MIT researchers have developed a reconfigurable antenna that dynamically adjusts its frequency range by changing its physical shape, making it more versatile for communications and sensing than static antennas.
A user can stretch, bend, or compress the antenna to make reversible changes to its radiation properties, enabling a device to operate in a wider frequency range without the need for complex, moving parts. With an adjustable frequency range, a reconfigurable antenna could adapt to changing environmental conditions and reduce the need for multiple antennas.
The word “antenna” may draw to mind metal rods like the “bunny ears” on top of old television sets, but the MIT team instead worked with metamaterials — engineered materials whose mechanical properties, such as stiffness and strength, depend on the geometric arrangement of the material’s components.
The result is a simplified design for a reconfigurable antenna that could be used for applications like energy transfer in wearable devices,