1

Chapter-1

Introduction
1.1 Basic Overview on RF MEMS:


MEMS is the acronym for Micro Electro Mechanical Systems, an engineering
discipline concerned with devices whose critical device dimension is in the micrometer range.
MEMS technology combines many diverse fields within engineering and science to develop
devices and systems to perform highly precise functions in a variety of systems. Micro
electromechanical Systems (MEMS) have been developed since the 1970s for pressure and
temperature sensors, accelerometers, gas chromatographs, and other sensor devices .

The term RF MEMS refers to the design and fabrication of MEMS for RF integrated
circuits. It should not be interpreted as the traditional MEMS devices operating at RF
frequencies. The first MEM switch designed specifically for microwave applications was
reported in 1990. RF MEMS has seen an amazing growth in the past 10 years due to its
immense commercial and defense potential. The reason is that while there were tremendous
advances in GaAs HEMT devices (high-electron mobility transistor) and in silicon CMOS
(complementary metal-oxide-semiconductor) transistors; there was barely an advance in
semiconductor switching diodes from 1985 to 2000. In 1980, the cutoff frequency of
silicon CMOS transistors was around 500 MHz and is currently around 100 GHz. Also in
1980, the cutoff frequency of GaAs -HEMT devices was 10-20 GHz and is now above 800 GHz.
However, the cutoff frequency of GaAs or InP p-i-n diodes improved from around 500 GHz
in 1985 to only 2000 GHz in 2001. Clearly, a radical new technology was needed to push the
cut-off frequency of switching devices to 40,000 GHz for low-loss applications, and this was
achieved with RF MEMS devices

MEMS devices in RF MEMS are used for actuation or adjustment of a separate RF device
or component, such as variable capacitors, switches, and filters. The term MEMS refers to a
2




collection of micro sensors and actuators which can sense its environment and have the ability

to react to changes in that environment with the use of a microcircuit control. They include, in
addition to the conventional microelectronics packaging, integrating antenna structures for
command signals into micro electromechanical structures for desired sensing and actuating
functions. The system also may need micro power supply, micro relay and micro signal
processing units. Micro components make the system faster, more reliable, cheaper and capable
of incorporating more complex functions.

It is seen that, for microwave and millimeter wave systems, these actuating forces are
sufficient to change the properties of overall system. Passive devices include bulk micro
machined transmission lines, filters and couplers. Active MEMS devices include switches, tuners
and variable capacitors. The electromotive force used to move the structures on the wafer surface
is typically electrostatic attraction, although magnetic, thermal or even gas-based micro actuator
structures have been developed.

RF MEMS are similar to VLSI circuits in a way that it allows the execution of complex
functions on a size scale orders of magnitude lower and at far less power than discrete circuits.
However, MEM enables this miniaturization on a class of sensors and transducers that
traditionally were constructed on the model of a large, often cumbersome transducer or sensor
coupled to a highly integrated VLSI readout circuit or processor.
In the largest class of RF MEMS devices and components, the micro electromechanical
operation is used simply for the actuation or adjustment of a separate RF device or component,
the basic example of which consists of a variable capacitor.



1.2Classification of RF MEMS Components:

Although it is still early for a time-tested categorization of RF-MEMS devices, the
development to date tends to place them into different classes depending on whether one takes an
RF or MEMS viewpoint. From the RF viewpoint, the MEMS devices are simply classified by the
RF-circuit component they are contained in, be it reactive elements, switches, filters, or
3




something else. From the MEMS viewpoint, there are three distinct classes depending on where

and how the MEMS actuation is carried out relative to the RF circuit . The three classes are: 1)
the MEMS structure is located outside the RF circuit, but actuates or controls other devices
(usually micromechanical ones) in the circuit; 2) the MEMS structure is located inside the RF
circuit and has the dual, but decoupled, roles of actuation and RF-circuit function; and 3) the
MEMS structure is located inside the circuit where it has an RF function that is coupled to the
actuation. These classes are referred as:

RF extrinsic
RF intrinsic
RF reactive.
Each of the MEMS classes has produced compelling examples, like the tunable

micromachined transmission line in the RF-extrinsic class, shunt electrostatic microswitch and
comb capacitors in the RF-intrinsic class, and capacitively coupled micromechanical resonator
in the RF-reactive class. A collection of these devices is shown in the RF MEMS technology
diagram of Figure 1.A.


4



Figure1.A: Classes of RF MEMS device


Thus RF MEMS research leads to three distinct areas.


Micro-machined transmission lines, high-Q resonators, filter, and antennas that are
suitable for 12-200 GHz. They are generally integrated on thin- dielectric membranes or use
bulk micromachining of silicon, but are static and do not move. (RF extrinsic)

RF MEMS switches, varactors, and inductors that have been demonstrated from DC-120

GHz and are now a relatively mature technology. Except for the micromachined inductors,
MEMS switches and varactors move several micrometers when actuated. (RF intrinsic)

RF micromechanical resonators and filters that use the mechanical vibrations of
extremely small beams to achieve high-Q resonance at 0.01-200 MHz in vacuum. In this case,
the mechanical movements are of the order of tens of angstroms. Very-high-Q resonators
(>8000) have been fabricated using this technology up to 200 MHz, but two-pole filters have
only been demonstrated up to 10 MHz. This technology still needs a lot of work before it is
ready for commercial applications in miniature 0.1- 3 GHz filters. (RF reactive).

The richest class is clearly the RF-intrinsic, which already boasts three promising
devices. Here, we have tunable capacitors and inductors that are expected to operate up to at least
a few gigahertz in frequency, and RF embedded switches that operate well from a few gigahertz
up to at least 100 GHz.

The work presented here will concentrate on RF MEMS switches, which are essential
devices for RF reconfigurability. In doing so, it will become apparent that the mapping between
RF device and MEMS class is not unique. It simply means that the switching function, or any RF
function for that matter, can often be achieved by different MEMS configurations. This is one of
the many reasons as to why RF MEMS have recently become interesting to many RF component
and circuit engineers.
5







RF MEMS Switches:

The micro switch is arguably the paradigm RF-MEMS device. In essence, it is a
miniaturized version of the venerable toggle switch. In addition to the three classes based on
MEMS actuation, the switches can be categorized by the following three characteristics
1) RF circuit configuration

2) Mechanical structure

3) Form of contact

4) Movement.

The different configurations are summarized as in Table 1.1.This means that one can
build at least 32 (2 x 2 x 2 x 4) different type of MEMS switches using different actuation
mechanisms, contact, and circuit implementations.

Actuation
Mechanism
Voltage
(V)
Current
(mA)
Power
(mW)
Size Switching
Time (s)
Contact
Force
(N)
Electrostatic 20-80V 0 0 Small 1- 200 50 - 1000
Thermal 3-5 5-100 0-200 Large 300-10,000 500-4000
Magnetostatic 3-5 20-150 0-100 Medium 300-1,000 50-200
Piezoelectric 3-20 0 0 Medium 50 - 500 50-200



Movement
Vertical Lateral
Typically results in small size devices Typically results in large size devices


Contact Type (Switches Only)
Metal-to-Metal Capacitive
DC 60GHz 10-120 GHz
6




Circuit Configuration
Series Shunt
DC-50GHz with metal-to-metal contact
and low up-state capacitance
10-50 GHz with capacitive contact and
low up state capacitance
DC-60GHz with metal-to-metal contact
and low inductance to ground
10-200 GHz with capacitive contact and
low inductance to ground


Table 1: Different Configuration of MEMS Devices.

Electrostatic actuation is the most prevalent technique in use today due to its virtually
zero power consumption, small electrode size, thin layers used, relatively short switching time

(2-24

s ), 50-200

N of achievable contact forces, and the possibility of biasing the switch

using high-resistance bias lines. In many cases, a thermal actuation is coupled with an

electrostatic (voltage) hold, or a magnetostatic actuation (current in a coil) is coupled with a
permanent magnetic field.

1.3 MEMS Switches v/s GaAs PIN Diode & FET Switches:

MEMS switches enjoy several advantages over semiconductor switches in the RF

applications :


Near-Zero Power Consumption: Electrostatic actuation requires 20-80 V but does not
consume any current, leading to very low power dissipation; (10-100 nJ per switching
cycle).
Very High Isolation: RF MEMS series switches are fabricated with air gaps, and
therefore, have very low off-state capacitances (2-4 fF) resulting in excellent isolation at
0.1-40 GHz.

Very Low Insertion Loss: RF MEMS series and shunt switches have an insertion loss of -

0.1 dB up to 40 GHz.

Intermodulation Products: MEMS switches are very linear devices and, therefore, result
in very low intermodulation products. Their performance is around 30 dB better than p-
i-n or FET switches.
7




Very Low Cost: RF MEMS switches are fabricated using surface micromachining
techniques and can be built on quartz, Pyrex; low-temperature cofired ceramic (LTCC),
mechanical-grade high-resistivity silicon, or GaAs substrates.

However, RF MEMS switches also have their share of problems, such as:


Relatively Low Speed: The switching speed of most MEMS switches is around 2-40 s.

Certain communication and radar systems require much faster switches.

Power Handling: Most MEMS switches cannot handle more than 20-50mW. MEMS

switches that can handle 0.2-10 W with high reliability simply does not exist today.

High-Voltage Drive: Electrostatic MEMS switches require 20-80 V for reliable operation,
and this necessitates a voltage up-converter chip when used in portable
telecommunication systems.
Reliability: The reliability of mature MEMS switches is 0.1-10 billion cycles. However,

many systems require switches with 20-200 billion cycles. Also, the long-term reliability

(years) has not yet been addressed.

Packaging: MEMS switches need to be packaged in inert atmospheres (nitrogen, argon,
etc.) and in very low humidity, resulting in hermetic or near-hermetic seals. Packaging
costs are currently high, and the packaging technique itself may adversely affect the
reliability of the MEMS switch.
Cost: While MEMS switches have the potential of very low cost manufacturing, one
must add the cost of packaging and the high-voltage drive chip. It is, therefore, hard to
beat a $0.30-0.60 single-pole double-throw 3-V p-i-n or FET switch, tested, packaged,
and delivered.

Table 1.2 shows a comparison between electrostatic MEMS switches and GaAS PIN
diode and transistor switches . It is hard to make an accurate comparison over a wide range of
RF power levels since the size of diode and transistor switches can be easily increased for high
power applications. This, in turn, has a substantial effect on the switch isolation, insertion
loss, switching speed, and power consumption. Still, it is evident that MEMS switches,
8




with their extremely low up-state capacitance (series switches) and their very high capacitance
ratio (capacitance contact switches), offer a far superior performance compared to solid-state
switches for low to medium power applications (Fig. B).


Parameter RF MEMS PIN FET
Voltage (V) 20-80

3-5
3-5
Current (mA) 0 3-20 0
Power consumption (mW) 0.05-0.1 5-100 0.05-0.1
Switching time 1-300s 1-100ns 1-100ns
Cup (series) (fF) 1-6 40-80 70-140
Rs (series) (O) 0.5-2 2-4 4-6
Capacitance ratio 40-500 10 n/a
Cutoff frequency (THz) 20-80 1-4 0.5-2
Isolation (1- 10GHz) Very high High Medium
Isolation (10- 40GHz) Very High Medium Low
Isolation (60- 100GHz) High Medium None

Power handling (W)
<1 <10 <10

Table B: Performance comparison of FETs, PIN Diode, and RF MEMS Electrostatic Switches





Figure B: Simulated isolation of MEMS, Pin and FET series switches

1.4 Application Areas of RF MEMS :


RF MEMS switch gives outstanding isolation and insertion loss at microwave
frequencies and can replace the GaAs switches in cellular telephones resulting in much lower
DC-power consumption and longer battery life. It can also be used in phase shifters, which are
9




essential for modem telecommunication, automotive, and defense applications, in low-loss

tunable circuits (matching networks, filters, etc.), and in high-performance instrumentation
systems. Table C and Figure 2 summarizes the application areas of RF MEMS devices and
the lifetime and number of cycles required.


