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Nonlinear ceramics for tunable microwave devices part I: materials properties and processing

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Abstract

Nonlinear dielectrics are promising materials for tunable microwave components. However, dielectric loss, tunability, and temperature dependence of such dielectrics are crucial parameters and have to be optimized for an application as microwave device. In part I of this split publication, the impact of doping and processing on the material performance of Ba0.6Sr0.4TiO3 (BST) ceramics and thick films are presented. A phenomenological model developed by Vendik (Vendik and Zubko 2000) was used to characterize the influence of doping on the material performance of BST as tunable microwave dielectrics. It is shown that acceptor (iron, Fe)—donor (fluoride, F) codoping can positively influence the tunability of BST fundamentally. This impact is interpreted by charged defects influenced by doping and/or related defect formations. In addition to doping, it is shown that thermal treatment of powders and thick films as well as the deposition method show a strong impact on dielectric performance of the final thick-films. In the following part II, metallization, component design, and RF-characterization of tunable microwave devices will be discussed.

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Acknowledgments

The authors thank Sylvia Schöllhammer and Markus Mauck for their help in preparing the bulk ceramics and the thick films, and Ralph Eckstein for support with the measurement. Parts of this work have been supported by DFG (Deutsche Forschungsgemeinschaft) Grants no. HA2571/9-1/JA921/18-1 and HA2571/7-2/JA 921/16-2. The support of this research by Prof. Haußelt is gratefully acknowledged.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Institute of Materials for Electrical and Electronic Engineering, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, 76131, Karlsruhe, Germany

    Wolfgang Menesklou & Ellen Ivers-Tiffée

  2. Institute of Microsystems Engineering, IMTEK, University of Freiburg, 79110, Freiburg, Germany

    Florian Paul & Hendrik Elsenheimer

  3. Institute for Applied Materials, Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, 76131, Karlsruhe, Germany

    Xianghui Zhou & Joachim R. Binder

  4. DFG Center for Functional Nanostructures (CFN), Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, 76131, Karlsruhe, Germany

    Ellen Ivers-Tiffée

Authors
  1. Wolfgang Menesklou
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  2. Florian Paul
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  3. Xianghui Zhou
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  4. Hendrik Elsenheimer
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  5. Joachim R. Binder
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  6. Ellen Ivers-Tiffée
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Correspondence to Wolfgang Menesklou.

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Menesklou, W., Paul, F., Zhou, X. et al. Nonlinear ceramics for tunable microwave devices part I: materials properties and processing. Microsyst Technol 17, 203–211 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00542-011-1277-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00542-011-1277-z

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