SWARM CubeSat: Smart mmWave Active Radio Module on a 2U CubeSat Platform for Ground-Space LEO Communication Networks

This paper describes the preliminary design of Smart mmWave Active Radio Module (SWARM) CubeSat and its planar patch antenna array for mmWave communication. The proposed SWARM CubeSat is built on 2U CubeSat frame (10×10×20 cm ³ ) while the antenna array is mounted on a facet of a CubeSat. The proposed active antenna array is operating at the K/Ka bands and it has circular polarization to compensate the high attenuation of mmWave. The proposed antenna array consists of parasitic patch loaded truncated microstrip patch antennas. General design procedure and specifications of electrical system of the 2U SWARM CubeSat, such as power system, and RF front-end, are discussed.