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Diagnosis of neural diseases can be performed using microsystems that record neural signals collected simultaneously after neural simulations. Headstage and homecage-based recording systems can be implanted on small freely-moving animals to test such system which requires miniaturized, lightweight, and high gain antennas in order for the small animals to carry them easily while also decreasing loss during data transmission. This paper proposes a 15×15 mm2 slot antenna with a 50 Ω microstrip excitation line. The slot antenna is created by the addition of slots in the ground plane which is a common miniaturization method as it results in ultrawideband operating frequency. A lumped component-based model along with a 3D EM model of the modified SMA connector used for the measurement and headstage model is also developed to observe the effect on the antenna performance. The antenna achieved an operating frequency of 4.25 - 9.4 GHz and a bidirectional radiation pattern with gain ranging from 2.24 to 4.35 dBi. The proposed antenna is also circularly polarized and achieves 80.6% - 90.8% radiation efficiency over the operating BW. It can transmit a maximum of 20 dBm of power over the operating frequency without exceeding the FCC-imposed SAR limit. Based on the performance, the antenna is suitable for headstage and homecage-based neural signal recording systems with IR-UWB transmitter for high data rate transmission. 

Project Connect (PC) is an immersive professional development program designed to increase the number of students from underrepresented groups in engineering who pursue careers in the microwave engineering and related fields. Most of the professionals in this area have been educated in the electrical engineering (EE) field with a focus on applied electromagnetics, antenna theory and communication systems. The electromagnetics class in a typical electrical engineering undergraduate program involves vector calculus and abstract concepts without, in many cases, the right facilities or equipment to aid experiential learning. This leaves most students perplexed and disinterested in the field, while they do not fully realize the wealth of opportunities that lie beyond this course. This problem is even more pronounced for students from underrepresented groups as they may have less exposure to the professional and academic opportunities in microwave engineering. Project Connect was birthed out of the need to keep these students engaged in the field by exposing them to a broader view of the field and the impact that they can have on technology. Each year, the PC program is housed within the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) International Microwave Symposium (IMS). IMS is the flagship conference of the Microwave Theory and Techniques (MTT) Society and is based in North America. The typical attendance at the conference is over 9,000 and there is an associated industry exhibition with more than 700 companies. PC hosts approximately two dozen underrepresented students for four days of community building and professional development, most of whom are juniors or seniors in undergraduate programs, along with a smaller cohort of first-year students in graduate programs. The groups, consistently mixed in gender and ethnicity, get an opportunity for direct interaction with fellow PC participants, practitioners and academics, and leaders in the field and of the MTT society. This interaction is central to the success of the program, and the integration with IMS is representative of the important role that professional societies can play in diversifying STEM participation [1]. PC has been in operation since 2014 [2-5] and is sponsored jointly by the National Science Foundation and the IMS Organizing Committee.