An X-band small outline leaded plastic package for MMIC applications

A new small outline (SO) leaded plastic package has been developed that improves return loss, insertion loss, and isolation performance over that of a shrink small outline package (SSOP) in the same body size. A custom TRL calibration kit was developed, and prototype packages built and measured. The measured package showed an increase in the application bandwidth of SO-type packages from 5 GHz to over 8 GHz. Further investigations using full-wave electromagnetic simulations reveal a potential increase in return loss of better than 30 dB to 10 GHz, giving the package a usable bandwidth well into the X-band (8-12GHz). Applications for the new package are in microwave and RFIC applications.