This project supports collaborative research by Dr. Magdy Iskander, Department of Electrical Engineering, University of Hawaii, Honolulu, Hawaii in collaboration with Dr. Esmat Abdalla, Electronics Research Institute, Cairo, Egypt. They plan to study the Miniaturization for broadband Chip Size Antennas using Electromagnetic Band Gap (EBG) techniques for Wireless Communications and Biomedical Applications. As intriguing as compact antennas are today, the enabling technology still has some hurdles in the balancing of the design/characteristics equation. The needs are on one hand: wide bandwidth, multi-band /multi-function operation, high gain and efficiency, omni directional radiation pattern with low or negligible mutual coupling in array case, and on the other hand: very small size, low specific absorption rate, low profile, low cost, and easy integration in very small space. The antenna is the key element in order to fully integrate a wireless microsystem into a single chip. The integration requires a small antenna on a low loss substrate material compatible with integrated circuits IC fabrication. Moreover, due to the frequency increase in recent wireless systems, the provided bandwidth becomes acceptable for both data communications and medical sensor applications. There is a great demand for increasing number of applications since the trend in the entire communication world is to be wireless, and the eyes of any wireless system are its transmitting/receiving antenna. EBG structures are used to prevent some operating modes and make harmonic control. These techniques can increase the usability of antenna systems. The design and simulation of the MEMS with EBG structures have recently attracted more attention. Initial concepts only have been proven with limited fabricated devices. Research is needed to contribute in this field. This project is a step to investigate and develop how an EBG structure/ground plane can be used to optimize the MEMS antenna performance. The investigated antenna will be miniaturized with broadband characteristics to be suitable for multi-band/ multi-function operation in wireless and medical sensors' applications. Intellectual impact: The design and characterization of miniature high performance antenna systems for advanced wireless communications. The hybridized designs, utilizing MEMS fabrication and EBG structures all integrated into a single chip, will lead to miniaturized integrated and low profile antennas that exhibit broadband characteristics for multi-band/multi-function operation.
Broader impact: Potential application in advanced multifunction wireless systems. Significant educational benefits to the graduate student who will be working on her PhD This project is being supported under the US-Egypt Joint Fund Program, which provides grants to scientists and engineers in both countries to carry out these cooperative activities.
