Integration of AlN Micromechanical Contour-Mode Technology Filters with Three-Finger Dual Beam AlN MEMS Switches

Nipun Sinha, University of Pennsylvania
Rashed Mahameed, University of California, San Diego
Chengjie Zuo, University of Pennsylvania
Gianluca Piazza, University of Pennsylvania

Abstract

In this paper, we present the first demonstration of the monolithic integration of Aluminum Nitride (AlN) micromechanical contour mode technology filters with dual-beam actuated MEMS AlN switches. This integration has lead to the development of the first prototype of a fully-integrated all-mechanical switchable filter. Integration has been demonstrated by using AlN contour-mode MEMS filters at two center frequencies, i.e. 98.7 and 279.9 MHz. The micromechanical switch design used here is a novel three-finger dual-beam topology that improves the isolation and insertion loss of the switch by decreasing the parasitic coupling between the DC and RF signals over a previous AlN MEMS dual-beam design. With the use of just one switch fabricated right next to, and integrated with the filter, the AlN MEMS filter is effectively turned off and its pass-band transmission is lowered to the out of band level at 279.9 MHz.