Accurate measurement and characterization of reciprocal 3-ports, application to CPW T-junctions in thin-film multi-layer MCM-D

In this paper, a novel method to fully characterize passive reciprocal 3-ports is presented. The method only requires 3 in-line 2-port measurements with the orthogonal port alternatively terminated with 3 known reflects, e.g. an open, a short and a 50 Ω-load. This eliminates the need for orthogonal probe-calibration techniques and non-ideal termination compensation which is required in the conventional method. As only in-line measurements are required, the measurement system only needs to be calibrated once, which results in a considerable time-reduction. The method has been applied to the characterization of T-junctions in CPW-based thin-film MCM-D