The design, fabrication and measurement of a 5 bit Ku band MEMS phase shifter in different configurations, i.e. a coplanar waveguide and microstrip, are presented in this work. The development architecture is based on the hybrid approach of switched and loaded line topologies. All the switches are monolithically manufactured on a 200 µm high resistivity silicon substrate using 4 inch diameter wafers. The first three bits (180°, 90° and 45°) are realized using switched microstrip lines and series ohmic MEMS switches whereas the fourth and fifth bits (22.5° and 11.25°) consist of microstrip line sections loaded by shunt ohmic MEMS devices. Individual bits are fabricated and evaluated for performance and the monolithic device is a 5 bit Ku band (16–18 GHz) phase shifter with very low average insertion loss of the order of 3.3 dB and a return loss better than 15 dB over the 32 states with a chip area of 44 mm2. A total phase shift of 348.75° with phase accuracy within 3° is achieved over all of the states. The performance of individual bits has been optimized in order to achieve an integrated performance so that they can be implemented into active electronically steerable antennas for phased array applications.
As the requirement for the low loss phase shifter increases, so does the development of RF MEMS as a solution. This paper presents the design & simulation of Switched line MEMS phase shifter for Ku band using GaAs substrate. The phase shift can be achieved by varying the lengths in delay path to the reference path for the same phase velocity. The electromagnetic & electromechanical simulations were carried out with various structural parameters to optimize the design. The novelties like low insertion loss, low actuation voltage with distributed actuation pads for DC and RF are used to make the design unique. The EM simulations are carried out using 3D simulator HFSS and a phase shift of 172.6 deg./dB for a total Phase shift of 348.75deg was achieved with return loss of 15.5dB over a frequency band from 16-18 GHz and a phase shift error less than ±2 degree in the 32 states. The electromechanical simulations are carried to achieve the low actuation voltage of 15.3V. These parameters make these suitable for the Phased array applications [1, 2].
This paper presents the design & modeling of distributed MEMS phase shifter for Ka band RF systems. The phase shift can be achieved by periodically placing the MEMS bridge variable capacitors as per Bragg frequency criteria on coplanar waveguide (CPW) using GaAs substrate. The EM & electromechanical simulation are carried out with various structural parameters to optimize the designs. The novelties like low insertion loss, low actuation voltage with distributed actuation pads & separate DC and RF are used to make the design unique. The EM simulations are carried out with HFSS and an insertion loss of -3.49 dB at 36GHz for a total Phase shift of 360 deg. was achieved with return loss of - 20.6 dB over a frequency band 34-38 GHz. The electromechanical simulations are carried to achieve the low actuation voltage of 10.3V. The significance of this study is the realization of the digital phase shifter through DMTL approach.
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