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A special issue of Sensors (ISSN 1424-8220). This special issue belongs to the section "Nanosensors".

Deadline for manuscript submissions: closed (30 April 2022) | Viewed by 21784

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Dr. Massimo Donelli

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Department of Civil, Environmental and Mechanical Engineering (DICAM), University of Trento, 38123 Trento, Italy
Interests: microwave systems and devices; RFID; modulated scattering techniques (MST); microwave antenna; microwave sensors
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Special Issue Information

Dear Colleagues,

It is my great pleasure to announce this Special Issue on “Antennas and Microwave Sensors”. Modern telecommunication and monitoring systems such as pollution detection, environmental sensor radio links, radars, and mobile devices require antennas and sensors able to operate in different complex environments and acquire different environmental physical parameters. In particular, new systems aimed at acquiring and monitoring environmental parameters offer different services that require a high degree of reconfigurability despite the limited dimensions of the systems. In addition to usual services of standard previous systems, namely ultra-broadband internet connection, IP telephony, mobile web access, data postprocessing, data storage, and other interesting applications (such as the use of artificial intelligence (AI) to manage and process data), these systems can be integrated with 5G devices. In such a framework, the design of a suitable radiating system and specialized microwave sensors could play a key role in the design of next-generation monitoring systems. The antenna system and sensors for these devices must be light, cheap, and able to maintain high levels of device performance in any environment. In such a framework, the use of microwave antennas with fully adaptive properties is mandatory for dramatically improving the performances of monitoring systems. Such devices are commonly used in several fields of application, such as environmental and structural engineering monitoring, precision agriculture, pollution monitoring, and other practical and interesting applications. The objective of this Special Issue is to provide an overview of the current research on microwave antennas and sensors, highlight the latest developments and innovations, and identify new challenges and opportunities for applications.

Dr. Massimo Donelli
Guest Editor

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Keywords

Phased arrays
Full adaptive arrays
Switched beam antenna
Sum/difference arrays
Reconfigurable antennas
Reconfigurable antennas based on parasitic elements
MEMS-reconfigurable antennas
Multibeam antennas
Multifrequency antennas
Antenna control algorithms
Long-range RFID
Chipless RFID
Chipless sensors
Modulated scattering technique (MST) sensors
Radar sensors
Dielectric resonator sensors

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Published Papers (7 papers)

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Research

19 pages, 27531 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Conformal Integration of Efficient Conductive-Ink-Printed Antennas in Smart Suitcases for LPWAN-Based Luggage Tracking

by Igor Lima de Paula, Hendrik Rogier and Patrick Van Torre

Sensors 2022, 22(11), 4077; https://doi.org/10.3390/s22114077 - 27 May 2022

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2399

Abstract

In the context of localization and sensing within the Internet of Things, new antenna manufacturing technologies, such as antennas printed with conductive inks on thin thermoplastic sheets, allow for seamless integration into plastic objects produced by an injection molding process. In this paper, we present printed sensor antennas for the [862–928] MHz band supporting LoRa and Sigfox and the [2.4–2.5] GHz band for WiFi, Bluetooth, and IEEE802.15.4 communication. To integrate them into smart suitcases, the antennas are printed, overmolded, tested, and measured, following a dedicated conformal integration strategy consisting of two design iterations. Additionally, as a more convenient connection to the printed antennas, printed transmission lines along with a dedicated transition to printed circuit board technologies are implemented and characterized, avoiding rigid coaxial connectors that exhibit fragile mounting on flexible substrates. The overmolded stand-alone antennas achieve fractional impedance bandwidths of 26% and 15% covering the [862–928] MHz and [2.4–2.5] GHz bands, respectively, with a substantial margin and with in-band simulated total efficiencies of 94% and 88%, respectively. Finally, the seamless integration of two antennas into a smart suitcase for tracing via Sigfox and WiFi demonstrates the potential of the proposed technique to realize high-performance antennas occupying virtually no real estate. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Antenna and Microwave Sensors)

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17 pages, 5756 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Evaluation of Radio Communication Links of 4G Systems

by Mouloud Ayad, Reem Alkanhel, Kamel Saoudi, Mourad Benziane, Smail Medjedoub and Sherif S. M. Ghoneim

