All-Metal Graded Index Gutman Lens Antenna - A More Compact Luneburg Lens

The present work introduces an all-metal Gutman lens antenna in a parallel plate waveguide (PPW) technology for space applications at Ku band. Compared to the Luneburg lens, the Gutman lens provides more compact size up to 35%. To achieve this compactness an optimized unit cell with glide symmetry is utilized. Single ridge waveguides are proposed to excite the lens along its focal arc to obtain a field of view with high beam overlap level between adjacent beams. Finally, the antenna presents broadband performance up to 40% with low losses and high directivity which makes it an excellent candidate for satellite missions.