Open Access
Multipactor breakdown analysis of Ku-band meandered low-pass filter
(2022) Sami, Abdul; Teberio Berdún, Fernando; Arnedo Gil, Israel; Martín Iglesias, Petronilo; Lopetegui Beregaña, José María; Gómez Laso, Miguel Ángel; Arregui Padilla, Iván; Ingeniaritza Elektrikoa, Elektronikoaren eta Telekomunikazio Ingeniaritzaren; Institute of Smart Cities - ISC; Ingeniería Eléctrica, Electrónica y de Comunicación
In this work, a very compact rectangular waveguide low-pass filter with meandered topology based on commensurate lines for Ku-band satellite applications is analysed for high-power handling capabilities. The device consists of rectangular waveguide sections properly cascaded to form a meandered topology to obtain the desired value of the local reflection coefficients. which are essential to achieve the target frequency response and also to keep large mechanical gaps. Hence, this technique allows us not only to design a filter with compact size but a filter geometry which is suitable for high power applications. In the paper, the low-pass filter based on commensurate lines is first designed by cascading E-plane mitered bends (±90° EMBs) in CST Microwave Studio (MWS) and then the values of the electromagnetic fields at the passband frequencies are exported to Spark3D to perform a multipactor analysis. The critical areas inside the device where the multipactor discharge occurs will also be identified in the high-power analysis. https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.7343236
Open Access
Compact harmonic rejection filter for C-band high-power satellite applications
(IEEE, 2020) Teberio Berdún, Fernando; Martín Iglesias, Petronilo; Arregui Padilla, Iván; Arnedo Gil, Israel; Lopetegui Beregaña, José María; Gómez Laso, Miguel Ángel; Ingeniería Eléctrica, Electrónica y de Comunicación; Ingeniaritza Elektrikoa, Elektronikoaren eta Telekomunikazio Ingeniaritzaren
A compact high-power low-pass filter for C-band broadband satellite applications is presented in this paper. The filter is composed of three different sections. A 9th-order compact high-power multi-ridge structure achieves the fundamental mode stopband and the suppression of all-higher order modes. The required slope between the pass- and the stopband is accomplished by means of two step-shaped bandstop elements separated by very short waveguide sections. The passband of the filter is achieved through two compact matching networks. The filter is only 164-mm long, has less than 0.05 dB of insertion loss, handles 9.6 kW (single-carrier multipactor analysis), and has a very wide stopband (up to Ku-band). A dramatic size reduction has been achieved with respect to other commercially available solutions.
Open Access
Integrating multiple stubs in stepped-impedance filter aiming for high selectivity
(IET, 2022) Sami, Abdul; Gómez Laso, Miguel Ángel; Lopetegui Beregaña, José María; Arnedo Gil, Israel; Calero Fernández, Ibai; Teberio Berdún, Fernando; Martín Iglesias, Petronilo; Benito Pertusa, David; Arregui Padilla, Iván; Ingeniaritza Elektrikoa, Elektronikoaren eta Telekomunikazio Ingeniaritzaren; Institute of Smart Cities - ISC; Ingeniería Eléctrica, Electrónica y de Comunicación
A design technique to include multiple and fully-controlled transmission zeros (TZs) in the frequency response of rectangular waveguide commensurate-line stepped-impedance filters is presented in this letter. These bandpass filters (BPFs) are known for having reduced sensitivities against manufacturing inaccuracies and are composed of multiple waveguide sections. In order to improve their selectivity, 3λg/4 and λg/4-stubs are included to create multiple TZs around the passband. The proposed technique allows us to add multiple stubs in a single section and, therefore, only minor adjustments in the affected part of the filter are required, which simplifies the overall design process. The technique has been verified with a design example with four TZs (two on each side) near the passband.
Open Access
Diseño de filtros en tecnología de línea coaxial sin dieléctricos mediante impresión 3D
(Universidad de Castilla La Mancha, 2024) Pons Abenza, Alejandro; Arregui Padilla, Iván; Lopetegui Beregaña, José María; Gómez Laso, Miguel Ángel; Álvarez Botero, Germán Andrés; Martín Iglesias, Petronilo; Ingeniería Eléctrica, Electrónica y de Comunicación; Ingeniaritza Elektrikoa, Elektronikoa eta Telekomunikazio Ingeniaritza; Institute of Smart Cities - ISC
This article presents the design and manufacturing of a fully metallic X-band bandpass filter in coaxial-line technology. The device is 3D-printed as a self-supported structure without any dielectric inside. A short-circuit λ/4 parallel stub bandpass filter provides the required mechanical support for the self-supported 3D-printing process. To enhance filter out-of-band performance, a second stage consisting of a stepped-impedance low-pass filter is integrated, also using coaxial-line technology. Both filters are designed separately and then combined to achieve desired frequency specifications. A prototype with a passband at X-band (between 8 and 12 GHz) is manufactured using Selective Laser Melting, showing excellent agreement between simulations and measurements. This approach promises highly integrated, multifunctional monoblock coaxial filters with additional benefits such as increased RF shielding and protection against electrostatic discharge.
