Incorporation of active RF circuit elements into additively manufactured substrates

Additive Manufacturing processes have matured in recent years and are now being applied to the rapid fabrication of functional electromagnetic structures and devices such as waveguides, antennae, and metamaterials. Key to a successful breakthrough into commercial viability for the industry is the incorporation of active RF elements. In this paper, we note some of the difficulties associated with including active elements within additively manufactured substrate designs, and report measurements from a microstrip transmission line with its transmission tuned by a voltage controlled analog phase shifter embedded within a 3D printed substrate. The results indicate that while active elements can be incorporated, performance could be improved by certain design and fabrication changes.