Methods for the fabrication of miniature electromagnetic microwave switches are disclosed in this invention. In one embodiment, on a dielectric substrate, minia ture electromagnetic switches for coplanar waveguide transmission lines are fabricate d. In another embodiment, miniature electromagnetic microwave switches are fabricated for microstrip transmission lines. The miniature microwave switches are built on a d ielectric substrate and are accompanied by miniature electromagnetic coils on the back of the substrate. The switch is controlled by regulating the dc current applied to the electromagnetic coil. A switch is ON when a dc controlling current is applied to the electromagnetic coil and is OFF when the controlling current is cut off. A rever se dc current may also be applied to the electromagnetic coil to repel the top electro de so it does not touch the bottom electrode. The use of reverse current will prevent the two electrodes from sticking together and thus reduce the switching time. For the sw itch described in the second embodiment, the miniature electromagnetic coils are sepa rated from the signal lines by a grounding metal layer fabricated within the substrate . In yet another embodiment, switches with two electrodes separated by a gap and a third element, a cantilever, are built on a dielectric substrate. Under the influence of a magn etic force, the cantilever will move downwards so that the two separated electrodes are connecte d.
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