D-Band 90° Waveguide Twists using 3D Printing and PVD Metallization

Two rectangular waveguide twists manufactured by 3D printing and subsequent metallization are evaluated in D-Band. Both designs can be metallized by physical vapor deposition (PVD), therefore enabling parallelization and fast production times. Measurements show a low insertion loss of less than 2dB over the whole D-Band for the modified continuous twist. The step twist shows an increased insertion loss but a very good integration into compact millimeter-wave (mmW) systems due to its small size. The results show that 3D printed and PVD metallized waveguide components are a promising alternative to their full metal counterparts.