Solved with COMSOL Multiphysics 4.

SMA Connector on a Grounded Coplanar Waveguide

Introduction
SMA connectors are popularly used on printed circuit boards (PCB) for testing. This model shows how to excite an SMA connector on a microwave substrate and how to terminate a grounded coplanar waveguide (GCPW) with 50 using a lumped port and an air-bridge.
Coaxial lumped port

Metalized vias Air-bridge

SMA connector

60 mil substrate with a ground plane

Figure 1: An SMA connector is soldered onto a GCPW line. The other end of the GCPW line is terminated with 50 ohms using a lumped port.

Model Definition
The purpose of this model is to show how to excite a grounded coplanar waveguide with the signal from a coaxial cable through an SMA connector. The model also illustrates a particular 50 passive termination constructed with an air-bridge.

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The signal in the coaxial cable is carried by the TEM mode at 1 GHz. Inside the cable, the electric field of the TEM mode points radially between the inner and outer conductors. (In the cross-section of the cable, the electric field is the same as the electrostatic field with a DC voltage between the conductors.) This field passes through the SMA connector and excites a symmetric mode of the coplanar waveguide. The symmetric electric field in the coplanar waveguide points from the center conductor outwards to the conductors on either side, or depending on the phase, inwards from the outer conductors towards the center conductor. The ground plane on the bottom of the PCB with r = 3.38 is connected to the outer conductors of the CPW with metalized vias to prevent unwanted surface waves. The domain between the inner and outer conductor of the SMA connector is filled with Teflon and all metal parts including the SMA connector, CPW, metalized vias and air-bridge are modeled as perfect electric conductor. The entire modeling domain is bounded by scattering boundaries that represent an open space except the ground plane.

Horizontal configuration

Vertical configuration using an air-bridge

Figure 2: Two ways to add a port on a CPW This example evaluates the passive 50 termination on the GCPW in two ways (Figure 2). One is extending the lumped port horizontally from the center conductor to the outer conductor of the GCPW. The other is using an air-bridge which extends above the substrate and connects the outer conductors while maintaining an air gap between itself and the center conductor. In this case, the lumped port extends vertically from the center conductor to the air-bridge. All domains are meshed by a tetrahedral mesh with maximum element size of five elements per wavelength so that the wave is well-resolved. The parts in SMA connector and vias are meshed more finely to provide good resolution of the curved surfaces.

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Results and Discussion

The norm of electric fields is plotted in Figure 3. The plot setting is modified to show the fields on xy-plane confined between the center conductor and outer conductor (ground plane) of the GCPW. The evaluated S-parameters for both passive termination methods are approximately -24 dB.

Figure 3: The plotted electric field distribution is symmetric due to the geometry set up.

Model Library path: RF_Module/Transmission_Lines_and_Waveguides/

sma_connectorized_gcpw

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Modeling Instructions
From the File menu, choose New.
NEW

1 In the New window, click the Model Wizard button.

MODEL WIZARD

1 In the Model Wizard window, click the 3D button. 2 In the Select physics tree, select Radio Frequency>Electromagnetic Waves, Frequency Domain (emw). 3 Click the Add button. 4 Click the Study button. 5 In the tree, select Preset Studies>Frequency Domain. 6 Click the Done button.
GEOMETRY 1

1 In the Model Builder window, under Component 1 click Geometry 1. 2 In the Geometry settings window, locate the Units section. 3 From the Length unit list, choose mm.
GLOBAL DEFINITIONS

Parameters
1 On the Home toolbar, click Parameters. 2 In the Parameters settings window, locate the Parameters section.

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3 In the table, enter the following settings:

NAME EXPRESSION VALUE DESCRIPTION

r_inner r_outer l_sma w_c w_s f0 lda0

0.635[mm] 2.05[mm] 8[mm] 2.8[mm] 5.8[mm] 1[GHz] c_const/f0

6.3500E-4 m 0.0020500 m 0.0080000 m 0.0028000 m 0.0058000 m 1.0000E9 Hz 0.29979 m

Coax, inner radius Coax, outer radius SMA, pin length CPW, center conductor width CPW, center conductor and slot width Frequency Wavelength

Here, c_const is a predefined COMSOL constant for the speed of light in vacuum.
GEOMETRY 1

Block 1
1 On the Geometry toolbar, click Block. 2 In the Block settings window, locate the Size section. 3 In the Width edit field, type 60. 4 In the Depth edit field, type 40. 5 In the Height edit field, type 20. 6 Locate the Position section. In the y edit field, type -5. 7 Click the Wireframe Rendering button on the Graphics toolbar.

Block 2
1 On the Geometry toolbar, click Block. 2 In the Block settings window, locate the Size section. 3 In the Width edit field, type 60. 4 In the Depth edit field, type 30. 5 In the Height edit field, type 1.524. 6 Click the Build Selected button.

Work Plane 1
1 On the Geometry toolbar, click Work Plane. 2 In the Work Plane settings window, locate the Plane Definition section.

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3 From the Plane type list, choose Face parallel. 4 Select the object blk2 only. 5 Click the Active button next to the Planar face selection list. 6 On the object blk2, select Boundary 4 only.

Rectangle 1
1 In the Model Builder window, under Component 1>Geometry 1>Work Plane 1

right-click Plane Geometry and choose Rectangle.

2 In the Rectangle settings window, locate the Size section. 3 In the Width edit field, type 60. 4 In the Height edit field, type w_c. 5 Locate the Position section. In the xw edit field, type -30. 6 In the yw edit field, type -w_c/2.

