Optimizing RF Filters for 5G Applications
(Room 204)
18 Oct 18
1:20 PM
-
1:50 PM
According to a May 2018 market research report on global RF filters by Technavio, “the surge in data traffic in recent times has compelled network carriers to migrate to LTE networks such as 4G and 5G. This exponential use of the cloud has propelled the growth of commercial networks resulting in LTE becoming the mainstay of mobile technology across the globe…. The deployment of powerful RF devices (GaN) ensures that the device can generate a maximum frequency of the necessary band at any point in time, thereby preventing any interference from other frequency bands.” The industry analyst firm predicts an 18% CAGR for the RF filters market between 2018 and 2022. Design engineers face the need to innovate and bring devices to market quickly and cost-effectively. Yet, the production cost of RF devices such as filters is significantly high, reports Technavio, due to the expensive nature of the raw materials used to manufacture them. One route to more cost-effective experimentation is through FEA simulations. “[FEA simulations] analyze the profiles of internal quantities on a much finer resolution in space and time as any measurement technique is able to do. Because of these benefits, they are a valuable tool both for research and for product development.” “Numerical simulations by [FEA] methods have become an indispensable part of today’s acoustical device R&D work.” [Source(s): Thalhammar & Larson, “Finite Element Analysis of BAW Devices,” IU Symposia 2015] In his paper and presentation, the author will describe three simulation examples including: ● Full 3D TC-SAW Simulation/TC-SAW Filter Spurious Modes (identifying sources of spurious modes allows designs to be optimized before investing in physical prototypes) ● FBAR Simulations (examples analyze the performance of a simple square FBAR design comprising an aluminum nitride active layer with material properties input from full stiffness, piezoelectric and permittivity tensors, molybdenum electrodes, and silicon substrate with simple fixed boundary conditions) ○ Note the FBAR models will be depicted in 1D, 2D and 3D models ● SMR Simulations (a simple 2D SMR example with an AIN piezo layer with a series of reflective gratings e.g., SiO2 and tungsten on the substrate, and full 3D geometry to capture all effects) The author will also present three SAW case studies that focus on 1) wafer cut angle, 2) metallization, and 3) TC layer thickness. The author will also provide details of a FBAR design optimization case study depicting a 3D FBAR with an arbitrary pentagonal top electrode using Matlab’s GA tool, with the goal of minimizing spurious resonances.