S band digital phase shifter designed for half-wavelength stacking in phased array antenna

An band rectangular waveguide digital phase shifter with TEM inputs which combines the electrical advantages of waveguide design with the compactness of a strip transmission line structure is described. A 4-bit, nonreciprocal band model is presented which combines the electronic drivers and the microwave structure in a 1.8 inch by 1.4 inch cross section designed specifically for half-wavelength stacking in an antenna array. Several new techniques of antisymmetric dielectric loading are reviewed which convert microwave energy from a TEM mode in strip line transmission to a TE type mode propagating in a dielectrically loaded rectangular waveguide. The advantages of greatly reduced phase shifter cross section derived using these techniques are emphasized.