RF performance of ink-jet printed microstrip lines on rigid and flexible substrates

In this paper, microstrip lines that are directly patterned by Ag ink-jet printing are discussed and their RF performance is investigated on both rigid and flexible substrates, which are FR-4 and polyimide (PI) film substrates, respectively. Microstrip lines are designed by computational simulation,...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Microelectronic engineering 2017-01, Vol.168, p.82-88
Main Authors: Sim, Sung-min, Lee, Yeonsu, Kang, Hye-Lim, Shin, Kwon-Yong, Lee, Sang-Ho, Kim, Jung-Mu
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Bend tests
Bending
Computer simulation
Ink jet printing
Jet printing
Microstrip line
Microstrip transmission lines
Printed electronics
Silver nanoparticle
Substrates
Torsion
Torsion tests
Wearable technology
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Summary:In this paper, microstrip lines that are directly patterned by Ag ink-jet printing are discussed and their RF performance is investigated on both rigid and flexible substrates, which are FR-4 and polyimide (PI) film substrates, respectively. Microstrip lines are designed by computational simulation, and the simulated results are compared with the measured RF results of the fabricated microstrip lines. The measured transmission losses of the microstrip lines are 0.24dB/cm for the FR-4 substrate and 0.66dB/cm for the PI film substrate at 3GHz. To measure the RF performance of the printed microstrip lines undergoing bending tests, the distances between the ends of the bended microstrip line are varied from 5cm to 9.2cm. The microstrip lines are twisted by torsion angles in the range of 0–40°. The RF performance and characteristics remain nearly unchanged under bending and torsion tests except for negligible variation caused by impedance mismatching occurred during the measurement process. The measured RF performance demonstrates that the printed Ag conductive lines can be utilized in RF application such as wearable and flexible systems, which require low-cost and low-end antennae at low frequencies. [Display omitted] •The ink-jet printed microstrip lines on FR-4 and polyimide substrates are presented.•The RF characteristics of microstirp line were investigated in regards to an influence on both rigid and flexible substrates.•The RF characteristics of the flexible microstrip line were measured according to bending and torsional states.
ISSN:0167-9317
1873-5568
DOI:10.1016/j.mee.2016.11.011