Design of a Broadband MEMS-based reconfigurable coupler in Ku-band

A broadband reconfigurable coupler has been realized at Ku band making use of RF-MEMS switches. The coupler is directly printed on the same Silicon substrate on which the MEMS are built. The device works at 16-20 GHz, and it is designed to provide two different coupling levels of -10 dB and -17 dB, maintaining good matching and isolation in both states. Performance significantly matches the simulations, verifying how close the MEMS switches perform to the predicted behavior. This also demonstrates that the MEMS fabrication process is repeatable and predictable.