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Microfluidically Frequency & Polarization

Reconfigurable Patch Antennas


Hamza Kiani1,2, David Chatzichristodoulou1,3, Adnan Nadeem1,2, Abdul Quddious4, Nosherwan Shoaib2, Photos
Vryonides1,5, Dimitris E. Anagnostou6, Symeon Nikolaou1,5
1
Frederick Research Center, Nicosia, Cyprus, anadeem.msee19rimms@seecs.edu.pk, s.nikolaou@frederick.ac.cy
2
Research Institute for Microwave and Millimeter-Wave Studies (RIMMS), National University of Sciences & Technology
(NUST), Islamabad, Pakistan, hkiani.msee19seecs@seecs.edu.pk, nosherwan.shoaib@seecs.edu.pk
3
RF and Microwave Solutions LTD, Cyprus, eng.cd@frederick.ac.cy
4
KIOS Research and Innovation Center of Excellence, University of Cyprus, Nicosia, Cyprus, quddious.abdul@ucy.ac.cy
5
Electrical Engineering Department, Frederick University, Nicosia, Cyprus, eng.vp@fit.ac.cy
6
Institute of Signals, Sensors, and Systems, Heriot-Watt University, Edinburgh, UK, d.anagnostou@hw.ac.uk

Abstract—Microfluidically frequency reconfigurable and bandwidth, and efficiency of the antenna is compromised.
polarization reconfigurable probe-fed patch antennas are The liquid metal-based frequency reconfigurable antenna for
presented in this paper. For the frequency reconfigurable temperature sensing application, reported in [5] requires a
antenna, a frequency tuning bandwidth of 14% (4.35–4.5 GHz) high power control circuit for tuning. A voltage-controlled
can be achieved by continuous loading of liquid metal inside
the additively manufactured microfluidic channels on top of flow of liquid metal in 3D printed channels is used to realize
patch slots. During the frequency reconfigurability, the only two bands of frequency reconfigurability in [6]. A dual-
bandwidth remains greater than 5%, the gain remains higher band slot antenna using microfluidic frequency
than 7.5 dBi and there is polarization consistency over the reconfigurability is presented in [7], but it has low gain.
complete tuning range. For the second antenna, switching Polarization reconfiguration can be an important aspect
between left-hand and right-hand circular polarization is in wireless communications with applications in polarization
demonstrated by alternatively inserting or removing metallic
multiplexing, while it can also contribute in reducing
ink inside 3D printed Polylactic Acid (PLA) channels. For both
polarization states stable reflection coefficient with -10 dB S11 undesired signals, minimizing polarization mismatch loss,
bandwidth of 9.6% (4.48-4.93 GHz) and 3-dB axial ratio and avoiding fading effects. The drawback of using
bandwidth (ARBW) of 5.2% (4.48-4.72 GHz, are achieved. electronic switching for polarization diversity is the
Index Terms— reconfigurable, additive manufacturing, degradation of radiation efficiency, gain, and linearity in
microfluidic, liquid metal. transmission scenarios. In [8], Eutectic Gallium–Indium
(EGaIn) has been used to achieve linear polarization (LP),
left-hand circular polarization (LHCP), and right-hand
I. INTRODUCTION
circular polarization (RHCP). A fluidically polarization
Antennas can exhibit reconfigurability in radiation reconfigurable Yagi antenna with the circular patch as a
pattern, frequency, polarization, or in any combination of all driven element is presented in [9]. A quarter-wavelength
[1-3]. Often in wireless communications, the quality of liquid metal stub-loaded patch antenna is presented in [10] to
service provided to the users is highly dependent on achieve frequency tunable polarization reconfiguration. In
multipath fading and interference within the band, which can addition, water is used as a dielectric fluid in [11] for
be avoided by using polarization and frequency polarization reconfigurability.
reconfigurable antennas respectively. Electronic switches This paper presents two patch antennas; one exhibits
like PIN diodes, varactor diodes, and frequency reconfigurability using the flow of liquid metal
microelectromechanical switches (MEMS) are commonly inside additively manufactured fluidic channels, and the
used in reconfiguring slot-based resonators for antennas [4]. second antenna can switch between right-hand circular
Besides electronics-based reconfiguration, optical, polarization (RHCP) and left-hand circular polarization
mechanical, fluidical, and smart materials-based (LHCP) using. Computer Simulation Technology (CST-
reconfiguration has also been explored by researchers. 2020) is used to design the two different probe-fed patch
In recent years, technological advancements in the field antennas. Slots are etched on the top copper layer of the
of additive manufacturing have enabled researchers to patch and fluidic channels carrying EGaIn liquid metal ink
achieve the reconfigurability of antenna parts using 3D are used as switching elements to create either open or short
printed structures. In [3], polydimethylsiloxane (PDMS) is electric connections. To dynamically change the frequency
etched to make microfluidic channels that are loaded with shift of the antenna, the EGaIn is continuously injected
liquid metallic ink (LMI) to change the polarization and inside the fluidic channel. Both designs are simple to
frequency of a slot antenna. Due to the placement of a thick implement since no multi-layering or complex structure is
PDMS layer on the top of the slot, the overall gain, used. The same Rogers RT/duroid 5880 3.175 mm thick

