Abstract
The fabrication and characterization of a radio frequency (RF) micromachined switch with annealing were presented. The structure of the RF switch consists of a membrane, coplanar waveguide (CPW) lines, and eight springs. The RF switch is manufactured using the complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS) process. The switch requires a post-process to release the membrane and springs. The post-process uses a wet etching to remove the sacrificial silicon dioxide layer, and to obtain the suspended structures of the switch. In order to improve the residual stress of the switch, an annealing process is applied to the switch, and the membrane obtains an excellent flatness. The finite element method (FEM) software CoventorWare is utilized to simulate the stress and displacement of the RF switch. Experimental results show that the RF switch has an insertion loss of 0.9 dB at 35 GHz and an isolation of 21 dB at 39 GHz. The actuation voltage of the switch is 14 V.
Highlights
Radio frequency switches are applied in wireless communication systems [1]
To characterize the deformation of the membrane, a white light interferometer was used to measure the profile of the radio frequency (RF) switch
To improve the residual stress, an annealing process was applied to the RF switch
Summary
Radio frequency switches are applied in wireless communication systems [1]. Compared with solid-state RF switches, the benefits of micromachined RF switches are low insertion loss, excellent isolation, and high linearity at microwave frequencies [2,3]. The switch had an actuation voltage of 10 V and an isolation of 20 dB at 15 GHz. Chang et al [8] utilized surface micromachining process to fabricate a micromachined microwave switch on a GaAs substrate. The RF switch contained CPW lines of AuGeNi/Au, a dielectric layer of SiN and a membrane of Au. The switch had an isolation of 42 dB at 24.5 GHz and an insertion loss of 0.25 dB at 25.6 GHz. The actuation voltage of the switch was 17 V. We uses the commercial CMOS process to manufacture a micromechanical RF switch, and its fabrication is easier than Czaplewski et al [5], Park et al [6], Kügeler et al [7], Chang et al [8], and Zheng et al [9]. The switch is a capacitive shunt type actuated by the electrostatic force
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