy and dielectric enhancement.

34. The antenna system of claim 21, wherein the positioning of the inclusion material within the interstitial material enhances at least one of the permeability and the permittivity of the composite material.

35. The antenna system of claim 21, wherein the inclusion material includes a plurality of inclusions with at least one inclusion having a shape selected from a group of shapes consisting of cross, sphere, cone, cylinder, cylinder forms, hourglass, cube and a curved surface.

36. The antenna system of claim 21, wherein the select relative permittivity property value and the select relative permeability property value of at least one of the interstitial material and the inclusions are configured to change by the application of at least one of a magnetic and an electric field on the composite material.

37. An antenna system comprising:

at least one receive antenna, the at least one receive antenna including,

interstitial material having at least one of a select relative permittivity property value and a select relative permeability property value, and

inclusion material received within the interstitial material, the inclusion material having at least one of a select relative permeability property value and a select relative permittivity property value, the select relative permeability and permittivity property values of the interstitial material and the inclusion material providing an effective intrinsic impedance of the composite material that closely matches the intrinsic impedance of air;

at least one transmit antenna, the at least one transmit antenna including,

interstitial material having at least one of a select relative permittivity property value and a select relative permeability property value, and

inclusion material received within the interstitial material, the inclusion material having at least one of a select relative permeability property value and a select relative permittivity property value, the select relative permeability and permittivity property values of the interstitial material and the inclusion material providing an effective intrinsic impedance of the composite material that closely matches the intrinsic impedance of air.

38. The antenna system of claim 37, further comprising:

a receiver coupled to receive signals from the at least one receive antenna; and

a transmitter coupled to transmit signals out of the at least one transmit antenna.

39. The antenna system of claim 38, further comprising:

a controller to control operations of the transmitter.

40. The antenna system of claim 37, further comprising:

the at least one receive antenna being a receiving antenna array and the at least one transmit antenna being a transmitting antenna array.