Area System Numbe
r of Cycles
(Billions)
Years
Phased arrays Communication systems (ground)
(space)
(airborne)
1-10
10-100
10-100
2-10
2-10
2-10
Phased arrays Radar systems (Ground)
(Space)
(Missile)
(Airborne)
(Automotive)
10-100
10-100
0.2-10
1-100
1-10
5-10
5-10
1-5
5-10
5-10
Switching and
Reconfigurable
networks
Wireless communication ( portable)
(base station)
Satellite (Communication and radar)
Airborne (Communication and radar)
Instrumentation
0.01-4
0.1-100
0.1-1
0.1-10
10-100
2-3
5-10
2-10
2-10
10
Low-power
oscillators and
amplifiers
Wireless communication ( portable)
Satellite (Communication and radar)
Airborne (Communication and
radar)
0.1
0.1-1
0.1-10
2-3
2-10
2-10


Table C: Application areas of MEMS Switches, Varactors, and High-Q Inductors
10

11


1.5 RF MEMS in Phased Arrays:


One of the more ubiquitous control functions at microwave and millimeter-wave
frequency is phase shifting. RF MEMS switches result in low-loss phase shifters at any
frequency and especially from 8 to 120 GHz. The average loss of state-of-the-art 3-bit MEMS
phase shifters is -0.9 dB at 10-14 GHz, which is a 3- to 4-dB improvement over comparable on-
wafer designs using GaAs FET switches. This translates to a 6- to 8-dB improvement in radar or
a two-way telecommunication system .The improvement is quite high for Ka-band (35 GHz), V-
band (60 GHz), or W-band (77 GHz, 94 GHz) systems (Table E). Therefore, one can eliminate
an amplifier stage (or two) in the T/R chain, thereby resulting in a DC power reduction of 20-100
mW per element at X- to V-band frequencies. This translates into a substantial DC power
reduction for space-based, air-borne, and low-power telecommunication and radar systems. It is
clear that RF MEMS is an enabling technology for low-cost phased arrays .


Frequency (GHz) Loss RF MEMS (dB) Loss GaAs FET (dB)
X-Band (10) -0.9 to 1.0 (-0.3/bit) -3 to 4 (-1.2 /bit)
Ka-Band -1.7 to 2.0 -6 to 7 (-2.2 /bit)
V-Band -2.3 to 2.5 (-0.8/bit) -8 to 9 (-2.8 /bit)
W-Band -2.7 to 3.3 (-1.0/bit) -9 to 11 (-3.3 /bit)


TableE Average on Wafer Loss for RFMEMS and GaAs FET 3-Bit Phase Shifters


1.6 Basic Overview of Phase Shifters:

A phase shifter is a two-port network with the provision that the phase difference
between output and input signals can be controlled by a control signal, usually dc bias. Phase
shifters with low insertion loss, low drive power, continuous tunability and low production cost
are the key to the development of lightweight phased array antennas. There are two basic
12




designs of phase shifters: The analog and digital approach. The analog phase shifter results in a

continuously variable phase shift, from 0
0
to 360
0
, and is built using varactor diodes. Digital
phase shifters provide a discrete set of phase delays and are usually built using switches. For
example, a 3-bit phase shifter is based on the 45
0
/90
0
/180
0
set of delay networks and can
provide phase shifts of 0
0
, 45
0
, 90
0
, 135
0
, 180
0
, 225
0
, 270
0
, and 315
0
, depending on the
combination of bits used .

There are two requirements for phase shifters: (1) constant phase versus frequency and
(2) linear phase versus frequency. The constant-phase designs are used for signal processing in
radar applications, wideband communication systems and components (SSB mixers, vector
modulators, balanced ampliers, etc.), and high-precision instrumentation systems, and they
are best constructed using switched networks or loaded-line techniques. The linear-phase designs
are predominantly used in true-time-delay phased arrays, especially those covering a wide
bandwidth, and can be easily synthesized using switched delay lines.

1.7Design of Phase Shifters:


In principle, any variable reactance in series or shunt across a transmission line can be
used to introduce phase shift. The basic idea is based on periodically loading a t-line with
capacitive shunt switches in order to obtain the desired phase shift .

A cascade of short sections of lossless, high-impedance (>50) transmission line shunted
by a voltage variable capacitance C, so as to form the infinite periodic structure is illustrated in
Fig.F. Each distributed transmission line section is modeled by an LC circuit and each unit cell
consists of L, C, and C. Let the separation of each unit cell be designated as s. Such
periodic structures exhibit slow-wave behavior (vp<<c) and filter-like characteristics. These types
of circuits are often referred to as synthetic line, slow-wave, or distributed transmission line phase
shifters.
13






Fig.1.F A chain of LCC circuits representing an infinite, periodically loaded transmission
line resulting in slow-wave propagation
A wave traveling through this periodic structure will only experience a phase shift from
unit cell to unit cell, such that V
n
is delayed relative to V
n 1
as

V
n
= V
n1
e

ju s


Hence, overall, a considerable amount of phase shift may be obtained. Such voltage

variable capacitors can be implemented in a number of ways. In this thesis, voltage variable
capacitors have been implemented by means of a capacitive shunt switch which has been later
detailed in the review.

1.8 Application of Phase Shifters in Phased Array Antennas:


Microwave and mm-wave phase shifters are essential components in phased array
antennas for telecommunications and radar applications and are currently based on ferrite
materials, PIN diodes, or FET switches. The ferrite phase shifters provide excellent performance
and can handle a lot of RF power, but are very expensive to fabricate, require manual tuning,
and consume a relatively large amount of DC power. Solid-state phase shifters provide a good
planar solution at microwave frequencies, and they have been used extensively in modern phased
array systems. The PIN diode designs consume more DC power than FET-based phase shifters,
but provide lower loss operation, especially at mm-wave frequencies. The advantage of FET-
based phase shifters is that they can be integrated with ampliers on the same chip,
thereby reducing the assembly cost of phased array systems .
14




Modern microwave and mm wave phased array antennas are attractive because of their

ability to steer wave beams in space without physically moving the antenna elements, which is
required for rapid beam steering and beam shaping. This could be achieved by the electronic
control of the phase of the signal into the antenna system. An antenna beam can be formed in
any desired shape and can be moved without moving the antenna elements. A typical phased
array antenna may have several thousand elements fed by a phase shifter for every antenna
element, which can steer the resulting array beam to different directions. Therefore low loss,
low cost and lightweight phase shifters are important for the design of phased array antennas.

Phase shifters are generally digital, in which the differential phase shift can be changed
only a few predetermined discrete values such as 90
0
, 45
0
, 22.5
0
, 11.25
0
, etc. and sometimes
analog, in which continuous phase variation is possible.

Electronically variable phase shifters were developed in 1957 by Reggia and Spencer.
This discovery was an important milestone because it could provide inertia-less phase change
in a short time, which was not possible until then using mechanical phase shifters.



Fig.1. G Principle of a phased array antenna using phase shifters.
15




In a phased array antenna, the phase shifters change the effective path length of the

transmission line resulting in different phases for each element. Characteristics such as good
impedance match, proper power handling capability, low drive power and fast response speed
are the required elements for a phase shifter. Fig G shows the principle of a phased array
antenna using phase shifters. The direction of the beam can be controlled by changing the
relative phase between the individual antenna elements.

1.9 objective


A single RF MEMS capacitive shunt switch or a switched capacitor, provides
linear phase shifts both in their actuated and un-actuated states respectively. This differential
shift in phase provides the overall phase shift for a switched capacitor (details of which to be
discussed in the following chapter). This single switched or a number of cascaded switched
capacitors on a t-line act as a unit cell having an appreciable amount of phase shift. Such unit
cells, when cascaded together yields the design of a single bit phase shifter (for eg., 180
0
in this
thesis).

So, the objective of the project can be summarized as under:-


Design and simulation of RF MEMS high-speed switched capacitor based unit cell
and optimization of the proposed structure.
Achieving excellent isolation in the Ku band.

Electromechanical analysis of a RF MEMS based on phase shifter.














16

Chapter 2
Literature Review
2.1 Introduction:
MEMS switches are devices whose operation is based on the use of mechanical movement
to achieve a short circuit or an open circuit in the RF transmission line. As already discussed
[Section 1.3] mostly electrostatic type and magnetostatic switches have been demonstrated at 0.1-
100 GHz with high reliability (100 million to 60 billion cycles) and wafer scale manufacturing
techniques. The advantages of MEMS switches over other traditional switches and their
applications have already been discussed [Section 1.4]. The RF MEMS switches developed today,
even if quite small; still follow the basic mechanical laws developed a few hundreds of years ago.
However, the scale and relative importance of the forces are significantly different from the macro
world.
The switch design starts with the selection of the actuation technique and the optimization
of various parameters. The RF switch is more than just a few series or shunt connections of diodes
or monolithic microwave integrated circuits (MMICs). It is an integral part of any RF system.
Proper selection of the right RF switch can make the difference between a marginal performance
and meeting the intended design goals. Through careful selection of the key parameters, an RF
switch can be optimized to achieve the desired values for specific applications. A switch in an RF
signal path can introduce resistance and capacitance in signal-to-signal and signal-to-ground
paths. Because of their mechanical operation, switches generally have a limited lifetime and are
prone to failure. The finite time to toggle a switch is the limitation in many RF applications. This
time ranges from milliseconds to a few hundred nanoseconds, depending on the type of switch.
Various parameters to be considered in the design of RF switches are (a) transition time,
(b) switching rate, (c) switching transients, (d) RF power handling, (e) matching with circuit, (f)
bandwidth, (g) insertion loss, (h) isolation, (i) series resistance, (j) actuation voltage, (k) lifetime,
(l) resonant frequency, (m) interception and level of distortion and (n) phase and amplitude
tracking [2, pp. 112]. Apart from these, switches based on mechanical actuation schemes have a
few additional parameters to be considered. Life-cycle and resonant frequency of the mechanical
component are the most important of these.




17

2.2 RF MEMS Switch Development:
MEMS switches and other components have been very interesting area for research and
development in the last few years . It is well known that they have excellent performances at
microwave to mm-wave frequencies.
There are two basic switches used in RF to millimeter-wave circuit design: the shunt
switch and the series switch.
2.2.1 Series MEMS Capacitive Switch:
There are two types of MEMS series switches: (i) the broadside series switch and (ii) the
inline series switch. The actuation of the broadside switch is in a plane that is perpendicular to the
transmission line, while the actuation of the inline switch is in the same plane as the transmission
line. The actuation mechanism is achieved by using an electrostatic force between the top and
bottom electrodes.

Figure 2.1: Broadside MEMS-series switches with (a) one electrode, (b) two electrodes, and (c) inline
MEMS-series switches.

2.2.2 Shunt MEMS Capacitive Switch:
There are different types of MEMS shunt capacitive switches, which provide different
performance. Usually shunt switch is based on a fixed-fixed beam design. The anchors are
connected to the CPW ground plane, and the membrane is grounded. The center electrode
provides both the electrostatic actuation and the RF capacitance between the transmission line and
the ground. When the switch is in the up state it provides the low capacitance to the ground, and it

18

does not affect signal on the transmission line. When the switch is actuated in the downstate, the
capacitance to the ground becomes higher and this results in an excellent short circuit and high
isolation at microwave frequencies.


Figure 2.2: MEMS capacitive shunt switch: (a) Top-view, (b) Cross-sectional view and (c) electrical CLR
model.
In this thesis, shunt switches will only be highlighted and its basic representation is now
illustrated as under.

The MEMS shunt switch is integrated in a coplanar-waveguide (CPW) based t-line. A coplanar
waveguide based t-line consists of a central conductor (signal line) on a substrate with ground planes on
both sides as shown in Fig.2.3 [13].

Fig.2.3 Basic outline of a coplanar waveguide



19

2.3 Basic RF MEMS Based Switched Capacitors:
The phase shifter designed in this project is based on RF MEMS switched capacitors or
fixed-fixed type shunt beams. The switch consists of a thin metallic membrane or beam suspended
over the central electrode of a CPW t-line. The beam is fixed on both sides by means of anchors
and actuates when subjected to a DC bias voltage. The beam, L m long, w m wide, t m thick is
suspended at a height g
0
above the dielectric layer on the transmission line, and the dielectric
thickness is t
d
with a dielectric constant
r
. The width of the CPW central line is W m. Here, the
substrate used is silicon, the anchor and bridges/beam are made of gold and the dielectric used is
silicon nitride. The anchors are connected to the ground planes of the CPW t-line.
A thin dielectric layer of silicon nitride (Si
3
N
4
) is deposited on the bottom electrode to
reduce stiction and provide isolation between the metal bridge and bottom electrode.
Fig.2.4presents a schematic diagram of a shunt switch [4].

Fig.2.4 Suspended MEMS bridge in shunt configuration over a CPW transmission line

The DC voltage applied between the MEMS bridge and the CPW t-line, results in an
electrostatic force that causes the MEMS bridge to collapse on the dielectric layer as shown in
Fig.2.5 (b). When the bias voltage is removed, the MEMS switch returns back to its original
position due to the restoring spring forces of the bridge. The applied bias voltage between the
MEMS bridges and bottom electrodes changes the height of the MEMS bridges, which in turn
varies the distributed MEMS capacitance. This results in a change in the loaded transmission line
impedance and phase velocity, which in turn causes phase shift.

