Focus Microwaves: Microwave tuner and noise measurement specialists

Tuners for on-wafer operations
Focus manufactures special tuners for on-wafer operations. These are vibration-free tilt-compensated units with integrated bend-line for maximum VSWR. The massive tuner carriage of electro-mechanical slide screw tuners moves horizontally and causes the tuner to tilt. We compensate this by integrating the patented “balance-kit” (option -BK). This is a mobile weight, trimmed to within 1 gram of the weight of each carriage and moving synchronous opposite to the carriage, thus eliminating tilting completely. In addition iTuner micro-control electronics and software use smooth acceleration-deceleration ramps for horizontal movement, so any shock vibration from the horizontal carriage movement is eliminated as well. Tuner operation is so stable and quiet that new customers often have to check if the tuner moves at all. Integrated bend-lines (option –IBL) have been used for some time and allow the best possible VSWR on wafer. This is particularly true above 4 to 6 GHz, where coaxial cables start having significantly higher insertion loss than airlines.

MPT Applications: The ultra-stable mode of operation is a necessity for on-wafer vibration-free testing and is accomplished by moving the probes only vertically. By removing translational movement within the tuner, we are able to virtually eliminate all vibration associated with tuner movement. Click here for more information.