Design of Passive Components for K-Band Communication Modules in LTCC Environment

Abstract

The ongoing development of LTCC materials and multilayer processes are making this technology more and more attractive for use in the manufacture of microwave multichip modules. However, prior to the manufacture of modules, the high frequency behavior of the passive RF components needs to be investigated to determine the performance limitations due to the manufacturing process. The aim of this paper is to give solutions for waveguides and transitions that can be applied in the packaging of a 24 GHz communication link module. The passive components have been designed with the assistance of 3D electromagnetic field simulations using a Finite Difference Time Domain technique. Several types of transitions from the top of the LTCC to an inner layer and back to the top, which are used for the feeding of hermetic sealed packages, are considered. These activities are supported by the European community through the Brite-Euram project RAMP 1