A class for computer-aided design and measurement of microstrip circuits

Abstract

A b s t r a c tWe are developing an innovative microwave-integrated-circuits class at Caltech that uses personal computers to design and analyze microstrip circuits, and to make the artwork and measurements. We have written an interactive microwave computer-aided-design program, P u f , that is quite fast at laying out and analyzing microstrip circuits. The students fabricate a different circuit each week and test them on a network analyzer controlled by a personal computer. The fabrication and measurement process is streamlined so that it all can be done in a single three-hour lab period.

REAL: the remote educational antenna laboratory

“…Antennas can be simulated and analyzed using relatively inexpensive design software, and can be made using techniques such as elements printed on circuit boards, and metal and dielectric parts that can be cut and assembled with hand tools. One of the first courses to make use of extensive fabrication of printed circuits and antennas was developed by Rutledge and colleagues at CalTech [1].…”