The effect of load variations on on-wafer lumped element based calibrations

We present a study of DC and RF measured variations in the resistance of loads that are to be used for on-wafer calibrations on GaAs substrates. The impact on measurement-based calibration definitions, and the calibration errors arising from neglecting the variations will be explored. Promising solutions for accommodating the variations into accurate on-wafer calibration strategies are advanced based on the use of the dc resistance of the load standard to aid in the calibration standard definition process.