On the dielectric polarization effects in capacitive RF-MEMS switches

This paper investigates both theoretically and experimentally the dielectric charging effects of capacitive RF MEMS switches. Dielectric charging caused by charge injection under voltage stress was observed. The amphoteric nature of traps and its effect on the switch operation were confirmed under both positive and negative control voltages. Furthermore, it has been confirmed that the charging is a complicated process, which can be better described through the stretched exponential relaxation. This charging mechanism is the one that is responsible for the appearance of the negative pull out voltage and finally for the device failure.