This week at IMS, Menlo Micro has introduced their latest series of RF/microwave switches. The company responsible for re-inventing the electronic switch with its MEMS based Ideal Switch technology announced that it is now sampling the MM51xx series of products. These new products, which operate at high power with ultra-low RF losses, and in a miniaturized surface-mount package, bring unprecedented performance improvements as compared to electromechanical and solid-state RF switches.
The MM5130 SP4T switch is designed to handle power levels up to 25W with an insertion loss of less than 0.6 dB of at 12GHz. The MM5120 incorporates an integrated driver to facilitate switch control. This type of RF performance is usually reserved for large RF mechanical relays, which are 50x larger, 1000x slower and 1000x less reliable than products manufactured with Menlo Micro’s Ideal Switch technology. In addition, the MM51xx series features extreme linearity and harmonic performance, in many cases +30dB to +40dB better than solid-state, all with high power handling capability and stable performance over much broader bandwidths, down to DC.
These attributes make the MM51xx series very attractive solutions for low-loss switched filter banks, tunable filters, step attenuators, and even beam steering antennas for a variety of radio architectures in both commercial and military communications networks. The high-channel density and low losses make them ideal for ultra-compact switch matrices for test and measurement applications.
Menlo Micro’s partnership with Corning Incorporated, leaders in Through Glass Via (TGV) packaging technology, has enabled a truly unique package design for RF switches. Menlo Micro’s metal-to-metal contact switch, constructed on a fully-isolating glass substrate and shrunk down to the form factor of a solid-state device, reduces parasitics and increases RF performance.
This week at IMS in Boston – in collaboration with industry partners – Menlo Micro's RF Applications Team is demonstrating the MM51xx series of products and a few of the many applications for these high-performance switches, including very low-loss switched filter banks ideal for 5G infrastructure, military and commercial applications.
Stop by the Menlo Micro booth on the show floor to learn more.
Click here to see what other companies are showcasing at IMS 2019.
