Additively manufactured flexible on-package phased array antennas for 5G/mmWave wearable and conformal digital twin and massive MIMO applications
Abstract This paper thoroughly investigates material characterization, reliability evaluation, fabrication, and assembly processes of additively manufactured flexible packaging and reconfigurable on-package antenna arrays for next-generation 5G/mmWave wearable and conformal applications. The objecti...
| Main Authors: | , , , |
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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Nature Portfolio
2023-08-01
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| Series: | Scientific Reports |
| Online Access: | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-39476-w |
| _version_ | 1827875556778049536 |
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| author | Kexin Hu Yi Zhou Suresh K. Sitaraman Manos M. Tentzeris |
| author_facet | Kexin Hu Yi Zhou Suresh K. Sitaraman Manos M. Tentzeris |
| author_sort | Kexin Hu |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | Abstract This paper thoroughly investigates material characterization, reliability evaluation, fabrication, and assembly processes of additively manufactured flexible packaging and reconfigurable on-package antenna arrays for next-generation 5G/mmWave wearable and conformal applications. The objective is to bridge the technology gap in current Flexible Hybrid Electronics (FHE) designs at mmWave frequencies and address the challenges of establishing future design standards for additively manufactured flexible packages and System-on-Package (SoP) integrated modules. Multiple 3D printed flexible materials have been characterized for their electrical and mechanical properties over the 5G/mmW frequency band (26–40 GHz), and the inkjet printed interconnects on 3D printed Polypropylene (PP) substrates demonstrated excellent electrical and mechanical performance during a 10,000-time cyclic bending test over typical wearable flexible radii down to 1 inch. A proof-of-concept flexible on-package phased array with an integrated microfluidic cooling channel on 3D printed substrates was fabricated and measured, demonstrating $$\pm 37^{\circ }$$ ± 37 ∘ beam steering capability with efficient cooling. The proposed reconfigurable design and low-temperature fabrication approach using additive manufacturing can be widely applied to next-generation highly-complex on-demand FHE, flexible multi-chip-module integration, and on-package phased-array modules for 5G/mmWave wearable and conformal smart skin, digital twin and massive MIMO applications. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-12T17:09:38Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-c97eef1ec9274fac86d320f499cb74ee |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2045-2322 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-12T17:09:38Z |
| publishDate | 2023-08-01 |
| publisher | Nature Portfolio |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Scientific Reports |
| spelling | doaj.art-c97eef1ec9274fac86d320f499cb74ee2023-08-06T11:11:21ZengNature PortfolioScientific Reports2045-23222023-08-0113111110.1038/s41598-023-39476-wAdditively manufactured flexible on-package phased array antennas for 5G/mmWave wearable and conformal digital twin and massive MIMO applicationsKexin Hu0Yi Zhou1Suresh K. Sitaraman2Manos M. Tentzeris3Georgia Institute of Technology, School of Electrical and Computer EngineeringGeorgia Institute of Technology, George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical EngineeringGeorgia Institute of Technology, George W. Woodruff School of Mechanical EngineeringGeorgia Institute of Technology, School of Electrical and Computer EngineeringAbstract This paper thoroughly investigates material characterization, reliability evaluation, fabrication, and assembly processes of additively manufactured flexible packaging and reconfigurable on-package antenna arrays for next-generation 5G/mmWave wearable and conformal applications. The objective is to bridge the technology gap in current Flexible Hybrid Electronics (FHE) designs at mmWave frequencies and address the challenges of establishing future design standards for additively manufactured flexible packages and System-on-Package (SoP) integrated modules. Multiple 3D printed flexible materials have been characterized for their electrical and mechanical properties over the 5G/mmW frequency band (26–40 GHz), and the inkjet printed interconnects on 3D printed Polypropylene (PP) substrates demonstrated excellent electrical and mechanical performance during a 10,000-time cyclic bending test over typical wearable flexible radii down to 1 inch. A proof-of-concept flexible on-package phased array with an integrated microfluidic cooling channel on 3D printed substrates was fabricated and measured, demonstrating $$\pm 37^{\circ }$$ ± 37 ∘ beam steering capability with efficient cooling. The proposed reconfigurable design and low-temperature fabrication approach using additive manufacturing can be widely applied to next-generation highly-complex on-demand FHE, flexible multi-chip-module integration, and on-package phased-array modules for 5G/mmWave wearable and conformal smart skin, digital twin and massive MIMO applications.https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-39476-w |
| spellingShingle | Kexin Hu Yi Zhou Suresh K. Sitaraman Manos M. Tentzeris Additively manufactured flexible on-package phased array antennas for 5G/mmWave wearable and conformal digital twin and massive MIMO applications Scientific Reports |
| title | Additively manufactured flexible on-package phased array antennas for 5G/mmWave wearable and conformal digital twin and massive MIMO applications |
| title_full | Additively manufactured flexible on-package phased array antennas for 5G/mmWave wearable and conformal digital twin and massive MIMO applications |
| title_fullStr | Additively manufactured flexible on-package phased array antennas for 5G/mmWave wearable and conformal digital twin and massive MIMO applications |
| title_full_unstemmed | Additively manufactured flexible on-package phased array antennas for 5G/mmWave wearable and conformal digital twin and massive MIMO applications |
| title_short | Additively manufactured flexible on-package phased array antennas for 5G/mmWave wearable and conformal digital twin and massive MIMO applications |
| title_sort | additively manufactured flexible on package phased array antennas for 5g mmwave wearable and conformal digital twin and massive mimo applications |
| url | https://doi.org/10.1038/s41598-023-39476-w |
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