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substrate is used for both antennas, and the 3D printed patch side is Wp = 17.2 mm. Probe feeding at (Xf, Yf) point
channels are straight with semi-circular cross-section aiming is used to excite the antenna and its exact position is critical
for a minimum volume of liquid metal which is expensive. in achieving a good matching for the antenna. It is worth
The paper first describes the fabrication and additive noting that the dimensions of the 3D printed PLA housing
manufacturing of the microfluidic channels, and then the segment are not mentioned in Fig. 1, because it is printed by
simulated results of the frequency reconfigurable antenna are keeping 2 mm padding on all sides of the patch. Similarly,
discussed followed by the far-field radiation performance the width of the microfluidic channels is the same as Ws plus
Polarization reconfigurable patch antenna is discussed in 50 μm on both sides to make good contact of the LMI with
section III. the copper patch. The physical dimensions of the antenna are
given in Table I.
II. MICROFLUIDICALLY FREQUENCY RECONFIGURABLE For the proof of concept and to build know-how with
ANTENNA fabrication-related challenges, the microfluidic channels
were originally printed on an Original PRUSA® SL1 resin-
A. Fabrication Considerations based 3D printer. An optically transparent and photosensitive
The patch antenna presented in Fig. 1, is designed on resin ink (3DM Clear Tough) was used to print microfluidic
Rogers RT/duroid 5880 substrate of height 3.175 mm, the channels of different shapes, heights, and widths. The
dielectric loss tangent of 0.0009, and permittivity 2.2. A structures of the microfluidic channels were also kept as a)
square slab of height hp = 2 mm housing two microfluidic both sides open, b) open from one side, and c) closed at both
channels are 3D printed using the Original Prusa® i3 MK3S ends i.e., accessible through PTFE tubes as used in the
printer [12][add a reference]. The material used for 3D current configuration. In Fig. 2, some of the channels are
printing is Fillamentum® Polylactic Acid (PLA) with kept such that they are encapsulated in the 3D printed
dielectric properties ε = 2.95 and tan δ = 0.014, as reported in material, while other channels are open from the bottom side.
[13]. While experimenting with microfluidic channels certain The design is sliced in PrusaSlicer software by keeping its
fabrication constraints and physical realization orientation 45° in both x- and y-axis so that the residual ink
considerations surfaced up. Eventually, the microfluidic is removed from the channels during printing. The printed
channels are designed with a semi-circular cross-section in prototype is washed thoroughly with Isopropyl Alcohol
order to avoid the liquid metal ink’s residue on the sharp (IPA) to remove any liquid ink inside the channels in order
edges of rectangular channels and keep a flat wide surface to avoid channels blockage. Before putting the prototype
for the electric contact. Compared to rectangular or square- samples in Prusa Curing and Washing machine (CW1S), a
shaped channels, semi-circular cross-section channels with syringe needle filled with IPA is used to clean small channels
smooth surfaces can also help in the smooth flow of the by applying pressure. During this cleaning process, some of
liquid metal ink with minimal required pressure. the channels were damaged because the prototype was not
A rectangular slot of width Ws and length Ls has been cured, and the bottom layers were only 0.1 mm in thickness.
etched at the far-right edge of the patch parallel to the y-axis. Due to the small printing area, slow printing speed, and
The position of the slot Ps is measured from the origin of the
TABLE I. ANTENNA DIMENSIONS (MILLIMETERS)
patch antenna in parallel to the x-axis and is optimized to get
better performance during the frequency tuning of the W Wp Ws Ls Ps
antenna. The overall antenna size is 48 mm and the square 48 17.2 0.9 11 12.75
Xf Yf h hp hc

z 4.15 7 3.17 2 1

y
x

(a) (b)