Sensors 2022, 22(10), 3923; https://doi.org/10.3390/s22103923 - 22 May 2022

Cited by 5 | Viewed by 2451

Abstract

Radio communication systems are very widely present in our current smart lifestyles. It consists of two ends, which can carry the transmitter’s information to the receptor. Before installing any radio communication system, it is necessary to analyze the link resources. Hence, this analysis allows the determination of the received radio communication strength to prove if it is sufficient for the link to work correctly and assure a high quality of service. For this reason, new services and technologies are integrated. The objective of the present work is to improve the performance of the radio communication link of 4G systems. The study is based on real measurements using the drive test. The data collected by the drive test are analyzed to increase the performance of the radio communication. Based on this data analysis, recommendations and suggestions are issued for improving the radio communication link. The obtained results indicate a significant amelioration in the performance of the radio communication link. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Antenna and Microwave Sensors)

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11 pages, 6721 KiB

Open AccessCommunication

A Low-Profile SIW-Based CTS Array with Reconfigurable Four Beams and Dual Polarizations for K-Band Sensing

by Yitong Jin, Yuanqing Chen, Yafei Ding, Ziwen Zou, Feng Qian, Yong Luo and Guangli Yang

Sensors 2022, 22(9), 3563; https://doi.org/10.3390/s22093563 - 7 May 2022

Cited by 1 | Viewed by 1841

Abstract

A dual-polarized continuous transverse stub (CTS) K-band antenna with reconfigurable four beams and low profile is proposed based on substrate-integrated-waveguide (SIW) design. It consists of a line source generator (LSG) on the bottom surface, a spherical-wave to plane-wave transforming part on the middle layer, and CTS radiators on the top surface. Particularly, the LSG has four SIW-based H-plane horns, and a chip is integrated to switch among the two pairs of horns, so as to transfer the quasi-TEM waves on the bottom surface by a ±10° deflection angle to the middle layer for the CTS radiators on the top surface, resulting in four reconfigurable scanning beams with 10° for two polarizations. The measurements show that it realizes four reconfigurable beams with a 25.8 dBi gain at 24 GHz, verifying the design. The proposed antenna takes into account the advantages of reconfigurable multi-beam, dual polarization, low side lobes, low profile, and high gain, which can be applied to K-band sensing, especially for wind profile radars. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Antenna and Microwave Sensors)

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10 pages, 3989 KiB

Open AccessCommunication

Miniaturized Bandpass Filter Using a Combination of T–Shaped Folded SIR Short Loaded Stubs

by Kicheol Yoon, Kwang Gi Kim and Tae-Hyeon Lee

Sensors 2022, 22(7), 2708; https://doi.org/10.3390/s22072708 - 1 Apr 2022

Cited by 2 | Viewed by 2359

Abstract

The consumption of multimedia content is ubiquitous in modern society. This is made possible by wireless local area networks (W–LAN) or wire service systems. Bandpass filters (BPF) have become very popular as they solve certain data transmission limitations allowing users to obtain reliable access to their multimedia content. The BPFs with quarter–wavelength short stubs can achieve performance; however, these BPFs are bulky. In this article, we propose a compact BPF with a T–shaped stepped impedance resonator (SIR) transmission line and a folded SIR structure. The proposed BPF uses a T–shaped SIR connected to a J–inverter structure (transmission line); this T–shaped SIR structure is used to replace the λ_g/4 transmission line seen in conventional stub BPFs. In addition, a folded SIR is added to the short stubs seen in conventional stub BPFs. This approach allows us to significantly reduce the size of the BPF. The advantage of a BPF is its very small size, low insertion loss, and wide bandwidth. The overall size of the new BPF is 2.44 mm × 1.49 mm (0.068λ_g × 0.059λ_g). The proposed BPF can be mass produced using semiconductors due to its planar structure. This design has the potential to be widely used in various areas including military, medical, and industrial systems. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Antenna and Microwave Sensors)

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28 pages, 2497 KiB

Open AccessArticle

The Automatic Design of Multimode Resonator Topology with Evolutionary Algorithms

by Vladimir V. Stanovov, Sergey A. Khodenkov, Aleksey M. Popov and Lev A. Kazakovtsev

