Available at: https://digitalcommons.calpoly.edu/theses/3402
Date of Award
6-2026
Degree Name
MS in Electrical Engineering
Department/Program
Electrical Engineering
College
College of Engineering
Advisor
Payam Nayeri
Advisor Department
Electrical Engineering
Advisor College
College of Engineering
Abstract
CubeSats are a class of nanosatellites that have democratized space exploration by greatly reducing cost and complexity. Their small size and limited power generation directly limit the performance of a high-data-rate communication system due to low transmit power and limited gain from small antenna sizes. Transmission losses increase with higher operating frequencies, spurring the need for innovative high-gain antenna solutions. This thesis investigates the design of a deployable 10 GHz reflectorarray, a planar high-gain aperture antenna, for a 3U CubeSat. A simple variable-size square-patch resonant unit cell was designed for implementation on commonly available PCB layer stack-ups. Preliminary reflectarray system design was performed with CubeSat deployer compatibility in mind. The reflectarray panel was designed and simulated. The project targeted a gain of 25 dBi over a 30 cm × 30 cm square aperture, designed to stow within the area of the CubeSat side panel. The final design resulted in a measured gain of 24.86 dBi when deployed, slightly missing the original target. A prototype was fabricated, and an antenna test range was set up to measure the reflectarray antenna’s radiation pattern. A custom fixture was also constructed to facilitate accurate measurements. Co-polarization and cross-polarization radiation patterns were characterized. The folding version of the fabricated design stowed to a thickness of 9.48 mm. This proof-of-concept design demonstrates the viability of a directive deployable X-band reflectarray to improve communication capabilities on a 3U CubeSat.