Mixed-Domain Simulation of Intermodulation Distortion in RF-MEMS Capacitive Shunt Switches

A hierarchical MEMS design library, implemented in SpectreHDL® within the Cadence® simulation framework, is applied to the study of distortion phenomen in RF-MEMS capacitive shunt switches. Two-tone mixeddomain transient simulation of the non-actuated switch, operated at high-power, directly shows, for the first time, self-biasing modulation at the tones spacing frequency. Adjacent-channel intermodulation products are observed and quantified, proving that the adopted mixed-domain simulation approach is the key tool for addressing system-level specifications in RF-MEMS design for wireless applications.