Programmable Antenna Design Using Convex Optimization

This paper presents an application of convex optimization and algebraic geometry in devising secure, power-efficient, beam-steerable, and on-chip transmission systems for wireless networks. First, the authors introduce a Passively Controllable Smart (PCS) antenna system that can be programmed to generate different radiation patterns in far field by adjusting its variable passive controller at every signal transmission. To study the programming capability of a PCS antenna system, they consider a PCS antenna transmitting data in z directions, where some voltages v1, v2, ..., vz are induced in different directions in far field.