Miniaturized Textile Antennas using Resonant Current Path Length Manipulation

This research study presents a technique to miniaturize a jeans-based microstrip textile antenna by manipulating the resonant current path length. The antenna’s operating frequency depends on the length of this path, and by increasing it electrically without altering the physical dimensions, the resonance frequency is reduced. In this design, two T-shaped slots, each measuring 10 mm in total length, are introduced to a square microstrip antenna operating at 5.3 GHz. These slots effectively lengthen the resonant current path, thus lowering the resonance frequency. Slot with 22 mm length reduces the frequency by 1.6 GHz, and further extending the slot to 38 mm decreases the frequency by 2.4 GHz. This modification achieves a 72% size reduction of the antenna, while maintaining performance. This approach proves particularly useful for wearable applications, where miniaturization is crucial.