Additive Manufacturing of a Conformal, Wideband Array for Attritable Aircraft Platforms (1000-456)

SI2 Technologies, Inc. (SI2) proposes to enable wideband, conformal, dual-polarized phased array capability for geometrically constrained platforms, such as attritable aircraft and tube-launched munitions.SI2s AM arrays can be designed to conform to the outer mold line of those vehicles, minimizing aerodynamic drag and offering a SWAP-C advantage over conventional arrays.To meet this objective, SI2 offers its unique combination of in-house wideband array design capability, in-house RF electronics design capability, and in-house multi-material additive manufacturing (AM) capability.SI2s innovative solution offers the Air Force a wideband (6:1) phased array with integrated active electronics solution that can be grown layer by layer, is agnostic to the beamforming electronics, and has similar performance to conventionally manufactured phased arrays but at a lower cost.In this Phase II program, SI2 will design, simulate and optimize the tightly coupled dipole array (TCDA) with integrated RF electronics using 3D electromagnetic modeling tools and incorporating AM materials and process parameters into the models. In a risk mitigated approach, SI2 will design, manufacture and characterize the performance of both planar (Year 1) and conformal (Year 2) versions of the array with integrated electronics.We will further mature the technology by performing system testing with beamforming electronics.