Murata's MAGICSTRAP UHF RFID solution is available for close-coupling applications, enabling reductions in close-coupled UHF RFID tag size. The tag requires no external antenna and allows manufacturers to reduce the size of a close-coupled UHF RFID tag to 3.2 x 1.6mm. MAGICSTRAP is Murata's multilayer ceramic RFID module which includes the IC alongside antenna matching circuitry sufficiently wideband for worldwide UHF use.

It can be used with an external antenna such as a metallic antenna pattern on a tag inlay, or using the ground plane of a PCB or the foil layer of a pharmaceutical blister pack as an antenna, and now, without any booster antenna at all in close-coupled applications. It conforms to EPC Global C1G2 and its overall dimensions are just 3.2 x 1.6 x 0.55mm. This means any UHF reader in the world complying to this standard can be used to communicate with MAGICSTRAP in the near field.

A simple loop antenna needs to be connected to the R/W-device in order to use this function. This interoperability by compliance to a global standard distinguishes it from solutions operating in other frequency bands like HF or LF. Read ranges in close coupling can exceed 10mm when mounted on non-metallic surfaces and reach more than 5mm on metallic surfaces, depending on the output power of the reader device. The small size makes the tag with the close coupling function a choice for anti-counterfeit schemes, process control, and asset management solutions.

Murata is also launching a UHF RFID reader/writer module, measuring 23 x 13 x 2.8mm. Features include compact case size (23 x 13 x 2.8mm), frequency range of 860-960MHz and an output level of +17dBm. The module has a 50 Ohm termination to the antenna and features UART, SPI and I2C interfaces. It is surface mountable and ISO 18000-6C compliant. Supply voltage is 3.6V and current consumption is 800mA maximum. It is suitable for inventory management, anti-counterfeit schemes, point of sale technology and many more applications.