Development of 3D Printable Low-Loss Dielectric Photoresins for 5G/6G Applications

The next generation of 5G/6G wireless networks based on RF and mmWave devices promise to bringing fast, stable and low latency connectivity at low cost. Dielectric materials are utilized in many parts of 5G/6G devices (antennas, filters, power dividers, lenses). In order to meet the stringent requirements of future 5G/6G networks, the development of low-loss tangent (dissipation factor) dielectric materials is key in high-frequency and high-speed environments. Many of these devices could have enhanced performances if the dielectric materials could be designed with complex geometries. For instance, Luneburg lenses, components that focus RF and mm waves are used to improve the gain of signal transmission. These can be manufactured as complex lattices with gradients in their porosity. Similarly, power dividers and dielectric resonator antennas, can be designed with geometric complexity to enhance their performance. Components with complex 3D geometries cannot easily and cost effectively be produced using traditional manufacturing methods. In general, RF and mmWave dielectric components are fabricated using traditional manufacturing methods with organic and inorganic low loss materials available in the market. Most of these materials have not been developed as 3D printable materials. 3D printing provides a means to manufacture low-cost lenses/antennas with complex 3D designs. In particular, light-based 3D printing methods (SLA, DLP) are particularly attractive for manufacturing RF and mmWave components as the printing platform prints to higher print quality, which will ensure higher performance in the device. Therefore, the development of new 3D printable low-loss dielectric photoresins is highly desirable in order to fabricate the high resolution, light-weight, complex, miniaturized and high-performance (gain, beamforming etc.) mm-wave devices for 5G technologies. In this presentation, we discuss the development of highly customizable low-loss dielectric materials compatible with vat polymerizable 3D printing through the selection of monomers, crosslinkers and fillers. The materials properties can be tuned at the molecular level (formulation) and at the microscale (through printing parameters) to obtain optimized 3D printed lenses/antennas and further their performance in mmWave region.