Numerical Study on the TEM Cell as a Possible Multifrequency Glucose Sensor

This paper numerically investigates the potential use of the transverse electromagnetic (TEM) cell as a multifrequency glucose sensor. The multifrequency capability is provided by the resonances of the TEM cell. Two configurations are tested. In the first, the sample occupies the whole cross-section of the TEM cell, while in the second it fills only the uniform test volume. In the first case, the scattering parameters deviate more from those of the unloaded TEM cell, and fewer resonances are observed. In the second case, the matching remains as good as in the unloaded TEM cell. For different glucose levels, the sensitivities of both the magnitudes of the scattering parameters and the resonant frequencies are higher in the second case. This latter configuration also has the additional advantage that the sample is easier to realize, since it is a cube and its volume is smaller (1 dm3 compared to 10.3 dm3). The practical deployment of the TEM cell in real scenarios is still limited by its large dimensions and the required glucose volume.