Fabrication of artificial dielectrics via stereolithography based 3D-printing

In this research, stereolithography (SLA) based additive manufacturing (AM) has been investigated as a fabrication method for producing artificial dielectrics. Initially, the effect of the curing time on the microwave electromagnetic properties (X-band) on the photoinitiated resin used was measured and found to be negligible after 15 minutes of UV curing. Artificial dielectric isotropic and anisotropic lattice structures were then designed and fabricated, allowing for varying permittivity between 1.23 and 2.80 through the control of the structure’s density. As a demonstration of the ability to grade permittivity through a high-resolution printing process, lattice structures were embedded into solid substrates. The ability to do this allowed for the printing of a graded permittivity substrate which is showcased in a design for a circularly polarized patch antenna.