20

Fig. 2.5(a) RF MEMS shunt switch in up-state (b) RF MEMS shunt switch in down-state
Fig.2.5 (a) and (b) shows the diagrams of shunt switch in both the up and down-states.
However, when the bias voltage is increased, the system becomes unstable and the bridge
collapses suddenly when the deection reaches one third of the gap height. This voltage, which
results in the point of instability, is called the pull-down voltage.
The phase shift per unit length due to the change of the DMTL characteristic impedance
arising from the MEMS bridge capacitance variation by applying a bias voltage can be given as
[1, pp. 306]-
0 , 1 1
/
r eff
lu ld
Z
rad m
c Z Z
e c
|
(
A =
(



where Zlu and Zld are the DMTL characteristic impedances () for the low and the high bridge capacitance
states, respectively,
= angular frequency of operation (rad),
Z0= characteristic impedance of the unloaded transmission line (),
c = velocity of light in vacuum (3X10
8
m/sec),
r,eff = effective dielectric constant of the substrate (silicon in this case).
Hence, summarizing the basic points, it can be said that-
The capacitive shunt switch consists of a thin metal bridge suspended over the center of a
coplanar waveguide. The applied bias voltage between the MEMS bridges and bottom electrodes
changes the height of the MEMS bridges, which in turn varies the distributed MEMS capacitance.
This results in a change in the loaded transmission line impedance and phase velocity, which in
turn causes phase shift. Thus, a single switched capacitor, or a group of switched capacitors in
parallel, form a unit cell which yields a low, yet appreciable amount of phase shift. Say, for e.g.,
in the following design, each unit cell consists of 4 switched capacitors in parallel in order to yield
a phase shift of 15
0
. Fig.2.6 (a) and (b) [7, pp.298] respectively shows the layout and equivalent
circuit model of MEMS bridge.
21


Fig.2.6 (a) Layout of the basic unit cell (b) Lumped circuit t-line equivalent of a MEMS bridge
represented by a Cb, Lb, Rb model.

The basic idea is based on periodically loading a t-line with capacitive shunt switches in
order to obtain the desired phase shift.
The distributed MEMS transmission line (DMTL) consists of a high-impedance line
(>50) that is capacitively loaded by the periodic placement of MEMS bridges. This could be
done using many different types of t-lines; however, it is most easily implemented using coplanar
waveguide (CPW) lines. The MEMS bridges have a width w, a length l W+2G, shown in
Fig.2.7 [4, pp.6] and a thickness of t. The periodic spacing between the bridges s, and the
number of bridges vary, depending upon the design.

22

Fig.2.7: Top view of a CPW line periodically loaded by shunt MEMS bridges.
The applied bias voltage between the MEMS bridges and bottom electrodes changes the
height of the MEMS bridges, which in turn varies the distributed MEMS capacitance. This results
in a change in the loaded transmission line impedance and phase velocity, which in turn causes
phase shift. The structure with several MEMS bridges can act as a phase shifter when the applied
bias voltage is less than the pull-down voltage.
A result of creating a periodic structure is the existence of a cut-off frequency or Bragg
frequency, f
B
, near the point where the guided wavelength approaches the periodic spacing of the
discrete components. In many of the distributed circuits mentioned, this cutoff frequency can be
designed such that it will not limit the device performance since the discrete components will have
a comparable maximum frequency. In the case of the distributed MEMS transmission lines used
in this work, the self-resonant frequency of the MEMS bridges is not approached and thus the
operation is limited by the Bragg frequency of the line.
In a single unit cell, which consists of 4 switched capacitors, according to my design, a
phase shift of 15
0
is obtained as discussed earlier. So, a number of such unit cells can be cascaded
to yield still higher values of phase shift, such as, 90
0
, 180
0
, 270
0
and so on. These single-bit phase
shifters can be cascaded to generate multi-bit phase shifters as shown in Fig. 2.8 [16] below.

Fig.2.8 The 3-bit distributed MEMS phase shifter at 77-100GHz. The size is 1.95mm
2
.
The next section would be a literature review highlighting the various papers published till
date, based on the principle of switched capacitors and switched capacitor based phase shifters
respectively.




23

2.4 MEMS Shunt Switch Library:
Industry, University and Government Laboratories developed the following MEMS shunt switches
between 1994 and 2004. The main characteristics of each switch are summarized in a table at the end of the
section. The MEMS switches are fabricated using a surface micromachining process, and they have been
implemented on Si, GaAs, and quartz substrates.
Chuck Goldsmith and his co-workers developed the Raytheon shunt switch, also known as
the Texas Instruments Switch, in 1995-2000 [5, 6, and 40]. This switch has been extensively used
in X-band and K-band phase shifters, switched capacitor banks, and tunable filters and general
microwave switching networks. Many consider it, as the most mature MEMS capacitive shunt
switch available to date.
The University of Michigan later developed a novel low-voltage MEMS capacitive shunt
switch by Pacheco, Peroulis, and Katehi in 1997-2000 [38]. The main feature of the switch is that
it is a low voltage (low-spring-constant) switch. The idea is to suspend the membrane using
meander support structures, which results in a low spring design. The pull down voltage depends
on the number of meander bends used and the thickness of the membrane. A pull down voltage of
6-12 V can be achieved with this design for a gap height of 4 to 5 m; the capacitive portion at the
centre of the switch is not used to pull down the switch. Rather, two large pads on both sides of
the switch are used as the actuation electrodes.One of the problems with low-spring-constant
designs is their sensitivity to mechanical forces such as acceleration, fabrication, and Brownian
noise. Another problem with low spring constant designs is their associated slow response times.
The University of Michigan has also developed a low-height MEMS capacitive shunt
switch in Rebeizs group (Muladavin, Hayden, and Tan) in 1998-2002 . The low-height switch
has been implemented in a standard CPW and in an inline CPW configuration. A main advantage
of the inline switch is that the inductance of the switch be made independent of the mechanical
properties of the membrane. The low-height switch therefore has a relatively high mechanical
resonant frequency and a fast switching time, and it is not sensitive to vibrations. The price paid is
a reduction in the capacitance ratio to 20-40.
Park et al. demonstrated a very high capacitance ratio MEMS shunt switch by using STO
(SrTiO
3
) having a very high relative permitivitty of 30-120 at LG-Korea in 2000. The main
characteristics of the switch are presented in Table 2.1.


24

The University of Illinois (Shen and Feng) [ has also developed a low-voltage DC contact
that is mechanically similar to low-voltage switch by Pacheco, Peroulis, and Katehi . The main
characteristics of the switch are presented in Table 2.1.
Jad Rizk et al demonstrated the design; fabrication and measurement of high-isolation W-
band shunt switches. The T-match and the t -match are used to reduce the reflection coefficient
of the shunt switch in the up-state position. The characteristics are summarized in Table 2.1.
Guan-Leng Tan et al demonstrated the design, fabrication, and performance of a metal-to-
metal contact micro-electro-mechanical (MEMS) shunt switch. The switch is composed of a
fixed-fixed metal beam with two pull-down electrodes and a central dc-contact area. The switch is
placed in an in-line configuration in a coplanar waveguide transmission line. This topology results
in a compact dc-contact shunt switch and high isolation at 0.118 GHz. The isolation at mm-wave
frequencies is limited by the inductance to ground and is 20 dB at 18 GHz.
Lei Xiaofeng et al demonstrated design of coils inductively tuned MEMS shunt switches
to achieve high isolation in S- band by adding coils at the end of the switch. The isolation
achieved was 23dB at 4GHz and 16 dB at 2.4 GHz.
Jeremy B. Muldavin et al presented the inline capacitive MEMS shunt switches suitable
for X/K-band and Ka/V-Band applications. The inline switch allows for a low- or high-inductance
connection to the ground plane without changing the mechanical characteristics of the MEMS
bridge. Excellent isolation and low-loss are achieved with this design, and the performance is very
similar to the standard capacitive MEMS shunt switch.
Jeremy B. Muldavin demonstrated that a large series inductance could be easily
synthesized by adding a short high-impedance section of transmission line between the MEMS
bridge and the ground-plane resulting in excellent isolation in X-band.
Wei-Bin Zheng et al demonstrated RF MEMS Membrane Switches on GaAs Substrates
for X-Band Applications. The different parameters of the switch are summarized below in Table 2.1.









25

Table 2.1: Summary for MEMS Capacitive shunt switch

2.5 Phase Shifter Library:
N. Scott Barker and Gabriel M. Rebeiz presented wide-band switches and true-time delay
(TTD) phase shifters using distributed MEMS t-lines for applications in phased-array and
communication systems. A single analog control voltage (10-23V), applied to the center
conductor of the CPW line, could alternately achieve the up and down states, thus increasing the
distributed capacitive loading. The measured results demonstrate TTD phase shifters with 118
0

phase shift at 60GHz and 84
0
phase shift at 40GHz .



PARAMETER Raytheon
Switch
[5,6,40]
Michigan
Low-
Voltage
Switch [38]
Michigan
Low-Height
Switch [21,30]
LG
Korea
Switch
[26,27]
Illinois
Switch
[36,37]
Jad Rizk
et al.
[16]
Wei-Bin
Zheng
et al.
[40]
Length [m] 270-350 500-700 250 350 300 300
400
150 200-400
Width [m] 50-200 200-250 40 140 100 100 40 60
Height [m] 3-5 4-5 1.5 2 2.5-3.5 4 2.2 1.6
Membrane
type
Al Ni Ti/Au Au Au Au Au
Thickness
[m]
0.5 2-2.5 0.8 -1 1-2 0.6 1.5 1-3.5
Residual
Stress [Mpa]
10-20 20-100 20-40 10-40 20-40 - -
Spring
Constant
[N/m]
6-20 1-10 20 -60 4-10 2-6 - -
Thickness of
Di-electric *+
3 4
Si N
(1000)
3 4
Si N
(1000-1500)
3 4
Si N (1000-
1500)
3
SrTiO
(1000)
3 4
Si N
(1500)
3 4
Si N
(1500)
3 4
Si N
(1000)
Actuation
voltage [V]
30-50 6-20 12-25 8-15 9-16 30 15
Switch time
[s]
(Down/Up)
3/5 (D/U) 20-40(D) 6-15(D) N/A N/A - -
d
C [pF]
1-6 1-3 0.5-3 50 40 250-400 1.4
L [pH] - - - - - 6-10 -
Capacitive
ratio
80-120 30-50 20 40 600-700 600-700 16-40 2-5
Isolation [dB] 20
(10GHz)
25 (30GHz) 30 (30 GHz) 30 (10
GHz)
25
(0.1-40
GHz)
30-40
(75-110
GHz)
42
(24.5GHz
)
26

N. S. Barker and G. M. Rebeiz [1999] presented the design and optimization of a 0-60
GHz distributed MEMS true-time delay phase shifter. The phase shifters, fabricated on quartz
substrate were fabricated with varying widths of center conductor. The line with 100m center
conductor width was shown to be optimal for phase shift. The design, with C
r
=1.17, was capable
of producing 360
0
phase shift at 40 GHz whereas, with C
r
=1.3, a phase shift of 100
0
is obtained at
40GHz .
A. Malczewski et al. reported a paper citing the development of a low-loss RF MEMS 4-
bit X-band monolithic phase shifter. These microstrip circuits were fabricated on high-resistivity
silicon and were based on reection topology using 3-dB Lange couplers. The average insertion
loss of the circuit is 1.4 dB with the return loss>11 dB at 8 GHz. The 4-bit reflection phase shifter
circuit consists of two 2-bit reection sections. The rst 2-bit section was designed to shift the
long states: 0
0
, 90
0
, 180
0
, and 270
0
. The second 2-bit section shifts the short states: 0
0
, 22.5
0
, 45
0
,
and 67.5
0
. These two sections combine to produce a 4-bit phase shifter switching from 0
0
to
337.5
0
in 22.5
0
steps respectively .
B. Pillans et al. constructed both 3-bit and 4-bit Ka-band phase shifters using a resonant
switched t-line microstrip topology. RF MEMS capacitive switches were used to perform two
quarter-wave transformations that allowed switching between different delay paths, thus shifting
the phase. The result was a 0
0
to 337
0
phase shifter with 22
0
steps for the 4-bit phase shifter
and a 0
0
to 315
0
phase shifter with 45
0
steps for the 3-bit phase shifter .
Joseph S. Hayden et al. reported the design of 2 and 4-bit wideband distributed microstrip
phase shifters on silicon substrate, for DC-18GHz operation. A microstrip distributed MEMS
transmission line (DMTL) design, periodically loaded by MEMS varactors in series with a
fixed value microstrip radial stub, was presented. The 2-bit and 4-bit designs result in maximum
phase shifts of 262
0
and 333
0
at 16GHz .
Hong-Teuk Kim et al. designed low-loss digital distributed phase shifters using capacitive
shunt switches for V-band applications. Instead of using conventional metalinsulatormetal
capacitors, metalairmetal capacitors were used in series with the MEMS shunt capacitive
switches to minimize the dielectric loss. The actuation voltage for the phase shifters were reduced
to 15-35V by applying the bias directly to the MEMS shunt switches through choke spiral
inductors. Fabricated 2-bit (270
0
) and 4-bit (337.5
0
) distributed phase shifters show low-loss
characteristics .


