Title: Advanced 5G Substrates with Integrated Antennas

Committee: 

Dr. Rao Tummala, ECE, Advisor

Dr. Manos Tentzeris, ECE

Dr. Venkatesh Sundaram, PRC

Dr. Raj Pulugurtha, PRC

Abstract: 

The objective of this research is to: 1) Survey commercially-available and development-level materials in three categories: Laminates, Glass and Ceramic (primarily LTCC) and benchmark them based on their electrical properties and processability for their suitability for 5G applications, and 2) Achieve transmission line loss of less than 0.05 dB/mm on these substrates, and 3) Perform a model-to-Hardware correlation study. The first task is being targeted by extensive paper study and collaboration with partners of PRC to extract properties of new materials. The second task is focused on achieving transmission line loss of less than 0.05 dB/mm with 2% linespace tolerance on selected substrate core and buildup layer combinations for 5G applications. The third task focuses on patch antennas at 5G frequencies as test structure to study the correlation of model and hardware and how the process variation affects the response of the test structure.