Magneto-dielectric polymer nanocomposites have been explored as a new class of functional materials well suited for RF device applications. Magnetite (Fe3O4) nanoparticles, with sub-10-nm diameters and tight size distribution, are synthesized and homogeneously dispersed in Polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) to enhance the microwave properties of the engineered RF substrate by increasing the relative permeability and relative permittivity. Moreover, these properties can be further improved by a dc magnetic field with strength achievable with permanent magnets. This work not only presents the first experimental implementation of magneto-dielectric nanocomposite antennas with different operational frequencies in the 3-5GHz range, but also correlates the unique magneto-dielectric properties to the key antenna performance metrics such as bandwidth, efficiency and miniaturization factors. Specifically, a magneto-dielectric antenna with a miniaturization factor of 57%, a 58% increase in bandwidth, and a decent antenna gain of 2.12dBi, was successfully demonstrated through the employment of molded substrate with 80% wt Fe3O4-PDMS nanocomposites.

Magneto-dielectric polymer nanocomposite engineered substrates for RF and microwave antennas

243rd National Meeting (2012)

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