E2.03 - Team Waveguide

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Our project is a feasibility study that examines the practical ability to replicate the performance of commercially available waveguide components through 3D printing and then applying a conductive coating. In the project, we replicate a straight waveguide section, a waveguide bulkhead adapter, a coax-to-waveguide adapter, a low-gain horn antenna, and a high-gain horn antenna, because we have access to commercial versions of most of them. We measure the performance of the replicated components by measuring their insertion loss and the VSWR, or by checking whether they can wirelessly transmit information. This is important because waveguide components are expensive, making them difficult to obtain. Creating waveguide components through 3D printing and applying a conductive coating could be a more cost-effective way to obtain these components.