Composites for antennas and other applications

• US 9,263,804 B2
• Filed: 03/28/2014
• Issued: 02/16/2016
• Est. Priority Date: 08/28/2008
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Northrop Grumman Systems Corporation (Northrop Grumman Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Orbital ATK Inc. (Northrop Grumman Corporation)
• Inventors: Fuller, Christopher C., Lamberg, John R., Gawronski, Michael J.
• Primary Examiner(s): Gregory, Bernarr
• Application Number:
  US14/228,627
• Publication Number:
  US 20140253409A1
• Time in Patent Office: 690 Days
• Field of Search: 342/21, 342/22, 342/175, 343/700.R, 343/893, 343/907, 343/700.MS, 343/709, 333/236, 333/239, 428/411.1
• US Class Current: 1/1
• 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 material 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 antennas and antenna arrays, directed energy weapons, EMI filters, RF and optical circuit components, among others.

Claims

1. An antenna system comprising:

at least one antenna comprising a composite material, the composite material of the at least one antenna comprising;

interstitial material having at least one of a select relative permittivity value or a select relative permeability value; and

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

2. The antenna system of claim 1, wherein the at least one antenna is at least one receive antenna, and wherein the antenna system further comprises:

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.

3. The antenna system of claim 2, further comprising:

at least one transmit antenna; and

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

4. The antenna system of claim 1, wherein the at least one antenna comprises at least one receive antenna, and wherein the antenna system further comprises at least one transmit antenna, wherein the at least one receive antenna and the at least one transmit antenna are part of a radar module.

5. The antenna system of claim 1, wherein the at least one antenna is at least one antenna array.

6. The antenna system of claim 5, wherein the at least one antenna array further comprises:

a transmitting array, and

a receiving array; and

wherein the antenna system further comprises;

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 the receiver.

7. The antenna system of claim 6, further comprising:

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

a coupler configured to pass transmit signals to the transmitting array and the receiver, wherein the control circuit is a decision circuit configured to determine whether a signal is a valid return signal.

8. The antenna system of claim 1, 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.

9. The antenna system of claim 8, wherein the height of burst sensor further comprises:

a target sensor; and

an image sensor.

10. The antenna system of claim 1, further comprising:

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

11. The antenna system of claim 1, further comprising:

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

12. The antenna system of claim 1, wherein the select relative permeability value and the select relative permittivity value of at least one of the interstitial material or the inclusion material are close in value.

13. The antenna system of claim 1, wherein the inclusion material is orientated along three-dimensional axes to control anisotropy and dielectric enhancement.

14. The antenna system of claim 1, wherein positioning of the inclusion material within the interstitial material enhances at least one of the permeability or the permittivity of the composite material.

15. The antenna system of claim 1, wherein the inclusion material includes a plurality of inclusions with at least one inclusion having a shape selected from the group of shapes consisting of cross, sphere, cone, cylinder, cylinder forms, hourglass, cube, and a curved surface.

16. The antenna system of claim 1, wherein the select relative permittivity value and the select relative permeability value of at least one of the interstitial material or the inclusion material is configured to change by the application of at least one of a magnetic or an electric field on the composite material.

17. An antenna system comprising:

at least one receive antenna, the at least one receive antenna including a composite material comprising;

interstitial material having a permittivity value and a permeability value; and

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

at least one transmit antenna, the at least one transmit antenna including a composite material comprising;

interstitial material having a permittivity value and a permeability value; and

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

18. The antenna system of claim 17, 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.

19. The antenna system of claim 18, further comprising:

a controller to control operations of the transmitter.

20. The antenna system of claim 17, wherein the at least one receive antenna is a receiving antenna array and the at least one transmit antenna is a transmitting antenna array.

21. An antenna system comprising at least one antenna comprising a composite material, the composite material of the at least one antenna comprising:

interstitial material; and

inclusion material in the interstitial material, a permeability value and a permittivity value of the interstitial material and a permeability value and a permittivity value of the inclusion material providing an effective intrinsic impedance of the composite material that closely matches an intrinsic impedance of air.