Combination of 2D and 3D Method of Line Approach for th Accurate Loss Determination in RF MEMS Circuits

Larissa VIETZORRECK

Institut für Hochfrequenztechnik, TU München, Arcisstr. 21, 80333 München, Germany
E-mail: [email protected]

Abstract. In RF MEMS circuits one crucial point is the accurate determination of loss, caused by lossy substrate or conductors. Substrate loss can play a role if lossy silicon is used as substrate material, conductor loss can be important if thin layers are used as conductors as the underpass or membrane in RF MEMS switches. Existing modeling tools usually underestimate the loss caused by thin conductors, as the used models are not appropriate or the discretization of the metal conductor is not sufficient. This can be a critical point in the design, when for the resulting device a strict requirement regarding insertion loss is given as usually done for RF MEMS switches.