(a) (b)

(c) (c)
Fig. 1. Frequency reconfigurable patch antenna structure. Fig. 2. 3D design of a prototype sample for the microfluidic channels
(a) Exploded view, (b) top view and (c) side view printing and testing. (a) 3D printed sample (b) top view and (c) front view

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the experienced channel blockage in the resin-based TABLE II. OPERATING STATES OF ANTENNA
microfluidic channels, we shifted our design to filament- State Channel-1 Channel-2
based 3D printing using Original Prusa® i3 MK3S whose A 1 1
bed size is 210 x 210 mm2. To precisely print, the B 1 0
microfluidic channels without deformation, printing speed C 0 1
was reduced to minimum settings i.e., 0.05 mm ultra-detail. D 0 0
This setting slows down the nozzle speed which gives more
time to the printed layers to get cool and retain the details of inside the slot channel. In Fig. 3, only four discrete states of
the design. There is no cleaning, washing, and curing frequency reconfigurability are presented. Table II lists the
involved in filament-based printing, therefore, multiple details of the states of reconfigurability where channel-1 is
samples can be printed on the large printing area in parallel on the top of the patch slot and channel-2 is added at the left
to save time. As depicted in Fig. 1, four holes are also part of edge of the patch antenna in Fig. 1. In the equivalent two bits
the design which are used as an inlet/outlet for the LMI. combination representation, 1 represents the presence of
EGaIn LMI inside the channel and 0 shows the absence of
B. Frequency Tuning Using Microfluidic Channels LMI i.e., the channel is filled with air.
The 3D printed microfluidic channels need to be glued to C. Far-field Performance
the top side of the patch antenna using a double-sided CHR®
Polyimide Adhesive Tape (PAT). The adhesive tape under To completely characterize the fluidically frequency
the channels is removed to allow the physical contact of the reconfigurable microstrip patch antenna, its radiation
LMI with the patch copper and hence create a short circuit. performance is also simulated. The most important factor is
PTFE tubes with an external diameter of 1.6 mm and an the stability of the antenna’s polarization in the different
internal diameter of 0.6 mm are used to inject the fluid into operating states. The far-field radiation pattern of the
the channels. antennas presented in [2, 6, 7] changes as the frequency is
The patch antenna with the PLA segment on its top was varied, however, in our design, the radiation pattern of the
initially designed without any slot and it operates at 4.86 antenna remains unchanged. The realized gain for all states
GHz with a fractional bandwidth (FBW) of 6%. To change remains above 7.5 dBi with a 3 dB beamwidth (HPBW) of
the operating frequency, a slot is added after tuning its 75°–77° and a sidelobe level below -23 dB. The E- and H-
parameters Ws, Ls, and Ps. The surface current distribution planes plots for the defined discrete states of the antenna are
on the patch shows that the slot is placed at a 90° angle shown in Fig. 4. The main lobe of the pattern in the states
compared to the current direction which makes the current where liquid metal is filled inside the channel (State A-C)is
lines to take a longer path and hence decrease the resonance tilted 1°–3° from the broadside direction. This phenomenon
frequency of the antenna. With this new configuration, the can be explained by considering the significant height of the
center frequency of the antenna is 4.7 GHz with a fractional conducting liquid inside the channel i.e., 1 mm, which causes
bandwidth of 5.2%. To tune the frequency continuously, the a minor beam tilt.
patch slot is loaded with LMI by injecting a mixture of
EGaIn ink and mineral oil to precisely control the amount of III. POLARIZATION RECONFIGURABLE ANTENNA
ink inside the channel and hence control the effective length
of the slot. There is another fluidic channel added on the left A. Fabrication Considerations
edge of the antenna which effectively alters the overall patch The fabrication process of a microfluidically polarization
dimensions and contributes in the frequency reconfigurable microstrip patch antenna is mostly similar to
reconfigurability. the process presented in section-II. Both antennas are probe-
The antenna can be continuously tuned from 4.35 – 5.0 fed, use the same substrate of 3.175 mm thickness, use 3D
GHz (BW = 650 MHz) by controlling the amount of LMI printed PLA channels and EGaIn liquid metal ink. However,

