Integrated Micromechanical Circuits for RF Front Ends

Having now produced devices with sufficient Q, thermal stability, aging stability, and manufacturability, vibrating RF MEMS technology is already finding its way into next generation timing and wireless applications. At this juncture, the technology is now poised to take its next logical steps: higher levels of circuit complexity and integration. In particular, as vibrating RF MEMS devices are perceived more as circuit building blocks than as stand-alone devices, and as the frequency processing circuits they enable become larger and more complex, the makings of an integrated micromechanical circuit technology begin to take shape, perhaps with a functional breadth to rival that of integrated transistor circuits. After briefly reviewing the present state of vibrating RF MEMS device technology, this paper suggests the mechanical circuit element attributes most likely to insure a broad functional range for future integrated micromechanical circuits.