George E. Ponchak

Characterization of liquid crystal polymer (LCP) material and transmission lines on LCP substrates from 30 to 110 GHz

Liquid crystal polymer (LCP) is a material that has gained attention as a potential high-performance microwave substrate and packaging material. This investigation uses several methods to determine the electrical properties of LCP for millimeter-wave frequencies. Microstrip ring resonators and cavity resonators are measured in order to characterize the dielectric constant (/spl epsi//sub r/) and loss tangent (tan/spl delta/) of LCP above 30 GHz. The measured dielectric constant is shown to be steady near 3.16, and the loss tangent stays below 0.0049. In addition, various transmission lines are fabricated on different LCP substrate thicknesses and the loss characteristics are given in decibels per centimeter from 2 to 110 GHz. Peak transmission-line losses at 110 GHz vary between 0.88-2.55 dB/cm, depending on the line type and geometry. These results show, for the first time, that LCP has excellent dielectric properties for applications extending through millimeter-wave frequencies.

Pattern and frequency reconfigurable annular slot antenna using PIN diodes

This paper presents the use of pin diodes to reconfigure the impedance match and modify the radiation pattern of an annular slot antenna (ASA). The planar antenna is fabricated on one side of a Duroid substrate and the microstrip feeding line with the matching network is fabricated on the opposite side of the board. The central frequency is 5.8 GHz and, by reconfiguring the matching circuit, the antenna was also designed to operate at 5.2 and 6.4 GHz. Pin diodes are also used to short the ASA in preselected positions along the circumference, thereby changing the direction of the null in the plane defined by the circular slot changes. As a proof of concept, two pin diodes are placed 45/spl deg/ on both sides of the feeding line along the ASA and the direction of the null is shown to align with the direction defined by the circular slot center and the diode. Consequently, a design that is reconfigurable in both frequency and radiation pattern is accomplished. Return loss and radiation pattern measurements and simulations are presented, which are in very good agreement.

Miniaturized Wilkinson power dividers utilizing capacitive loading

The authors report the miniaturization of a planar Wilkinson power divider by capacitive loading of the quarter wave transmission lines employed in conventional Wilkinson power dividers. Reduction of the transmission line segments from /spl lambda//4 to between /spl lambda//5 and /spl lambda//12 are reported here. The input and output lines at the three ports and the lines comprising the divider itself are coplanar waveguide (CPW) and asymmetric coplanar stripline (ACPS), respectively. The 10 GHz power dividers are fabricated on high resistivity silicon (HRS) and alumina wafers. These miniaturized dividers are 74% smaller than conventional Wilkinson power dividers, and have a return loss better than +30 dB and an insertion loss less than 0.55 dB. Design equations and a discussion about the effect of parasitic reactance on the isolation are presented for the first time.

Design, fabrication, and measurements of an RF-MEMS-based self-similar reconfigurable antenna

Reconfigurability in an antenna system is a desired characteristic that has been the focus of much research in recent years. In this work, ohmic contact cantilever RF-MEMS switches are integrated with self-similar planar antennas to provide a reconfigurable antenna system that radiates similar patterns over a wide range of frequencies. The different issues encountered during the integration of the MEMS switches and the overall system design procedure are described herein. The final model radiates at three widely separated frequencies with very similar radiation patterns. The proposed concept can be extended to reconfigurable linear antenna arrays or to more complex antenna structures with large improvements in antenna performance.

