RADIO FREQUENCY INTEGRATED CIRCUITS

MODULE I

DIVYA P V ASST.PROFESSOR EC DEPT

Introduction to the technology of microwave integrated circuits

Conventional Microwave circuits 1.Constructed in coaxial or waveguide technology 2.Circuits and other components (filterc,directional couplers)were fabricated separately and then screwed together 3.Conductors in conventional circuits are coaxial lines or waveguides. MICs 1.Same as integrated digital circuits. 2.All the components are connected to each other and manufactured by using the same technology in a planar form 3.Conductors in MICs are microstrip line The specific method used to develop and produce a special circuit functions in micro strip is known as micro strip technology. Principal requirements for a transmission structure to be suitable as a circuit element in MIC is that the structure should be planar in configuration. A planar configuration implies that the characteristics of the element can be determined by the dimensions in a single plane. For example the width of a micro strip line on a dielectric substrate can be adjusted to control its impedance. There are several transmission structure that satisfy the requirement of being planar 1.Microstrip 2.Coplanar waveguide 3.Slotline 4.Coplanar strips

There is a wide range of MICs

Advantages of MICs

SUBSTRATES
Criteria for the choice of substrate material

Criteria for the choice of substrate material

Production methods (Technology ) for MICs

Various technologies available for the production of MICs Difference among them are substrare material, the method of fabricating conductors, resistors and capacitors and the degree of integration Degree of integration is a measure of the number of integrated elements to be included in the total circuit. Integrated elements are elements produced by the same technique as the conductors, whereas hybrid elements are elements produced separately and added to the circuit later.

Important MIC technology in order of degree of freedom

Thin film Hybrid Circuits Most commonly used technique for the production of MICs is the thin film hybrid technology. Technology get its name from the method producing conductors, resistances and capacitance rather than from the thickness of the substrate. Conductors are produced either by vapour deposition or sputtering, both of which are performed in vacuum and provide layers wih a thickness of less than 1um. For use in microwaves the conductors are galvanically thickened to between 5um and 10 um to reduce the losses Resistance and capacitance as well as conductors can be produced as integrated components For thin film circuits with capacitors,the surface must be locally glazed or we must use saphire. If the MIC is to have magnetic components,such as circulators then ferrite or garnet must be used as substrates Plastic substrates cannot be used for thin-film technology because they cannot withstand the high temperatures and their outgassing makes a high vacuum very difficult to attain.