We present an electronically rewritable chipless RFID tag based on integrated non-volatile CBRAM RF switches. Conductive Bridging Random Access Memory (CBRAM) is a non-volatile memory technology, which is identified as an innovative RF switching solution in this decade. Reconfigurable resonator or RF encoding particle (REP) used in this tag is a closed loop resonator integrated with two switches each to tune its electrical length, and encodes 3 states each, to represent more than one bit per REP. Presented tag is composed of three such REPs to represent a total of 27 unique states. This chipless RFID tag with CBRAM switches could be written/rewritten electronically using DC voltage pulses, to encode a desired code from a given combination. Thermal impression transfer printing is utilized for printing metallic layers of the presented chipless tag. Complete fabrication steps of presented tag with integrated CBRAM switches are carried out without any 'clean room' processes. An insight to working mechanism of presented rewritable REPs using electrical models is included in this paper. Proof of concept of a potential hybrid data encoding technique combining frequency shift coding and RCS magnitude level coding, through experimental studies, for presented REPs, is also given herewith.

This article reports the first results of a Nafion ® -based, solid state, non-volatile, electronically reconfigurable Radio Frequency (RF)-switch integrated to a co-planar waveguide transmission line (CPW) in shunt mode, on a flexible paper substrate. The switch is based on a metal-insulator-metal structure formed respectively using Silver-Nafion-aluminum switching layers. The presented device is fully passive and shows good performance till 3 GHz, with an insertion loss less than 3 dB in the RF-on state and isolation greater than 15 dB in the RF-off state. Low-power direct current pulses in the range 10 V/0.5 mA and −20 V/0.15 A are used to operate the switch. The device was fabricated in an ambient laboratory condition, without the use of any clean room facilities. A brief discussion of the results and potential application of this concept in a re-configurable chipless RFID tag is also given in this article. This study is a proof of concept of fabrication of electronically re-configurable and disposable RF-electronic switches on low cost and flexible substrates, using a process feasible for mass production.