Performance analysis of conventional FR4 antenna prototype and polyimide wearable antenna for ultrawide-band applications

Kondalu Banavathu; Dattatreya Gopi; Krishna Dharavathu; Vedula V.S.S.S. Chakravarthy; Sujatha Mandala; Ahmed Jamal Abdullah Al-Gburi

doi:10.1016/j.jnlest.2026.100368

Journal of Electronic Science and Technology ›› 2026, Vol. 24 ›› Issue (3) :100368 DOI: 10.1016/j.jnlest.2026.100368

Special Section on Smart Electromagnetic Environment

research-article

Performance analysis of conventional FR4 antenna prototype and polyimide wearable antenna for ultrawide-band applications

Author information +

¹ Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering, NRI Institute of Technology, Vijayawada, 521212, India

² Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering, Raghu Engineering College, Visakhapatnam, 531162, India

³ National Skill Training Institute, Ministry of Skill Development&Entrepreneurship, Hyderabad, 500013, India

⁴ Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Vignan’s Institute of Information Technology, Visakhapatnam, 530049, India

⁵ Department of Electronics and Communication Engineering, Lendi Institute of Engineering and Technology, Vizianagaram, 535005, India

⁶ Strategic Research Institute, Asia Pacific University, Kuala Lumpur, 57000, Malaysia

^* E-mail addresses: kondalu.phd@gmail.com (K. Banavathu),

dattatreya.gopi@gmail.com (D. Gopi),

krishnadharavath4u@gmail.com (K. Dharavathu),

sameervedula@gmail.com (V.V. Chakravarthy),

sujatha.m@lendi.edu.in (S. Mandala),

ahmedjamal@ieee.org (A.J. Abdullah Al-Gburi).

Kondalu Banavathu is currently a Professor with NRI Institute of Technology (NRIIT), Vijayawada, India, with over 17 years of teaching and research experience in electronics and communication engineering. His research interests include conformal antenna, multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) antenna, antennas for 5G/6G, and IoT

Dattatreya Gopi received the B.Tech. degree in electronics and communication engineering from Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University, Kakinada, India in 2009, the M.Tech. degree in radar and microwave engineering from Andhra University College of Engineering, Visakhapatnam, India in 2014, and the Ph.D. degree in the field of antennas from KL University, Guntur, India in 2020. He is currently affiliated with Raghu Engineering College, Vijayawada, India. His current research interests include testability of design, flexible antennas, concentric circular ring antennas, conformal antennas, biomedical antennas, and textile antennas

Krishna Dharavathu is a Training Officer at the National Skill Training Institute (NSTI), Hyderabad, India with over 18 years of teaching and research experience in electronics and communication engineering. His research interests include wireless communication, MIMO systems, image encryption, antennas for 5G/6G, VLSI, IoT, and AI-based engineering applications

Vedula V.S.S.S. Chakravarthy is currently a Professor with the Department of Computer Science and Engineering, Vignan’s Institute of Information Technology, Visakhapatnam, India. He is the Chair of IEEE Vizag Bay ComSoc/SPS Joint Chapter and Treasurer in Wireless, Antenna, and Microwave Symposium Society. He is the Fellow of Institute of Electronics and Telecommunication Engineers (IETE), Senior Member of IEEE, and Life Senior Member of Wireless, Antenna, and Microwave Symposium Society (WAMS), and Member of Applied Computational Electromagnetics Society (ACES), Life Member of Soft Computing Research Society (SCRS), and several other professional bodies. His research interests include computational electromagnetics and antennas as well as soft-computing and evolutionary computing tools

Sujatha Mandala received the M.Tech. dgree from Jawaharlal Nehru Technological University, Kakinada, India in 2012, and the B.E. degree from Andhra University, Visakhapatnam, India in 2008. She is currently pursuing the Ph.D. degree in antennas with electromagnetic soft surface (EMSS), Lendi Institute of Engineering and Technology, Vizianagaram, India, where she is also an Assistant Professor. Her research interests include microwave, radio frequency, and antenna design. She has published more than 20 papers in reputed SCI and Scopus indexed journals

Ahmed Jamal Abdullah Al-Gburi (Senior Member, IEEE) received the M.Eng. and Ph.D. degrees in electronics and computer engineering (telecommunication systems) from Universiti Teknikal Malaysia Melaka, Malacca, Malaysia in 2017 and 2021, respectively. He is currently an Associate Professor with the Strategic Research Institute (SRI), Asia Pacific University (APU), Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. Previously, he served as a Senior Lecturer and Deputy Head of the Microwave Research Group (MRG), Center for Telecommunication Research and Innovation (CeTRI), Universiti Teknikal Malaysia Melaka. His research interests include microwave sensors, metasurfaces, metamaterials, and MIMO antennas. He has authored numerous journal and conference publications and received several awards in innovation competitions. He is also a registered member of Board of Engineers Malaysia (BEM), Malaysia Board of Technologists (MBOT), and International Association of Engineers (IAENG). In 2023, 2024, and 2025, he was recognized among the World’s Top 2% Scientists by Stanford University, published by Elsevier

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Abstract

The rapid advancement of the ultra-wideband (UWB) technology has driven the demand for high-performance antennas with compact size, flexibility, and efficient radiation characteristics. This paper presents a comparative performance analysis of a conventional flame retardant (FR4)-based antenna prototype and a polyimide (PI)-based wearable antenna designed for UWB applications. The antennas are fabricated and evaluated in terms of key performance metrics, including reflection coefficient, impedance bandwidth, gain, and radiation pattern, for wearable applications. The results demonstrate that the FR4-based antenna exhibits stable performance and ease of fabrication, and offers superior flexibility, conformability, and reduced weight, making it highly suitable for body-worn applications. Furthermore, the wearable antenna maintains a wide impedance bandwidth with compactness. These findings provide valuable insights into the trade-offs between rigid and flexible antenna materials, highlighting the potential of PI substrates for the next-generation UWB wearable communication systems.

Keywords

Bending / Coplanar waveguide (CPW) / Elliptical monopole / Polyimide (PI) / Ultra-wideband (UWB) / Wearable antennas

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Kondalu Banavathu, Dattatreya Gopi, Krishna Dharavathu, Vedula V.S.S.S. Chakravarthy, Sujatha Mandala, Ahmed Jamal Abdullah Al-Gburi. Performance analysis of conventional FR4 antenna prototype and polyimide wearable antenna for ultrawide-band applications. Journal of Electronic Science and Technology, 2026, 24 (3) : 100368 DOI:10.1016/j.jnlest.2026.100368

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