CMP1 – Reconfigurable RF and mmWave Systems for FR1-FR3: Circuits, Intelligent Surfaces and Sensing
Wednesday, 3 June 2026, 8:30-10:00, room Sala 3 (1st floor)
Session Chair: Luis M. Pessoa (INESC TEC & Faculty of Engineering, Univ. Porto, PT)
Design of a 2-Bit Dual-Polarized Intelligent Reflecting Surface for 5G FR1 Applications
Praveen Kumar Penta (Jio Platforms Ltd, India)
This paper presents the design and experimental validation of a 2-bit varactor tuned intelligent reflecting surface (IRS) operating in the 5G FR1 N78 band (3.47-3.6 GHz). The proposed low-profile unit cell provides four discrete reflection phase states (0°, 90°, 180°, and 270°) through voltage-controlled varactors, enabling dynamic wavefront manipulation and beam steering. The unit cell is designed to support dual linear polarizations, ensuring compatibility with practical 5G MIMO deployments. A centrally loaded square patch coupled to auxiliary metallic sections through two varactor diodes to facilitate dual polarization operation. To validate the design, a 16×16 array with 0.34λ element spacing is fabricated and experimentally characterized. Measured results confirm consistent phase reconfigurability and effective beam steering performance, demonstrating the feasibility of the proposed IRS for coverage enhancement and adaptive wavefront control in 5G FR1 systems.
Design, Analysis and Measurement Validation of a Frequency Reconfigurable down Conversion Mixer for FR3 Band (7-16 GHz) in 22 nm FDSOI
Janakiram Pandi and Sandra George (Barkhausen Institut, Germany); Muhammad Umar (Barkhausen Institute, Germany); Padmanava Sen (Research Group Leader, Barkhausen Institut gGmbH, Germany & Barkhausen Institut gGmbH, Germany)
In this paper a frequency reconfigurable down conversion mixer for the Frequency Range 3 (FR3) band targeting 7 GHz – 16GHz is proposed. A step-by-step design, analysis and validation methodology for the mixer is presented towards sixth generation (6G) applications. This work was carried out in GlobalFoundries 22nm Fully Depleted Silicon-On-Insulator (FDSOI) technology. To implement the reconfigurability, a differential switch-capacitance network was integrated, where frequency switching was realized using a 4-bit code. Gilbert cell topology was chosen for the mixer core. The proposed mixer aims for 5 channels in the targeted FR3 band. The design was fabricated, and laboratory validation is performed through a Printed Circuit Board (PCB) packaging. Parasitics-compensated bondwire interconnects are developed for a low-loss and reflection-free chip-to-PCB interface. This design achieved the 9 GHz RF bandwidth while maintaining an overall conversion gain ranging from 5.9 dB to 9.4 dB at each individual channel. In terms of linearity, this work achieved an input 1-dB compression point (IP1dB) between −14.6dBm to −11dBm for the targeted channels. This mixer operates at 1.8V, and it has a power consumption of 23.58mW. The proposed design occupies an area of 0.56mm2 with I/O pads, whereas the mixer active area alone is only 0.1mm2.
Optically Transparent Transmissive Unit-Cell for FR3 Smart Building Integration
Sofia I. Inacio (INESC TEC, Portugal); Luis M. Pessoa (INESC TEC & Faculty of Engineering, University of Porto, Portugal)
This paper presents the design and analysis of a 2-bit metal mesh transmissive unit-cell operating in Frequency Range 3 (FR3), specifically at 10 GHz. The proposed unit-cell features a simple and practical architecture inspired by the double-glazed window configuration commonly used in modern buildings, consisting of two glass substrates separated by an air gap and coated with patterned conductive layers. The design enables a full 360º transmission phase range, from which a 2-bit phase quantization is implemented and analyzed in this work. Simulation results show that the insertion loss remains below 1 dB across the operating band for all four unit-cell states. To validate the unit-cell performance at array level, a 20×0 transmissive metasurface was implemented and analyzed through full-wave simulations, demonstrating efficient beam steering and low-loss operation. These results highlight the potential of the proposed unit-cell concept for integration into future building-integrated wireless communication systems.
Interference Leakage Impact on Monostatic mmWave Sensing: OFDM Vs FMCW Performance with Practical Passive Isolation
Yazhou Zhu (Intel Corporation, Germany & Intel, USA); Rahul Shah (Intel Corp, USA); Uri Parker (Intel Corporation, Haifa, Israel); Valerio Frascolla (Intel Deutschland GmbH, Germany)
This paper investigates interference leakage impact on monostatic mmWave sensing at 60~GHz, comparing OFDM and FMCW under practical hardware constraints. TX-RX leakage dominates monostatic performance at limited isolation. Through simulation with realistic parameters (NF=6~dB, ENOB=9.5~bits, isolation=40~dB, leakage delay=23.92~ps), we demonstrate FMCW achieves 5.39~cm range RMSE at 1~m, while OFDM degrades to 35.64~cm (6.6 \times worse). OFDM requires minimum 45~dB hardware isolation for viability (110~dB effective via correlation 50~dB + DC blocker 15~dB) but remains degraded; comparable performance needs \geq 70~dB (135~dB effective), whereas FMCW exploits beat frequency separation (G_=\infty) isolating leakage at DC from echo at MHz frequencies. Isolation sweep (40-80~dB, 6 levels) validates FMCW's isolation-independence (5.39-5.42~cm) versus OFDM's strong dependence (35.64→5.55~cm), with 1.02 \times parity at 80~dB. Short leakage delays (10.97-37.07~ps) limit DC blocker to 15~dB. Key finding is that leakage suppression, not SNR, determines viability—FMCW mandatory for PCB-level isolation.
Millimeter-Wave Antennas for LEO Satellite Systems: Technologies and Trade-Offs
Alexandros Korres (National Technical University of Athens, Greece); Harry Skianis (University of the Aegean, Greece); Emmanouil Kafetzakis (Eight Bells Ltd., Cyprus); Ioannis Giannoulakis (Eight Bells Ltd, Cyprus)
Satellite communications are increasingly recognized as a critical component of global connectivity in the context of future 6G networks, complementing terrestrial infrastructures through non-terrestrial architectures. The rapid deployment of low Earth orbit (LEO) constellations introduces stringent requirements for antenna systems capable of supporting high data rates, low latency, and efficient spectrum reuse under constraints related to size, weight, and integration. This paper surveys recent advances in millimeter-wave antenna technologies for satellite applications, with emphasis on antennas operating in the Ka, Q, V, and W bands. Representative solutions based on gap waveguide structures, reflector and reflectarray architectures, substrate-integrated waveguide and cavity technologies, as well as compact travelling-wave antennas, are reviewed. The survey examines key design trade-offs across different antenna categories and discusses their relative advantages and limitations in LEO contexts, providing a structured perspective on current technological approaches.
