Electronically-controlled monolithic array antenna

An electronically controlled monolithic array antenna, comprising:

• a substrate having a front edge;
• a dielectric transmission line through which an electromagnetic signal may be propagated, the transmission line being located substantially parallel to the front edge of the substrate;
• an array of conductive edge elements provided along the front edge of the substrate, the edge elements defining an evanescent coupling edge located so as to permit evanescent coupling of the signal between the transmission line and the edge elements;
• a control signal source electrically coupled to each of the edge elements;
• a ground plate located on the substrate so as to be separated from each of the edge elements by an insulative isolation gap;
• and
• a plurality of switches provided between the edge elements and the ground plate, each of the switches being selectively operable in response to the control signal to electrically connect selected edge elements to the ground plate across the insulative isolation gap so as to provide a selectively variable electromagnetic coupling geometry for the coupling edge.

An electronically controlled monolithic array antenna, comprising:

• a dielectric transmission line through which an electromagnetic signal may be propagated;
• an antenna element having an evanescent coupling edge located with respect to the transmission line so as to allow evanescent coupling of the signal between the antenna element and the transmission line, the antenna element comprising:
• a plurality of conductive coupling edge elements electrically connected to a control signal source;
• a ground plate separated from each of the edge elements by an insulative isolation gap defining a slotline;
• and
• an array of switches operable in response to the control signal to selectively connect selected ones of the edge elements to the ground plate across an associated isolation gap to thereby provide a selectively variable coupling geometry for the coupling edge, wherein the coupling geometry comprises a first number of slotlines providing a first coupling edge phase angle, followed by a second number of slotlines providing a second coupling edge phase angle, wherein first and second numbers of slotlines are selectively varied by the switches in response to the control signal.