A rigorous approach to lumped element circuit models for monolithic inductors

At microwave frequencies, the passive devices in integrated circuits impact the performance of a circuit as much as the active devices. Inductors are critical components in many circuits including matching networks, oscillator tanks, and filters. However, monolithic inductors face numerous challenges at microwave frequencies including large size, high loss, and nonlinear behavior. These effects demand careful modeling of the monolithic inductors when designing integrated microwave circuits. Several modeling schemes have been developed, including purely numerical techniques where Maxwell´s equations are solved numerically and approximate lumped circuit models. The scheme presented here is a combination of the two.