ABSTRACT
Microelectromechanical systems (MEMS) devices provide for a certain amount of mechanical flexibility in the physical construction of the circuit, in addition to the traditional electronic functions. This chapter reviews the fundamentals of radio frequency (RF) MEMS switches and provides some application circuits on silicon substrates. Realizing that there exists a variety of MEMS structures that have been developed on silicon substrates, the chapter focuses on RF switches due to the extensive growth and research interest in their technology, and their dominant role in signal routing and distribution. Monolithic integration, therefore, of silicon (Si) (or silicon germanium (SiGe)) circuits, advanced MEMS devices, micromachined analog components, and digital complementary metal oxide semiconductor (CMOS)-based processing circuits into one wafer are the next leap beyond the current state-of-the-art used in the system-on-a-chip approach. The chapter presents a reconfigurable, planar double-stub tuner that utilizes capacitive RF MEMS switches and achieves the widest tuning range from 10 to 20 GHz with the highest voltage-standing-wave-ratio (VSWR).
