On the measurement of electrical characteristics of non-radiating dielectric waveguide

With increasing application of millimeter wave integrated circuits (mm-ICs) in radiometry, radar, astronomy, and communications, more accurate design data for various waveguide structures are becoming necessary. The majority of the millimeter-wave integrated circuits is based on the printed transmission lines such as suspended microstrip lines [1], fin lines [2] and non-radiating dielectric (NRD) waveguides [3]. The components in this form are an extension of the microstrip integrated circuits. As the operating frequency increases, the substrate thickness and centre strip width must be made smaller, to avoid higher order modes to propagate. The decrease in center strip width causes increased current density and propagation losses. There are also difficulties in terms of cost, performance and ease of fabrication. A remedy to these problems, is to use dielectric waveguides in integrated circuits design.