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A General Strategy for Stretchable Microwave Antenna Systems using Serpentine Mesh Layouts
Author(s) -
Chang Tammy,
Tanabe Yuji,
Wojcik Charles C.,
Barksdale Alex C.,
Doshay Sage,
Dong Zhenya,
Liu Hao,
Zhang Maoyi,
Chen Yuli,
Su Yewang,
Lee Thomas H.,
Ho John S.,
Fan Jonathan A.
Publication year - 2017
Publication title -
advanced functional materials
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 6.069
H-Index - 322
eISSN - 1616-3028
pISSN - 1616-301X
DOI - 10.1002/adfm.201703059
Subject(s) - materials science , microwave , stretchable electronics , antenna (radio) , polygon mesh , wireless , nanotechnology , planar , mechanical engineering , computer science , acoustics , electrical engineering , electronics , telecommunications , physics , engineering , computer graphics (images)
Wireless functionality is essential for the implementation of wearable systems, but its adaptation in stretchable electronic systems has had limited success. In this paper, the electromagnetic properties of stretchable serpentine mesh‐based systems is studied, and this general strategy is used to produce high‐performance stretchable microwave systems. Stretchable mechanics are enabled by converting solid metallic sections in conventional systems to subwavelength‐scale serpentine meshes, followed by bonding to an elastomeric substrate. Compared to prior implementations of serpentine meshes in microwave systems, this conversion process is extended to arbitrary planar layouts, including those containing curvilinear shapes. A detailed theoretical analysis is also performed and a natural tradeoff is quantified between the stretching mechanics and microwave performance of these systems. To explore the translation of these concepts from theory to experiment, two types of stretchable microwave devices are fabricated and characterized: a stretchable far‐field dipole antenna for communications and a stretchable midfield phased surface for the wireless powering of biomedical implanted devices.