Wearable antennas development for microwave brain stroke imaging = Wearable antennas development for microwave brain stroke imaging

The aim of this thesis is to present the design of a novel flexible and compact antenna for the microwave brain stroke imaging system. The design consists in defining the optimal antenna geometry and the matching medium thickness in order to guarantee flexibility and matching between the antenna and the head. This goal is achieved by using CST Microwave Studio software in which the scattering parameters were observed. These simulations exploited several models to obtain the best configuration to be used, starting from a simple model up to a complex model. The accomplishment of the specification through the simulation allows to realize the wearable antennas to verify experimentally if they work correctly. Finally, they were tested close by a 3-D head phantom, filled with a liquid mimicking the brain tissues, to determine if they work properly, if they are able to transmit information and then reveal the presence of a possible target. The measurement process consisted in acquiring the scattering matrix before and after the introduction of a target. Testing revels that the changing in the transmission coefficient before and after the insertion of the target allows to affirm that the antennas are able to pick up the object with the result that they are flexible and compact.