A compact SPDT RF MEMS switch with high contact force

Author

Sedaghat-Pisheh, Hojr ; Rebeiz, Gabriel M.

Author_Institution

Electr. & Comput. Eng. Dept., Univ. of California San Diego (UCSD), La Jolla, CA, USA

fYear

2009

fDate

7-12 June 2009

Firstpage

1213

Lastpage

1216

Abstract

This paper presents the design, fabrication and measurements on a new metal-contact RF MEMS single-pole double-throw (SPDT) switch with low sensitivity to stress gradients. The switch is based on a circular geometry with arc type springs, and results in high contact force, fast switching time, and excellent microwave performance to >30 GHz. To our knowledge, this is the smallest high-performance SPDT switches to-date (0.04 mm²).

Keywords

electrical contacts; electromagnetic forces; microswitches; microwave switches; sensitivity; circular geometry; compact SPDT RF MEMS switch; fast switching time; high contact force; low sensitivity; metal-contact RF MEMS; microwave performance; single-pole double-throw switch; stress gradient; Contacts; Electrodes; Force measurement; Frequency measurement; Gold; Mechanical variables measurement; Q measurement; Radiofrequency microelectromechanical systems; Stress measurement; Switches; Microelectromechanical (MEMS) devices; RF MEMS; microwave switches; switches;

fLanguage

English

Publisher

ieee

Conference_Titel

Microwave Symposium Digest, 2009. MTT '09. IEEE MTT-S International

Conference_Location

Boston, MA

ISSN

0149-645X

Print_ISBN

978-1-4244-2803-8

Electronic_ISBN

0149-645X

Type

conf

DOI

10.1109/MWSYM.2009.5165921

Filename

5165921