Design and Performance Analysis of a Miniaturized Implantable PIFA for Wireless Body Area Network Applications

A novel and miniaturized implantable PIFA (Planar Inverted-F Antenna) operates at the industrial, scientific and medical (ISM) band (2.4-2.4835 GHz) is proposed in this paper for wireless body area network applications. The actual dimension of the proposed implantable antenna is 8 mm x 6 mm x 1 mm (48 mm3) with a slot-less ground plane which reduces the design complexity. The tiny dimension of the proposed antenna makes it perfectly suitable for wireless body area network (WBAN) applications. Copper is used as the patch material and Rogers R03210 is used as the substrate material of the proposed antenna. Biocompatible material Rogers R03035 is also used to encapsulate the antenna to avoid direct contact with the human body. Different performance parameters of the antenna such as operating frequency, S-11 parameter, Voltage Standing Wave Ratio (VSWR), directivity, total efficiency have been analyzed both in planar and bent conditions on the three-layer human tissue model by using CST Microwave Studio. Finally, Specific Absorption Rate (SAR) is evaluated to satisfy the antenna safety concern on the human body.