An MDS Down Converter of Thick-Film MIC for 2 GHZ Pay TV

An MIC down converter which converts a 2150-MHz TV signal to a 60 MHz (U. S. ch. 3) signal was developed by using thick-film technology. 2 GHz frequency band belongs to so-called microwave band. MIC technology for industrial microwave communication equipment was basically completed in the 1960' s [1]. Microwave circuits generally need adjustment (which raises cost) in order to carry out full operation of each circuit device. The converter shown in this report must have feasibility for mass-production as well as other consumer equipment characteristics such as low cost and large quantity, and must have performance satisfying quasi-communication equipment specifications. In order to develop such a microwave consumer device (converter), we employed thick-film technology. Thick-film is inferior in precision of dimension and conductivity of circuit pattern to thin-film. However, the low production cost of thick-film hybrid circuits is a very effective point for consumer equipment production. The demerit points mentioned above can be improved by system and circuit design idea.