Title :
Distributed Passive Intermodulation Distortion on Transmission Lines
Author :
Wilkerson, Jonathan R. ; Lam, Peter G. ; Gard, Kevin G. ; Steer, Michael B.
Author_Institution :
Phys. Devices, LLC, Raleigh, NC, USA
fDate :
5/1/2011 12:00:00 AM
Abstract :
A theoretical treatment of distributed electro-thermally induced intermodulation distortion is developed for microstrip transmission lines. The growth of passive intermodulation distortion (PIM) along the length of a line is derived accounting for both loss and electrical dispersion. PIM dependencies on width, length, thickness, and substrate parameters are analyzed leading to design guidelines for low distortion lines. Single metal silver transmission lines are fabricated on sapphire and fused-quartz substrates to isolate the electro-thermal effect and validate the model. Electro-thermal PIM is measured in a two-tone test with tone separation ranging from 4 Hz to 10 kHz.
Keywords :
intermodulation distortion; microstrip lines; quartz; sapphire; transmission lines; distributed electro-thermally induced intermodulation distortion; distributed passive intermodulation distortion; electrical dispersion; electro-thermal passive intermodulation distortion; frequency 4 Hz to 10 kHz; fused-quartz substrate; metal silver transmission line; microstrip transmission line; sapphire; tone separation; Heat transfer; Power transmission lines; Resistance heating; Strips; Substrates; Electro-thermal effects; microstrip line; passive intermodulation distortion (PIM); transmission-line model;
Journal_Title :
Microwave Theory and Techniques, IEEE Transactions on
DOI :
10.1109/TMTT.2011.2106138