27

G. L. Tan et al. presented a novel low-loss phase shifter based on RF MEMS series
switches and a single pole four-throw (SP4T) switch design. The phase shifter was fabricated on
GaAs substrate, occupying less than 12mm
2
of space. The 4-bit phase shifter provides a near-
perfect linear phase shift from DC-18 GHz of 0
0
, 90.1
0
, 177.8
0
and 272
0
at 10.25GHz respectively.
Guan-Leng Tan et al. described the design and performance of a compact low-loss X-band
true-time-delay (TTD) MEMS phase shifter fabricated on GaAs substrate. A semi-lumped
approach using microstrip transmission lines and metal-insulator-metal capacitors was employed
for the delay lines in order to both reduce circuit size as well as to avoid the high insertion loss
found in typical miniaturized designs. The 2-bit phase shifter achieved 90
0
and 180
0
phase shifts at
10GHz respectively with low loss performance. It occupies an area of 5mm
2
, which was then
remarkably smaller. The phase shifter operates over 614GHz with a return loss better than -14dB
.
R. Ramadoss et al. reported an X-band main-line type loaded line RF MEMS phase shifter
fabricated using printed circuit based MEMS technology. The phase shifter provided a phase shift
of 31.6
0
with a minimum insertion loss of 0.56dB at 9GHz for an applied DC bias voltage of 40V.
These phase shifters are suitable for monolithic integration with low-cost large area phased array
antenna on Teon or Polyimide as low dielectric constant substrates. Similar phase shifter units
could be designed to provide phase shifts of 15
0
, 30
0
, 45
0
respectively which when cascaded,
would realize multi-bit phase shifters.
F. Guo et al. suggested a design of MEMS based mm-wave phase shifters consisting of a
CPW t-line periodically loaded with several thin metallic membranes. A new method was
developed to obtain lower-loss microwave CPW by means of forming porous silicon (PS) on low-
resistivity silicon wafer (substrate). The CPW fabricated on porous silicon (PS) / oxidized porous
silicon (OPS) coated with polyimide had demonstrated lower loss than 0-7.5dB in 0-40GHz, in
comparison with quartz, low-resistivity silicon and multi-structure of poly-Si/SiO
2
on high-
resistivity silicon in measurement and analysis .
G. Bartolucci et al. presented experimental results for a binary distributed phase shifter
based on RF MEMS coplanar shunt switches. A new approach based on the image parameter
representation of 2-port networks was proposed for the modeling of the device structure. A
differential phase shift of 180
0
at a frequency f
0
=13.7GHz, was obtained. The 180
0
phase shifter
had been realized with 6 capacitive switches in shunt, which actuates at 50V. The total length of
the phase shifter was 10.5mm .

28

Kai Tang et al. suggested a novel design concept for dual-frequency RF MEMS phase
shifter. Simulations showed that the proposed model had a return loss less than -10dB and the
insertion loss more than -2dB in two operating frequencies, both of which are more than 1GHz
bandwidth. For one RF MEMS phase shifter, both 180
0
and 90
0
phase shift was realized .
Lu-kui Jin et al. proposed a novel RF-MEMS phase shifter based on a rectangle bridge-
like coplanar waveguide (BCPW) structure. The signal line of the CPW has symmetrical saw-
shaped structures under the MEMS bridges above which cover the BCPW bridge. For each RF
MEMS switch-type bridge, 75
0
phase shift was realized at a frequency of 35GHz. The BCPW, has
several advantages over conventional CPW. First, the transmitting microwave is limited in a
closed waveguide and subsequently the radiation loss to open space and interference among
adjacent components in compact RF MEMS devices can be avoided. Second, the design increases
the coupling between the signal line and the ground lines which can improve the distribution of
surface current and subsequently reduce the conductor loss .
Saeid Afrang et al. developed a DMTL phase shifter using planar inductors. The design
consists of a CPW t-line capacitively and inductively loaded by the periodic sets of
electrostatically actuated MEMS switches as capacitors and inductors. The governing equations
for the impedance and loss were derived. The ABCD matrix was dened for a unit and multi-cell
DMTL phase shifter to extract scattering parameters equations. The device contained 15 unit cells
provided 180
0
phase shift. Fabricated results showed that the device had an inherent novelty
having small size, higher phase shift and acceptable scattering parameters .
Cristiano Palego et al. presented the design of a Ka-band phase shifter comprising a slow-
wave structure that tightly wraps around three closely spaced MEMS capacitive switches. This
novel feature had negligible effect on electromechanical operation but provided a degree of
freedom for simultaneous optimization of phase shift and impedance match. Results suggest that
the design suitably applies to phase shifters of different sizes and resolutions with high
performance, yield and reliability, but low cost and power consumption. A 257
0
phase shifter at
50GHz was obtained
Yijia Du et al. suggested the equivalent-circuit model for the unit cell of RF MEMS
distributed phase shifter with metal-air-metal capacitor, which could predict the performance of
the unit cell accurately. Based on which, the dependence on fabrication process of the designed
unit cell of RF MEMS distributed phase shifter is highly reduced. By cascading a number of unit


29

cells, each giving a phase shift of 11.25
0
, 5-bit X-band RF MEMS distributed phase shifter had
been designed and optimized. The MEMS bridge actuates at an actuation voltage of 20V. 5-bit
phase shifter having 11.25
0
, 22.5
0
, 45
0
, 90
0
and 180
0
phase shifts at 10GHz were obtained with 1,
2, 4, 8 and 16 number of cascaded unit cells respectively .
Thomas Buck et al. presented a exible approach to achieve beam steering in radars use
variable phase shifters in front of each single antenna in an array. This paper presents delay line
phase shifters for two common radar frequencies in the K and W-band of 24GHz (45
0
) and 77GHz
(90
0
). The active components are capacitive RF MEMS switches, which were fabricated on high
resistivity silicon using metal thin-lm technology. The performance of the phase shifters,
especially the insertion losses of around 2.3 and 3dB could compete with diode switched setups on
other RF substrates.
2.6 Literature on the Application of Phase Shifters in Antenna Beam steering:
M. Fernandez-Bolanos, A. Vasylchenko, P. Dainesi, S. Brebels, W. De Raedt, G.A.E.
Vandenbosch and A.M. Ionescu, Dipole Antenna and Distributed MEMS Phase Shifter Fully
Integrated in a single wafer process for beam steering applications, Journal of Microelectronic
Engineering, vol.87, Elsevier Ltd., 2010, pp.1290-1293.
This paper reports on the design and fabrication of a fully integrated antenna beam steering
concept for airborne applications at 17 GHz. The system is based on a single wafer process
including a dipole antenna, a balun and a 2-bit distributed MEMS phase shifter (in a 73mm high-
resistivity-silicon dice).
The paper mainly focuses on RF MEMS switched capacitors that have been investigated
for application in Distributed MEMS Transmission Lines (DMTLs) phase shifters. The idea is to
periodically load a CPW (Coplanar Waveguide) with voltage-controlled varactors (two-state
switched capacitors for digital DMTLs), in order to tune the distributed capacitance, the phase
velocity and the propagation delay in the t-line.
RF distributed MEMS phase shifter concept (DMTL) for antenna beam steering or
adaptive antenna beam forming applications has the main advantage of achieving a true-time
delay (TTD) over a wide-band of frequencies. DMTL phase shifters play an important role in
airborne applications, adding many advantages over traditional mechanical steering solutions
which consist of much complex and less exible 2D beam steering movable antennas or single-
port-double-thru (SPDT) switches between different oriented antennas. Electronically beam-
steered antenna consists of dynamically switching the beam congurations of an antenna array by

30

controlling the relative phases at the input of each element in order to change the orientation of the
whole antenna beam. The beam steering is achieved by applying a specic phase delay by means
of the DMTL phase shifter to each antenna element. The main advantages of electrical beam
steering with relation to traditional mechanical steering solutions include decreased size, cost and
weight, increased exibility, lower insertion loss and dispersion, and a good matching over a large
bandwidth.
This paper addresses a full integration of an antenna beam steering system in a single
silicon (Si) wafer fabrication process including a dipole antenna, a balun and a DMTL phase
shifter. The fabricated system is shown in Fig. 2.9.

Fig. 2.9 Optical microscope image of the fabricated system showing the integration design of the dipole
antenna, the balun and the phase shifter in a single silicon chip for applications in antenna beam
steering.
The antenna design has been optimized to have a good matching and return loss (-40dB) at
the desired RF frequency (17.2 GHz) using a passivated high resistivity (HR) silicon substrate (
r

= 11.9) of 300m. The balun has been designed to provide a right angle transition from the
coplanar waveguide (CPW) of the phase shifter to the CPS feeding line of the dipole antenna. The
2-bit DMTL phase shifter is designed to achieve well known four optimized phase states (0
0
, 60
0
,
90
0
, and 120
0
) at 17 GHz in a minimized 6 mm line CPW. The MEMS digital capacitors are
electrostatically actuated at an applied voltage of 20 V.
This project employs the same principle as stated above with the difference that, only a
single-bit (180
0
) phase shifter has been designed in this case. The antenna, balun and beam-
steering have not been included.



31

Chapter3
Design and RF Analysis of the Unit Cell


This chapter details the basic design strategies of the unit cell structure and
electromagnetic modeling of various unit cell structures. The unit cell is nothing but several
RF MEMS miniaturized switched capacitors cascaded on a transmission line section. . In this
project, coplanar waveguide (CPW) has been used as the transmission line on which a number
of switched capacitors are periodically sp aced in order to achieve appreciable phase shift. Any
switch is assumed to be binary and digital in the sense that it can be in one of only two
possible actuation states. In the on state, the switch is configured to connect the input port to
the output port, while in the off state; it is configured to disconnect the two ports. The
conventional RF metrics are : 1) insertion loss in the on state; 2) the isolation (i.e.,1/ S
21
) in
the off state; and 3) the return loss (i.e.,1/ S
11
) in both states. These definitions and metrics are
helpful when analyzing the unit cell. The MEMS capacitive shunt switch is placed in shunt
between the CPW central conductor and ground; and depending on the applied bias voltage,
it either leaves the t-line undistributed or connects it to ground. Therefore, the ideal shunt
switch results in zero insertion loss when no bias is applied (up-state position) and infinite
isolation when bias is applied (down-state position).

3.1Design of Coplanar Waveguide:


Coplanar waveguide (CPW) is a one-sided three-conductor transmission line. Coplanar
waveguide have two grounds in the same plane of center conductor, reducing the coupling
effects and allows for easy inclusion of series and shunt elements. A CPW line consists of a
center strip conductor with semi-innite ground planes on either side as shown in Fig.3.1.1.
However, in a practical circuit, the ground planes are made of finite extent. This structure
supports a quasi-TEM mode of propagation. Since microwave integrated circuits are basically
32



coplanar in structure, coplanar waveguide lines are used widely as circuit elements and as

interconnecting lines. At millimeter-wave frequencies, coplanar waveguide offers the potential
of lower conductor and radiation losses as compared. the characteristic impedance is
determined by the ratio of a/b, so size reduction is possible without limit, the only penalty
being higher losses . In addition a ground plane exists between any two adjacent lines, hence
cross talk effects between adjacent lines are very weak. These features of CPW make it
ideally suited for MIC as well as MMIC applications.



Fig 3.1. 1 D and 2D views of a coplanar waveguide (CPW) on a dielectric substrate of nite thickness.


The coplanar waveguide (CPW) proposed by C. P. Wen in 1969 consists of a dielectric
substrate with conductors on the top surface . The conductors form a center strip separated by a
narrow gap from two ground planes on either side. The dimensions of the center strip, the
gap, the thickness and permittivity of the dielectric substrate determine the effective dielectric
constant (eff) and characteristic impedance (Z0) of the line. This basic structure has come to
be known as the conventional CPW. The expressions of the effective dielectric constant
(eff) and characteristic impedance (Z0) have been derived by conformal mapping technique.
The derivation is quite lengthy and cumbersome and has been omitted here in order to
reduce complexity. Only the final expressions of the effective dielectric constant (eff), and
characteristic impedance (Z0) .
36

r
1 K
eff
1

k
1

1
0
'

K k
0
eff
K k
0
30
S
2W
S / 4h
S 2W / 4 h
2

1 k
1
2

1 k
0
k
' '




2 K k
'

K k
'


K k
0



(3.1)




Z
0
(3.2)



where,



k
0
S
(3.3)



k
1

sinh
sinh

(3.4)


1
and
k
0


(3.5)


Here, K(k1) is known as the complete elliptical integral of argument k1. r is the relative

permittivity of the substrate material. S is the width of the central conductor of the CPW t-line,
W is the gap width between the central conductor and ground plane and h is the height of the
substrate (dielectric). This is evident from Fig. 3.1 respectively.

