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We demonstrate the operation of a fully integrated and miniaturized waveguide based on ferromagnetic nanowires as a promising alternative to macroscopic ferrite slab-loaded metallic rectangular waveguides used as microwave isolators. Nanowires of various heights are selectively grown at dedicated areas into a low-loss nanoporous alumina template in order to create the shielding walls of a Substrate Integrated Waveguide (SIW) topology and the ferromagnetic slab supporting a circularly polarized nonreciprocal propagation. A model is proposed for the microwave response of the SIW and its non-reciprocity, which takes into account the substrate permittivity and the tensorial permeability of the ferromagnetic nanowires, and its predictions are validated by measurements. A significant isolation of 7 dB/cm is obtained experimentally at 13.5 GHz, without the need of a DC bias magnetic field.

An experimental process for the fabrication of microwave devices made of nanowire arrays embedded in a dielectric template is presented. A pulse laser process is used to produce a patterned surface mask on alumina templates, defining precisely the wire growing areas during electroplating. This technique makes it possible to finely position multiple nanowire arrays in the template, as well as produce large areas and complex structures, combining transmission line sections with various nanowire heights. The efficiency of this process is demonstrated through the realisation of a microstrip electromagnetic band-gap filter and a substrate-integrated waveguide.

This paper compares two laser-assisted processes developed by the authors for the fabrication of microwave devices based on nanowire arrays loaded inside porous alumina templates. Pros and cons of each process are discussed in terms of accuracy, reproducibility and ease of fabrication. A comparison with lithography technique is also provided. The efficiency of the laser-assisted process is demonstrated through the realization of substrate integrated waveguide (SIW) based devices. A Nanowired SIW line is firstly presented. It operates between 8.5 and 17 GHz, corresponding to the first and second cut-off frequency of the waveguide, respectively. Next, a Nanowired SIW isolator is demonstrated. It shows a nonreciprocal isolation of 12 dB (corresponding to 4.4 dB/cm), observed in absence of a DC magnetic field, and achieved through an adequate positioning of ferromagnetic nanowires inside the waveguide cavity.

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