Multilayer printing on PDMS-ceramic composites for RF integration and packaging

Author

Apaydin, E. ; Zhou, Y. ; Koulouridis, S. ; Volakis, J.L. ; Hansford, Derek

Author_Institution

Biomed. Eng. Dept., Nanotech West Lab., Columbus, OH, USA

fYear

2009

fDate

1-5 June 2009

Firstpage

1

Lastpage

4

Abstract

In this paper, we introduce a printing technique to reliably metallize PDMS-ceramic composites for multilayer integration. Strong polymer-metal adhesion and stable mechanical/RF performances are achieved via the following steps: (1) surface masking, (2) surface modification, (3) titanium adhesion layer and (4) electroplating. We note that the surface modification and electroplating are newly introduced steps to overcome above mentioned fabrication challenges and therefore making PDMS attractive for RF applications. Below, we discuss these steps and present two examples, a single-layer hybrid for circular polarization (CP) feeding and a patch antenna. Techniques for 3-D fabrication and multilayer integration are also elaborated using a hybrid-embedded GPS antenna and a multilayer microstrip directional coupler.

Keywords

Global Positioning System; antenna feeds; composite materials; directional couplers; electroplating; integrated circuit packaging; microstrip antennas; printing; 3D fabrication; PDMS-ceramic composites; RF integration; RF packaging; circular polarization feeding; electroplating; hybrid-embedded GPS antenna; mechanical-RF performances; multilayer integration; multilayer microstrip directional coupler; multilayer printing; patch antenna; poly dimethyl siloxane composites; polymer-metal adhesion; surface masking; surface modification; titanium adhesion layer; Adhesives; Fabrication; Metallization; Microstrip antennas; Nonhomogeneous media; Packaging; Polymers; Printing; Radio frequency; Titanium;

fLanguage

English

Publisher

ieee

Conference_Titel

Antennas and Propagation Society International Symposium, 2009. APSURSI '09. IEEE

Conference_Location

Charleston, SC

ISSN

1522-3965

Print_ISBN

978-1-4244-3647-7

Type

conf

DOI

10.1109/APS.2009.5172012

Filename

5172012