Discussion and analysis of dumbbell defect-ground-structure (DB-DGS) resonators for sensing applications from a circuit theory perspective

Microstrip transmission lines loaded with dumbbell defect-ground-structure (DB-DGS) resonators transversally oriented have been exhaustively used in microwave circuits and sensors. Typically, these structures have been modelled by means of a parallel LC resonant tank series connected to the host line. However, the inductance and capacitance of such model do not have a physical meaning, since this model is inferred by transformation of a more realistic model, where the DB-DGS resonator, described by means of a resonant tank with inductance and capacitance related to the geometry of the DB-DGS, is magnetically coupled to the host line. From parameter extraction, the circuit parameters of both models are obtained by considering the DB-DGS covered with semi-infinite materials with different dielectric constant. The extracted parameters are coherent and re-veal that the general assumption of considering the simple LC resonant tank series-connected to the line to describe the DB-DGS-loaded line is reasonable with some caution. The implications on the sensitivity, when the structure is devoted to operating as a permittivity sensor, are discussed.