A novel nanoionics-based switch for microwave applications

This paper reports the development and characterization of a novel switching device for use in microwave systems. The device utilizes a switching mechanism based on nanoionics, in which mobile ions within a solid electrolyte undergo an electrochemical process to form and remove a conductive metallic ldquobridgerdquo to define the change of state. The nanoionics-based switch has demonstrated an insertion loss of ~0.5 dB, isolation of >0 dB, low voltage operation (1 V), low power (~muW) and low energy (~nJ) consumption, and excellent linearity up to 6 GHz. The switch requires fewer bias operations (due to non-volatile nature) and has a simple planar geometry allowing for novel device structures and easy integration into microwave power distribution circuits.