Fabrication and accelerated hermeticity testing of an on-wafer package for RF MEMS

• Published in: IEEE transactions on microwave theory and techniques 2004-06, Vol.52 (6), p.1626-1636
• Main Authors: Margomenos, A., Katehi, L.P.B.
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Fabrication; Insertion loss; Life estimation; Loss measurement; Micromechanical devices; Packaging; Radiofrequency microelectromechanical systems; Silicon; Switches; Testing
• ISSN: 0018-9480; 1557-9670
• DOI: 10.1109/TMTT.2004.828467

A hermetic silicon micromachined on-wafer dc-to-40-GHz packaging scheme for RF microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) switches is presented. The designed on-wafer package has a deembedded insertion loss of 0.03 dB per transition up to 40 GHz (a total measured loss of 0.3 dB including a 2.7-mm-long through line) and a return loss below -18dB up to 40 GHz. The hermeticity of the packaged is tested using an autoclave chamber with accelerated conditions of 130/spl deg/C, 2.7 atm of pressure, and 100% relative humidity. The fabrication process is designed so as to be completely compatible with the MEMS switch process, hence, allowing the parallel fabrication of all the components on a single wafer. The on-wafer proposed packaging approach requires no external wiring to achieve signal propagation and, thus, it has the potential for lower loss and better performance at higher frequencies.