A Handy Novel Impedance Standard Substrate for Calibration of both Horizontal and Vertical Interconnects by Radio Frequency and Microwave Probes (original) (raw)
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Thru-line (TL) calibration technique for on-wafer measurement
Millimeter-wave CMOS RF circuits have been received substantial attention in recent years, motivated by the advancement of CMOS process. Figure 1 shows on-wafer measurement using probes, which is common in research and development. De-embedding is necessary to remove the effect of pads in on-wafer measurement of RF circuits. Thru-Reflect-Line (TRL) calibration [1] and/or de-embedding method using open and short patterns [2] are often used. The authors applied the Thru-Line (TL) calibration method [3] to remove the effect of pads in the measurement of RF circuits on a Si CMOS substrate. TL calibration requires two patterns (thru and line) while TRL calibration requires three patterns (thru, reflect and line). TL calibration can characterize both pads under the assumption that both pads have the same characteristics while TRL calibration can not characterize pads. In this paper, the effectiveness of the TL calibration is investigated for the deembedding of the influence of pads in on-wafer measurement.
Influence of Microwave Probes on Calibrated On-Wafer Measurements
IEEE Transactions on Microwave Theory and Techniques, 2019
On-wafer probing with ground-signal-ground (GSG) probes contributes a variety of side effects, which are related to the measured line type, the carrier material, the layout with the neighboring structures, and the probe. Thus, the size and shape of the probe together with the measured line type and the neighboring circuits influence the quality of the calibrated measured result. This paper presents corresponding results when using the multiline-thru-reflect-line (mTRL) calibration, which is commonly accepted as one of the most accurate calibration algorithms, and concentrates on the impact of the probe construction together with neighboring elements, for the most common planar transmission lines, coplanar waveguides (CPWs), and thin-film microstrip lines (TFMSLs). For the first time, design guidelines with regard to the layout, the measurement environment, and the construction of the probes are given.
An Advanced Calibration Method for Probe Leakage Correction in On-Wafer Test Systems
IEEE Transactions on Microwave Theory and Techniques
This article presents an advanced calibration method for solving the error terms due to probe-probe leakage in an on-wafer test system. A new 12-term error model for the on-wafer test system including vector network analyzer (VNA), frequency extenders (if there are any), cables/waveguides, probes, probe contact pads and probe-probe leakage is introduced. A two-step calibration process and an algorithm with four on-chip calibration standards including one undefined Thru, two pairs of undefined symmetrical Reflects such as Open-Open and Short-Short pairs and a pair of known Match loads has been developed. In addition, an improved circuit model for the Match load is proposed for enhanced accuracy. The calibration method has been tested on a mismatched attenuator for the frequency range between 0.2 GHz and 110 GHz and the results are compared with numerical simulation and existing calibration methods. It's shown that the attenuator's |S11| is more consecutive and |S21| has been improved by up-to 1.7 dB. It is evident that the proposed calibration method has a simpler calibration process and less stringent requirements on calibration standards which are key for on-wafer system calibration at millimeter-wave and terahertz frequencies. More importantly, the new calibration method is more suitable for measurements in which DUTs have variable lengths. Index Terms-Calibration, load circuit model, on-wafer scattering parameter, probe leakage. I. INTRODUCTION LL S-parameter test systems that are used to measure microwave devices such as antennas, filters, couplers, etc. [1-4] have residual system errors which must be calibrated out with an appropriate calibration method and some calibration standards before being used.
Analysis of Interconnection Networks and Mismatch in the Nose-to-Nose Calibration
55th ARFTG Conference Digest, 2000
We analyze the input networks of the samplers used in the nose-to-nose calibration method. Our model demonstrates that the required input network conditions are satisfied in this method and shows the interconnection errors are limited to measurement uncertainties of input reflection coefficients and adapter S-parameters utilized during the calibration procedure. Further, the input network model fully includes the effects of mismatch reflections, and we use the model to reconcile nose-to-nose waveform correction methods with traditional signal power measurement techniques.
