A Hybrid Architecture for Programmable Meta‐System Using a Few Active Elements

Digital coding and programmable metasurfaces stand out as promising candidates in future wireless communications due to their low costs and fast‐action reprogrammable capability. However, 2 significant obstacles, namely integration and power consumption, must be addressed before large‐scale engineering application of the programmable metasurface. This work proposes an easy‐integration and energy‐saving meta‐system and demonstrates its application in wireless communications. The meta‐system features a hybrid architecture and consists of a programmable feed array and a metasurface lens. The feed array comprises 3 subarrays, in which active elements are doped with passive elements and interconnected configurations are used to efficiently reduce the number of active elements by one‐third. The meta‐lens acts as a passive phase shifter to enhance the beamforming performance, further reducing the number of active elements. Moreover, the meta‐system can switch between different modes to achieve various functions. In particular, the maximum power consumption of the meta‐system is only 54 mW, which can be considered nearly passive. A wireless communication experiment is presented, where the meta‐system simultaneously serves as the direct digital modulator and the transmitting antenna. Owing to the low cost, high integration, and nearly passive and programmable features, the meta‐system has remarkable potential for future applications in wireless communications. A programmable meta‐system with hybrid architecture and superior performance is proposed. The programmable feed array in the meta‐system involves doping active elements with passive elements and uses its interconnected configuration to reduce the number of active elements and RF chains significantly. The meta‐lens serves as a passive phase shifter to increase the beamforming performance.