Search

In this study, an ultraminiaturized implantable antenna is developed for biotelemetry applications. It has triple-band characteristics in the industrial, scientific, and medical (ISM) bands of 902–928 MHz for data telemetry and 2400–2483.5 MHz for power-saving applications and midfield band (1824–1980 MHz) for wireless power transfer simultaneously. The size of the proposed antenna is 0.068 $\lambda _{g}\,\,\times0.048\,\,\lambda _{g}\,\,\times0.0036\,\,\lambda _{g}$ and it is the smallest size of any triple-band implantable antenna ever devised without using shortening vias. Such a compact size is achieved by meandering the shape of the radiating patch and adding open-ended ground slots. Unlike most miniaturized implantable antennas reported in the available literature, no shortening pin is used and this makes the fabrication of the antenna very easy. The bandwidths measured in minced pork muscles are 14% and 24% in the lower and upper ISM bands, respectively, and 12% in the midfield band. The maximum values of the realized gain of the proposed antenna obtained in the heterogeneous skin phantom at 915, 1900, and 2450 MHz are −27.2, −22.2, and −19.9 dBi, respectively. In addition, specific absorption rates (SARs) in the heterogeneous skin and muscle tissues at the three resonance frequencies are calculated and show compliance with the IEEE standards for ensuring human safety. Finally, the range of the biotelemetry link is evaluated by calculating the wireless communication link budget at data rates of 7 kb/s, 100 kb/s, and 10 Mb/s at resonance frequencies. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Advancement in the technology of leadless cardiac pacemakers (LCPs) has led to ultracompact designs of implantable antennas. In this study, a small-sized antenna for integration with an LCP, which can be operated in the industrial, scientific, and medical (ISM) band of 2.4 GHz, is developed. The proposed antenna was constructed in a spiral shape to provide superior miniaturization, less sensitivity to body tissue variation, and low specific absorption rate (SAR) values, and avoid fabrication complexities due to its small size. The antenna with a footprint of $3 \times 4\,\,\times0.5$ mm3 was constructed on a high dielectric material, namely, Rogers RT/duroid 6010. To the best of the authors’ knowledge, this is the smallest footprint with enhanced performance when compared to previous reports related to implantable antennas. In addition, the antenna was integrated with a 3-D printed LCP having dummy electronics and experimentally validated in saline solution and minced pork. The antenna sustained good impedance matching at the ISM band with a measured bandwidth of 21.88% and 15.46% with the device and without the device, respectively. Due to the smooth electric field (surface currents) over the patch, the antenna system had 270.28 and 31.04 W/kg peak SAR for 1 and 10 g of tissues, respectively, with a maximum peak gain of −25.95 dBi. We also discussed the effects of a coaxial cable and the antenna orientation on its performance. From the measured received signal strength, a stable biotelemetric link can be established between the implant and external controlling device up to a distance of 2 m. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]