DOI: 10.1109/TMTT.2025.3546554   IEEEXplore: https://ieeexplore.ieee.org/document/10929677    

Vanadium dioxide (VO2) switch array screen-printed in 20 x 20 unit cells to enable low-cost and large-area reconfigurable intelligent surfaces (RIS).

23.5–29.5 GHz (5G n257 and n258 bands)

Switches are printed directly on metal patterns on the RIS to simplify integration with resonators and avoid soldering. Bias lines are integrated into the resonator design in a single layer to avoid vias and multilayer complexity and to reduce interference.

RIS applied in 5G and beyond networks help establish a secondary line of sight (LOS) between user and base station to improve communication quality more efficiently and at lower cost than beam forming techniques.

220° – 170° phase shift from 23.5 to 29.5 GHz. 74% reflection magnitude in the ON state, 94% in the OFF state over the 6 GHz bandwidth. 8-10 dB signal enhancement demonstrated with a 20x20 unit cell RIS over the bandwidth.