Dielectric Charge Measurement in Capacitive Microwave Shunt Switches

Author

Schultz, John S. ; Firebaugh, Samara L. ; Charles, Harry K., Jr. ; Edwards, Richard L. ; Keeney, Allen C. ; Wilderson, Samuel F.

Author_Institution

Dept. of Electr. Eng., United States Naval Acad., Annapolis, MD

Volume

2

fYear

2005

fDate

16-19 May 2005

Firstpage

1345

Lastpage

1349

Abstract

The use of microelectromechanical systems as electronic switches in circuits for microwave frequency applications has grown considerably in the past decade. One phenomenon that limits the reliability of these switches is dielectric charging. Using a non-contact technique for measuring dielectric charging, the rate at which dielectric charging occurs can be measured and used to predict further charging. The prediction of dielectric charging can help optimize the controllable variables to minimize the extent of the phenomenon

Keywords

charge measurement; dielectric properties; microswitches; microwave switches; capacitive microwave shunt switches; dielectric charge measurement; dielectric charging; electronic switches; microelectromechanical systems; microswitches; microwave frequency; noncontact technique; Bridge circuits; Charge measurement; Communication switching; Conductors; Dielectric measurements; Electrostatics; Micromechanical devices; Power semiconductor switches; Radiofrequency microelectromechanical systems; Voltage; MEMS; Microelectromechanical devices; dielectric charging; micromachining; microwave; reliability; switches;

fLanguage

English

Publisher

ieee

Conference_Titel

Instrumentation and Measurement Technology Conference, 2005. IMTC 2005. Proceedings of the IEEE

Conference_Location

Ottawa, Ont.

Print_ISBN

0-7803-8879-8

Type

conf

DOI

10.1109/IMTC.2005.1604367

Filename

1604367