Reconfigurable Liquid Metal Alloy Antennas Embedded in Structural Composites
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Date
2015-10-02
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Abstract
The design and excitation of a liquid metal alloy antenna embedded into structural composite panel is studied. The alloy resides in micro-channels embedded into the composite that allows it to be pumped in and out of the panel to form the electrical paths necessary for the antenna. The antenna geometry is a derivative of a zig-zag log periodic dipole wire antenna. The excitation of the antenna from a structurally embedded printed microstrip transmission line is also examined. The operational bandwidth and frequency response are reconfigured by altering the amount of alloy in the meandering structure of the channels.