SBIR Phase II: Ultra-Low Loss Beamformer and Combiner-First Technology for Lower Power Consumption Phased Arrays

The broader/commercial impact of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase II project lies in reducing the size, weight, power consumption, and cost of phased array systems that support communications technologies, opening new opportunities and geographies for use. Many promising use cases such as handheld sensors, drones, wearables, and edge-deployed communication nodes remain insufficiently addressed with existing technologies, despite a clear demand for compact, energy-efficient, and affordable phased array solutions. The proposed technology would significantly reduce the power consumption and cost of phased array antennas while maintaining competitive performance, supporting the creation and deployment of commercially feasible technologies across a variety of applications. This innovation has the potential to benefit all industries that depend on phased arrays for radio communications. For example, higher performance long-range radar, improved communication satellites, and more affordable wireless access points that can traffic more data at a lower cost would be enabled to enhance everything from national defense to healthcare. These advances would support high throughput mobile devices like smartphones, improved internet connectivity, and increased accessibility and development of new technologies. This Small Business Innovation Research Phase II project will advance a novel architecture for phased array antennas that feature significantly lower power consumption and lower fabrication cost compared to existing phased arrays. Depending on the application, there are different frequencies that the technology may operate across. For example, the Ku-band (10-15 GHz) is commonly used for satellite communications, radar altimetry, and television broadcasting, while the K/Ka-band (20-30 GHz) is widely used for high-data-rate satellite links, advanced radar systems, and next-generation space and terrestrial communication applications. This project will validate, receive, and transmit versions of the chips for the Ku-band, piloting the technologies through integration in antennas and thus collecting data to encourage commercialization. The project will explore application of the technology to the K/Ka-band to receive and transmit chips, opening doors to applications in radar and 5G/6G markets. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.