Caramel UHF RFID Sensors for Pest Monitoring

The emerging need for green technologies motivates the development of new approaches to manufacture electronic consumables. In case of low-cost mass-production sensors, the problem becomes even more severe due to the generation of environmental waste. Here we demonstrate an RFID-type sensor based on a caramel substrate with a micron-scale conductive layer. The device, being primarily made of sugar, attracts insects, which consume it almost completely. As an application, we demonstrate a tag that can be applied for remote pest monitoring. In the experiment, a long-range UHF RFID communication channel is established and monitored over time. An RFID-on-caramel tag consumed by insects loses its connection with a reader, indicating the presence of pests. We show the new caramel-based devices to communicate with a reader over a 10-meter distance, paving the way to remote crop monitoring. Such low-cost biodegradable sensors are highly promising for smart agriculture, warehouse management, and stock monitoring approaches.