Graphene-based terahertz reconfigurable printed ridge gap waveguide structure

Graphene‑based microwave devices have enabled reconfigurability, thus paving the way to the
realization of flexible wireless terahertz systems with featured performances. Despite great progress
in the development of graphene‑based terahertz devices in the literature, high insertion loss and
wide tunable range are still significant challenges at such high frequencies. In this work, we introduce
the use of graphene to implement a reconfigurable printed ridge gap waveguide (RPRGW) structure
over the terahertz frequency range for the first time. This guiding structure is suitable for both
millimeter and terahertz wave applications due to its supporting quasi‑TEM mode, which exhibits
low dispersion compared to other traditional guiding structures. The presented solution is featured
with low loss as the signal propagates in a lossless air gap, which is separated from the lossy graphene
elements responsible for the reconfigurable behavior. In addition, this guiding structure is deployed to
implement a tunable RPPGW power divider as an application example for the proposed structure.