New Printed Electronics Material from CHASM Advanced Materials Fuels Next Generation Transparent Wireless Antennas
May 7, 2020 | PR NewswireEstimated reading time: 2 minutes
CHASM Advanced Materials announced a new generation of its AgeNT™ transparent conductive film (TCF) platform specifically formulated for applications requiring very low sheet resistance and high visible light transparency (VLT), such as transparent RF antennas, transparent RF / EMI shielding films, transparent heaters, and transparent electrodes & wiring for LED lighting. AgeNT-1 product structures are created by printing carbon nanotube (CNT) ink onto a Copper metal mesh (MM) film. The improved generation 2 material delivers narrower mesh wires (5µm) at a closer spacing (300µm), increasing overall transparency as well as increasing design freedom by enabling finer circuit features. Demonstrating optoelectronic performance of 94% VLT and 1 ohm per square, only AgeNT-1 enables engineers and product designers to innovate transparent, high-efficiency wideband RF antennas for a variety of applications including 5G, WiFi, IoT, etc. that can escape the bounds of the typical enclosure to unobtrusively disappear into architectural elements like overhead lights, windows, or glazed artwork, putting more antennas closer to points of use to increase signal strength and data speeds.
According to Security Today, approximately 127 new IoT devices are brought online every second, and the number of IoT devices in the field is expected to surpass 75 billion in 2025. As the number of interconnected IoT devices continues growing, their form factors will continue evolving to satisfy diverse application requirements. Each of these devices will need to communicate via one or more wireless protocols while satisfying diverse performance requirements for a broad range of applications. In addition, the mainstream adoption of 5G and subsequent roll-outs will push frequencies into upper limits, and printed antennas need to maintain RF performance at such high frequencies.
“We’ve noticed a significant increase in transparency of CHASM’s latest generation of the AgeNT-1 platform, plus the finer wire width and mesh spacing means creating smaller-sized antenna features is possible," said Dr. Mark Hudman, Development and Engineering Director, In2tec. “Our lab testing confirms the RF performance of this latest version of AgeNT-1 as approaching the performance levels of etched Copper or printed Silver circuit non-transparent antennas, allowing us to use the new AgeNT-1 to deliver cutting edge transparent antenna designs of a more diverse nature and of greater value to our customers.”
With unique CNT Hybrid TCF materials on thin, flexible substrates such as AgeNT-1, IoT and 5G designers can create high performance antennas that cut the distance and remove obstructions between connected devices. Transparent antennas make previously inaccessible “real estate” available to engineers and product designers so windows in automobiles, lenses on lighting fixtures or any convenient plastic or glass surface can become a RF transmitter or receiver. AgeNT-1 uses a PET substrate measuring only 4-mil (100µm) thick, so resulting antennas can significantly reduce the overall weight of electronic devices or provide much needed clearance in compact designs. Circuit patterns are created using low-cost screen printing so design iterations can be quickly and inexpensively turned at low tooling cost, giving designers the capability to tailor bandwidth, resonance structure, directionality, and other antenna characteristics while delivering high VLT and low sheet resistance.
“AgeNT-1 gives RF antenna engineers design freedom to hide antennas in plain sight, placing them on surfaces not previously considered to increase performance and customer satisfaction," said David J. Arthur, CEO and Co-Founder, CHASM Advanced Materials, Inc. “Removing the design barrier and limitations from traditional antenna manufacturing components is liberating for antenna designers and product designers and their industrial designer counterparts.”
The new formulation of AgeNT-1 will be available beginning late Q2-2020 directly from CHASM or select distributors worldwide.
Suggested Items
Trouble in Your Tank: Supporting IC Substrates and Advanced Packaging, Part 5
03/19/2024 | Michael Carano -- Column: Trouble in Your TankDirect metallization systems based on conductive graphite or carbon dispersion are quickly gaining acceptance worldwide. Indeed, the environmental and productivity gains one can achieve with these processes are outstanding. In today’s highly competitive and litigious environment, direct metallization reduces costs associated with compliance, waste treatment, and legal issues related to chemical exposure. What makes these processes leaders in the direct metallization space?
AT&S Shines with Purest Copper on World Recycling Day
03/18/2024 | AT&SThe Styrian microelectronics specialist AT&S is taking World Recycling Day as an opportunity to review the progress that has been made in recent months at its sites around the world in terms of the efficient use of resources:
Matrix to Exhibit at IPC APEX EXPO 2024 in Anaheim, CA
03/05/2024 | MatrixMatrix will be exhibiting at IPC APEX EXPO 2024, to be held on April 9-12, 2024, at the Anaheim Convention Center, Anaheim, CA.
The Chemical Connection: Getting to Know Your Vendor
02/16/2024 | Don Ball -- Column: The Chemical ConnectionAfter working for a capital equipment supplier for almost 50 years, I’ve found that the most important part of getting to know your vendor is good communication among all parties. While contact between fabricators of a constantly changing product line and the designers of those products may occur daily or weekly, conversations between you and your equipment supplier may be years apart. That lengthy gap often means that previous contacts may have been promoted, retired, or moved on to other opportunities. You may have also migrated to a new supplier with whom you have little or no history. In either case, you will be interacting with someone you are unfamiliar with (as they are with you). Therefore, it is essential for both sides to communicate clearly so expectations will align.
EIPC Winter Conference 2024, Day 2: A Closer Look at Global Trends
02/14/2024 | Pete Starkey, I-Connect007The opening session of the second day’s conference proceedings focused on global PCB trends and was introduced and moderated by Dr. Michele Stampanoni, vice president of strategic sales and business development at Cicor Group in Switzerland. He opened the session with Dr. Hayao Nakahara’s knowledgeable and enlightening video presentation on the IC substrates industry.