“Advances in Microwave Filters based on Additive Manufacturing Technologies”

RF systems of new generation satellite networks and constellations are becoming more and more complex, thus requiring greater data capacity together with a higher density of RF equipment on board. The microwave filters located in new generation RF satellite systems should have low-loss and high-rejection, and they should be very compact and possibly as cheap as possible in mass production. In this scenario, the conventional manufacturing processes of filters based on milled waveguide cavities offer good performance, but are bulky and heavy. Several solutions are available to minimize mass and volume of filter structures; the use of ceramic resonators can offer significant results without compromising the RF performances from frequencies between L- and Ka- bands. This is possible thanks the high relative permittivity and very low loss-tangent of ceramic element itself. Additive manufacturing (AM) processes based on ceramic materials, such as LCM (Lithography-based Ceramic Manufacturing) process, can improve the filter geometries both from the mechanical and electrical points of view, providing also significant advantages in terms of cost in mass productions.