AlN Contour-Mode Vibrating RF MEMS for Next Generation Wireless Communications

AlN contour-mode vibrating RF MEMS resonator technology is described as capable of low-loss filtering and frequency synthesis for next generation wireless devices. Contour-mode piezoelectric resonators can span frequencies from 10 MHz up to few GHz on the same silicon chip offering high quality factors in air (1,000-4,000) and low motional resistance (25-700 Omega). Low loss (<- 1.5 dB) electrically and mechanically coupled filters and low phase noise oscillators can be easily implemented using this resonator technology. Low power transceiver architectures based on frequency hopping, multi-band filtering and direct frequency synthesis are presented as next generation wireless solutions that will be enabled by this new class of AlN contour-mode resonators