In the unit cell design presented in this dissertation, silicon is used as the substrate
material. r=11.9 for silicon substrate and the height h of the dielectric material is 300m. A
characteristic impedance (Z0) of 70 is required for the unloaded CPW t-line, so that on
loading the four shunt bridges, the impedance drops down to 50. In this thesis I have used a
web calculator[11] to yield the required G/W/G dimensions corresponding to an impedance of
70. It takes relative permittivity (r) of the substrate and G/W/G dimensions as input and
subsequently provides the value of characteristic impedance (Z0) and effective dielectric
constant (eff) as output. Characteristic impedance (Z0) of 70 is resulted when 9.5/5.5/9.5m
is considered as the G/W/G dimension of the CPW t-line. The value of effective
dielectric
37



constant (eff) calculated is 6.45. Hence, the CPW dimensions are finally obtained and are

maintained throughout the designs included in this thesis.

3.2 Circuit Model of the MEMS Capacitive Shunt Switch:


The top-view and the cross-sectional view of the basic capacitive shunt switch
(switched capacitor) having conventional dimensions, with electrostatic actuation mechanism
have been shown in Fig. 2.2.1(a) and (b). The 3D view of the shunt switch is depicted in Fig.
3.2.1 (c). The switch structure consists of a silicon substrate on which CPW lines of gold have
been fabricated. A bridge/membrane (movable part) is fixed on both sides by means of anchors
and the anchors in turn, are connected to the two ground planes of the CPW line. Both the
anchors and the bridge are fabricated of gold. A layer of silicon nitride (Si3N4) on top of the
central conductor acts as a dielectric to ensure capacitive contact between the bridge and the
signal line of the CPW. The air gap between the bridge and the signal line is denoted by g0.
38







(a) (b)



(c)

Fig.3.2.1 : (a) Top-view of the switched capacitor, (b) 3-D view of the switched capacitor with a
single bridge, (c) Cross-sectional view of the switched capacitor



It is to be noted that, a single RF MEMS fixed-fixed beam (shunt-bridge) can be
equivalently modeled by a series CLR circuit placed in shunt with a transmission line section.
39

L
1

C
R
s
j

LC
1 1







Fig.:3.2.2 Equivalent CLR model of the switched capacitor


The switch shunt impedance is given by


Z
s
j



(3.6)


Where C=Cu or Cd depending on the position on the switch. The LC series resonant frequency of

the switch is


f
0
2



(3.7)

and the impedance of the shunt switch can be approximated by










(3.8)


The CLR model behaves as a capacitor below the LC series resonant frequency and as an

inductor above the frequency. At resonance, the CLR model reduces to the series resistance of
40

C
u
R
s
1


the MEMS bridge. It is reported that for Cu / Cd = 35fF/ 2.8pF with L=7pH, the

resonance occurs at f0 = 322 and 36GHz when the switch is in the upstate/down state position,
respectively. Therefore the inductance of the bridge plays absolutely no role in the up state
position for f <100GHz, but the inductance plays an important role in the down state position.
Therefore, in the up state position, the MEMS bridge can be accurately modeled as a shunt
capacitance to ground. The inductance plays an important role in the down state position.

The cut-off frequency of the switch is sometimes stated as



f
c
2

(3.9)

For a switch with Cu = 35fF and Rs = 0.15, it is reported that fc= 30THz. While

this figure of merit has been extensively used with Schottky and PIN diodes and approximately
describes the performance of the device (loss, isolation, and upper frequency of operation), it is
not strictly applicable to MEMS shunt switches. The reason is that the switch inductance limits
the downstate performance at a much lower frequency than fc. A better value to use is the
down-state resonant frequency, f0, or 2f0, since the MEMS shunt switch results in acceptable
isolation up to twice the LC resonant frequency in the down state position.


3.3Electromagnetic Modelling of MEMS Shunt Switches:


Fig.3.3.1 (a) and (b) shows the electrostatic actuation mechanism of operation of a
capacitive shunt switch. Fig. 3.3.1.(a) represents the up-state when no actuation voltage has been
applied, here the capacitance COFF comes into play, whereas, Fig. 3.3.1(b) represents the down-
state and deformation of the membrane takes place. Here, the capacitance CON comes into
existence.
41

o
wW

rd
C
f
t
d
0
A

o
wW

rd
t
d







(a) (b)

Fig.3.3.1 (a) MEMS capacitive shunt switch in up-state, (b) MEMS capacitive shunt switch in
down- state


Up-state Capacitance:

The parallel plate capacitance of the MEMS shunt switch is


C
pp

g
o
(3.10)



The thickness of the dielectric is so small that the fringing capacitance can be neglected

and the second term in the denominator; due to finite thickness of the dielectric.

C
ON
g
(3.11)
Neglecting the fringing field

C
ON


g
o
(3.12)



where, td=thickness of the dielectric,

A=capacitive area of the bridge (Ww),
0=permittivity of free space,
rd=permittivity of dielectric,
g0=air gap.
42

t
o rd
A

t
d
o
A

o rd
A

rd
t
d


Down-state Capacitance and Capacitance Ratio:

The MEMS switch capacitance in the down state position can be easily calculated using

C
OFF

d
(3.13)


The up-state/down-state capacitance ratio is


C
OFF
C
ON
g
o



(3.14)



The value of CON is much higher as compared to COFF because of the presence of the

dielectric layer which has a high value of relative permittivity (r). In the down state, fringing
capacitance can be neglected because of low thickness of the dielectric layer. The ratio of CON
and COFF is termed as capacitive ratio, denoted by Cr. For switched capacitors having
conventional dimension, a theoretical capacitance ratio Cr of 40-500 for 1000 to 1500 thick
dielectric layers has been generally reported. Table A summarizes the range of typical values
of design parameters for conventional switched capacitor modeling.

Table A Typical design parameters of conventional RF MEMS shunt switch


Parameters Range of Typical Values
Bridge Length(Lb) 250-400(m)
Bridge Width(wb) 25-180(m)
Bridge Thickness(tb) 1.5-5(m)
Dielectric Thickness(td) 1000-1500()
Relative Dielectric Constant(rd) 5.0-7.6
Capacitance Ratio(Cr) 40-500
Frequency of operation(fr) 5-100(GHz)
43



3.4 Design of the Switched Capacitor Based Unit Cell Structure:


3.4.1 Proposed Unit Cell structure:


Each switched capacitor, having a capacitance ratio Cr of around 5, provides a minimal
phase shift. So, an array of similar switched capacitors in parallel would cause higher values of
phase shift. If n numbers of such bridges are placed in parallel, the array can behave as a unit
cell for multi-bit phase shifting applications. It is seen that for n=4, optimum performance of the
unit cell is obtained. Optimization has been carried out keeping in mind the insertion losses
(which increases with greater values of n) of the unit cell. Each unit cell consists of a CPW line
corresponding to G/W/G of 9.5/5.5/9.5m, chosen for achieving a characteristic impedance of
70 on high resistivity (10-20k-cm) silicon substrate, 300m thick. A 1m silicon dioxide is

used as an isolator between the silicon substrate and the CPW transmission line. The CPW line
is made of gold corresponding to a thickness of 1m. The MEMS bridge is also made of gold
and is 0.3m thick. It is suspended over the CPW central line by means of anchors, made of
gold, each of a height 0.25m. A silicon nitride (Si3N4) insulator, 0.15m thick, is deposited on
the CPW central line to act as an isolator between the bridge and the CPW central line. The top-
view and cross-sectional view of the unit cell are shown in Fig. 3.4.1 (a) and (b) respectively.




(a)
44







(b)
Fig.3.4.1 : (a) Top-view of the unit cell structure, (b) Cross-sectional view of the unit cell structure

The bridge dimensions correspond to a length l=32m and a width w=12m. The
spacing s between each bridge in a unit cell is 5m. The spacing has been optimized to achieve
70 characteristic impedance and a compact structure. Each unit cell occupies an overall length

of 720m that is maintained throughout the design. These dimensions have been optimized
keeping in mind the key design parameters of actuation voltage and switching time.
Summarizing all the design parameters of the unit cell, it is tabulated in Table B:-

Table B: Design parameters of the unit cell


Parameters Materials Used Dimension
G/W/G of CPW Line Gold (Au) 9.5/5.5/9.5(m)
Substrate Thickness Silicon (Si) 300(m)
Thickness of Dielectric Layer(td) Silicon Nitride(Si3N4) 0.15(m)
Bridge Length(l) Gold(Au) 32(m)
Bridge Width(w) Gold(Au) 12(m)
Bridge Thickness(tb) Gold(Au) 0.3(m)
Air Gap(g0) Vacuum 0.25(m)
45


eff
2

Z
0
C
t
0
Ww) / g
0
(
r
1

eff

2


3.4.2 Analytically Calculated Model Parameters:


The design starts by selecting a suitable CPW dimension which would provide
characteristic impedance close to 50 in both up and down-states due to the capacitive loading
of the bridges. The dimensions of G/W/G are chosen as 9.5/5.5/9.5m resulting in 70
characteristic impedance for silicon substrate (r=11.9). A bridge length of 30m and width of
12m is suitable for realization with such CPW dimensions.

The values of inductance Lt and capacitance Ct of the transmission line are obtained
from the following equations:


C
t

cZ
0


L
t



C
b



(3.15)
(3.16)
(3.17)



where, Cb= bridge capacitance & approximately.



So, from the above equations it is found that eff =6.45, considering r for silicon is
11.9. The value of transmission line capacitance Ct is found to be 120.95pF whereas, the
transmission line inductance Lt =592.65nH respectively.

The design of the loaded-line phase shifter proceeds as follows:-


The loaded impedances of the DMTL (Distributed MEMS Transmission Line) with the
MEMS bridges in the up-state and down-state positions are selected to correspond to the
maximum desired reection coefficient (). Assuming that Z0=70 , the up-state
(Zlu) and down-state (Zld) impedances are:-
46

Z
1

0
50
L
t

C
lu
/ s

C
(C
lu
C
r
) / C
0
L
t
sf
B

eff
sf
B

2

Z
lu
ld 0
2 2

f
B
Z
0


Z
lu
1



(3.18)


Z
ld
2

Z
lu



(3.19)


The loaded line can be designed for Zloaded=50 by choosing an unloaded line impedance

of Z0>50. In this thesis, Z0 =70 is considered resulting in Zlu=58.48 and Zld =42.75 for =-

0.1778. A CPW with dimensions 9.5/5.5/9.5m (G/W/G); is considered which results in a 70

characteristic impedance.


Design values for the up-state capacitance, Clu, the capacitance ratio, Cr, and d are
obtained from simultaneous equations assuming Zlu, Zld , Z0, eff, and fB are known.


Z
lu
t


L
t

Z
ld
t


(3.20)



s

(3.21)


The final equation obtained is:-

Z
Z
ld
c




(3.2)


Now from equations (3.20) and (3.22), we obtain:-



C
lu
Z Z
2


Z

lu
(3.3)
47

0
wW

rd
t
d

0 rd
wW

f
B
Z
0 eff

Z
ld
c



However, the more general expressions for the up-state and down state capacitances are

as follows:-



C
u

g
0

(3.24)



C
d
t

d
(3.25)


On calculation, the up-state capacitance comes out to be 19.25fF whereas; the down-state

capacitance is 109.08fF respectively. Hence the capacitance ratio Cr=5.67 for a single
miniaturized switched capacitor.

The periodic spacing d of the MEMS bridges is obtained from the following equation,

which is obtained.


d

(3.26)


The total lengthd of a unit cell depends on the Bragg frequency fB and comes to 720m

for fB=30GHz (fB=2fc, where fc is the cutoff frequency of operation) from the following eqn. (3.19).
Thus for multi- bit digital phase shifter applications, the spacing between the unit cells would
be 720m.

It is seen that for a shunt membrane width w and silicon nitride (rd=7) thickness of

0.15m, the up-state capacitance will be around 20fF and a capacitance ratio of 5 is achieved
with the bridge in the down state for a single switched capacitor. The values have been
optimized from the proposed equivalent model and FEM (Finite Element Method) simulations,
to be found later in the thesis. The loading due to the capacitor in the up-state is quite negligible
when compared to the loading in the down state. This is due to the presence of the dielectric
layer between the CPW central line and the MEMS bridge. In an attempt to increase the phase
48

1 1
1 2
v
1
v
2

eff 1 1 0

deg/ cel l
Z
lu
Z
ld


eff


shift, an array of the proposed MEMS switched capacitors in parallel is presented. This will

cause the capacitive loading in the down-state to increase considerably. This differential
capacitive loading in the up and down states leads to impedances of Zlu and Zld respectively.

