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NFC Ferrite Sheets — Bring Back the Read Range Metal Stole

A 13.56 MHz antenna mounted near metal loses most of its range to eddy currents. A correctly chosen ferrite sheet redirects the flux and restores it — but only if the permeability, thickness and outline match your antenna. We supply XAK-NFC series ferrite sheets (13.56 MHz) and XAK-WPT wireless-charging sheets (Qi 87–205 kHz, Qi2 MPP 360 kHz), die-cut to your drawing, with adhesive backing, in prototype and production quantities. Response within 24 hours.

Ultra-Thin Sheets, Die-Cut to Your Antenna

Flexible ferrite sheets from 0.05 mm, standard rectangles or kiss-cut on a liner to your coil outline — bare, PSA-backed or double-sided tape, ready for your assembly line.

Why NFC Antenna Projects Lose Range

Four failure patterns we see when the ferrite sheet is treated as an afterthought instead of a designed component.

Your antenna tested fine — until it met metal

The prototype read at 4 cm on the bench. In the housing, against a battery or chassis, read range collapses. Metal isn't blocking the signal — eddy currents are detuning your antenna, and no amount of antenna redesign fixes that alone.

The wrong sheet type makes it worse

Two black sheets look identical but do opposite jobs. An NFC ferrite sheet is a flux redirector — high permeability, low loss at 13.56 MHz. An EMI absorber sheet is high-loss by design. Put an absorber behind your NFC antenna and it eats the field you were trying to save.

Thickness guessed instead of engineered

0.05 mm and 0.30 mm sheets are not interchangeable: thinner fits tighter gaps but redirects less flux. Choosing by "whatever fits" instead of by measured read range leaves performance on the table — or adds thickness you didn't need.

Catalog rectangles against a custom outline

Your antenna isn't a 55×85 mm rectangle. A sheet that doesn't cover the coil — or overhangs into a display flex — costs you range and assembly yield. The sheet should be cut to your antenna, not the other way around.

Sheet Selection as an Antenna Design Step

We treat the ferrite sheet as part of your antenna circuit — because electrically, it is.

1

Selected by μ′ and μ″ at your frequency

NFC at 13.56 MHz, Qi at 87–205 kHz, Qi2 MPP at 360 kHz, UHF at 868/915 MHz — each band wants a different permeability-loss balance. We match the material grade to your frequency, not to a shelf.

2

Thickness engineered against your gap

Tell us the available gap behind the antenna and your current read range. We recommend the thinnest sheet that restores your target — typically 0.05–0.15 mm for space-critical devices, 0.2–0.3 mm where performance leads.

3

Die-cut to your outline, ready for your line

Send a DXF or drawing and we kiss-cut sheets on a release liner with your choice of adhesive — PSA one side, double-sided tape, or bare. Sheets arrive ready for pick-and-place or manual assembly.

4

Bench-test samples before you commit

Standard sizes ship as free samples within days. Measure read range on your actual device, retune the matching network with the sheet in place, then lock the specification. That's the order that works.

Ferrite Sheet Families & Typical Specifications

Typical values for selection reference — final grade and thickness are confirmed against your antenna and measurement results.

Product FamilyFrequency BandThicknessKey PropertyTypical Use
NFC ferrite sheet (flux director)13.56 MHz0.05–0.30 mm ferrite layer (≈0.10–0.40 mm total with PET + adhesive)XAK-NFC series: μ′ 20 / 50 / 100 / 130 / 150 ±20%, low loss μ″ at 13.56 MHzNFC/HF-RFID antennas on or near metal, payment wearables, access cards
Wireless charging ferrite (XAK-WPT)87–205 kHz (Qi 1.x), 360 kHz (Qi2 MPP)0.20–1.0 mmHigher μ′ for strong flux concentration, characterized at 127.7 / 360 kHz, tight thickness toleranceQi / Qi2 TX/RX modules, magnetic charging docks, smartphone & wearable charging
On-metal tag sheet13.56 MHz / UHF 868–915 MHz0.10–0.50 mmFlexible, bendable for curved asset surfacesOn-metal RFID labels, asset tags, smart packaging
EMI absorber sheet0.1–6 GHz0.10–1.0 mmHigh magnetic loss — converts noise to heatPCB noise suppression, cable/connector EMI, enclosure resonance damping

Where These Sheets Earn Their Keep

The four application families behind most of our ferrite sheet projects.

NFC antennas on metal

Smartphones, payment wearables, smart locks and IoT sensors where the antenna sits millimeters from a battery or chassis. The ferrite sheet gives flux a low-reluctance path and the read range comes back — typically 70–90% of free-space performance after retuning.

On-metal NFC & RFID tags

Asset labels and access cards that must be readable when stuck on metal equipment. A flexible ferrite layer behind the inlay is the standard fix — we supply it die-cut to your label outline with the adhesive stack you specify.

Wireless charging TX & RX

Qi transmitter and receiver modules where the ferrite back plate concentrates coupling flux and shields the battery and PCB behind the coil. Thickness and permeability matched to your coil and target efficiency.

PCB & cable noise suppression

High-loss absorber sheets damping radiated noise at 100 MHz–6 GHz — over clock lines, connectors and enclosure seams. A different material family from NFC sheets; see our electronics & EMI applications.

