Topology Design of Reconfigurable Intelligent Metasurfaces Based on Equivalent Circuit Model

Previous studies on reconfigurable intelligent metasurface (RIS) design have primarily relied on full-wave electromagnetic simulation software, which often incurs high computational costs and lacks clear design direction. The design of multi-bit RIS remains challenging and there is currently no suitable systematic method for selecting the corresponding tuning devices. To overcome these limitations, this article proposes a novel equivalent circuit-based approach to RIS design. In contrast to the conventional approach, where the equivalent circuit model is derived from post-design evaluation of the scattering properties of RIS, our work is entirely driven by the equivalent circuit model from the outset to accomplish the unit cell design. A complete workflow as well as details of each constituent step are presented for the topology design of RIS based on equivalent circuit topology. Building on this circuit topology, a 3-bit reflective phase reconfigurable unit cell is developed based on a tunable band-stop filter circuit. We conducted adjustable phase verification experiments and beam deflection experiments. The consistency between the experimental results and circuit theory demonstrates the feasibility and practicality of the equivalent circuit method of RIS design. This circuit-to-structure methodology provides a physically interpretable and systematic framework for designing RIS with arbitrary electromagnetic responses, offering new insights into RIS design.