Textile-integrated waveguide switch for ISM band 5.8 GHz

In this article, a textile-integrated waveguide (TIW) switch designed for the ISM band 5.8 GHz is presented. Conductive surfaces of the switch are manufactured by screen printing using a silver paste, and side walls of the TIW are sewed by a conductive thread. The switch is based on a common TIW T-divider which is completed by controllable conductive posts in both branches. The controllable posts can be switched from the high-impedance state to the low impedance state (and vice versa) by connecting or disconnecting them to the conductive layers by PIN diodes. Transmissions of the open branch of the switch and the closed one are |S-21| = -1.5 dB and |S-31| = -14.9 dB, respectively. If the manufactured switch is completed by transitions from TIW to coaxial line, the transitions of the open branch and the closed one are|S-21| = -6.2 dB and |S-31| = -15.6 dB, respectively.