Miniaturization Trends in Substrate Integrated Waveguide (SIW) Filters: A Review

This review provides an overview of the technological advancements and miniaturization trends in Substrate Integrated Waveguide (SIW) filters. SIW is an emerging planar waveguide structure for the transmission of electromagnetic (EM) waves. SIW structure consists of two parallel copper plates which are connected by a series of vias or continuous perfect electric conductor (PEC) channels. SIW is a suitable choice for designing and developing the microwave and millimetre-wave (mm-Wave) radio frequency (RF) components: because it has compact dimensions, low insertion loss, high-quality factor (QF), and can easily integrate with planar RF components. SIW technology enjoys the advantages of the classical bulky waveguides in a planar structure; thus is a promising choice for microwave and mm-Wave RF components

When Compactness Meets Flexibility: Basic Coaxial SIW Filter Topology for Device Miniaturization, Design Flexibility, Advanced Filtering Responses, and Implementation of Tunable Filters

[EN] Substrate integrated waveguide (SIW) technology [1], [2] is a well established and successful approach for implementing planar microwave filters with very stringent requirements in terms of quality (Q) factor and also with the ability to integrate into a system. Optimized SIW filters can reach a Q factor of 200-800 using low-loss substrates and standard fabrication procedures [3]. Furthermore, packaging and electromagnetic (EM) shielding, power-handling capabilities, and low-cost batch manufacturing are other broadly recognized strengths of this approach. However, SIW filters are still larger than most of their planar counterparts; in addition, advanced topologies are not always easy to accommodate, and filter reconfigurability usually leads to very complex implementation [4]-[6]Martínez Pérez, JD.; Sirci, S.; Boria Esbert, VE.; Sánchez-Soriano, MÁ. (2020). When Compactness Meets Flexibility: Basic Coaxial SIW Filter Topology for Device Miniaturization, Design Flexibility, Advanced Filtering Responses, and Implementation of Tunable Filters. IEEE Microwave Magazine. 21(6):58-78. https://doi.org/10.1109/MMM.2020.2979155S587821

Folded waveguide resonator filter for communication and radar systems

In this thesis, a primary investigation into developing a compact and low-loss bandpass filter, using novel folded waveguide resonators with a footprint reduction, has been addressed. A slot coupling between adjacent resonators is introduced, which is characterized by using full-wave EM simulations and verified experimentally. Two designs of 2-pole folded waveguide resonator filters of this type have been considered, fabricated and tested. In this thesis, an even more compact FWG resonator filter using a novel slot technique is reported. The attainable size reduction is about 50%, and the filter design is based on theoretical and full-wave electromagnetic (EM) simulations. Based on FWG structure, two types of folded waveguide resonators have been studied and considered the half-wavelength resonator and the quarter-wavelength resonator. Moreover, both structures for the realization of microwave cavities with high-Q, with the result of a high spurious free range and reduced footprint, have been evaluated. Furthermore, a novel folded waveguide resonator with about a 75 % reduction of the volume from the conventional size has been described. For comparison, two types of folded waveguide resonators have been studied, i.e. the quarter-wavelength resonator of square shape and the newly proposed triangular shape. In addition, a demonstration of a filter application for miniature triangular folded waveguide resonators has been designed and simulated using an EM simulator. In addition, numbers of experiments have been conducted to develop cavity FWG and Substrate Integrated folded waveguide SIFW resonator filters using a folded structure, which is the main aim of this thesis. Furthermore, this thesis deals with the simulation and implementation for many designs and topologies of FWG and SIFW resonator filters and their frequency response. Simulation and experimental results were presented to validate the design and to show the advantages of these types of filters. In addition, a new type of filter with a compact multi-layer structure and low loss is attractive for implementation with advanced device technologies, such as micromachining, LTCC and LCP technologies

Recent Trends on Dual- and Triple-Band Microwave Filters for Wireless Communications

