Thin Film Reconfigurable Intelligent Surface for Harmonic Beam Steering

This letter explores the development and implementation of a novel thin film 1-by-4 reconfigurable intelligent surface (RIS) designed for future communication and sensing scenarios. Utilizing cost-effective inkjet printing methods and additive manufacturing, our approach significantly simplifies the RIS construction process and reduces production costs. The RIS, fabricated on a flexible and lightweight polyethylene terephthalate (PET) substrate, integrates antennas, switching circuitry, and a microcontroller unit (MCU). This setup enables individual and simultaneous control of each RIS element, manipulating the captured carrier signal by steering its dominant harmonics toward multiple desired directions. Measurement results of the beam steering show the manufactured RIS has the potential to enable RIS-aided communication and sensing applications.