Inkjet-printed paper-based RFID and nanotechnology-based ultrasensitive sensors: The “Green” ultimate solution for an ever improving life quality and safety?

This article demonstrates how inkjet-printing of antennas/matching networks on low-cost paper-based materials can tackle all four challenges enabling the easy implementation of ubiquitous RFID and WSN networks by reviewing major milestones achieved in this area by this research group. It starts by discussing why paper should be used as a substrate for UHF/wireless inlays, followed by the dielectric characterization of paper using a microstrip ring resonator method. This paper then shows show how we can use conductive inkjet-printing technology for the fast fabrication of RF/wireless circuits, provides a design guideline for an inkjet-printed broadband antenna for UHF RFID tags which can be used globally, and eventually shows the capability of integrating sensors with RFID tags stressing how this functionality could revolutionize data fusion and real-time environmental cognition.