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Piezoelectric actuated MEMS for use in microwave switching and filtering applications
Author(s) -
Dehoff Carsten,
Hennings Alexander,
Kügeler Carsten,
Schneller Theodor,
Böttger Ulrich
Publication year - 2011
Publication title -
physica status solidi (a)
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.532
H-Index - 104
eISSN - 1862-6319
pISSN - 1862-6300
DOI - 10.1002/pssa.201100004
Subject(s) - microelectromechanical systems , materials science , microwave , piezoelectricity , lead zirconate titanate , actuator , optoelectronics , fabrication , schematic , electronic engineering , electrical engineering , computer science , ferroelectricity , engineering , telecommunications , dielectric , medicine , alternative medicine , pathology , composite material
The paper reviews the developments made for designing and fabricating a piezoelectric driven actuator and its integration into coplanar wave guide (CPW) microwave structures. In the first part of this work the electromechanical properties of different lead–zirconate–titanate (PZT) thin films are investigated. A modified precursor route for chemical solution deposition (CSD) is introduced to minimize the thermal budget of the PZT by maintaining its superior piezoelectric properties. The second part deals with the fabrication of a piezoelectric driven actuator for use in RF switching applications. Advantages of bulk and surface micromachined devices are compared and a suitable actuator design is proposed. Based on these results, a piezoelectrically actuated shunt switch for use in CPW devices is developed and optimized, and the concept is confirmed by measurements. Finally, novel reconfigurable CPW band‐pass filters are presented, which demonstrate the usefulness of the developed shunt switches in microwave applications.Microwave switch Distribution of surface current density (background), image of copper contact (top) and micro switch schematic (bottom).