Plastic circuits and tags for 13.56 MHz radio-frequency communication

• Published in: Solid-state electronics 2009-12, Vol.53 (12), p.1220-1226
• Main Authors: Myny, Kris, Steudel, Soeren, Vicca, Peter, Beenhakkers, Monique J., van Aerle, Nick A.J.M., Gelinck, Gerwin H., Genoe, Jan, Dehaene, Wim, Heremans, Paul
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Chips; Electric potential; Magnetic fields; Rectifiers; Tags; Transistors; Transponders
• ISSN: 0038-1101; 1879-2405
• DOI: 10.1016/j.sse.2009.10.010

We discuss the design and implementation of 64-bit and 128-bit plastic transponder chips for radio-frequency identification tags. The 64-bit chips, comprising 414 organic thin-film transistors, are integrated into fully functional plastic radio-frequency identification tags with 13.56 MHz communication. The required supply voltage on the tag is generated from the AC input signal detected by the antenna, using a plastic double half-wave rectifier circuit. The tag is fully functional at a magnetic field strength of 1.26 A/m, which is below the minimum required radio-frequency magnetic field stated in the standards. We discuss the reading distance that can be achieved with our plastic rectifiers, and show that this reading distance is not limited by the performance of the plastic rectifier or transponder chip. The 128-bit transponder chip includes further features such as Manchester data encoding and a basic ALOHA anti-collision protocol. It employs 1286 organic thin-film transistors and generates the 128 bit sequence at 24 V supply voltage at a data rate of 1.5 kb/s. Data rates up to 2 kb/s could be achieved on chips with an 8-bit transponder chip.