Investigation of a small handheld PCB nesting two antennas NFC 13.56 MHz and to RF 868 MHz

The development of the electronics during the recent years aims at producing smaller devices with a very high integration, very energy efficient and cost-effective. There is also a tendency that every device should have such communication modules, so that it can connect to the cloud network which is evolving every day. Designing several different antennas into one single PCB, which is small in size, might be a problem and a challenge. Every electromagnetic antenna has its own requirements for structural design, placement on the PCB, physical surrounding components and objects, ground planes, environment dependency and many other factors. The article presents the process and results of a design of a small PCB for remote control, nesting two antennas: NFC 13.56 MHz and to RF 868 MHz. The investigation includes tuning the antennas with spectrum analyzer and impedance analyzer. Aspects of EMC are also examined.