Millimetre wave micromachined devices for communications and radar

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Communications has recently seen a surge in popularity with the vast increase in mobile phone usage. Both the phones and the infrastructure, which allows them to communicate, requires electronic components of extremely high performance which are very small in size. This proposal aims at making new miniaturised electronic components. The components of interest operate at very high frequencies (greater than 1GHz) in the microwave frequency regime. It is possible to build new miniature components because of two relatively new manufacturing processes being developed at Birmingham University. The manufacturing processes have the ability to machine materials to an incredible accuracy to produce very small, very precise shapes. These shapes are designed to perform the electronic signal processing function in the new devices. The machining is not by mechanical means but by chemical etching and the materials to be machined are silicon and an epoxy resin. Clearly with this new material a great deal of effort is required on the design of the new microwave circuits as well as continued development of the micromachining process. The outcome of the project will therefore be new processes to make the components as well as some components themselves. Although mobile communications was mentioned above as an example of where the components could be used, there are many more uses of the new components. Communications at extremely high frequencies (up to and above 100GHz) and radar systems are excellent examples of potential uses.