MEMS TECHNOLOGY IS TRANSFORMING HIGH-DENSITY SWITCH MATRICES

摘要

The signal and power switching systems, which are often required for high-volume automated testing, are sometimes overlooked-but they are critical ingredients that play an outsized role in determining overall measurement system performance and cost. Like all electronic devices, EMRs and reed relays, the mainstay of current ATE switching systems, have limitations that directly impact the overall cost-of-ownership and cost-of-test. That said, MEMS switch technology has been problematic for decades and has only recently surmounted its most vexing challenges, allowing them to replace EMRs in many of their core applications. In addition to switching low power and low-frequency signals, MEMS switches can now handle kilowatts of power reliably and pass frequencies well into the millimeter-wave spectrum. Finally, as MEMS switch technology is just beginning to exploit its potential, new performance benchmarks will continue to be set for many years to come.