A Miniaturized and Highly Sensitive Microwave Sensor Based on CSRR for Characterization of Liquid Materials

Ahmed Jamal Abdullah Al-Gburi; Zahriladha Zakaria; Norhanani Abd Rahman; Ayman A Althuwayb; Imran Mohd Ibrahim; Tale Saeidi; Zaheer Ahmed Dayo; Sarosh Ahmad

doi:10.3390/ma16093416

A Miniaturized and Highly Sensitive Microwave Sensor Based on CSRR for Characterization of Liquid Materials

Materials (Basel). 2023 Apr 27;16(9):3416. doi: 10.3390/ma16093416.

Authors

Ahmed Jamal Abdullah Al-Gburi¹, Zahriladha Zakaria², Norhanani Abd Rahman³, Ayman A Althuwayb⁴, Imran Mohd Ibrahim², Tale Saeidi⁵, Zaheer Ahmed Dayo⁶, Sarosh Ahmad⁷

Affiliations

¹ Centre for Telecommunication Research & Innovation (CeTRI), Faculty of Electrical and Electronic Engineering Technology (FTKEE), Malacca 76100, Malaysia.
² Centre for Telecommunication Research & Innovation (CeTRI), Fakulti Kejuruteraan Elektronik dan Kejuruteraan Komputer (FKEKK), Universiti Teknikal Malaysia Melaka, Durian Tungal 76100, Malaysia.
³ Department of Electrical Engineering, Politeknik Port Dickson (PPD), Port Dickson 71250, Malaysia.
⁴ Electrical Engineering Department, Engineering College, Jouf University, Sakaka 72388, Saudi Arabia.
⁵ Electrical and Electronics Engineering Department, Faculty of Engineering and Natural Sciences, İstinye University, Istanbul 34396, Turkey.
⁶ College of Computer Science, Huanggang Normal University, Huangzhou 438000, China.
⁷ Department of Signal Theory and Communications, Universidad Carlos III de Madrid (UC3M), 28911 Madrid, Spain.

Abstract

In this work, a miniaturized and highly sensitive microwave sensor based on a complementary split-ring resonator (CSRR) is proposed for the detection of liquid materials. The modeled sensor was designed based on the CSRR structure with triple rings (TRs) and a curve feed for improved measurement sensitivity. The designed sensor oscillates at a single frequency of 2.5 GHz, which is simulated using an Ansys HFSS simulator. The electromagnetic simulation explains the basis of the mode resonance of all two-port resonators. Five variations of the liquid media under tests (MUTs) are simulated and measured. These liquid MUTs are as follows: without a sample (without a tube), air (empty tube), ethanol, methanol, and distilled water (DI). A detailed sensitivity calculation is performed for the resonance band at 2.5 GHz. The MUTs mechanism is performed with a polypropylene tube (PP). The samples of dielectric material are filled into PP tube channels and loaded into the CSRR center hole; the E-fields around the sensor affect the relationship with the liquid MUTs, resulting in a high Q-factor value. The final sensor has a Q-factor value and sensitivity of 520 and 7.032 (MHz)/ε_r) at 2.5 GHz, respectively. Due to the high sensitivity of the presented sensor for characterizing various liquid penetrations, the sensor is also of interest for accurate estimations of solute concentrations in liquid media. Finally, the relationship between the permittivity and Q-factor value at the resonant frequency is derived and investigated. These given results make the presented resonator ideal for the characterization of liquid materials.

Keywords: Q-factor; complementary split-ring resonator (CSRR); distilled water (DI); ethanol; liquid media under tests (MUTs); methanol; polypropylene (PP) tube; sensitivity; triple rings (TRs).

Grants and funding

The author gratefully acknowledges Universiti Teknikal Malaysia Melaka (UTeM) and the Federal Training (HLP) scholarship scheme awarded by MOHE. Moreover, the authors extend their appreciation to the Deputyship for Research & Innovation, Ministry of Education in Saudi Arabia for funding this research through project number 223202.