A novel front-end radio frequency pressure transducer based on a dual-band resonator for wireless sensing

A highly sensitive and compact radio frequency transducer is designed for differential pressure sensing that utilizes a stacked-patch resonator. This device, the first of its kind to be reported, functions as both a pressure sensing agent and a wireless communicating front-end, thus allowing miniaturization and easy integration. The resonator consists of a stacked-patch based on LTCC multilayer packaging technology, having an air cavity embedded by a silicon (Si) diaphragm that deflects due to pressure change. In one implementation, this transducer is designed to provide a communications link at 32 GHz and a pressure sensing between 47-55 GHz. The pressure inside the air cavity can be calibrated to detect differential pressure anywhere from zero to several bars. In this paper, the authors present measurement results of the sensor prototype scaled to operate between approximately 5-8 GHz as a proof-of-concept.