Magnetoelectric antennas: Fundamentals, state-of-the-art, challenges, and future perspectives

One of the biggest challenges in antenna design for communication and sensing is their challenges in miniaturization. Despite the introduction of various miniaturization methods and their effectiveness, miniaturization techniques based on the electromagnetic (EM) mechanism have reached their limits. Recently, acoustically actuated antennas based on magnetoelectric (ME) principles have emerged, proving to be capable of reducing the size of antennas by four to five orders of magnitude compared to conventional EM antennas. This paper overviews the operational principles of ME antennas and reviews their state-of-the-art designs and structures, including an analysis of their commonly used materials and properties, along with their applications. Different experimental platforms required for evaluating ME antennas are also discussed.