Shape-Shifting Antenna Could Transform Communications

By harnessing cutting-edge additive manufacturing techniques and shape-memory alloys, researchers at the Johns Hopkins Applied Physics Laboratory have developed an antenna that can change its shape based on temperature. Their work, published in ACS Applied Engineering Materials, could revolutionize a wide range of military, scientific, and commercial applications.

Currently, an antenna’s front-end shape impacts its operating parameters, and once manufactured, its characteristics are locked in. In contrast, a shape-changing antenna could enable communications across a wider array of radio frequency (RF) bands. A single shape-shifting antenna could perform the functions of multiple fixed-shape antennas, adapt dynamically to spectrum availability, and adjust beamwidth to switch between short- and long-range communications.

In 2019, Steven Storck, chief scientist for additive manufacturing in the Lab’s Research and Exploratory Development Department, led an Independent Research and Development project to create a methodology for additively manufacturing shape-memory alloys. These materials deform at lower temperatures but return to a “remembered” shape when heated. Applications include orthodontic wires, vascular stents, bone implants, and actuators for control surfaces in spacecraft.

After numerous attempts, the team successfully 3D-printed nitinol with two-way shape memory, enabling the alloy to alternate between two remembered shapes when heated and cooled. They developed an antenna shaped like a flat spiral disk when cool and a cone spiral when heated. Their efforts also included designing a new type of power line and refining the process to 3D-print the antenna consistently and reliably.

This breakthrough yielded a radically innovative technology with wide-ranging potential applications, from supporting special operators in the field to advancing mobile network telecommunications and space missions. The researchers believe this shape-shifting antenna will be a game-changing enabler for applications requiring RF adaptability in a compact, lightweight configuration.

Original Story: Shape-Shifting Antenna Poised to Transform Communications | Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Laboratory