Sensors 2022, 22(5), 1961; https://doi.org/10.3390/s22051961 - 2 Mar 2022

Cited by 3 | Viewed by 2902

Abstract

Microwave electromagnetic devices have been used for many applications in tropospheric communication, navigation, radar systems, and measurement. The development of the signal preprocessing units including frequency-selective devices (bandpass filters) determines the reliability and usability of such systems. In wireless sensor network nodes, filters with microstrip resonators are widely used to improve the out-of-band suppression and frequency selectivity. Filters based on multimode microstrip resonators have an order that determines their frequency-selective properties, which is a multiple of the number of resonators. That enables us to reduce the size of systems without deteriorating their selective properties. Various microstrip multimode resonator topologies can be used for both filters and microwave sensors, however, the quality criteria for them may differ. The development of every resonator topology is time consuming. We propose a technique for the automatic generation of the resonator topology with required frequency characteristics based on the use of evolutionary algorithms. The topology is encoded into a set of real valued parameters, which are varied to achieve the desired features. The differential evolution algorithm and the genetic algorithm with simulated binary crossover and polynomial mutation are applied to solve the formulated problem using the dynamic penalties method. The experimental results show that our technique enables us to find microstrip resonator topologies with desired amplitude-frequency characteristics automatically, and manufactured devices demonstrate characteristics very close to the results of the algorithm. The proposed algorithmic approach may be used for automatically exploring the new perspective topologies of resonators used in microwave filters, radar antennas or sensors, in accordance with the defined criteria and constraints. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Antenna and Microwave Sensors)

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34 pages, 8448 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Development of a Microwave Sensor for Solid and Liquid Substances Based on Closed Loop Resonator

by Aiswarya S, Sreedevi K. Menon, Massimo Donelli and Meenu L

Sensors 2021, 21(24), 8506; https://doi.org/10.3390/s21248506 - 20 Dec 2021

Cited by 9 | Viewed by 4360

Abstract

In this work, a compact dielectric sensor for the detection of adulteration in solid and liquid samples using planar resonators is presented. Six types of filter prototypes operating at 2.4 GHz are presented, optimized, numerically assessed, fabricated and experimentally validated. The obtained experimental results provided an error less than 6% with respect to the simulated results. Moreover, a size reduction of about 69% was achieved for the band stop filter and a 75% reduction for band pass filter compared to standard sensors realized using open/short circuited stub microstrip lines. From the designed filters, the miniaturised filter with Q of 95 at 2.4 GHz and size of 35 mm × 35 mm is formulated as a sensor and is validated theoretically and experimentally. The designed sensor shows better sensitivity, and it depends upon the dielectric property of the sample to be tested. Simulation and experimental validation of the designed sensor is carried out by loading different samples onto the sensor. The adulteration detection of various food samples using the designed sensor is experimentally validated and shows excellent sensing on adding adulterants to the original sample. The sensitivity of the sensor is analyzed by studying the variations in resonant frequency, scattering parameters, phase and Q factor with variation in the dielectric property of the sample loaded onto the sensor. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Antenna and Microwave Sensors)

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12 pages, 2826 KiB

Open AccessArticle

Microwave Spoof Surface Plasmon Polariton-Based Sensor for Ultrasensitive Detection of Liquid Analyte Dielectric Constant

by Ivana Podunavac, Vasa Radonic, Vesna Bengin and Nikolina Jankovic

Sensors 2021, 21(16), 5477; https://doi.org/10.3390/s21165477 - 13 Aug 2021

Cited by 12 | Viewed by 3943

Abstract

In this paper, a microwave microfluidic sensor based on spoof surface plasmon polaritons (SSPPs) was proposed for ultrasensitive detection of dielectric constant. A novel unit cell for the SSPP structure is proposed and its behaviour and sensing potential analysed in detail. Based on the proposed cell, the SSPP microwave structure with a microfluidic reservoir is designed as a multilayer configuration to serve as a sensing platform for liquid analytes. The sensor is realized using a combination of rapid, cost-effective technologies of xurography, laser micromachining, and cold lamination bonding, and its potential is validated in the experiments with edible oil samples. The results demonstrate high sensitivity (850 MHz/epsilon unit) and excellent linearity (R² = 0.9802) of the sensor, which, together with its low-cost and simple fabrication, make the proposed sensor an excellent candidate for the detection of small changes in the dielectric constant of edible oils and other liquid analytes. Full article

(This article belongs to the Special Issue Antenna and Microwave Sensors)

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