Draw a WiFi Antenna

Use a manual trace path when you want to draw open-ended copper from an RF pin, such as a simple WiFi antenna or antenna feed. Instead of using from and to, provide a path with the RF pin selector and define the copper shape with pcbPath.

export default () => (
  <board width="32mm" height="16mm">
    <chip name="U1" footprint="qfn32" />
    <trace
      path={[".U1 > .pin1"]}
      width="0.3mm"
      pcbPath={[
        ".U1 > .pin1",
        { x: -2.5, y: 4.2 },
        { x: 4.0, y: 4.2 },
        { x: 4.0, y: 6.6 },
        { x: 15.0, y: 6.6 },
        { x: 15.0, y: 5.2 },
        { x: 6.0, y: 5.2 },
        { x: 6.0, y: 3.8 },
        { x: 15.0, y: 3.8 },
        { x: 15.0, y: 2.4 },
        { x: 6.0, y: 2.4 },
        { x: 6.0, y: 1.0 },
        { x: 15.0, y: 1.0 },
      ]}
    />
  </board>
)

The pcbPath points are PCB coordinates in millimeters. This example draws a meandered printed antenna near the board edge. Adjust the points to change the overall length, spacing between runs, and feed location.

caution

This controls the antenna geometry in tscircuit, but it does not calculate RF performance. For a production WiFi antenna, tune the dimensions, trace width, clearance, stackup, and ground keepout for your target frequency and PCB manufacturer.