Inkjet-Printed RF Structures on BST-Polymer Composites: An Application of a Monopole Antenna for 2.4 GHz Wireless Local Area Network Operation

Abstract

In this study, 0–3 ceramic–polymer composite substrates are utilized in RF applications in combination with inkjet printing technology. The substrates were fabricated from barium–strontium–titanate and polyphenylene sulfide. The relative permittivity and loss tangent were measured by inkjet-printed silver transmission lines and resonant techniques. They increased from 3.2 to 14.2 and from 0.003 to 0.0055, respectively, at 5 GHz with increasing ceramic loading up to 36.4 vol%. An antenna for 2.4 GHz wireless local area network band was proposed. A return loss of >−15 dB and a total antenna efficiency of >60% were measured across the band.