Open Access
Integración de múltiples stubs en filtros de saltos de impedancias de alta selectividad
(URSI, 2023) Gómez Laso, Miguel Ángel; Sami, Abdul; Lopetegui Beregaña, José María; Martín Iglesias, Petronilo; Álvarez Botero, Germán Andrés; Pons Abenza, Alejandro; Arregui Padilla, Iván; Ingeniaritza Elektrikoa, Elektronikoaren eta Telekomunikazio Ingeniaritzaren; Institute of Smart Cities - ISC; Ingeniería Eléctrica, Electrónica y de Comunicación
Rectangular waveguide commensurate-line stepped-impedance bandpass filters have been shown to have an increased fabrication robustness using conventional CNC milling. In this paper, their frequency response is improved by adding multiple transmission zeros at fully-controlled positions around the passband. The technique starts with the design of the filter without transmission zeros and only requires that one of the filter sections is slightly redesigned, while the rest keep unaltered, when lambda_g/¿¿ and 3*lambda_g/¿¿ stubs are included in the section to increase the overall filter selectivity around the passband. The design example is a 7th-order Chebyshev bandpass filter in Ku-band.
Open Access
Enhancement of the peak power handling capability in microstrip filters by employing smooth-profiled conductor strips
(2023) Ahmad, Jamil; Hussain, Jabir; Arregui Padilla, Iván; Martín Iglesias, Petronilo; Arnedo Gil, Israel; Gómez Laso, Miguel Ángel; Lopetegui Beregaña, José María; Ingeniería Eléctrica, Electrónica y de Comunicación; Institute of Smart Cities - ISC; Ingeniaritza Elektrikoa, Elektronikoaren eta Telekomunikazio Ingeniaritzaren
This paper presents a design methodology that significantly increases the peak power handling capability (PPHC) of microstrip filters. The PPHC is limited in microstrip technology by the corona effect: a physical phenomenon caused by the ionization of the air under the presence of strong electric fields around the planar circuit. Microstrip filters with a low electric field strength in the air increases the corona threshold level, resulting in high PPHC. Conventional stepped impedance (SI) filters, which consist of cascaded step-shaped elements, exhibit sharp discontinuities. These geometric edges amplify the electric field strength in the air, consequently reducing the corona threshold. Our research group has recently reported a new synthesis technique that introduces a smooth-profile (SP) conductor strip. This SP strip eliminates any sharp discontinuities and significantly reduces the strength of the electric field. This paper focuses on the examination of the high power performance of 7th-order SP and SI low-pass filters. The cut-off frequency (fc) for both types of filters is set at 447.45 MHz, while the frequency for maximum stop-band rejection (fo) is 1 GHz. The findings indicate that the SP filter shows a notable enhancement in peak power handling capability (PPHC), with gains of 2.48 dB and 4.80 dB observed at critical pressure and ambient pressure, respectively.
Open Access
Routing with classical corrugated waveguide low-pass filters with embedded bends
(EMW Publishing, 2018) Teberio Berdún, Fernando; Percaz Ciriza, Jon Mikel; Arregui Padilla, Iván; Martín Iglesias, Petronilo; Lopetegui Beregaña, José María; Gómez Laso, Miguel Ángel; Arnedo Gil, Israel; Ingeniería Eléctrica y Electrónica; Ingeniaritza Elektrikoa eta Elektronikoa
A very simple design method to embed routing capabilities in classical corrugated filters is presented in this paper. The method is based on the calculation of the heights and lengths of the so-called filters design building blocks, by means of a consecutive and separate extraction of their local reflection coefficients along the device. The proposed technique is proved with a 17th-order Zolotarev filter whose topology is bent twice so that the input and output ports are in the same plane while preserving the in-line filters behaviour. This new filter allows the possibility of eliminating subsequent bending structures, reducing the insertion loss, weight, and PIM.
