Realizing an electronically tunable reflectarray using varactor diode-tuned elements

Electronically tunable reflectarrays hold significant promise as cost effective architectures for RF beamforming applications. The successful operation of these arrays depends on the phase agility of the cells used to realize the array. This letter describes the design of an electronically tunable reflectarray based on a novel cell architecture that provides a large degree of phase agility. Experimental results demonstrating the beamforming capabilities of the array at 5.8 GHz are presented.