The microwave photonic (MWP) beamforming chip is a crucial component for achieving the miniaturization of optically controlled phased array radar systems. It addresses the unwanted ‘beam squint’ effect of traditional electronic antenna arrays in processing wideband RF signals through optical tunable delay lines (OTDLs), which has garnered significant attention and research efforts in recent years. This review provides a comprehensive overview of the latest research progress on the classification, working principle, calibration and delay measurement methods, driving and control technologies, and system function verifications of OTDL and MWP beamforming chips. Also, discussions about the challenges that need to be addressed and the future development trends for this technology are given.

中文翻译：

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集成光学可调谐延迟块和微波光子波束成形芯片：综述


微波光子 （MWP） 波束成形芯片是实现光控相控阵雷达系统小型化的关键组件。它解决了传统电子天线阵列在通过光学可调谐延迟线 （OTDL） 处理宽带射频信号时不需要的“波束斜视”效应，该效应近年来引起了广泛关注和研究工作。本文全面综述了 OTDL 和 MWP 波束赋形芯片的分类、工作原理、标定和时延测量方法、驱动和控制技术以及系统功能验证等方面的最新研究进展。此外，还讨论了需要解决的挑战和该技术的未来发展趋势。