Measurement of Soil Moisture Using Microwave Sensors Based on BSF Coupled Lines

Abstract

This research introduces the conceptualization and examination of a microwave sensor incorporated with a microstrip band stop filter. The microwave sensor’s design and assessment are based on the microstrip’s parallel coupled lines, employing a band stop filter configuration at 2.45 GHz on an FR4 substrate. This study encompasses the evaluation of soil moisture spanning from 20 to 80%. The measurement procedure involved a network analyzer, specifically the KEYSIGHT model E5063A, operating within the frequency range of 100 kHz to 4.5 GHz. This investigation centers around scrutinizing the frequency response of the insertion loss (S21) across this spectrum. The outcomes of the experimentation unveiled notable disparities in frequency shifts. The resultant frequency values, labeled as (f0-f1), manifested at 0, 18, 60, 89, 145, and 200 MHz, sequentially. Remarkably, the correlation between the percentage representation of the frequency shift in the transmission coefficient and the frequency itself emerged distinctly, even as the range of tested samples was finetuned.

Keywords

• soil moisture
• microwave sensors
• BSF coupled lines