Getting the Read Range Back

What actually determines whether a ferrite sheet solves your problem.

Selection & Tuning

  • Match the material to frequency first: 13.56 MHz NFC, 87–205 kHz Qi and 360 kHz Qi2 MPP each use different grades — one sheet does not cover all bands
  • Adding ferrite changes antenna inductance — always retune the matching network with the sheet installed
  • Thicker redirects more flux: choose the thinnest sheet that meets your read-range target on the real device, not on the bench
  • Higher μ′ is not automatically better — excessive permeability can detune a marginal antenna further

Mounting & Die-Cut

  • The sheet must fully cover the coil area — edge clearance of 1–2 mm beyond the winding is the practical minimum
  • Adhesive options: acrylic PSA (standard), double-sided tissue tape, or bare sheet for your own lamination stack
  • Kiss-cut on liner for manual or automated placement; registration marks available for pick-and-place
  • Flexible sheets tolerate bending for curved housings — confirm minimum bend radius for your thickness

NFC Ferrite Sheet Questions, Answered Directly

The questions antenna and hardware engineers ask us most.

Will a ferrite sheet fix my NFC antenna's read range on metal?
In most cases, yes — that's exactly what it is for. Placed between the antenna and the metal, the sheet redirects magnetic flux instead of letting it induce eddy currents in the metal. After retuning the matching network with the sheet in place, devices typically recover 70–90% of their free-space read range. The result depends on sheet thickness, permeability grade and how much of the coil area the sheet covers.
What thickness should I choose for my NFC antenna?
Start from your gap budget: 0.05–0.10 mm for space-critical designs (under a display, inside a slim wearable), 0.15–0.20 mm as the general-purpose choice, 0.25–0.30 mm where read range matters more than thickness. Thicker sheets redirect more flux but cost you Z-height. If you tell us the available gap and your current read range, we will recommend the thinnest grade that meets the target — and send samples of two adjacent thicknesses so you can measure the difference on the real device.
Ferrite sheet vs EMI absorber sheet — they look the same. What's the difference?
Opposite jobs in identical packaging. An NFC ferrite sheet is a flux redirector: high real permeability (μ′), low magnetic loss (μ″) at 13.56 MHz — it guides your antenna's field around the metal. An EMI absorber sheet is deliberately lossy at 100 MHz–6 GHz — it converts noise energy into heat. An absorber behind an NFC antenna absorbs the signal you need; an NFC sheet over a noise source barely attenuates it. Tell us the frequency and the goal and we will confirm which family you need before sampling.
Can you die-cut the sheet to my antenna outline?
Yes — that's the standard way we deliver. Send a DXF, drawing or even a clear dimensioned sketch; we kiss-cut the sheets on a release liner to your outline, with your choice of adhesive backing. Registration holes or marks for automated placement are available. Minimum feature sizes depend on thickness — a 0.05 mm sheet handles finer detail than a 0.3 mm one.
Do you provide samples before production?
Yes. Standard rectangles (55×85, 70×115, 125×125 mm) in common thicknesses ship as free samples within days. Custom die-cut samples take slightly longer and carry a small tooling charge that is credited against your first production order. We always recommend bench-testing read range on the real device before locking the specification.
What permeability do I need at 13.56 MHz?
Most NFC antenna applications work best with sheets in the μ′ ≈ 120–180 class at 13.56 MHz with low magnetic loss. Beyond the common high-μ′ grades we also supply μ′ 20 and μ′ 50 sheets — the XAK-NFC series covers 20 / 50 / 100 / 130 / 150 — for designs where a strong flux shift would detune the antenna. Higher permeability redirects more flux but also shifts antenna inductance more — with a marginal antenna design that can push tuning out of range. The reliable path: fix your antenna, add the sheet, retune the matching network, measure. We will suggest a starting grade from your antenna dimensions and metal environment.
Do you have ferrite sheets for Qi2 wireless charging (360 kHz MPP)?
Yes. Qi2's Magnetic Power Profile runs at a fixed 360 kHz (with 127.7 kHz legacy operation), between classic Qi and NFC frequencies — it needs its own grade, not an NFC sheet. Our XAK-WPT series is characterized at 127.7 / 360 kHz for exactly this band, typically 0.20–0.50 mm for receiver modules, including Qi2 25 W designs. Send us your coil inductance and target power and we will recommend a thickness and ship samples. Datasheets available on request.

Start Your Antenna Project — What to Send Us

You don't need a finished specification. Send what you have — we'll recommend a grade and thickness with you.

📡

Antenna details — coil dimensions or DXF, target frequency (13.56 MHz / Qi / UHF)

📏

Space budget — available gap behind the antenna in mm

🔩

Metal environment — battery, chassis, shield can; distance from antenna

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Performance target — current read range vs required read range

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Quantities — sample needs and estimated annual volume

⏱️

Timeline — when you need samples for bench testing

Antenna on metal? Send us the layout.

Share your antenna dimensions, gap and metal environment — we respond within 24 hours with a sheet recommendation and samples plan.

Request a Sheet Recommendation → info@xakmag.com