This antenna could change how medical implants communicate inside the body, making new forms of monitoring and treatment possible.
Researchers from the University of Glasgow have developed an ultra-small wireless antenna that could make implantable medical devices smaller while allowing them to transmit larger amounts of data through body tissue. The technology could support future implants for continuous health monitoring, early disease diagnosis, targeted drug delivery and brain stimulation therapies.
They have developed sub-millimetre devices called µBots that use magnetoelectric antennas instead of conventional radio-frequency (RF) antennas. According to the researchers, the new design reduces heat generation and power consumption while increasing wireless data transmission capacity.
In laboratory tests, the antennas achieved a bandwidth of up to 22.6 GHz, enabling much higher data transfer than conventional implantable antennas. The researchers also wirelessly transmitted real-time sonogram video and audio signals between two magnetoelectric antennas, demonstrating the system’s ability to handle more demanding data than the binary transmissions commonly used to evaluate implantable devices.
Unlike conventional RF antennas, which can be bulky and generate heat during long-term implantation, the new design combines acoustic and electromagnetic principles for wireless power transfer and communication. The researchers engineered the device’s substrate to generate acoustic resonances that produce additional frequencies, known as overtones, improving both power transfer and data transmission.
The team evaluated the technology using rat brain tissue, human cortical brain slices and laboratory cell cultures. The antennas maintained reliable wireless communication across all biological samples, indicating that the technology can operate effectively through tissue.
The researchers also addressed a common limitation of implantable wireless devices—misalignment between internal and external antennas. Tests showed that an array of nine µBots delivered communication performance comparable to a much larger RF antenna while occupying far less space, making the approach suitable for confined areas such as the brain.
Repeated loading and testing with biological tissue further showed that the antennas maintained stable performance under conditions intended to simulate long-term implantation.
The researchers said the technology could support future implantable systems for detecting neurodegenerative diseases, delivering drugs on demand and providing neuromodulation therapies for conditions such as Epilepsy and Parkinson’s disease.
