Electronic components comprising adjustable-capacitance micro-electro-mechanical capacitors

• US 7,495,882 B2
• Filed: 02/17/2004
• Issued: 02/24/2009
• Est. Priority Date: 02/18/2003
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Agence Spatiale Europeenne
• Original Assignee: Agence Spatiale Europeenne
• Inventors: Petz, Felix, Wittig, Manfred
• Primary Examiner(s): Ullah; Akm E
• Assistant Examiner(s): Diao; M'Baye
• Application Number:
  US10/545,616
• Publication Number:
  US 20060267558A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,834 Days
• Field of Search: 320/166, 324/415, 324/558, 324/649, 324/654, 324/658, 324/661, 307 21- 26, 307/37, 307/109, 307/409, 361/277, 315/39, 315/39.3, 315/39.55, 315/39.61, 315/355, 315/357
• US Class Current: 361/277
• CPC Class Codes: H01G 5/16 using variation of distance between electrodes
• CPC Class Codes: H01G 5/18 due to change in inclination, e.g. by flexing, by spiral wrapping
• CPC Class Codes: H01G 5/38 Multiple capacitors, e.g. ganged
• CPC Class Codes: H03J 2200/39 Variable capacitors implemented using microelectro-mechanical systems [MEMS]
• CPC Class Codes: H03J 3/185 with varactors, i.e. voltage variable reactive diodes

Abstract

Electronic component comprising at least one micro-electromechanical capacitor with adjustable capacitance comprising two electrodes free to move with respect to each other, and a control circuit (30) comprising measurement means (32) to measure the capacitance of the capacitor, means (35) of determining a capacitance difference between the measured capacitance of the capacitor and a set capacitance value, means (35 to 38) for injecting an electrical charge in a control electrode so as to create an electrostatic force capable of moving one of the two electrodes with respect to the other electrode and thus adjusting the capacitance of the capacitor, the injected electrical charge being determined as a function of the capacitance difference. This component is suitable for making an adjustable delay line, an adjustable quarter wave impedance transformer or for measuring the voltage, the power or the average intensity of an electrical signal.

Claims

1. Electronic component comprising:

at least one micro-electromechanical capacitor with adjustable capacitance comprising two electrodes free to move with respect to each other, and

means to create an electrostatic force capable of moving one of the two electrodes with respect to the other electrode and thus adjusting the capacitance of the capacitor,

wherein said means to create an electrostatic force comprises a control circuit including;

a loop with a measurement input, a control input, and an output, and

a current source outputting a measurement current to the measurement input;

and wherein said loop comprises;

a comparator having a first input connected to the measurement input, a second input connected to the control input, and an output providing a comparison signal,

first and second DC current sources outputting respective currents of equal intensities and reverse polarities, and

a switch selectively connecting the first DC current source or the second DC current source to the measurement input, depending on the comparison signal.

2. Electronic component according to claim 1, wherein said current source outputting the measurement current is an alternating current source and wherein the loop comprises a rectifying means connected between the measurement input of the loop and the first input of the comparator.

3. Electronic component according to claim 2, wherein the control circuit further comprises a squaring amplifier connected between the control input of the loop and the second input of the comparator.

4. Electronic component according to claim 1, integrated in an integrated circuit.

5. Electronic component according to claim 2, wherein the control electrode is one of the two electrodes of the capacitor.

6. Electronic component according to claim 2, wherein signals processed by the component and the alternating current source have respective first and second frequencies, and wherein the second frequency is lower than and remote from the first frequency.

7. Electronic component according to claim 1, wherein the control electrode is mechanically coupled to one of the two electrodes and electrically isolated from this one electrode.

8. Electronic component according to claim 1, wherein the electronic component comprises a plurality of micro-electromechanical capacitors with adjustable capacitance each comprising a first and a second electrode free to move with respect to each other, the first electrodes of the capacitors being interconnected in series by conducting tracks in the form of a winding and each forming an inductance so as to form a chain of electrodes, the ends of which electrodes are connected to two corresponding connection terminals of the component through two corresponding conducting tracks in the form of a winding, each winding forming an inductance, the second electrodes of the capacitors being connected to a ground plane.

9. Electronic component according to claim 1, wherein one of the two electrodes has two connection terminals and a length between the two connection terminals equal to a quarter of the wavelength of the signals processed by the component, so as to form a quarter wave impedance transformer.

10. Electronic component according to claim 1, wherein the component comprises a plurality of micro-electromechanical capacitors with adjustable capacitance comprising two electrodes free to move with respect to each other, one of the mobile electrodes in each of the capacitors having two connection terminals connected to corresponding connection terminals of the component and the corresponding lengths between the two connection terminals being different from each other, so as to form a set of quarter wave impedance transformers connectable in series, so as to adapt the total length of the capacitors interconnected in series to the wavelength of the signals processed by the component.

11. Electronic component according to claim 1, wherein the component is configured to measure at least one characteristic of a signal applied to one of the two electrodes of the capacitor, the control circuit being designed to keep the distance between the electrodes of the capacitor constant, independently of the signal applied to one of the two electrodes.

12. Electronic component according to claim 11, wherein the control circuit is coupled to means of measuring the voltage applied to the control electrode, that is proportional to the average voltage of the signal applied to one of the two electrodes.

13. Electronic component according to claim 11, wherein the distance between the two electrodes is balanced in the absence of a signal, the control circuit including means of keeping the distance between the electrodes at a value other than the equilibrium value.

14. Electronic component according to claim 11, wherein the component is configured to measure the average power of the signal applied to one of the two electrodes.

15. Electronic component according to claim 11, wherein the component is configured to measure the average intensity of the signal applied to one of the two electrodes.

16. Electronic component according to claim 12, wherein the distance between the two electrodes is balanced in the absence of a signal, the control circuit including means of keeping the distance between the electrodes at a value other than the equilibrium value.

17. Electronic component according to claim 12, wherein the component is configured to measure the average power of the signal applied to one of the two electrodes.

18. Electronic component according to claim 13, wherein the component is configured to measure the average power of the signal applied to one of the two electrodes.

19. Electronic component according to claim 12, configured to measure the average intensity of the signal applied to one of the two electrodes.

20. Electronic component according to claim 13, configured to measure the average intensity of the signal applied to one of the two electrodes.