Design and characterization for communication systems

Electromagnetic Devices

• The generation and reception of communication signals require the use of passive components, in order to guide and transform them into useful signals. In this context, the capability of designing compact filters meeting demanding specifications is key for communication systems nowadays. TAFCO employs classic techniques as well as novel in-house techniques for the design of filters in a wide range of applications (wireless communications, radar systems, mobile communication systems, among others). TAFCO’s design team analyzes in depth clients specifications and proposes the most adequate technology to design the component to match the specific needs.
• The company accounts for design engineers with experience in the design of microwave devices for a wide range of applications in planar technology (filters, couplers, circulators, among others), operating in different types of substrates, configurations and frequency ranges. To meet this goal, conventional design techniques as well as novel techniques based on the use of metamaterial concepts are applied.
• TAFCO has experience in the design of antennas in different frequency bands, configurations and technologies, such as UMTS or RFID. The use of metamaterial based techniques allows the implementation of miniaturized designs as compared with our competitors.

Synthesis of Metamaterials

• Frequency Selective Surfaces (FSS)
• Radar Absorbing Materials (RAM)
• Radomes

Terahertz Technology

• Lenses
• Biochips, for use in medical/biological diagnostic systems
• Efficient guiding systems based on plasmonic effects

Electromagnetic Characterization of Objects/Environments

• The Radar Cross Section (RCS) of certain objects can be a critical parameter depending on the scenario in which they are operating. It is a metric on how detectable the object can be to a detection system. TAFCO has the knowledge and equipment to characterize RCS of a wide variety of objects.
• This knowledge is also applicable to offer our clients services towards the characterization of commercial antennas, following our clients requirements.

Ad-hoc Material Characterization

The characterization of electric and magnetic properties of materials (simple or compound) and artificial structures (metamaterials) is an essential requirement for the correct design of our products as well as for the analysis of the electromagnetic issues of our clients. For example, with the knowledge of effective electric permittivity and effective magnetic permeability of a frequency selective surface, it is possible to previously estimate the effective shielding effect of such surface. Further more, even though the electromagnetic properties of conventional materials (e.g., metals, dielectric substrates, etc.) are in general well known in the microwave and optical regime, this is not the case in the Terahertz range (0.3-10THz). This emphasizes the importance of material characterization, in which TAFCO offers ad-hoc consulting services to meet our clients specific needs.