Enabling FR2-5G Communication with Dielectric OAM Transmitarrays

TL;DR

This paper demonstrates the use of fully dielectric transmitarrays to generate and test orbital angular momentum (OAM) waves for indoor 5G communication, showing promising results for short-range applications.

Contribution

It introduces a novel all-dielectric transmitarray design for OAM wave generation and experimentally validates its effectiveness in indoor FR2-5G communication scenarios.

Findings

Low bit error rate (<10^-6) for aligned modes

Significant orthogonality between different OAM modes

Prototype suitable for short-range OAM multiplexing

Abstract

This paper investigates the potential of near-field (NF) indoor communications in the FR2 frequency bands using fully dielectric structures to generate orbital angular momentum (OAM) waves. All-dielectric platforms based on distributions of T-shaped unit cells are employed for this purpose. The unit cell design is based on a circuital approach and analytical formulations, where phase shifts necessary for OAM generation are achieved by varying the dielectric-to-air ratio within the structure. Based on this unit cell, a set of transmitarrays (TAs) are designed to produce specific OAM modes. These TAs are fabricated in-house using stereolithographic 3D printing and experimentally tested. The tests evaluate two key features of OAM beams: the orthogonality of distinct vortex modes, as characterized by their electric field distributions, and their object-avoidance capability, enabled by the central null characteristic of the wavefront. In addition, a field-test within an indoor environment is conducted emulating a real wireless system. A bit error rate lower than 10\textsuperscript{$-$6} is observed for solidary modes in Tx and Rx, whereas orthogonal modes produces an increment in 4 order of magnitude. The obtained results reveals that the prototype is suitable for short-range scenarios, enabling techniques such as OAM-multiplexation or physical-layer security thanks to the effective orthogonality beteween modes.