RF MEMS switches based on thermal actuator

摘要

A new switching circuit is presented for the application in the frequency range of 0 to 8 GHz. This switch is electro-thermally actuated and exhibits high radio frequency (RF) performance due to its lateral contact mechanism. It composes of electroplated nickel and silicon nitride as structural materials. The isolation between bias and signal ports is realized by using silicon nitride. In the case of a small deformation, the relation between the displacement of the vertex and the pre-bending angle is analyzed. The metal contact is realized by in-plane motion and sidewall connection. The switches were fabricated using the MetalMUMPs process from MEMSCAP. The RF testing results show that the switch has a low insertion loss of 0. 9 dB at 8 GHz and a high isolation of 30 dB below 8 GHz.%设计了一种工作在0～8 GHz频段的热驱动式RF MEMS开关．开关利用热驱动方式实现横向金属直接接触,因此具有较好的射频性能．开关的结构层由厚的电镀镍和氮化硅组成,由于氮化硅的绝缘作用,实现了射频信号与驱动信号的隔离,有助于进一步提高射频性能．分析了在较小变形量的情况下,突起角度与顶点位移量的关系．电镀的金壁作为接触金属降低了接触电阻．开关通过Metal-MUMPs工艺进行成功流片,测试结果显示,开关在8 GHz有小于0．9dB的插入损耗和大于30 dB的隔离度．