Signalling change - Engineers are investigating ways to mount antennas onto soft, flexible surfaces for wireless applications

摘要

UK RESEARCHERS are studying the properties of metallic materials deposited in novel ways on elastomeric substrates to produce stretchable antennas that could be used in wireless medical and communication applications. Dr Stephanie Lacour, principal investigator and an engineering research fellow at Cambridge University, said: 'We're interested in combining electronic devices with the human body, but most current electronics are mounted on fairly rigid and flat substrates. The human body is a 3D object with curved, moving shapes. If you want to interface the two, you need to find ways to form electronic components, such as radio-frequency (RF) antennas, on pliant surfaces.