RF Signal Processing True Time-Delay Beamforming Phased Array

作者：Muhammad Uzair, Hanxiang Zhang, A. Naseem, B. Arigong · 发表于：IEEE transactions on microwave theory and techniques · 年份：2026 · DOI：10.1109/tmtt.2025.3620633 · 被引用次数：6

A true time delay (TTD) beamforming network is proposed from an RF signal processing time-delay block (TDB), which is composed of an RF Hilbert transformer and a tunable transmission line. Here, the RF Hilbert transformer in TDB rotates the electromagnetic waveform by 180° directly in the analog domain without changing its magnitude. To extend the tunable time-delay range, multiple TDBs are cascaded to form a true time-delay network (TDN), realizing the desired time-delay range for a 360° phase change. The theoretical analysis is conducted to explain the RF signal processing TTD and the total time-delay range of TDN. A $1\times 4$ true TDN prototype operating at WiFi frequencies is designed, fabricated, and tested to validate the design concept, and its radiation pattern is measured with integration of a microstrip patch antenna array. The measured beam steering network covers a range of approximately ±45° with minimal beam squinting and variation in the gain. All the simulation and measurement results align well with each other to validate the proposed TTD design topology.