3.4.3 Calculation of Phase Shift of the Unit Cell :


By applying a DC voltage it is possible to actuate the MEMS switches from the up state
(membrane up) to the down state (membrane snapped down) inducing an increase in the total
capacitance per unit length of the transmission line structure, and hence a change in the phase
velocity and characteristic impedance. The phase shift per unit length is found from the change
in the phase constant and is given by




(3.27)
The phase shift per unit cell has been expressed as:-

360 fZ

c





(3.28)

where is the effective dielectric constant of the unloaded line, Zlu and Zld are the

up-state and the down-state loaded-line impedance values. The phase shift is determined by the
impedance change of the DMTL (Distributed MEMS Transmission Line), which also determines
the reflection coefficient of the phase shifter.
On calculation, the value of phase shift per unit cell amounts to 15.4
0
. This amount of

phase shift is quite acceptable for a unit cell and can easily be cascaded in order to design multi-
bit phase shifters.

3.5 RF Analysis of the Unit Cell
:

FEM simulations of the unit cell structure yields low-loss performance and an
appreciable phase shift at a frequency of 15GHz. The values of S11 and S21 in dB and the amount
of differential phase shift obtained by FEM simulation using ANSOFT HFSS v11 are
49



shown as under in Fig. 3.5 .A-E. Graphs show that the amount of differential phase shift

obtained is 15
0
at 15GHz.


As previously mentioned, four switched capacitors have been cascaded in order to
design a unit cell because; a single switched capacitor does not provide a sufficient amount of
phase shift. It is known that, as the numbers of switched capacitors are increased, the phase
shift also increases along with increased insertion loss, thus limiting the device performance.
Hence, in order to obtain sufficient amount of phase shift, yet keeping the insertion loss well
within limits, the unit cell design has been optimized to keep four switched capacitors in shunt.
Fig.3.5 A (a) (b) (c) and (d) respectively show the performance for a unit cell with 1 bridge, Fig
3.5.B (a) (b) (c) and (d) for a unit cell with 2 bridges, Fig 3.5.C (a) (b) (c) and (d) for a unit cell
with 3 bridges, Fig 3.5.D (a) (b) (c) and (d) for a unit cell with 4 bridges and Fig 3.5 E (a) (b) (c)
and (d) for a unit cell with 5 bridges respectively. The basic steps of performance comparison
have been shown below.











50


































Fig.3.5 A RF characteristics for unit cell with 1 bridge : (a) S -parameters (dB) vs. Frequency (GHz)
for down-state, (b) S-parameters (dB) vs. Frequency (GHz) for up-state (c) Phase Shift (deg) vs.
Frequency (GHz) for down states (d) Phase Shift (deg) vs. Frequency (GHz) for up state



51

S21 is close to 0dB for both the states. Phase shift of only 3.5
0
per unit cell.







































52


































Fig.3.5 B RF characteristics for unit cell with 2 bridges : (a) S-parameters (dB) vs. Frequency (GHz) for
down-state, (b) S-parameters (dB) vs. Frequency (GHz) for up-state (c) Phase Shift (deg) vs. Frequency
(GHz) for down states (d) Phase Shift (deg) vs. Frequency (GHz) for up state.


For two switched capacitors per unit cell, it is seen that S11 is below -10dB and S21 is close
to 0dB for both the states. Phase shift of only 7.2
0
per unit cell is obtained.









53










































54





















































Fig.3.5 C RF characteristics for unit cell with 3 bridges : (a) S-parameters (dB) vs. Frequency (GHz) for
down-state, (b) S-parameters (dB) vs. Frequency (GHz) for up-state (c) Phase Shift (deg) vs. Frequency
(GHz) for down states (d) Phase Shift (deg) vs. Frequency (GHz) for up state.





55



For three switched capacitors per unit cell, it is seen that S11 is below -10dB and S21 isclose to
0dB for both the states. Phase shift of 10.6
0
per unit cell is obtained.









































56





















































Fig.3.5 D RF characteristics for unit cell with 4 bridges : (a) S-parameters (dB) vs. Frequency (GHz) for
down-state, (b) S-parameters (dB) vs. Frequency (GHz) for up-state (c) Phase Shift (deg) vs. Frequency
(GHz) for down states (d) Phase Shift (deg) vs. Frequency (GHz) for up state.






57

For four switched capacitors per unit cell, it is seen that S11 is close -10dB and S21 is close to 0dB
for both the states and yields acceptable performance. Phase shift of 14.2
0
per unit cell is also
considerable
























58





























fig.3.5 E RF characteristics for unit cell with 5 bridges : (a) S-parameters (dB) vs. Frequency (GHz) for
down-state, (b) S-parameters (dB) vs. Frequency (GHz) for up-state (c) Phase Shift (deg) vs. Frequency
(GHz) for down states (d) Phase Shift (deg) vs. Frequency (GHz) for up state.





59


For the unit cell with 5 bridges, as shown above, the S11 and S21 observed have
deteriorated much with respect to the previous unit cell designs with lesser number of switched
capacitors. Hence, although the amount of phase shift obtained is pretty high, i.e., 17
0
, the
design with 5 bridges per unit cell is rejected since the loss performance is not acceptable.



Hence, summarizing the results of unit cells with varying numbers of switched capacitors,
the following tabulations have been done in Table C.
Table C Comparison of S-Parameters and Phase shift of different unit cell structures.

Switched capacitors
per unit cell
S11for up
state
S21 for up
state
S11 for down
state
S21 for down
State
Differential
phase shift at
15 GHz
1 -18.12 -0.32 -22.7 -0.28 3.5
0

2 -18.39 -0.32 -31.8 -0.28 7.2
0

3 -20.09 -0.31 -20.3 -0.34 10.6
0

4 -20.6 -0.31 -16.5 -0.42 14.8
0

5 -22.3 -0.30 -12.8 -0.59 17
0


Table C shows that there is a sharp degradation in the insertion-loss performance when the
number of bridges per unit cell increases from 4 to 5. Unit cells designed with 6 or more bridges would
yield still poorer results. Unit cell structures having 1 or 2 bridges in shunt exhibit highly low-loss
performance but yield minimal phase shifts of 3.5
0
or so. Hence, a huge number of similar unit cells will
be required to be cascaded in order to yield 180
0
phase shift, which results in an abnormally large
structure. Hence, it is worthwhile to consider the unit cell design with 4 switched capacitors to be the
optimum design yielding 15
0
phase shift and will be employed in single-bit (180
0
) phase shifter design.
Mathematically calculated value of phase shift obtained from eqn. (3.27) show a value of 15.4
0
which is
in close approximation with the simulated results and hence, the design can be considered to be correct.

Again testing with four bridges(optimized strutchure) but with different dielectric layers the results are
listed in a table D
60


MATERIAL
USED

UP STATE DOWN STATE

PHASE
DIFFERENCE
AT 15 GHZ

11

21
PHASE
SHIFT

11

21
PHASE
SHIFT
GALLIUM
ARSENIDE
12.9 -19.15 -0.57 -42.5 -9.5 -1.3 -70 27.5
SAPPHIRE 10 -20.1 -0.57 -42.5 -13 -0.8 -64 21.5
SILICON
NITRATE
7 -20.6 -0.31 -42.63 -16.5 -0.42 -56.69 14.2
POLYSTYRENE 2.6 -18.4 -0.58 -41 -23.35 -0.55 -46 5



Again testing for different bridge distances keeping bridge
width same is found















MATERIAL
USED

UP STATE DOWN STATE

PHASE
DIFFERENCE
AT 15 GHZ

PHASE
SHIFT

PHASE
SHIFT
SILICON
NITRATE
7 -18.6 -0.57 -42.5 -17 -0.65 -58 15.5
61












For narrow bridges keeping interbridge distances same
was found










MATERIAL
USED

UP STATE DOWN STATE

PHASE
DIFFERENCE
AT 15 GHZ

PHASE
SHIFT

PHASE
SHIFT
SILICON
NITRATE
7 -17.75 -0.57 -41 -26.5 -0.55 -51.5 10.5
62








The unit cell design with 4 switched capacitors to
be the optimum design yielding 15
0
phase shift
and will be employed in single-bit (180
0
) phase
shifter design. Mathematically calculated value
of phase shift obtained from eqn. (3.27) show a
value of 15.4
0
which is in close approximation
with the simulated results and hence, the design
can be considered to be correct.






















63

3.6 Equivalent Circuit Model of the Unit Cell Structure:


It has been discussed already that, a single switched capacitor can be equivalently
modeled by a series LCR circuit placed in shunt with a transmission line section.
In this case, coplanar waveguide (CPW) has been used as a transmission line. Fig. 3.6 A

shows the equivalent circuit model of the unit cell structure having 4 bridges. Each bridge can
be represented as a series RLC circuit placed in shunt with a transmission line.



Fig.3.6 A: Equivalent circuit model of the unit cell structure.


Since the unit cell structure contains 4 switched capacitors in parallel, as shown in Fig.
F. Hence, the four switches can be equivalently modeled by four series L-C-R paths
connected in shunt configuration as shown in above figure. The bridge capacitance, inductance and
resistance have been represented by Cb, Lb and Rb respectively. Since, a switched capacitor
provides variable capacitance in the up and down-states, so, an equivalent variable capacitance
have been indicated. The CPW t-line has been represented on both sides of the bridges by lumped
equivalent T-sections.






64

Design and RF characterization of the unit cell structure has been carried out and the
reason for placing four miniaturized switched capacitors in shunt has been analyzed.
Acceptable loss-performance and a sufficient amount of phase shift of 15
0
per unit cell, makes it
a suitable structure to be cascaded to design a single-bit (180
0
) phase shifter. Equivalent lumped
circuit model has also been proposed for the unit cell structure from where, RF behavior of
single bit(180
0
)phase shifter can be obtained. However, circuit model analysis is yet to be carried
out and has been left as a future scope of work.



























65



Chapter-4

Electromechanical Modeling:
Static & Transient Analysis

INTRODUCTION

The first section of this chapter details the mechanical design of the RF MEMS
miniaturized switch under the application of electrostatic forces. This is known as static analysis.
Here, the value of voltage required to actuate the MEMS switch has been computed and further
optimizations of the design have been carried out.

The second section of this chapter details the dynamic/transient analysis of the MEMS
switch. To accurately evaluate the switching speed, knowledge of non-linear dynamic model that
captures the effect of electrostatics, deformation, residual stress, inertia, damping, impact, Van der
Waals force, contact and air dynamics is essential. The switching speed of these devices is
determined by the natural frequency of the same. The different parameters of MEMS switch that
affect the dynamic response have been discussed.
The third section deals with the modal analysis/Eigen-frequency analysis of the switch
wherefrom, the mechanical resonant frequency of vibration of the switch can be computed
alongwith the various mode shapes of the beam during vibration.
The entire electromechanical analysis part has been carried out by means of (Finite Element
Method) FEM simulation, with the aid of software COMSOL Multiphysics v.3.5a.

4.1 STATIC ANALYSIS

Static Analysis refers to the curve or plot of displacement vs. voltage of a switch when it is
being subjected to an externally applied electrostatic voltage.
Let us give a brief overview of the unit cell design that we are about to analyze.
66


Fig. 4.1 Top-view of the unit-cell structure

The unit cell basically consists of a silicon substrate, 300m thick, on which CPW lines
made of gold have been fabricated. The CPW lines are 1m thick, corresponding to a G/W/G of
9.5/5.5/9.5m respectively. Shunt bridge/beam fabricated of gold are placed in cascade
along the CPW line. The bridge dimensions correspond to a length l=30m, width w=12m and
thickness


t=0.3m respectively. The bridges are suspended by means of anchors on both sides of the
bridge, connected to the two ground planes of CPW line. Anchors, also made of gold, are 0.25m
in thickness. The switches designed ensure a capacitive contact, hence, a dielectric layer (Si
3
N
4
),
0.15m thick, is placed between the bridge and CPW central line.

Fig. 4.2 Capacitive shunt switches in up and down configuration

4.1.1 SPRING CONSTANT OF FIXED-FIXED BEAMS
The rst step in understanding the mechanical operation of RF MEMS switches is to derive
the spring constant of the xedxed or cantilever beam. If the operation of the structure is limited
to small deection, as is the case for most RF MEMS devices, the mechanical behavior can be
modeled using a linear spring constant, k (N/m). The deection, g (m), of the xed-xed or
cantilever beam for an external force, F (N), can then be obtained using F= kg.

