Prof. Ray T. Chen of the Microelectronics Research Center (MRC) in the Department of Electrical and Computer Engineering at The University of Texas at Austin (UT ECE) has been awarded a $1.1 Million grant from the US Air Force Research Lab (AFRL) and the Missile Defense Agency (MDA) to work on 3D printing phased array antennas from 8 to 20 GHz on flexible substrates which can be integrated with airborne and spaceborne vehicles with minimum payloads.

Both passive and active components will be designed and then printed using newly developed 3D printing technology. Silicon nanomembrane devices will also be integrated to provide switching and modulation functions.