Self-Biased Y-Junction Circulator

Northeastern University, Boston MA

Investigators

Abstract

0140177 Vittoria The proposes a two-fold research plan for the purpose of producing the first generation of self-biased ferrite circulator devices. In the first research plan he develops techniques to prepare composite ferrite/dielectric materials consisting of dielectric paste filling material and oriented hexaferrite particles. In the second phase of the research plan, he will utilize the special properties of the composites to design and test circulation devices from 1 to 20 GHz. He anticipates that the performance of the self-biased circulators to behave similarly to circulators using spinel and garnet ferrites in terms of frequency bandwidth of operation, insertion loss and isolation. Whereas the traditional circulator devices is characterized by the so-called "puck" design, his design will integrate the circulator devices into a semiconductor/dielectric substrate utilizing the well known thick film glass on screen print technolagies. In addition, the self-biased hexaferrite circulators proposed here will do away with permanent magnets which in most cases occupy considerable space in a microwave circuit board. Reduction in circulator size translates into reduction of fabrication costs and increased efficiency in the performance of the overall microwave circuit board. The research program comprises of preparation of composites of hexaferrites and dielectric paste on glass, characterization of the oriented ferrite composite materials, fabrication of stripline/microstrip circulators, testing of the circulators and modeling of the microwave and static properties of the composite materials.