Development of a Dual-SPDT RF-MEMS switch for Ku-band

This paper presents the design, fabrication method and measurement results on a low-loss Ohmic-contact RF-MEMS switch with a bi-lateral actuation for a Dual-SPDT switching system. The switch was fabricated based on the silicon bulk-micromachining technology and a layer-wise technique on an SOI wafer. We demonstrated a compatibility with electroplating and high aspect-ratio Deep-RIE process to have loss-less quasi-air-suspended MEMS waveguides and adequately thick gold layer for side-wall ohmic contact. Typical performance shows 0.56 dB insertion loss, 19.4 dB return loss and 51.4 dB isolation at the Ku-band frequency of 12 GHz.