3D Kirigami antennas with robust frequency for stretchable wireless communication

Antenna, which is the essential electric component for wireless signal communication, requires one fixed electrical size for the stable working frequency. However, the frequency of the existing flexible antenna varies with its changing deformation, which leads to the loss of data packet or even transmission failure. Hence the fixed size of the existing flexible antenna is severely inconsistent with the deformation of flexible substrate. Here we propose a strategy to design and fabricate stretchable antennas with robust frequency based on three dimensional (3D) Kirigami, which is lightweight and deformation insensitive. With Kirigami design and assembling in 3D style, the radiation element of the antenna is mostly detached and strain-isolated from the soft substrate. Thus, not only bending, stretching and, compressing, but also the random dynamic disturbance deviates the resonant frequency little from the designed frequency in the wind disturbing experiments, as shown in the wind experiments It exhibits a superior strain insensitivity compared with the stretchable antennas ever reported. With mechanics guided design, the antenna’s property remains stable after 5000 cycles bending deformation in the fatigue tests. Besides, an omnidirectionally stretchable and fully integrated device featured Bluetooth wireless communication enabled by 3D Kirigami antenna (2.45 GHz) has been designed and fabricated. Results show that the stretchable antenna strategy based on 3D Kirigami is robust for wearable electronics’ wireless transmission.