Theoretical and experimental characterization of coplanar waveguide discontinuities for filter applications

A full-wave analysis of shielded coplanar waveguide (CPW) two-port discontinuities based on the solution of an appropriate surface integral equation in the space domain is presented. Frequency-dependent scattering parameters for open-end and short-end CPW stubs are computed using this method. The numerically derived results are compared with measurements performed in the frequency range 5-25 GHz and show very good agreement. From the scattering parameters, lumped-element equivalent circuits have been derived to model the discontinuities. The inductors and capacitors of these models have been represented by closed-form equations, as functions of the stub length, to compute the circuit element values for these discontinuities. >

Characterization of thin film microstrip lines on polyimide

This paper presents an in depth characterization of thin film microstrip (TFMS) lines fabricated on Dupont PI-2611 polyimide. Measured attenuation and effective dielectric constant is presented for TFMS lines with thicknesses from 2.45-7.4 /spl mu/m and line widths from 5-34.4 /spl mu/m over the frequency range of 1-110 GHz. The attenuation is separated into conductor and dielectric losses to determine the loss tangent of Dupont PI-2611 polyimide over the microwave frequency range. In addition, the measured characteristics are compared to closed form equations for /spl alpha/ and /spl epsiv//sub eff/ from the literature. Based on the comparisons, recommendations for the best closed form design equations for TFMS are made.

Low-loss CPW on low-resistivity Si substrates with a micromachined polyimide interface layer for RFIC interconnects

The measured and calculated propagation constant of coplanar waveguide (CPW) on low-resistivity silicon (1 /spl Omega//spl middot/cm) with a micromachined polyimide interface layer is presented in this paper. With this new structure, the attenuation (decibels per centimeter) of narrow CPW lines on low-resistivity silicon is comparable to the attenuation of narrow CPW lines on high-resistivity silicon. To achieve these results, a 20-/spl mu/m-thick polyimide interface layer is used between the CPW and the Si substrate with the polyimide etched from the CPW slots. Only a single thin-film metal layer is used in this paper, but the technology supports multiple thick metal layers that will further lower the attenuation. These new micromachined CPW lines have a measured effective permittivity of 1.3. Design rules are presented from measured characteristics and finite-element method analysis to estimate the required polyimide thickness for a given CPW geometry.

Modeling of some coplanar waveguide discontinuities

Lumped equivalent circuit models for several coplanar waveguide (CPW) discontinuities such as an open circuit, a series gap in the center conductor, and a symmetric step in the center conductor are presented, and their element value are given as a function of the physical dimensions of the discontinuity. The model element values are de-embedded from measured S-parameters, and the effects of the center conductor width and the substrate thickness on the equivalent circuit element values are obtained. The characteristics of a CPW right-angle bend using a compensation technique are presented. The frequency dependence of the effective dielectric constant is measured and compared to computed values. >

The use of metal filled via holes for improving isolation in LTCC RF and wireless multichip packages

LTCC MCMs for RF and wireless systems often use metal filled via holes to improve isolation between the stripline and microstrip interconnects. In this paper, results from a 3D-FEM electromagnetic characterization of microstrip and stripline interconnects with metal filled via fences for isolation are presented. It is shown that placement of a via hole fence closer than three times the substrate height to the transmission lines increases radiation and coupling. Radiation loss and reflections are increased when a short via fence is used in areas suspected of having high radiation. Also, via posts should not be separated by more than three times the substrate height for low radiation loss, coupling, and suppression of higher order modes in a package.

Conformal double exponentially tapered slot antenna (DETSA) on LCP for UWB applications

We discuss the use of a double exponentially tapered slot antenna (DETSA) fabricated on flexible liquid crystal polymer (LCP) as a candidate for ultrawideband (UWB) communications systems. The features of the antenna and the effect of the antenna on a transmitted pulse are investigated. Return loss and E and H plane radiation pattern measurements are presented in several frequencies covering the whole ultra wide band. The return loss remains below -10 dB and the shape of the radiation pattern remains fairly constant in the whole UWB range (3.1 to 10.6 GHz). The main lobe characteristic of the radiation pattern remains stable even when the antenna is significantly conformed. The major effect of the conformation is an increase in the cross polarization component amplitude. The system: transmitter DETSA-channel receiver DETSA is measured in frequency domain and shows that the antenna adds very little distortion on a transmitted pulse. The distortion remains small even when both transmitter and receiver antennas are folded, although it increases slightly.