Linear to left- and right-hand circular polarization conversion by using a metasurface structure

By using a metasurface (MS) structure, a linearly polarized wave is converted to circularly polarized waves. Both right- and left-handed circular polarizations (RHCPs and LHCP) are obtained by a simple configuration in the proposed structure which consists of 16 unit cells arranged in a 4 × 4 layout. Each unit cell contains five horizontal and parallel strips embedded in a rectangular frame in which a single diagonal strip is placed from one corner to the opposed one. It is shown that the orientation of the diagonal line determines the handedness of the converted signal to be either LHCP or RHCP. In order to show the working conditions of the MS structure, scattering parameters are found for both co-polarized and cross-polarized responses. Axial ratio, an indicator for polarization conversion, is then obtained by dividing cross-polar response to co-polar response to demonstrate the transformation. The structure works for horizontally and vertically polarized linear waves in a wide band frequency range which is approximately 510 MHz. Since the suggested MS model is composed of a simple geometry for polarization conversion, it can be easily adjusted in any desired frequency bands for a variety of applications from the defence industry to medical, education, or communication areas. © 2017 Cambridge University Press and the European Microwave Association