Applications of Microwave Materials: A Review

The performance of microwave devices mainly depends on the properties of materials used in the fabrication. Knowledge of material properties at microwave frequencies is a prerequisite to select suitable materials for various microwave applications and vice versa. In this review, seven categories of materials and their applications in a microwave regime are elaborately discussed. The categories include magnetic materials, carbon-based materials, flexible or stretchable materials, biomaterials, phantoms, tunable materials and metamaterials. A brief overview of other important microwave materials such as low-loss ceramic dielectric materials, low-loss polymer ceramic composites, glass ceramics and multilayer ceramics is also given. The objective of this review is to expose the world of materials for wide microwave applications and thereby properly assisting the material selection for specific applications. Moreover, this review has dual significance. It helps material scientists to develop new materials and modify the properties of the available materials with respect to the application requirements. It also assists microwave engineers to select and use appropriate materials for different microwave applications.