In the past few years, several designs of dual- and triple-band microwave filters satisfying various objectives have been proposed for wireless communication. Several designs are new concepts, whereas others are inspired from previous works. The development trends of these designs can be reviewed from this compilation of studies. This paper begins with an explanation of dual- and triple-band microwave filters, followed by a discussion on several designs in terms of size, measurement, performance, and technology use. Among various designs, microstrip band-pass filters are extensively used because of their simple design procedures and because they can be integrated into circuits easily. Furthermore, most researchers use low frequencies in their designs because of the demands of current wireless applications. Finally, designs are proposed to produce compact microwave filters with good performance

Novel Dual band SIW Filter Using Quad mode Cavity

A dual-band bandpass substrate integrated waveguide (SIW) filter is proposed using a quad-mode cavity in this paper. First two degenerative modes (TE102 and TE201) with via perturbation give the first passband. The second passband is realised by using higher modes (side and diagonal modes of TE202) which are obtained by putting square slot at the center of the cavity. The square slot increases the frequency ratio of the center frequencies of first and second passbands. Moreover, orthogonal feed-lines are used in the proposed design to increase transmission zeros (TZs) which helps to improve the selectivity and out-of-band rejection of the filter. Designed and fabricated a dualband filter prototype using a single layer printed circuit board (PCB) technology, size is only 19 mm × 19 mm. The insertion losses are 2.1 dB and 2.4 dB, and fractional bandwidths of 3.40 per cent and 2.00 per cent at 11.00 and 15.58 GHz, respectively. The measurement results show close agreement with the simulation results

Advanced Filtering Waveguide Components for Microwave Systems

Microwave filter design is a popular topic in the area of modern microwave engineering. Novel technologies, novel applications and more demanding component miniaturization are some of the key drivers for the development of novel microwave filters. For the systems operating with high power and low losses, waveguide filters represent sustainable solutions, in spite of their size. Herein, a method for the advanced bandpass and bandstop waveguide filter design is presented. Properly designed printed-circuit inserts, with simple resonators, are used as resonating elements inside a standard rectangular waveguide. In this manner, multi-band bandpass or bandstop waveguide filters are developed. Multiple resonant frequencies can be obtained using single insert, with properly positioned resonators. Filter design is exemplified by numerous three-dimensional electromagnetic models of the considered structures, equivalent microwave circuits and fabricated devices. Some of the advantages of the proposed design are simplicity, ease of implementation, possibility of miniaturization and experimental verification. The waveguide filters considered here are designed to operate in the X frequency band, so their application is recognized with the radar and satellite systems. Further improvement of the proposed method is possible, according to the future use of the presented devices

The Concept of Substrate Integrated E-plane Waveguide and Circuits

In this thesis, a new type of substrate integrated waveguide is proposed for implementing E-plane type of waveguide circuits on printed circuit boards. obviously, these E-plane type of circuits cannot be realized by the conventional substrate integrated waveguide. The so-called substrate integrated E-plane waveguide consists of two circuit boards attached to each other. Two copper strips are inserted in between two circuit boards, where plated through holes are penetrated through them along the transmission direction. The plated through holes and copper strips altogether played as side walls of a conventional waveguide to support longitudinal and vertical currents. Simulation is carried out and the result shows that the proposed waveguide is able to guide horizontally polarized electromagnetive wave. An E-plane inductive septa filter, two one-dimensional E-plane offset waveguide filters, and an air-filled evanescent-mode band-pass filter are proposed as examples to prove that E-plane type of circuits are able to be built based on this new synthesized waveguide structure