A New Characterization and Calibration Method for 3-dB-Coupled On-Wafer Measurements
IEEE Transactions on Microwave Theory and Techniques, 2000
A two-port vector network analyzer (VNA) can be used for measuring the differential-mode (or common-mode) -parameters of an integrated circuit by combining on-wafer probes with 3-dB-coupling baluns (or power splitters). In such a measurement setup, the error networks from each port of the VNA to the device-under-test are three-port rather than the conventional two-port. This paper proposes a new set of an impedance standards and algorithm that can efficiently extract the full nine mixed-mode -parameters of the three-port error network. For differential-mode measurements, the four differential-mode -parameters are used for the calibration and the remaining five common-and cross-mode -parameters are used for evaluating their associated measurement errors. By a minor variation, the proposed method can be used for characterizing the full nine mixed-mode -parameters of the 3-dB-coupler embedded probe itself, providing a valuable tool in its development stage. The proposed method uses a pseudoinverse of an overdetermined matrix, by which it becomes tolerant to errors that occur when measuring the impedance standards.
Calibrated waveform measurement with high-impedance probes
IEEE Transactions on Microwave Theory and Techniques, 2003
We develop an on-wafer waveform calibration technique that combines a frequency-domain mismatch correction to account for the effects of the probe on the measurement with an oscilloscope calibration. The mismatch correction is general and can be applied to any type of microwave probe, including scanning and internal-node probes for noninvasive integrated-circuit tests. We show that, for the commercial high-impedance probe we used, this calibration approach allows accurate on-wafer waveform reconstruction for a variety of probe ground configurations.
Accurate measurement method for characterisation of RF impedance tuners
Electronics Letters, 2007
The design and measurement of a compact narrowband impedance matching network is presented. The device has been realised in hybrid technology: coplanar waveguide transmission lines and surface-mounted components. The experimental results were carried out through two different measurement methods, a traditional approach and a new faster, simpler one giving the same results. They show that complex impedances with magnitudes varying from 6.3 to 1120 V can be matched with a 50% bandwidth around the centre frequency.
The Impact of On-Wafer Calibration Method on the Measured Results of Coplanar Waveguide Circuits
IEEE Transactions on Advanced Packaging, 2000
This paper compares four commonly used on-wafer calibration methods including multiline thru-reflect-line (TRL), line-reflect-reflect-match, line-reflect-match, and short-open-loadthru, for three diverse coplanar waveguide (CPW) circuits. The magnitudes and phases of 11 and 21 of the CPW circuits are compared to quantify how the specific calibration method influences measured scattering parameters. Special care is taken to ensure that the measured scattering parameters are normalized to the same reference impedance and reference plane for accurate comparison. The measured results are compared with full-wave simulations to provide additional assessment of accuracy. A method to de-embed the discontinuity of the CPW at the probe tip and the CPW of the test structures is presented. The effect of probe-to-device-under-test discontinuity is effectively modeled by one-or two-section of shunt capacitor and series inductor. The results show that the multiline TRL calibration method provides the highest transmission coefficient repeatability on not well-matched circuits and highest accuracy on the three circuits in this paper up to 40 GHz.
2008 Design, Automation and Test in Europe, 2008
. Traditionally, coaxial connectors or surface probing with high frequency microprobes are used to provide interfaces to test equipment. Both approaches have to be carefully optimized in order to give adequate results for the multi-GHz range. This paper discusses a different access technique, the recessed probe launch (RPL), which was previously used by the authors for measurements up to 40 GHz. Full-wave 3D electromagnetic modeling is applied to analyze the parasitics of the proposed launch technique and to find strategies for its optimization. Comparison to measurement shows that the models are able to predict the major physics of the launch but several details still need to be explored, e.g. accurate modeling of the microprobes, material parameters, and network analyzer calibration.
This lecture will give information on-impedance considerations for measurements at RF and microwave frequencies. The subject matter is divided into three areas: m. Coaxial connectors used to perform precision transmission line measurements e Air lines used to define characteristic impedance in coaxial line Special considerations needed when defining impedance and using impedance concepts ai: He then spent seven years working in industry on high power microwave oscillators and amplifiers before joining the RF and Microwave Standards Division at the Royal Signals and Radar Establishment, Great Malvern. This Division later transferred to the National Physical Laboratory (NPL) in Teddington. Mr Ridler is currently responsible for NPL's RF and microwave impedance activities, in the Division of Enabling Metrology, which includes managing the primary national standard facilities for vector network analyser measurements, His current research interests include: establishing impedance tra...