Very small UWB antenna for WBAN applications

The increasing demand for lightweight and miniature size of Ultra-Wideband (UWB) applications in wireless communications such as Body Area Network (BAN), requires the design of very small UWB antennas. One of the main element of wireless body area network is an antenna, and there are numerous concerns to consider while designing an on-body antenna, including power consumption, size, frequency, required bandwidth, and the unique RF transmission challenges posed by the human body tissues. This paper presents a tiny and very small UWB antenna for the BAN applications. The antenna is made on silicon substrate with thickness of 0.6 mm. The antenna´s operating frequency is in the lower band of UWB frequency range of 3.1-5.1 GHz. The small size of antenna makes it suitable for different applications, in particular for body area network. The use of single side metal on substrate is advantageous for integrating the antenna into UWB system.