(a) (b)

Fig. 3. Simulated return loss of discrete 04 states of patch antenna Fig. 4. Simulated far-field radiation patterns (Co-pol). (a) E-plane and
(b) H-plane

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a major difference between the two antennas is that in B. Polarization Switching Mechanism
polarization reconfigurable antenna, the microfluidic The basic operating principle of the polarization
channels do not fill the patch slots. Instead, they are used to reconfigurable antenna is similar to the frequency
create an open or short circuit which can be considered as a reconfigurable antenna, where the incorporation of a slot
replacement of a PIN diode or any other type of electric disturbs the surface currents of the operating mode and
switch. The geometry of the antenna is shown in Fig. 5 and changes the resonating frequency. In contrast to the single
the physical dimensions are summarized in Table. III. The slot, two slots are added in a polarization reconfigurable
most challenging task of this design is making sure that the antenna. The patch antenna with a probe feed located at its
EGaIn inside the channels creates proper contact with the diagonal excites two modes, TM10 and TM01
copper of the patch antenna to form a short circuit and when simultaneously. Inserting a single slot affects the resonating
it is removed, an open circuit is ensured. To solve this frequency of one mode and inserting a second slot changes
problem, both channels are connected, such that liquid metal the resonating frequency of the second mode [14]. The
can only touch the copper patch at 3 positions where the position, length, and width of both slots are optimized to get
inlet/outlet PTFE tubes are located. There is a 0.5 mm thick similar insertion loss behavior whether either the one or the
PLA bridge between the patch slots and the EGaIn, in order other is shorted at its center. In this way, when the x-channel
to avoid the flow of ink on the substrate which is difficult to is shorted by filling EGaIn into it, this x-axis slot splits into
remove. two smaller slots resulting in a slight change in the M10
The process of reconfiguration through LMI injection mode’s resonance frequency while at the same time, the y-
involves three steps: axis slot is not shorted and therefore, the shift in the
• Injection of PTFE-based lubricant inside the channels resonance frequency of TM01 is large Similarly, in the
for smooth flow and to avoid LMI residue and second mode of operation, the y-axis slot is shorted with
leakage. EGaIn, and the x-axis slot remains intact. In this mode, a
• Once channels are cleaned, injection of NaOH large frequency shift is observed in TM10. The length of the
solution sandwiched between LMI so that one short at slots, their positions, and location of x- and y-channels are
a time is created. optimized to get the minimum difference between the
• Final cleaning of both channels with NaOH and resonance frequencies of the two modes. At this point, the
PTFE lubricant for future reuse purposes. electric fields of both modes have equal magnitude and a
Referring to Fig. 5, we label the two channels as x- and 90° phase difference at the center frequency. Keeping in
y-channels for the ease of understanding the simulated result view the above discussion, the antenna can operate in two
plots. modes of circular polarization i.e., RHCP when the x-
TABLE III. ANTENNA DIMENSIONS (MILLIMETERS)
channel is filled with LMI and LHCP when the y-channel is
filled with LMI. S11 and the axial ratio of both states are
W Wp Ws Ls Ps illustrated in Fig. 6.
40 18 1 12.5 13 Compared to the designs in [8-10], the proposed antenna
is easy to fabricate, exhibits stable and consistent matching
Xf Yf h hp hc
between the two switching states, and requires a minimal
5 5 3.17 2 1 amount of LMI for reconfiguration. The impedance
bandwidth of the antenna corresponding to the -10 dB S11
threshold is 450 MHz (FBW = 9.6%). The figure of merit of
circular polarization is the axial ratio which remains below
S11 (dB)

(a) (b)

hc hp
z Probe h
y
(c)
Fig. 5. Polarization reconfigurable patch antenna geometry. (a) Exploded Fig.6. Simulated S11 and axial ratio (inset) of microfluidically
view, (b) top view and (c) side view polarization reconfigurable patch antenna

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ACKNOWLEDGMENT
This work was partially co-funded by the European
Regional Development Fund and the Republic of Cyprus
through the Research and Innovation Foundation, under the
projects INFRASTRUCTURES/1216/0042 (RF-META)
and EXCELLENCE/1216/0376 (SWITCH).
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