Silicon Micromachined Packages for RF MEMS Switches

MEMS technology has major applica-tions in developing smaller, faster and less energy consuming devices provided that reliability of pack-aging/ interconnect technology is sufficiently addressed. This paper presents a low cost, on-wafer, silicon mi-cromachined packaging scheme for RF MEMS switches having excellent electrical performance in K-band. In particular, the package demonstrates an insertion loss of 0.1dB and a return loss of 32dB at 20 GHz. The package is fabricated in parallel with the MEMS switch on the same wafer and therefore requires no lossy solder bumps or bond wires to achieve signal propagation

Stress determination of micromembranes using laser vibrometry

A laser vibrometry based dynamic technique for biaxial residual stress determination in micromembranes is reported. Layered, low pressure chemical vapor deposition grown, rectangular shaped micromembranes are ultrasonically excited. The resulting micromembrane displacement, as a function of frequency and position, is recorded to yield resonance frequencies and associated vibrational mode numbers. The stress is determined from this information. Vibrations forced from ultrasonic pressure (∼25 Pa) resulted in peak displacements of tens of nanometers at resonance. For the sample set studied, the (3,1) mode resonance peak displayed the least damping in atmospheric testing and was used to establish stress levels ∼108 N/m2. A trend for this stress showing an overall decrease by ∼40% as a result of thermomechanical cycling was identified. © 1996 American Institute of Physics.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/69590/2/RSINAK-67-5-1965-1.pd

Micro-Coplanar Striplines: New Transmission Media for Microwave Applications

In this paper a new transmission line for microwave applications, referred to here as the Micro-Coplanar Stripline (MCPS), is introduced. The propagation characteristics, such as, characteristic impedance (Z(sub 0) and effective dielectric constant (epsilon eff) for a range of MCPS geometries have been modeled using the Finite Difference Time Domain (FDTD) Technique and presented here. Also, preliminary experimental results on the performance of an MCP-Microstrip transition and an MCPS-fed patch antenna are presented. The results indicate several potential applications of the MCPS line in microwave integrated circuit technology

A theoretical and experimental study of coplanar waveguide shunt stubs

A comprehensive theoretical and experimental study of straight and bent coplanar waveguide (CPW) shunt stubs is presented. In the theoretical analysis, the CPW is assumed to be inside a cavity while, the experiments are performed on open structures. For the analysis of CPW discontinuities with air-bridges, a hybrid technique was developed which was validated through extensive theoretical and experimental comparisons. The effect of the cavity resonances on the behavior of the stubs with and without air-bridges is investigated. In addition, the encountered radiation loss due to the discontinuities is evaluated experimentally

A comprehensive theoretical and experimental study of coplanar waveguide shunt stubs

A comprehensive theoretical and experimental study of straight and bent coplanar waveguide (CPW) shunt stubs is presented. In the theoretical analysis, the CPW is assumed to be inside a cavity, while, the experiments are performed on open structures. A hybrid technique was developed to analyze the CPW discontinuities which proved to be accurate since the theoretical and experimental results agree very well. The effect of the cavity resonances on the behavior of the stubs with and without air-bridges is investigated. In addition, the encountered radiation loss due to the discontinuities is evaluated experimentally

Broadband Uniplanar Microstrip to Slot-Line Transitions

New in line uniplanar microstrip-to-slotline transitions for MIC/MMIC and phased array slotline antenna applications are described. Such transactions are compact and suitable to be used in an open environment or inside a package or a multichip module. The transitions share the concept of using a balun which consists of two microstrip lines connected to a slotline through a pair of coupled microstrips. The transitions are studied theoretically using the finite difference time domain (FDTD) technique and measured experimentally using an HP8510C Network Analyzer. For a back-to-back configuration, an insertion loss of less than 1.3 dB per transition is achieved over a 40% 3-dB bandwidth with a minimum of 0.6 dB at the design frequency

A Novel Transition Between Rectangular Waveguide and Layered Ridge Dielectric Waveguide

A novel transition between rectangular waveguide and layered ridge dielectric waveguide (LRDW) is reported. The transition is also suitable for use with image guide, insulated image guide, dielectric ridge waveguide and other open dielectric waveguides. Both experimental and theoretical data are presented which compare the new transition to three transitions reported in the literature

Experimental and theoretical study of parasitic leakage/resonance in a K/Ka-band MMIC package

In this paper, electromagnetic leakage and spurious resonances in a K/Ka-band (18-40 GHz) MMIC hermetic package designed for a phase shifter chip are studied using the finite element method (FEM) and the numerical simulation results are compared with measured data. Both in measured and calculated data several spurious resonances are observed in the 18 to 24 GHz region and the origin of this phenomenon is identified by virtue of the modeling capability of the FEM

Coplanar stripline components for high frequency application

In this paper, coplanar stripline discontinuities such as a slit, a right angle bend and a T-junction are characterized and their performance is parameterized with respect to frequency and geometry. Lumped equivalent circuits are presented for some of them. The element values are obtained from the measured discontinuity scattering (S) parameters. The experimental results are compared with theoretical data obtained using the Finite Difference Time Domain (FD-TD) technique for validation and show very good agreement

A novel noncontacting waveguide backshort for submillimeter wave frequencies

A novel noncontacting waveguide backshort has been developed for millimeter wave and submillimeter wave frequencies. It employs a metallic bar with rectangular or circular holes. The size and spacing of the holes are adjusted to provide a periodic variation of the guide impedance on the correct length scale to give a large reflection of rf power. This design is mechanically rugged and can be readily fabricated for high submillimeter wave frequencies where conventional backshorts are difficult or impossible to fabricate. Model experiments have been performed at 4 GHz – 6 GHz to empirically optimize the design parameters. Values of reflected power greater than 95% over a 30% bandwidth have been achieved. A specific design is presented which has also been successfully scaled to WR-10 band (75 GHz – 110 GHz). A theoretical analysis is compared to the experiments and found to agree well with the measured data.Peer Reviewedhttp://deepblue.lib.umich.edu/bitstream/2027.42/44554/1/10762_2005_Article_BF02085860.pd