Miniaturized High-Q Tunable RF Filters

This dissertation focuses on the investigation and development of novel efficient tuning techniques and the design of miniaturized high-Q tunable RF filters for high-performance reconfigurable systems and applications. First, a detailed survey of the available tuning concepts and state-of-art tunable filters is provided. Then, a novel so-called inset resonator configuration is presented for the applications of fixed and tunable coaxial filters. The design procedure of frequency tunable filters with constant absolute bandwidth (CABW) is described, and various tunable inset filters are implemented, offering many desirable merits, including the wide tuning range and stable high-Q with minimum variation. For wide octave frequency tuning ranges with CABW, a second novel concept is presented using so-called re-entrant caps tuners. Beside simplicity and compactness, this technique also features enhanced spurious performance and wider tuning capabilities than the conventional means. Also, in this dissertation, various miniaturized reconfigurable dual-band/dual-mode bandpass filters and diplexers are presented using compact dual-mode high-Q TM-mode dielectric resonators. Furthermore, a novel microfluidic-based ultra-wide frequency tuning technique for TM010-mode dielectric resonators and filters is introduced in this dissertation. In addition to the very wide tuning window, this mechanism has key advantages of low-cost, simplicity, and intrinsic switch-off. Lastly, the dissertation includes a novel bandwidth reconfiguration concept with multi-octave tuning using a single element for coaxial bandpass filters. This mechanism brings many features including the fast tuning, constant high-Q, intrinsic switch-off, and wide BW-reconfiguration

Miniaturised and reconfigurable planar filters for ultra-wideband applications

An increasing demand for electromagnetic spectrum has resulted from the emergence of feature-rich and faster throughputs wireless applications. This necessitates the developments of dynamic reconfigurable or multifunctional systems to better exploit the existing spectrum. Future wireless devices will be expected to communicate over several bands with various other devices in order to fine tune the services they provide to the user. Each band may require a separate RF transceiver and such modern wireless multi-band multi-mode communication systems call for high performance, highly integrated compact modules. Since the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) released the unlicensed frequency band 3.1-10.6 GHz for ultra-wideband (UWB) commercial communications, the development race for commercialising UWB technology has seen a dramatic increase around the world. The aim of this research is to develop reconfigurable planar microwave filters for ultrawideband applications. The project investigates some key design issues of reconfigurable filters, which are being observed constantly in the latest development and realisation of microwave filters. Both analytical and numerical methods are performed to construct a realistic and functional design. Two different types of frequency reconfigurability are investigated in this thesis: discrete (e.g. PIN diode, Optical switch) and continuous (e.g. varactor diode). Using the equivalent circuits and considering the direct coupled filter structure in most cases, several topologies with attractive features are developed for future communication systems. The proposed works may be broadly categorised into three sections as follows. The first section explores a square ring shape close loop resonator along with an opencircuited stub in the symmetry plane. To realise a reconfigurable frequency states within the same spectrum, an innovative approach is developed for this case. An optical or photoconductive switch, comprised of a silicon die activated using near infrared light is investigated as a substitute of PIN diode and performances are evaluated to compare the feasibilities. In addition, a in-band interference rejection technique via externally coupled Tshape resonator is shown. However, it is observed that both structures achieve significant size reductions by utilising the inner part of the resonators. To improve the filter selectivity, a convenient design approach generating a pair of transmission zeros between both passband edges and a single zero in the stop band for harmonic suppression is discussed in the second section. Moreover, the development of notched rejection bands are studied and several novel methods to create a single and multiple notched bands employing the square ring shape structure are proposed. On inspection, it is found that the notch structure can be implemented without deteriorating the filter performances. The discussions are supplemented with detailed design examples which are accompanied by theoretical, simulated and experimental results in order to illustrate the filter development process and showcase practical filter performance. The third section reveals a novel highly compact planar dual-mode resonator with sharp rejections characteristics for UWB applications. A bandwidth reconfiguring technique is demonstrated by splitting its even-mode resonance. Filter structure with the dual-mode resonator is shown to have a relatively wide tuning range, significantly low insertion loss and a constant selectivity along with frequency variations in comparison to similar published works. Finally, the earlier dual-mode structure are modified to realise a dual wideband behaviour. A detail analysis with comprehensive design procedures is outlined and a solution for controlling the frequency bandwidths independently according to the application interest is provided. In line with the previous section, experimental verification is presented to support and supplement the discussions