Compact, wideband, low-dispersion, metamaterial-based MEMS phase shifters

Novel phase shifters were designed by using only two MEMS switches to control a metamaterial-based slow-wave structure in each unit cell. A unit cell with an area smaller than 1 mm² exhibited a phase shift of 54±15°, an insertion loss of less than 0.9 dB, and a return loss of higher than 15 dB between 12 GHz and 18 GHz. Modeling not only agrees with the measured data, but also points out possibilities for future improvement. With compact size and small number of MEMS switches, these phase shifters can have high yield, high reliability and low cost.