3-D Reconfigurable Intelligent Surface: From Reflection to Transmission and From Single Hemisphere to Full 3-D Coverage

Abstract

Reconfigurable intelligent surfaces (RIS) are conventionally implemented as two-dimensional (2D) electromagnetic (EM) structures to steer incident waves toward desired reflection angles. This approach limits the reflection to a single hemisphere, and the beam-scanning range is relatively small. In this work, a novel three-dimensional (3D) RIS concept is proposed, where beam-scanning can be realized not only through reflection from the illuminated surface but also through controlled transmission toward adjacent surfaces, enabling near blind-spot-free coverage in the full 3D spatial domain. A cube-based 3D-RIS design operating at millimeter-wave (mm-Wave) frequencies and consisting of six interconnected RIS surfaces is presented. Each surface integrates reconfigurable receiving and reflecting arrays with orthogonal polarizations to ensure intrinsic EM isolation, while a reconfigurable feeding network supports dynamic operation. A subarray-based synthesis approach with binary amplitude gating and predefined phase offsets is developed through a unified theoretical model. This model, validated through full-wave simulations, enables efficient beam switching through a shared aperture. Based on this framework, an 8 x 12 element surface comprising six 4 x 4 subarrays is designed, with each surface covering an angular range from -30 deg to +30 deg. The experimental prototype has been characterized in the 24 to 30 GHz band, and the results demonstrate a gain enhancement of 14.7 dB for reflection, while 14.1 dB is achieved for transmission to the neighboring surface. Finally, wireless communication trials using the Pluto software-defined radio platform combined with frequency up/down converters confirm improved constellation quality and a 6-7 dB improvement in error vector magnitude (EVM) for both reflection and neighboring surface transmission scenarios.