Microwave Huygens’ Metasurfaces: Fundamentals and Applications

Abstract

In this article, we review the topic of Huygens' metasurfaces with an emphasis on existing and emerging applications at microwave frequencies. Huygens' metasurfaces have demonstrated unprecedented capabilities of controlling electromagnetic wavefronts by means of electric and magnetic dipole moments arranged in a thin sheet. We present the fundamental principles of Huygens' metasurfaces based on the boundary conditions governing their operation. Then, we discuss the aspect of practical realization of Huygens' metasurfaces and the different types of constituent subwavelength scatterers (unit cells). Moreover, we summarize recent developments in several areas related to metasurfaces, such as perfect anomalous refraction, polarization control, antenna beamforming and reconfigurable metasurfaces. Lastly, we provide a brief outlook on emerging metasurface-based microwave technologies that are expected to further grow in the future.

Keywords

• Huygens’ metasurfaces
• equivalence principle
• perfect refraction
• thin lenses
• polarization control
• antenna beamforming