Open Access
Design of an additively-manufactured self-supported all-metal coaxial-line X-band bandpass filter
(IEEE, 2024) Pons Abenza, Alejandro; Arregui Padilla, Iván; Gómez Laso, Miguel Ángel; Lopetegui Beregaña, José María; Martín Iglesias, Petronilo; Ingeniería Eléctrica, Electrónica y de Comunicación; Ingeniaritza Elektrikoa, Elektronikoa eta Telekomunikazio Ingeniaritza; Institute of Smart Cities - ISC
In this contribution, the design and manufacturing of an all-metal coaxial-line X-band bandpass filter is discussed. The device is 3D-printed as a self-supported structure without any dielectric inside the coaxial. The mechanical support between the inner and outer coaxial-line conductors is provided by means of λ/4 short-circuited stubs, which are also used in the bandpass filter design. The real transmission zeros (TZs) produced by the short-circuited stubs are responsible for a high filter selectivity. In order to enhance the filter performance, a second stage consisting in a coaxial-line stepped-impedance low-pass filter is integrated in the design to provide the rejection level required for the out-of-band behaviour. Following our design method, the bandpass and low-pass filters are designed separately, and a final matching step is performed to connect both and to achieve the aimed frequency specifications. In this way, a monoblock coaxial filter with very good in-band and out-of-band performance can by obtained by using an additive manufacturing (AM) procedure. Only the input/output (I/O) coaxial connectors will need to be assembled to the filter to perform the frequency measurements. The filters in this work can be seen as a first proposal towards more complex multi-functional monoblock structures using additively-manufactured coaxial technology, for highly-integrated RF chains. Other expected benefits beyond the compactness or lightweight are an increased RF shielding, electrostatic discharge risk reduction, and Passive Intermodulation (PIM) protection. In the paper, a prototype with a passband between 8 and 12 GHz is designed and manufactured, using a bandpass filter with three stubs and an integrated 15th-order low-pass filter, providing rejection for spurious frequencies up to 30 GHz. The filter is manufactured using Selective Laser Melting (SLM) and measurements show an excellent agreement with the simulations.
Open Access
Synthesis of rectangular waveguide filters with smooth profile oriented to direct metal additive manufacturing
(IEEE, 2023) Percaz Ciriza, Jon Mikel; Hussain, Jabir; Arregui Padilla, Iván; Teberio Berdún, Fernando; Benito Pertusa, David; Martín Iglesias, Petronilo; Arnedo Gil, Israel; Gómez Laso, Miguel Ángel; Lopetegui Beregaña, José María; Ingeniería Eléctrica, Electrónica y de Comunicación; Institute of Smart Cities - ISC; Ingeniaritza Elektrikoa, Elektronikoaren eta Telekomunikazio Ingeniaritzaren
In this paper, a novel design method for rectangular waveguide filters intended for fabrication using direct metal additive manufacturing is proposed. The synthesized filters will feature a smooth profile that allows us to fabricate them orienting the filter propagation axis in the vertical building direction, achieving an optimum configuration for direct metal additive manufacturing fabrication. The novel design method is valid for any all-pole transfer function, which is initially implemented with a commensurate-line distributed unit element prototype. The impulse response of that initial prototype is then properly interpolated to obtain the target response for a smooth-profiled filter with similar length and profile excursion. Finally, the target impulse response just generated is implemented in rectangular waveguide technology employing a novel inverse scattering synthesis technique that relies on the coupled-mode theory to model the electromagnetic behavior of the waveguide filter. The novel inverse scattering synthesis technique is general and also valid for the case of filters with very high rejection levels, which is of great relevance in rectangular waveguide technology. A Ku-band low-pass filter with stringent satellite specifications is designed using the proposed method, fabricated by means of a direct metal additive manufacturing technique, and measured with a vector network analyzer. A very good agreement is achieved between the simulated and measured results, fulfilling the required specifications and demonstrating the feasibility and performance of the novel design method.
Open Access
Metal 3D printing for RF/microwave high-frequency parts
(Springer, 2022) Martín Iglesias, Petronilo; Gómez Laso, Miguel Ángel; Lopetegui Beregaña, José María; Teberio Berdún, Fernando; Arregui Padilla, Iván; Marechal, M.; Calves, P.; Hazard, M.; Pambaguian, L.; Brandao, A.; Rodríguez Castillo, S.; Martin, T.; Percaz Ciriza, Jon Mikel; Iza, V.; Martín-Iglesias, Santiago; Ingeniería Eléctrica, Electrónica y de Comunicación; Ingeniaritza Elektrikoa, Elektronikoaren eta Telekomunikazio Ingeniaritzaren
Space Systems have been historically characterised by high performance, high reliability and high cost. Every new generation of space systems tends to improve performance, keep as much as possible reliability, speeding the lead time and lower the cost. Aggressive approach is nowadays followed by some of the players of the new space ecosystem where, for instance, reli- ability can be relaxed thanks for the in-orbit redundancy or robustness to failures by having a constellation with a high number of satellites. This push towards the technology and system limit requires to investigate new methods for the manufacturing of RF/Microwave parts. RF devices such as those based on waveguide structures, benefit from an additive manufacturing approach in terms of radio frequency (RF) performance and compactness. However each manufacturing approach comes with specific features and limitations which need to be well understood and, in some cases, even taking advantage of them. This paper provides a short review of some of the RF/Microwave parts already manufactured using this technology. The paper will focus mainly on metal 3D printing parts since this technology is, at the moment, well accepted by the space community.