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Future telecommunication applications will shift more and more to the use of higher frequencies. At X-band frequencies and beyond, lumped passive components become difficult to use as such and distributed circuits have to be employed instead. This article intro-duces such distributed microwave circuits integrated in thin film coplanar microwave MCM...
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Citations
... This design library allows microwave circuit design in the frequency range 1-100 GHz in a way similar to the design of MMICs. Typical examples of passive structures that may be integrated as distributed structures are coplanar Lange couplers or ring couplers, power splitters and baluns [125,126]. Such structures are for example required for balanced or low-noise amplifiers, balanced modulators and image reject mixers. ...
Wireless communication has led to an explosive growth of emerging consumer and military applications of radio frequency (RF), microwave and millimeter wave circuits and systems. Future personal (hand-held) and ground communications systems as well as communications satellites necessitate the use of highly integrated RF front-ends, featuring small size, low weight, high performance and low cost. Continuing chip scaling has contributed to the extent that off-chip, bulky passive RF components, such as high-Q inductors, ceramic and SAW filters, varactor diodes and discrete PIN diode switches, have become limiting. Micro-machining or MEMS technology is now rapidly emerging as an enabling technology to yield a new generation of high-performance RF-MEMS passives to replace these off-chip passives in wireless communication (sub)systems. This paper reviews the progress in RF-MEMS from a device and integration perspective. The worldwide state-of-the-art of RF-MEMS devices including switches, variable capacitors, resonators and filters are described. Next, it is stipulated how integration of RF-MEMS passives with other passives (as inductors, LC filters, SAW devices, couplers and power dividers) and, active circuitry (ASICs, RFICs) can lead to the so-called RF-MEMS system-in-a-package (RF-MEMS-SiP) modules. The evolution of the RF-MEMS-SiP technology is illustrated using IMEC's microwave multi-layer thin-film MCM-D technology which today already serves as a technology platform for RF-SiP.
... Fig. 3 and Fig. 4 show photographs of the two RF-TVs with all test structures and integrated components listed in Table 1 and Table 2 for RF-TV1 and RF-TV2 respectively. The operating frequency of the Lange coupler is 20 GHz, this will allow to compare its performance with other coupler structures at 20 GHz [4]. The bandpass filters and the antennas have their operating frequencies at 77 GHz and are aimed to automotive collision avoidance system applications in the frequency range of 76 GHz -77 GHz. ...
... For that reason the TVs contain several variations of the structures, each one with slightly different dimensions. # Transmission structures Parameters [1] microstrip lines, coplanar waveguides, triplates Z = 35 Ω, 50 Ω and 75 Ω [2] crosstalk structures line space: 20 µm, 30 µm [3] single vias angle: 0°, 90° and 180° [4] right-angle bends, chamfer depth: 0 µm -70 µm Lumped components [5] parallel plate capacitors, fingered capacitors plate area: 0.14 mm 2 -0.92 mm 2 [6] spiral inductors, reference ground structure rectangular with 4.5 and 5.5 turns Table 1: List of transmission-like structures and integrated lumped components of RF-TV1 # Distributed components Parameters [7] bandpass filters 77 GHz [8] Lange couplers 20 GHz [9] patch antennas direct coupled, EM-coupled and circular polarised, 77 GHz [10] ...
Two dedicated RF test vehicles (RF-TV) have been designed to characterise the high frequency performance of a new low-cost thin film (MCM-D) technology, fabricated on large area panels (LAP). Previous investigations revealed the capabilities of the new LAP technology to be used at frequencies up to 110 GHz. Test structures for transmission measurements, lumped components such as spiral inductors or plate capacitors and distributed components such as bandpass filters and couplers are included on the RF-TV1 and RF-TV2. This paper presents the design and the simulation results of integrated Lange couplers at 20 GHz and patch antennas at 77 GHz.
... To setup design rules for matched transmission lines, microstrips and coplanar waveguides of different dimensions are also included. The second type of structures are integrated RF components such as inductors and capacitors [ [11] and band pass filters and different types of microstrip patch antennas at 77 GHz. All structures were previously calculated using different electromagnetic simulators as for example SGI Inc./LC™, Sonnet Software Inc./EM™., Ansoft/HFSS™ and Hewlett Packard/HFSS™. ...
This article presents the RF characterization results of a
large-area MCM-D technology developed within the EU LAP project.
