SLAC develops novel compact antenna for communicating where radios fail

Science Daily  April 12, 2019
The highest radiation efficiency antennas require size at the scale of the wavelength (here, >1 km), making portable transmitters extremely challenging. A team of researchers in the US (SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory, industry, SRI International) used a rod-shaped crystal of a piezoelectric material, lithium niobate, as their antenna. When they applied an oscillating electric voltage to the rod it vibrated, alternately shrinking and expanding, and this mechanical stress triggered an oscillating electric current whose electromagnetic energy then got emitted as VLF radiation. Switching the wavelength during operation allowed them to transmit with a large bandwidth achieving data transfer rates of more than 100 bits per second. The device bandwidth is greater than 83x thus increasing the transmitter bitrate while still minimizing losses. These results will open new applications for portable, electrically small antennas…read more. Open Access TECHNICAL ARTICLE 

A new type of pocket-sized antenna, developed at SLAC, could enable mobile communication in situations where conventional radios don’t work. Credit: Greg Stewart/SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory

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