SAW Sensor Development at 4.3 GHz for the Wireless Avionics Intra-Communications Band

This paper discusses 4.3 GHz passive wireless surface acoustic wave (SAW) temperature sensors and system. Wireless, passive, SAW sensors, which can operate in a multisensor environment, have been successfully demonstrated at various frequencies by many and varied research and commercial groups. The current research extends the SAW sensor operational frequency with an initial demonstration of temperature sensing. A key motivation is the allocation of the wireless avionics intracommunications (WAIC) band. WAIC provides communications between two or more points within a single aircraft. Possible SAW wireless applications include cabin pressure, door sensors, proximity temperature, humidity, corrosion, and many aspects of structural health monitoring (SHM), including engine SHM. System implementation considerations using wideband SAW sensors are outlined. Recent design and experimental results on 4.3 GHz SAW delay line sensors are presented.