A charge-control model of the pin diode

A charge-control model of the pin diode is developed which fully accounts for the additional contact-layer storage charges. This part of the storage charge is shown to greatly influence both the forward steady state and the turn-off transient (switching time and transition-loss). Needing limited mathematical efforts, the model seems well suited for analysis of complicated microwave networks with pin diodes, such as phase shifters, limiters, and frequency converters. As is demonstrated by numerical results, an optimal i-layer width may exist for certain applications.