Microfluidic frequency tunable three-dimensional printed antenna

This paper investigates the possibility of using 3D printing together with fluidic channels for efficient and low-cost implementation of tunable microwave components. A frequency-tunable antenna is proposed and simulated using CST Microwave Studio (MWS). The design is printed with an acrylic based polymer, blanket metallized with a thin copper layer and fed with a 50Ω Coplanar Waveguide (CPW). Frequency tunability for the proposed antenna is achieved by filling different amounts of Eutectic Gallium-Indium (EGaIn) into meandered and interconnected 3D printed fluidic channels bonded with Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) material. The assembled antenna is characterized by measuring the operating frequency range from 2.6GHz to 8GHz in simulations. Details of the designed reconfigurable antenna simulation results such as return loss and radiation patterns are discussed. The results demonstrate the potential of the antenna as low cost, wideband and reconfigurable alternative which could be used in modern UWB communication and sensor systems.