Conformal Sub-mmWave Antenna Components

ABSTRACT: The desire to limit collateral damage while still providing high lethality places new requirements on ordinance for accuracy and detonation at precise distances from targets. The need to conduct military operations in urban terrain places increased precision on ever smaller munitions. Conventional fuzing systems including height-of-burst and ground profiling radar (GPR) need to be miniaturized in order to be capable of installation on munitions<5"in diameter. New microfabrication approaches have emerged that enable miniaturization of antennas and feed networks to meet this requirement. Nuvotronics will design and fabricate extremely low-profile, miniature feed networks and antenna arrays using the revolutionary PolyStrataTM manufacturing technology. The PolyStrata microfabrication platform allows design and fabrication of millimeter wave (mmW) antennas and feed networks that meet the dimensional tolerances required at mmW frequencies with batch fabrication yielding 100"s of antennas at a time, making volume manufacturing cost effective. BENEFIT: The primary application of this technology is in miniature fuzing for DOD munitions to improve accuracy and reduce collatoral damage. The technology platform has additional applications in DOD radar, electronic warfare, and communication systems.