67

Fixedxed beams are commonly used due to their relatively high spring constant and ease
of manufacturing. The spring constant for the xedxed beam can be modeled in two parts. One
part, k, is due to the stiffness of the bridge which accounts for the material characteristics such as
Youngs modulus, E (Pa), and the moment of inertia, I (m
4
). The other part of the spring constant,
k, is due to the biaxial residual stress, (Pa), within the beam and is a result of the fabrication
process .


4.1.1.1 SPRING CONSTANT COMPONENT DUE TO BEAM STIFFNESS
The expression for the spring constant of a xedxed beam with a concentrated vertical
load, P (N) in Fig. 4.3, is found from the deection versus load position given by

Fig. 4.3. Fixedxed beam with concentrated vertical load P.
2
2
A A
d y
EI M R x
dx
= +
for xs a
2 3
2 6
A A
M x R x
y
EI EI
= +
for xs a (4.1)
2
2
( )
a
A
P
M l a
l
=



2
3
( ) ( 2 )
A
P
R l a l a
l
= +


where l is the length of the beam, M
A
(N-m) is the reaction moment at the left end, and R
A
(N) is


68

the vertical reaction at the left end. The moment of inertia, I, for the rectangular cross section is
given by I=wt
3
/12, where w is the width and t is the thickness of the beam.
In MEMS applications, the load is typically distributed across the beam, and the deflection
of the beam at the center is used to determine the spring constant. By substituting x=l/2 into
Equation (5.1), the deflection at the center is found for a concentrated load at point a. To find the
deflection for a distributed load, the principle of superposition is used. When the load is distributed
across the entire beam, the deflection is found by evaluating the integral

3 2 2 3
/ 2
2
( 6 9 4 )
48
l
l
y l l a la a da
EI

= +
}
(4.2)
where is the load per unit length so that the total load is P= l, and the expression for M
A
and R
A

have been substituted into Equation (5.1). Since the structure is symmetric, the integral is evaluated
from l/2 to l and multiply by 2.
The spring constant is found to be
3
'
32
P l t
k Ew
y y l
| |
= = =
|
\ .
(4.3)
4.1.1.2 SPRING CONSTANT COMPONENT DUE TO RESIDUAL STRESS
The part of the spring constant that is due to the biaxial residual stress within the beam is
derived from modeling of the beam as a stretched wire (Fig. 5.4). It should be noted that this model
only applies for tensile stress. The biaxial residual stress, , results in a force, S
( ) 1 S tw o v = (4.4)
pulling on both ends of the beam, where is Poissons ratio. When a vertical force (P) is applied,
the beam is deflected by an amount, u, at the location of the applied force. This deflection stretches
the beam, which increases the stress in the beam, and the force pulling on the ends increases to
1
AE
S
a
A
+ and
2
( )
AE
S
l a
A
+

(4.5)
where
1
and
2
are the lengths by which the beam is stretched on either side of the vertical load,
P, and are given by



69


2 2
1
a u a A = +


2 2
2
( ) ( ) l a u l a A = +
(4.6)



Fig. 4.4.Beam modeled as a stretched wire with concentrated vertical load P
By equating the applied force, P, with the forces in the beam projected onto the vertical direction and
assuming a small deflection, the following equation can be found for u
( ) Pa l a
u
Sl

=
(4.7)
in which the additional force due to
1
and
2
has been neglected. From this equation, the
deflection at the centre of the beam (x=l/2) is found to be
( )
2
P
y l a
S
=
(4.8)
The deflection for a load distributed across the entire beam (P = l) can now be found by
evaluating the integral
/ 2
2 ( )
2
l
l
y l a da
S

=
}
(4.9)
where symmetry has been used in setting up the integral. The spring constant is found to be
8
8 (1 )
l S t
k w
y l l

o v
| |
'' = = =
|
\ .
(4.10)
The total spring constant is the sum of the contributions from the beam stiffness and the
biaxial residual stress; and for a load distributed across the entire beam
3
32 8 (1 )
t t
k k k Ew w
l l
o v
| | | |
' '' = + = +
| |
\ . \ .
(4.11)



70



4.1.2 ELECTROSTATIC ACTUATION
When a voltage is applied between a fixed-fixed and the pull-down electrode, an
electrostatic force is induced on the beam. This is the well-known electrostatic force, which exists
on the plates of a capacitor under an applied voltage . In order to approximate this force, the beam
over the pull-down electrode is modeled as a parallel-plate capacitor. Although; the actual
capacitance is about 20-40% larger due to fringing fields.
Given that the width of the beam is w and the width of the pull-down electrode is W (A =
Ww), the parallel plate capacitance for the UP and DOWN states is given by Eqn. 4.12(a) &
4.12(b);
0 0
UP
A Ww
C
g g
c c
= =
(4.12a)
0
0
DOWN
d
rd
A
C
t
g
c
c
=
+
(4.12b)

where g
0
is the height of the beam above the electrode. The electrostatic force applied to the beam
is found by considering the power delivered to a time-dependent capacitance and is given by
2
2 0
2
( ) 1 1
2 2
DOWN
e
dC g WwV
F V
dg g
c
= =
(4.13)
where V is the voltage applied between the beam and the electrode. Equation (4.13) neglects the
effect of the dielectric layer between the bridge and the pull-down electrode.
The electrostatic force is approximated as being evenly distributed across the section of
beam above the electrode. Therefore the appropriate spring constant to be used to determine the
distance the beam moves under the applied force given by Eqn. (4.13). However, it is important to
note that the spring constant must be associated with the distance moved under the location of the
applied force.
Equating the applied electrostatic force with the mechanical restoring force due to the
stiffness of the beam (F = kx), we find
( )
0
0
2
1
2
Ww
k g g
g
c
=
(4.14)

71


where g
0
is the zero-bias bridge height. Solving this equation for the voltage results in
( )
2
0
0
2k
V g g g
Ww c
=
(4.15)
The plot of beam height versus applied voltage shows two possible positions for every
applied voltage (Fig.5.5). This is a result of the beam position becoming unstable at (2/3) g
0
, which
is due to positive feedback in the electrostatic actuation.

Fig.4.5 Beam height versus applied voltage with W=100m, w=100m, g
0
=3m, and k=10 N/m. The pull-down
voltage is 30 V. The dashed line represents the unstable portion of the height.

This can be understood by considering the electrostatic force in terms of the electric field
applied to the beam at
2
e
QE
F = (4.16)
where Q is the charge on the beam and E = V / g is the electric field due to the applied voltage.
When the constant voltage source (infinite charge pump) is increased, the force is increased due to
an increase in the charge. Simultaneously, the increased force decreases the beam height, which, in
turn, increases the capacitance and thus the charge and the electric field. At (2/3)g
0
, increase in the
electrostatic force is greater than the increase in the restoring force, resulting in


(a) the beam position becoming unstable and
(b) collapse of the beam to the down-state position.


72

By taking the derivative of Equation (4.15) with respect to the beam height and setting that
to zero, the height at which the instability occurs is found to be exactly two-thirds the zero-bias
beam height. Substituting this value back into Eqn. (4.15), the "pull-down" voltage is found to be
1/ 2
8
3
(2 / 3)
0
0
27
0
K
V V g g
p
Ww c
(
= =
(

(4.17)
It should be noted that although Equation (4.17) shows a dependence on the beam width, w,
the pull-down voltage is independent of the beam width since the spring constant, k, varies linearly
with w as in Eqn. (5.11) for the structure discussed above.
4.1.3 DESIGN, MODELLING AND STATIC ANALYSIS USING COMSOL MULTIPHYSICS v.3.5a
As it is seen in section 4.1, MEMS shunt capacitive switch is suspended over a transmission line
(CPW in this case) to switch a RF signal. As a rule of thumb, the characteristics impedance of the
unloaded CPW is chosen to be 70O, which after loading of the MEMS bridges, comes down to
50 respectively. A standard CPW configuration having central conductor width of 5.5m and a
gap width of 9.5m (9.5/5.5/9.5) is chosen to provide an impedance of 70. It is seen that a length
of 30 m would be suitable to work with such CPW dimensions. Different membrane widths 5m,
12m and 20m are considered. Different beam thickness of 0.3m, 0.5m and 0.8m are
considered. Also different gap heights of 0.25m, 0.4m and 0.5m are chosen for optimization of
the beam dimensions.

4.1.3.1 THEORETICAL MODELING OF MEMS SWITCH
To design a MEMS switch a standard CPW configuration having central conductor width of
5.5m and a gap width of 9.5m (9.5/5.5/9.5) is chosen to have 70 characteristic impedance. It is
seen that a length of 30 m would be suitable to work with such CPW dimensions. The beam
length (l), width (w) and thickness (t) correspond to 30m, 12m and 0.3m respectively. The
dielectric thickness of 0.15m and the permittivity (
r
) of 6.7 (Si
3
N
4
) are considered.
Eqn.(4.15) when plotted by means of MATLAB programming, results in an actuation
voltage of 12.24V as shown in Fig.5.6 below.
On solving Eqn. (4.17) manually,
1/ 2
8
3
(2 / 3)
0
0
27
0
K
V V g g
p
Ww c
(
= =
(


an actuation voltage of 12.5V results, which is in close approximation with value obtained from the
plot in Fig.4.6.
73


Fig.4.6 Plot of Gap height (m) vs. Voltage (V) for a gold beam of length=30m, width=12m and thickness=0.3m

4.1.3.2 SIMULATION RESULTS IN COMSOL MULTIPHYSICS
At first, variations in beam width have been considered. Beam widths corresponding to
5m, 12m and 20m are analyzed. Fig. 4.7 (a), (b) and (c) shows the deformed shapes of the
beam after static analysis.
(i) For a beam width=5m, actuation voltage=12.16V yields displacement of 82.40nm.

(a)


(ii) For a beam width=12m, actuation voltage=12.16V yield displacement of 78.54nm.

74


(b)

(iii) For a beam width=20m, actuation voltage=12.68V yield displacement of 83.84nm.


(c)

Fig.4.7 Static Analysis in COMSOL Multiphysics with beam width: (a) 5m, (b) 12m, (c) 20m


75

Summarizing the results of beam width variation, a curve of Displacement (nm) vs. Voltage
(Volts) is plotted as shown in Fig.4.8. The plot reveals the fact that same actuation voltage is
required to achieve down-state configuration for all beam structures irrespective of their beam
width.
0 3 6 9 12 15
-90
-60
-30
0


D
i
s
p
l
a
c
e
m
e
n
t

(
n
m
)
Voltage (V)
Width=5um
Width=12um
Width=20um

Fig.4.8 Plot of Displacement (nm) vs. Voltage (Volts) for different beam widths
As already observed, spring constant (k) of a fixed-fixed beam is directly proportional to the
beam width (w), [refer to eqn. (4.3)],
3
'
32
P l t
k Ew
y y l
| |
= = =
|
\ .

whereas, actuation voltage V
p
is given by [refer to eqn. (4.17)],
1/ 2
8
3
(2 / 3)
0
0
27
0
k
V V g g
p
Ww c
(
= =
(


It is evident that as eqn. (4.3) is substituted in eqn. (4.17), the factor of beam width (w) cancel
out and the expression of actuation voltage V
p
becomes independent of beam width (w) and hence
the outcome.
Now, variations in beam thickness are considered. Different beam thicknesses corresponding to
0.3m, 0.5m and 0.8m have been analyzed. Fig.4.9 (a), (b) and (c) shows the deformed shapes
of the beam after static analysis.
(i) For a beam thickness=0.3m, an actuation voltage=12.16V yields a displacement of
86.64nm.
76


(a)
(ii) For a beam thickness=0.5m, an actuation voltage=24.35V yields a displacement of
78.52nm.

(b)

(iii) For a beam thickness=0.8m, an actuation voltage=50.5V yields a displacement of
70.61nm.

77


(c)

Fig.4.9 Static Analysis in COMSOL Multiphysics with beam thickness: (a) 0.3m, (b) 0.5m, (c) 0.8m

Summarizing the results of beam thickness variation, a curve of Displacement (nm) vs.
Voltage (V) is plotted as shown in Fig.5.10. The plot shows that as thickness of the beam increases,
the actuation voltage also increases and correspondingly, the amount of displacement decreases.
This is evident from eqn. 4.3 that spring constant (k) is proportional to t
3
, where, t=thickness of the
bridge. Hence, actuation voltage (V
p
) also increases with increase in spring constant (k).
0 10 20 30 40 50
-80
-40
0


D
i
s
p
l
a
c
e
m
e
n
t

(
n
m
)
Voltage (V)
Beam thickness=0.3um
Beam thickness=0.5um
Beam thickness=0.8um

Fig.4.10 Plot of Displacement (nm) vs. Voltage (V) for different beam thicknesses


78

Now, variations in air gap height are considered. Different air gap heights corresponding to
0.25m, 0.4m and 0.5m have been analyzed. Fig.4.11 (a), (b) and (c) shows the deformed
shapes of the beam after static analysis.

