Improved calibration and measurement of the scattering parameters of microwave integrated circuits

A novel procedure for the calibration of microwave integrated circuit test fixtures, based on a generalization of the through-reflect-line (TRL) algorithm, is presented. Its advantages compared with previous methods, namely bandwidth of validity and standards availability, are discussed. The approach is verified through the characterization of a particular microstrip verification standard using both the generalized TRL and precision 7-mm calibration techniques. Comparison of the results obtained from these schemes indicates that both the effective directivity and the source/load match are better than 30 dB.<
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