LTCC - R & D projects

IMST is or was involved into several public R&D projects, which are focusing LTCC. Some activities are supported by the German government others by the European Community under the frame of BriteEuram or Esprit. With the participation in these research projects, IMST has gained fundamental knowledge around LTCC. On the other hand basic development work has been carried out and published by IMST to support this promising technology. The following list summarizes the main results of the projects:

MultiFeed	Beam forming network for multi-feed Ka-band reflector antennas.
Keramis-2	Ceramic microwave experimental circuits for in-orbit verification.
Santana	Digital beam-forming patch array with 64 radiators.
Keramis	Ceramic microwave technology and circuits.
Gaps	GALILEO multi-path antenna.
Easton	Ka-band power combiner/divider network and RF benchmark.
Ramp	LTCC circuits, antennas, test structures, and 25GHz LMDS module.
4M	Multifunctional LOS module at 29GHz and microwave test circuits.
Kansas	Wilkinson dividers and Buttler matrix in LTCC.

	MultiFeed Configurable Multi-Feeding System for Ka-Band Reflector Antennas in Satellite Communications A German BMWI/DLR project (Apr. 09 - Mar. 11): MultiFeed stands for the design, manufacturing and characterization of a multilayer LTCC beam-forming network to excite the feed array of a high gain multi spot beam antenna for Ka-band multimedia services. Multi spot beam scenarios, covering the respective service areas by a so called four color beam topology seem to be the most suitable technology for this kind of satellite communication services.
	Keramis-2 Ceramic Microwave Circuits for Satellite Communications - 2 A German BMWI/DLR project (Oct. 06 - Mar. 11): KERAMIS-2 stands for the continued R&D-activities of an industrial-academic consortium of partners experienced with the design, development, and fabrication of compact microwave modules based on the ceramic multilayer technology LTCC for satellite communications at Ka-band frequencies. Specific challenges of the project are: To control the high structural precision required for industrial components for space-based microwave applications - To balance fabrication issues and microwave performance, and - To demonstrate full space qualification. Specific flight experiments are under development, which shall be implemented on board of a test satellite and remote tested in space...
	Santana Smart Antenna Terminal A German BMWI/DLR project (2007 - 2010): The goal of SANTANA III is the development of new technologies for planar electronically steerable antennas for mobile applications, including satellite communications on ships, cars and airplanes. The project covers the research and development of innovative system architectures and new antenna concepts. A special focus of SANTANA is the creation of a flat electronically steerable antenna using digital beam forming at Ka band. Now in the third project phase, a new system architecture has been developed that can handle several thousand radiating elements in parallel. This innovative concept will be presented at the end of this project phase.
	Keramis Ceramic Microwave Circuits for Satellite Communications A German BMBF/DLR project (Oct. 03 - Sep. 06): Keramis aims at the development of innovative and inexpensive components for future applications in multimedia satellite communications. The principle of operation and potential benefit for satellite-based systems will be demonstrated. The rationale of the project is to exploit the possibility of integrating passive and active components in LTCC multilayer strucrures, and by minimising the complexity of the semiconducting components. LTCC technology offers a number of benefits such as low-cost production and assembly, compact size and hermetic sealing, which are of utmost importance for satellite-based applications. 3 technological milestones for Ka-band satellite applications used for the down-link are under development: 1. Solid state power amplifier 2. Frequency synthesizer (VCO) 3. Reconfigurable 4x4 switch matrix
	Gaps Ultra Low Multi-Path Antennas An ESA project (2003 - 2006): GAPS is the development of a dedicated planar antenna for GALILEO, the future European satellite-based positioning system, which is currently in its testing phase. The main application of the antenna is high accuracy positioning, such as required for geodetic applications. In the past, choke ring structures were used to reduce the effect of multi-path. These devices are usually bulky and rather heavy (around 5 kg). Yet, with the advent of new technologies in the microwave region, like Electronic Band Gap (EBG) materials, it becomes possible to design more compact and light-weight antenna front-ends. Here, the design of a planar antenna for GALILEO receivers based on EBG-technology is presented ...
	Easton Power-Divider-Networks with Integrated Antennas on Multilayer LTCC A German BMBF/DLR project (Oct. 00 - Dec. 02): The LTCC activities of the KANSAS project are continued in EASTON: Buried power distribution networks in multilayer LTCC are under development. The divider network is feeding an antenna patch array. The main cell of each distribution network is the Wilkinson power divider with a buried screen printed resistor. An other important part of the project is the LTCC-RF-Benchmarking, where different LTCC material are tested up to 40 GHz under the same conditions ...
	Ramp Rapid Manufacture of Microwave and Power Modules A Brite-Euram III Project (BE-97-4883, Oct. 98 - Sept. 01): Design, fabrication and characterization of microwave structures and circuits on multilayer LTCC materials; Fabrication and investigation of heat sinks with DMMA (duplex metal-metalloid alloy) material for power modules; Demonstrators: Power Tx/Rx module, Communication link module and High power regulator; operating frequencies up to 40 GHz ...
	4M Multifunctional Micro- & MM-Wave Modules A German BMBF VDI/VDE-IT project (April 96 - Oct. 99): The prototype of a multifunctional LOS (Line of Sight) transceiver module has been developed for a frequency range of 27.5 to 29.5GHz. The highlights of this project are the advanced plastic technology for waveguide components like slotted waveguide antenna, power divider and diplexer, the multilayer PTFE board for intermediate frequency operation as well as the multilayer LTCC technology for the mm-wave module. This project demonstrates in an impressive way the combination and integration of the different technologies into one transceiver module ...
	Kansas Concepts for Active Antenna Arrays A German BMBF/DLR project (July 98 - June 01), in task 3: Investigation of feeding networks in multilayer technologies for phased antenna arrays; realization of a concept on multilayer LTCC with a patch radiator array; operating frequencies up to 40 GHz ...