RF Measurements of Die and Packages

The explosion in the wireless industry, coupled with the higher frequencies in today's digital integrated circuits (IC) has made vital the need for accurate IC testing. This is the first book dedicated to the issues surrounding RFIC testing. An important resource for RFIC designers and high-frequency digital IC designers, IC test engineers, and IC manufacturing test engineers, this ground breaking resource helps you perform high-accuracy RF measurements of die and packages in the RF test lab, employ RF coplanar probes for accurate on-wafer characterization, and troubleshoot and utilize coplanar probes and test fixtures to extend their lifetime. Moreover, the book shows you how to build RF test systems for noise, high-power, and thermal testing, and de-embed the test system 's parasitic effects to get the die's RF performance. This timely resource defines the essential elements in an RF system, explains where errors can be found in such a system, and shows how to mathematically remove them with calibration. It discusses the construction of both coplanar and high-volume testing membrane probes. The book details how to use coplanar probes to characterize individual die on the wafer, describes three popular RF test systems, and concludes with an explanation of how to characterize packages.