A dual-patch polarization rotation reflective surface and its application to ultra-wideband RCS reduction

An ultra-wideband polarization rotation reflective surface (PRRS) with a high polarization conversion ratio (PCR) is proposed, which can reflect a linearly polarized incident wave with 90° polarization rotation. The unit cell of the proposed PRRS consists of a square and L-shaped patches printed on a substrate, which is covered by a superstrate and backed by a metallic ground. The two patches are connected to the ground using two metallic vias, respectively. Compared with the previously reported PRRS, the polarization rotation bandwidth of the proposed PRRS is enhanced from 49% to 97% with a high PCR of 96%. The frequency responses within the operation frequency band are consistent under oblique incident waves. Furthermore, the designed PRRS is applied to the ultra-wideband radar cross-section (RCS) reduction by forming a checkerboard surface. A 10-dB RCS reduction is achieved over an ultrawideband of 98%. To validate the simulation results, a prototype of the checkerboard surface is fabricated and measured. A good agreement between the experimental and simulation results is obtained.