Octave Ban D MIC Electronically Variable Attenuators Using PIN Diodes

A series of C- and X-band thin-film microstrip electronically variable attenuators have been developed, using PIN diode chips in an iterated structure, which exhibit half-to-full octave bandwidth capability. Using 10 PIN diodes, mounted singly and in pairs on a 1-inch square substrate, these attenuators exhibit less than 1.6 and 1.8 dB low attenuation insertion loss, about 34 and 27 dB maximum attenuation, and less than 1.6:1 and 1.4:1 VSWR over the 4 to 8 and 8 to 12 GHz frequency ranges, respectively.