A Surface Micromachined Miniature Switch For Telecommunications Applications With Signal Frequencies From DC Up To 4 Ghz

A surface micromachined miniature switch has been made on a semi-insulating GaAs substrate using a suspended silicon dioxide micro-beam as the cantilevered arm, a platinum-to-gold electrical contact, and electrostatic actuation as the switching mechanism. This switch functions from DC to RF frequency, and has an electrical isolation of -50 dB and an insertion loss of 0.1 dB at 4 GHz. The low process temperature budget of 250°C ensures the switch’s monolithic integration capability with microwave and millimeter wave integrated circuits.

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