Realization of millimeter-wave planar antennas on PDMS

The authors presented here, for the very first time, the use of PDMS as a new substrate for the realization of millimeter wave planar antennas. The aimed frequency range is the 60GHz band. Two configurations have been studied. First, PDMS was used directly as a dielectric material. Then, the radiating element was supported on a PDMS membrane over an air cavity. The design of these antennas was first presented with the method of moments (MoM) and the finite-difference time-domain (FDTD) technique, and then the technological process is described. The two antenna types have been experimentally characterized: the input impedance and radiation pattern measurements show a good agreement with the theoretical results, which confirms the validity of the developed technological process.