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Abstract
Permittivity is a fundamental property of material. It is one of the properties that determine howa material interacts with an electromagnetic field. A material has a particular permittivitybecause of its molecular structure. Researchers have demonstrated that material properties suchas moisture content, fruit ripeness, bacterial content, mechanical stress, biomass, tissue healthand other seemingly unrelated parameters can be related to the permittivity. Many keyparameters of colloids such as structure, consistency and concentration are directly related topermittivity. This is because a change in molecular structure results in a corresponding changein permittivity. Since it is possible to measure permittivity in real-time, the potential exists formeasuring other material properties in real-time. There are difficulties in realizing this potential.The permittivity of many materials of interest to agricultural and biological engineers andscientists cannot be measured easily by classical permittivity measurement techniques. Most ofthese techniques require precise dimensioning of the material sample. This is not practical formany materials of interest. This research addresses the challenge of designing a permittivitymeasurement probe that is both sensitive to changes in permittivity and has a form factor suitableto its intended application.