Miniaturized MEMS-based GSG probes for microwave characterization

Miniaturized high-frequency ground-signal-ground (GSG) probes with micrometric dimensions are investigated for the microwave characterization of next generation nanoelectronic devices. A design guide including electromechanical and electromagnetic modeling of novel cantilever-based probes designed in silicon-on-insulator (SOI) based MEMS technology is proposed. The mechanical stress distribution and the deflection of the cantilever-based probe are studied in an effort to optimize the contact resistance between the probe and the device under test and maintaining low insertion loss. The insertion loss of the probes is estimated lower than 0.5 dB at 30 GHz and the predicted contact resistance is <;1 O. The present study helps to illuminate the roadmap for on-chip nanocharacterization using miniaturized HF probes.