MICROSTRIP LINE

Microstrip lines belong to a group of lines known as parallel-plate

transmission lines. They are widely used in present-day electronics.
A microstrip line consists of a single ground plane and an open
strip conductor separated by dielectric substrate as shown in Figure
11.38. It is constructed by the photographic processes used for
integrated circuits.

 Analytical derivation of the characteristic properties of the line is

cumbersome. We will consider only some basic, valid empirical
formulas necessary for calculating the phase velocity,
impedance, and losses of the line.
Due to the open structure of the microstrip line, the EM field is
not confined to the dielectric, but is partly in the surrounding air
as in Figure 11.39. Provided the frequency is not too high, the
microstrip line will propagate a wave that, for all practical
purposes, is a TEM wave.
Because of the fringing, the effective relative permittivity eef
is less than the relative permittivity er of the substrate. If w is the
line width and h is the substrate thickness, an a approximate
value of eef is given by:

 The characteristic impedance is given by the following

approximate formulas:

The characteristic impedance of a wide strip is often low while

that of a narrow strip is high.

 For design purposes, if er and Zo are known, the ratio wlh

necessary to achieve Zo is given by:

Where:

 From the knowledge of eeff and Zo, the phase constant and
the phase velocity of a wave propagating on the microstrip
are given by:

where c is the speed of light in a vacuum. The attenuation

due to conduction (or ohmic) loss is (in dB/m):

 where
is the skin resistance of the conductor. The
attenuation due to dielectric loss is (in dB/m)

Where
is the line wavelength and
is the loss
tangent of the substrate. The total attenuation constant is the
sum of the ohmic attenuation constant ac and the dielectric
attenuation constant ad, that is,
Sometimes ad is negligible in comparison with ac. Although
they offer an advantage of flexibility and compactness, the
microstrip lines are not useful for long transmission due to
excessive attenuation.

EXAMPLE 11.10
A certain microstrip line has fused quartz (er = 3.8) as a
substrate. If the ratio of line width to substrate
thickness is wlh = 4.5, determine:
(a) The effective relative permittivity of the substrate
(b) The characteristic impedance of the line
(c) The wavelength of the line at 10 GHz
ANSWER:
a.) 3.131
b.) 9.576
Ohms
c.)16.9mm

EXAMPLE 11.11
Calculate the attenuation due to ohmic losses at 20 GHz
for a microstrip line constructed of copper conductor
having a width of 2.5 mm on an alumina substrate. Take
the characteristic impedance of the line as 50 Ohms.

ANSWER:
2.564 dB/m