Propagation Measurement of a Natural Cave-Turned-Wine-Cellar

• Published in: IEEE antennas and wireless propagation letters Vol. 17; no. 5; pp. 743 - 746
• Main Authors: Soo, Qi Ping, Yong Lim, Soo, Gin Lim, David Wee, Meng Yap, Kian, Lun Lau, Sian
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: IEEE 01.05.2018
• Subjects: Antenna measurements; Attenuation; Caves; Computational modeling; Dipole antennas; Frequency measurement; propagation measurement; Temperature measurement; underground electromagnetic propagation; Wireless communication
• ISSN: 1536-1225; 1548-5757
• DOI: 10.1109/LAWP.2018.2813310

Caves have been used as a natural habitat since ancient times, and our ancestors once resided in them. As time and age evolve, caves slowly lose their original functionality, yet never ever lose their significance as a place. In this letter, we present field measurement results taken from inside a beautiful cave-turned-into-a-wine-cellar site, which is the first of its kind for such tourist caves rich with stalagmites and stalactites. This cave, named Jeff's cellar operated by the Sunway Group, is one of the famous tourist hot spots in Malaysia, and it has never failed to attract tourists from near and far each year. Needless to say, ensuring that wireless communications are available inside this cave fondly frequented by tourists is important. In this letter, we present field measurement results taken from inside Jeff's cellar at three frequencies, namely, 900 MHz, 2.4 GHz, and 5.8 GHz in both line-of-sight and non-line-of-sight scenarios. These measured results are useful for the practical planning and implementation of wireless communications not only in the said cellar but also other tourist caves such as meditation cave, thermal steam cave, crystal cave, and others.