(i) For an air gap=0.25m, an actuation voltage=12.16V yields a displacement of 86.64nm.


(a)

(ii) For an air gap=0.4m, an actuation voltage=24.52V yields a displacement of 141.6nm.
.
(b)

(iii) For an air gap=0.5m, an actuation voltage=35.53V yields a displacement of 194.2nm.
79



(c)

Fig.4.11Static Analysis in COMSOL Multiphysics with air gap: (a) 0.25m, (b) 0.4m, Fig.5.11 (c) 0.5m.
0 5 10 15 20 25 30 35 40
-200
-100
0


D
i
s
p
l
a
c
e
m
e
n
t

(
n
m
)
Voltage (V)
Air Gap=0.25um
Air Gap=0.4um
Air Gap=0.5um

Fig. 4.12 Plot of Displacement (nm) vs. Voltage (V) for various air gaps.

Fig.4.12 shows a plot of displacement (nm) vs. voltage (V) for different air gaps. As the air
gap increases, the value of actuation voltage required for displacement also increases. Since the air
gap is increased in each case, the amount of displacement obtained also increases. Spring constant

80

(k) is independent of air gap, but actuation voltage varies with (g
0
)
3/2
, where, g
0
is the air gap.
Hence, as air gap increases, actuation voltage also incrases.
Thus, we find that the beam design with length, width and thickness corresponding to
30m, 12m and 0.3m results in an actuation voltage of 12.16V which is in close approximation
with that obtained from MATLAB programming and manual calculations [refer to section 4.1.3.1].
Hence, it is worthwhile to consider the above results as the most optimum one with reasonably low
actuation voltage and hence, these design parameters pertaining to miniaturized switch design shall
be considered hereafter.

4.2 TRANSIENT ANALYSIS

This section details the dynamic analysis of MEMS switches. To accurately evaluate the
switching speed knowledge of non-linear dynamic model that captures the effect of electrostatics,
deformation, residual stress, inertia, damping, impact, Van der Waals force, contact and air
dynamics is essential. The switching speed of these devices is determined by the natural frequency
of the same. The different parameters of MEMS switch that affect the dynamic response has been
discussed.
Transient analysis has been carried out to estimate the switching time of the switch.
COMSOL Multiphysics v.3.5a is again used for simulating the switching time required for
subsequent transient analysis.



4.2.1 SWITCHING TIME


Additional issues in MEMS switches are their switching time. The switching time is more
difficult to predict because it pertains to the time required for the air bridge to drop from threshold
state to the bottom contact under the effect of electrostatic force. Since this force increases as the
gap closes (as 1/g
2
), the switch down-time is substantially shorter. But, practically the turn off time
might be higher than turn on time, due to stiction. Stiction is a phenomenon by which parts of the
MEMS device can bond together upon physical contact. When actuating switches on and off, it is
possible for the high electric field across the thin dielectric to cause charges to tunnel into the
dielectric and become trapped. These charges screen the applied electric field, causing the switches
to need higher switching voltages and to have difficulties switching using unipolar dc control


81

voltages. When an AC voltage is applied to the microswitch at a frequency much less than the
natural frequency, the membrane follows the AC waveform with nearly the same response as at

DC. Hence, the AC waveform will induce switching when its amplitude exceeds the threshold
voltage. At frequencies much greater than the natural frequency, the membrane no longer follows
the instantaneous waveform and, instead, responds only to the root mean square (rms) voltage
between the electrodes. This makes the MEMS switch very linear with respect to high frequency
signal .
Finite-element analyses using COMSOL Multiphysics show that the natural frequency of
the devices ranged from 600kHz to 20MHz for different miniaturized structures.

4.3.2 SWITCHING TIME CALCULATION USING ANALYTICAL FORMULA
The non-linear differential equation, popularly known as D Alemberts principle, is used to
obtain the dynamic response of the system. The equation is repeated under for convenience

2 2
0
2 2
0
1
2 ( )
s
e
AV d x dx
m b kx F
dt dt g x
c
+ + = =

(4.35)

where, 0.35( ) m lwt = (4.36)
( )
3
32 k Ew t l =
(4.37)

( )( )
2 3
0
3 2 b A g t =
(4.38)


Here, Vs = 1.25Vp, A = Ww, E = Youngs Modulus of gold = 75GPa, = density of gold
=19,320 kg/m
3
, = Coefficient of viscosity = 1.218X10
-5
Pa-s.

Fig. 4.16 Gap (nm) vs. Switching time (nsec) indicates transient analysis and the switching time obtained is 229ns.
82


On solving Eqn. (4.35) in MATHEMATICA v.5 , a curve of Displacement (nm) vs.
Switching time (nsec) is obtained as shown in Fig.4.16, which results in a switching time of
229nsec only.
The parameters required for carrying out the electromechanical analysis has been tabulated
as under:-

TABLE 4.1: PARAMETERS AND RESULTS FOR ELECTROMECHANICAL ANALYSIS

m (kg) B k (N/m) V
p
(V) t (nsec) g
0
(m)
Mass Damping
Coefficient
Spring
Constant
Actuation
Voltage
Switching
Time
Gap
7.78X10
-13
4.5X10
-5
26.88 12.16 229 0.25

4.3.3 SWITCHING TIME RESULTS BY SIMULATION IN COMSOL MULTIPHYSICS
Transient analysis, commonly known as the dynamic analysis of the miniaturized beam
structure designed in the previous chapters is performed using a Finite Element Method (FEM)
based MEMS design tool called COMSOL Multiphysics v.3.5a. For convenience, it is to be noted
that the beam length, width and thickness correspond to 30m, 12m and 0.3m respectively.
Fig.4.17 shows the deformed shape of the beam after transient analysis has been performed
in COMSOL Multiphysics.

Fig. 4.17 Deformed shape of beam after transient analysis in COMSOL Multiphysics

83

Simulations provide a switching time of still lower value i.e., 180nsec. Fig. 4.18 shows the
plot of displacement vs. time which is the transient analysis curve and FEM simulations results in a
switching time of 180nsec only.
0 60 120 180
-80
-60
-40
-20
0


D
i
s
p
l
a
c
e
m
e
n
t

(
n
m
)
Time (nsec)
Transient Analysis Curve

Fig. 4.18 Transient Analysis Curve of Displacement (nm) vs. Time (nsec) results in a switching time of 180nsec.

Hence, a miniaturized beam design with reasonably low actuation voltage of 12.16V and
sub-microsecond order switching speed of 180ns only is results.

This section explains the static, modal and transient analysis in detail with all the supportive
simulation and graphical results. Static analysis has been conducted by FEM simulations
considering variations in beam width, beam thickness and air gap. Dimensions of the beam have
been optimized and actuation voltage is obtained. Values of actuation voltage have been obtained
analytically as well as by MATLAB programming. All the results are found to match, close to


12.16V and hence the static analysis can be considered to be correct.. Lastly, transient analysis has
been carried out analytically by means of DAlemberts principle followed by FEM simulation
method to obtain the required switching time of operation. Analytical analysis results in a
switching time of 229ns whereas, FEM simulations yield a switching time of 180ns. The results
obtained do not match exactly but are close in approximation.


84

Chapter 5
RF Analysis of Single Bit Phase Shifter
5.1 Introduction:
This chapter highlights the RF analysis of single bit (180
0
) phase shifter. As already
stated, the basic unit cell structure consists of a CPW t-line periodically loaded with four MEMS
capacitive shunt bridges. The bridge dimensions have been already optimized and the static,
transient and modal analyses are preformed in chapter 4. The amount of differential phase shift
obtained is 14.8
0
at 15GHz. Optimization of the number of bridges in a single unit cell has already
been carried out in chapter 3. A number of such unit cell structures can be cascaded to provide a
considerably high value of phase shift. This dissertation focuses on the design aspect and modeling
of single-bit phase shifters only yielding a phase shift of 180
0
. RF Characterization of the single-bit
phase shifter structure has been carried out by means of Ansoft HFSS v.13, a FEM (Finite Element
Method) based simulator for structures operating at a high-frequency range.

5.2 Linear Structure 180
0
Phase Shifter:
5.2.1 Basic Design:
Similar to the concept extended by the authors of the various papers included in the review,
the design of a single-bit phase shifter is presented. A number of similar unit cells are cascaded one
after the other, in order to obtain a single structure as a whole. Such a structure designed, yields a
phase shift of 180
0
at a frequency of 15GHz respectively. This structure has been simulated in
Ansoft HFSS and the corresponding loss-performance and amount of differential phase is noted.
It is seen that 11 such unit cells when cascaded, provide a phase shift of 180.4
0
at 15GHz.
The physical length occupied by this linear structure phase shifter is 8.731mm. Fig. 5.1(a) (b) (c)
(d) shows the isometric view of the linear structure phase shifter.

85


(c)

(d)



Fig. 5.1(a) Linear 180
0
phase shifter structure having 11 unit cells. (b) Highlighting of a single unit cell.

(a)
(b)
86

5.2.2 RF Characterization by HFSS Simulations:
This sections includes the loss-performance i.e., measurement of S
11
and S
21
in dB and
calculation of the amount of differential phase shift in degree so that it amounts to 180
0
at a
particular frequency of interest. Fig.5.2 (a) and (b) depicts the S-parameters (dB) vs. Frequency
(GHz) respectively for the up-state and down-state configurations.

(a)

(b)
Fig. 5.2: S-parameters (dB) vs. Frequency (GHz) for: (a) up-state configuration, (b) down-state
configuration.
The difference in phase shift between the up-state and down-states respectively yields the
differential phase shift for the overall structure. At 15GHz, a differential phase shift of 180.4
0
is
recorded. Fig. 5.3(a) (b) shows the plot of phase shift (degrees) for both up-state and down-state
respectively vs. frequency (GHz).
87


(a)

(b)
Fig. 5.3 Differential phase shift (deg) vs. Frequency (GHz) for (a) up-state (b) down-state.
Table 5.1 summarizes the loss-performance and amount of phase shift obtained for the proposed
180
0
phase shifter design
Table 5.1: Loss-performance and amount of phase shift of Single Bit Phase Shifter
S11(dB) for
up-state
S11(dB) for
down-state
S21(dB) for up-
state
S21(dB) for
down-state
Differential phase shift
(deg)
-37.24 -12.37 -3.63 -5.66 180.4

It is observed that S
11
(dB) is well below -10dB for both the up and down-states respectively
that have been tabulated as above. The insertion loss (S
21
) is strikingly high, especially for the

88

down-state configuration. The insertion loss could be improved and is left as a future scope of
work.

5.3 CONCLUSION
This thesis reveals the designs and modeling aspect of a single-bit (180
0
) phase shifter. The design
employs miniaturized RF MEMS switched capacitors, which are placed in shunt on a CPW t-line
to yield an appreciable amount of phase shift. A literature review, based on the papers published
having certain relevance to the topic of this dissertation, is conducted. Attempts have been made to
simulate a single-bit phase shifter with a linear structure aspect.
The proposed unit cell design contains four similar miniaturized switched capacitors in
shunt. This design has been optimized so that low-loss performance yet, sufficient amount of phase
shift are obtained at the required frequency of interest.
Such unit cells, when cascaded yield appreciably high amount of phase shift and can be
easily implemented as single-bit (eg., 45
0
, 90
0
, 180
0
, etc.) phase shifters. Lateral dimensions of the
miniaturized beam are optimized and Mechanical and Electromechanical simulations are conducted
using COMSOL Multiphysics v.4.2a (a Finite Element Method based MEMS Design tool). The
simulated values of the actuation voltage and mechanical resonant frequency of vibration obtained,
are verified using mathematical equations. Transient analysis carried out provides a very fast
switching time of only 180ns. Thus, a miniaturized switch with low actuation voltage of 12.23V
and sub-microsecond order switching time of 180ns is resulted.

The concept of electronic beam-steering in phased array antennas can be realized by employing RF
MEMS phase shifters. The working principle is such, whereby an antenna could be coupled to the
designed phase shifter by means of a suitably designed matching network. This adds sufficient
future scope of work and ways of extending this research to successful completion.
A phase shift of 180.4
0
at 15 GHz is obtained in the design presented here making RF
MEMS an enabling technology for low-cost phased arrays in telecommunication and radar
applications.
It is seen that RF MEMS switches which are the basic building blocks of a phase shifter, are
promising as it provides a perfect balance of both performance and cost-indeed a rare occurrence in
any work of life.