Microstrip lines were simulated, designed, and manufactured in several
material combinations. Measurements up to 120 GHz showed good
coincidence between simulation and reality. Future work is dedicated to
filters and antennas in the 77 GHz range
The thin film multilayer multichip module technology (MCM-D) was originally used for the interconnection of high speed digital circuits in a single module. Nowadays, the technology is more and more evolving towards use in the interconnection of RF and microwave circuits with integrated passive components. This paper gives an overview of this evolution towards microwave MCM-D technology and the recent advances with respect to the integration of high quality passive components. With a discussion on the flip chip mounting of active devices, the link towards fully integrated high frequency front-end systems is pointed out.
Future high-performance wireless communication applications such as wireless local area networks (WLANs) around 5 GHz require low power and high quality integrated transceiver solutions. The integration of RF front end especially poses a great challenge to these applications as traditional system on chip (SOC) approach is quite inefficient. A system on package approach can address the problems in an optimum way. In this paper we present a comparison of different passive element fabrication choices. These passives are to be fabricated between different modules on an MCM-D substrate. Inductors and capacitors are compared on the bases of their Q-factors and SRF( self resonance frequency). RF receiver module is implemented using benzocyclobutene (BCB) as interlayer material.
Future high-performance wireless communication applications such as wireless local area networks (WLANs) around 5 GHz require low power and high quality integrated transceiver solutions. The integration of RF front end especially poses a great challenge to these applications as traditional system on chip (SOC) approach is quite inefficient. A system on package approach (SOP) can address the problems in an optimum way. A challenging task is to design integrated passives. These passives are then fabricated using MCMD technology. Inductors and capacitors are compared on the bases of their Q-factors and SRF (self resonance frequency). RF receiver module is implemented using benzocyclobutene (BCB) as interlayer material and liquid crystal polymer (LCP) as substrate.
The develop end point for films of photosensitive BCB (Cyclotene 4000 series) resins drifts to longer times as the time delay between soft bake and develop increases. Unless properly compensated for, changes in the develop end point will lead to variation in the extent of overdevelopment from one processing lot to the next. This in turn can lead to variation in film thickness, resolution, and film quality. Methods for maintaining a uniform degree of overdevelopment from lot to lot include management of time delays and monitoring of develop end points. Both of these procedures are undesirable from a manufacturing standpoint, and thus another means of managing the develop end point was desired. It has been found that a mild hot plate bake immediately prior to develop resets the develop end point to its initial value, making it independent of the delay time. This resetting of the develop end point can be explained in terms of free volume in the film. Aging at room temperature causes a decrease in free volume and hence a decrease in dissolution rate; a bake before develop restores the initial free volume state. The photo-BCB process sequence is described in detail, with emphasis on the develop step and on the use of a pre-develop bake to eliminating the time dependence on this step. Optimum bake temperatures for different film thicknesses are presented in this work. The use of a pre-develop bake simplifies photo-BCB processing eliminating the process variation due to time delays between the processing steps, and improving its manufacturability.
Benzocyclobutene resin has been modified to allow fabrication of
polymer coated Cu foil. New formulations show improved flexibility,
flaking resistance, low tackiness, and better resin flow control during
hot pressing, while keeping BCB's inherent advantages such as low
moisture pick-up, high heat stability and excellent dielectric
properties. BCB coated Cu foil has been laminated on FR-4 board by
conventional hot press processing. Relevant build-up board processes
such as laser via formation, electroless plating and drill through holes
were accomplished. Test boards with a BCB build-up layer per side were
evaluated and excellent reliabilities and excellent electrical
performance was confirmed
Polymer coatings are applied to chips and passive components to
provide stress relief between the device/component and the plastic
package and/or to provide mechanical and environmental protection. The
semiconductor industry is actively pursuing a one mask, photosensitive
dielectric process for stress-buffer and secondary passivation of memory
die. A one mask photo-benzocyclobutene (BCB) process is compared to
traditional two mask wet etch processes. This new one mask process
reveals 1/3 the total wafer processing time and equivalent reliability
(traditional MIL 883C testing) for passivated 100 lead static random
access memory components (SRAMs). Reliability data are also presented
for GaAs chips, and NiCr and TaN resistors which have been passivated by
BCB
In the current trend toward portable applications, high-Q
integrated inductors are gaining a lot of importance. Using thin-film
multilayer or multichip-module-deposition technology, high-Q circular
inductors for RF and microwave applications may be integrated
efficiently. Their quality factors may go up to over 100. In this paper,
an accurate analytical model for such multiturn circular spiral
inductors embedded in a thin-film multilayer topology is presented.
Starting from the geometrical parameters, the model provides an accurate
prediction of the inductance value, Q factor and frequency behavior of
the inductor. This allows a “first-time-right?” realization
of the integrated component and provides opportunities for fast
optimization of the inductors. Finally, the presented high-Q inductors
have been used in various integrated RF and microwave subsystems for
wireless applications, of which a number are discussed at the end of
this paper