Rectangle 2
1 Right-click Plane Geometry and choose Rectangle. 2 In the Rectangle settings window, locate the Size section. 3 In the Width edit field, type 60. 4 In the Height edit field, type w_s. 5 Locate the Position section. In the xw edit field, type -30. 6 In the yw edit field, type -w_s/2.

Rectangle 3
1 Right-click Plane Geometry and choose Rectangle. 2 In the Rectangle settings window, locate the Size section. 3 In the Width edit field, type 5. 4 In the Height edit field, type w_s. 5 Locate the Position section. In the xw edit field, type -30. 6 In the yw edit field, type -w_s/2.

Rectangle 4
1 Right-click Plane Geometry and choose Rectangle. 2 In the Rectangle settings window, locate the Size section. 3 In the Height edit field, type w_c. 4 Locate the Position section. In the xw edit field, type -25.

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5 In the yw edit field, type -w_c/2.

Difference 1
1 On the Work plane toolbar, click Difference. 2 Select the object r1 only. 3 In the Difference settings window, locate the Difference section. 4 Click the Active button next to the Objects to subtract selection list. 5 Select the object r4 only. 6 Select the Keep input objects check box.

Union 1
1 On the Work plane toolbar, click Union. 2 Select the objects r3, r1, and dif1 only.

Cylinder 1
1 On the Geometry toolbar, click Cylinder. 2 In the Cylinder settings window, locate the Size and Shape section. 3 In the Radius edit field, type r_inner. 4 In the Height edit field, type l_sma+3. 5 Locate the Position section. In the x edit field, type -l_sma. 6 In the y edit field, type 15. 7 In the z edit field, type 1.524+r_inner. 8 Locate the Axis section. From the Axis type list, choose x-axis.

Cylinder 2
1 On the Geometry toolbar, click Cylinder. 2 In the Cylinder settings window, locate the Size and Shape section. 3 In the Radius edit field, type r_outer. 4 In the Height edit field, type l_sma. 5 Locate the Position section. In the x edit field, type -l_sma. 6 In the y edit field, type 15. 7 In the z edit field, type 1.524+r_inner. 8 Locate the Axis section. From the Axis type list, choose x-axis.

Cylinder 3
1 On the Geometry toolbar, click Cylinder.

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2 In the Cylinder settings window, locate the Size and Shape section. 3 In the Radius edit field, type r_outer+0.6. 4 In the Height edit field, type l_sma. 5 Locate the Position section. In the x edit field, type -l_sma. 6 In the y edit field, type 15. 7 In the z edit field, type 1.524+r_inner. 8 Locate the Axis section. From the Axis type list, choose x-axis.

Difference 1
1 On the Geometry toolbar, click Difference. 2 Select the object cyl3 only. 3 In the Difference settings window, locate the Difference section. 4 Click the Active button next to the Objects to subtract selection list. 5 Select the object cyl2 only. 6 Select the Keep input objects check box.

Block 3
1 On the Geometry toolbar, click Block. 2 In the Block settings window, locate the Size section. 3 In the Width edit field, type 3. 4 In the Depth edit field, type r_inner*2. 5 In the Height edit field, type r_inner. 6 Locate the Position section. In the y edit field, type 15-r_inner. 7 In the z edit field, type 1.524.

Work Plane 2
1 On the Geometry toolbar, click Work Plane. 2 In the Work Plane settings window, locate the Plane Definition section. 3 From the Plane type list, choose Face parallel. 4 Click the Active button next to the Planar face selection list. 5 On the object dif1, select Boundary 10 only.

Square 1
1 In the Model Builder window, under Component 1>Geometry 1>Work Plane 2

right-click Plane Geometry and choose Square.

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2 In the Square settings window, locate the Size section. 3 In the Side length edit field, type 12.7. 4 Locate the Position section. From the Base list, choose Center.

Circle 1
1 Right-click Plane Geometry and choose Circle. 2 In the Circle settings window, locate the Size and Shape section. 3 In the Radius edit field, type 1.3. 4 Locate the Position section. In the xw edit field, type -4.3. 5 In the yw edit field, type -4.3.

Array 1
1 On the Work plane toolbar, click Array. 2 Select the object c1 only. 3 In the Array settings window, locate the Size section. 4 In the xw size edit field, type 2. 5 In the yw size edit field, type 2. 6 Locate the Displacement section. In the xw edit field, type 8.6. 7 In the yw edit field, type 8.6.

Chamfer 1
1 On the Work plane toolbar, click Chamfer. 2 On the object sq1, select Points 14 only. 3 In the Chamfer settings window, locate the Distance section. 4 In the Distance from vertex edit field, type 1.

Circle 2
1 Right-click Plane Geometry and choose Circle. 2 In the Circle settings window, locate the Size and Shape section. 3 In the Radius edit field, type 2.05.

Extrude 1
1 On the Geometry toolbar, click Extrude. 2 In the Extrude settings window, locate the Distances from Plane section.

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3 In the table, enter the following settings:

DISTANCES (MM)

-1.65

4 Click the Build Selected button.

Delete Entities 1
1 In the Model Builder window, right-click Geometry 1 and choose Delete Entities. 2 In the Delete Entities settings window, locate the Entities or Objects to Delete section. 3 From the Geometric entity level list, choose Domain. 4 On the object ext1, select Domains 26 only.

Union 1
1 On the Geometry toolbar, click Union. 2 Select the objects dif1, cyl1, del1, and blk3 only. 3 In the Union settings window, locate the Union section. 4 Clear the Keep interior boundaries check box.

Cylinder 4
1 On the Geometry toolbar, click Cylinder. 2 In the Cylinder settings window, locate the Size and Shape section. 3 In the Height edit field, type 1.524. 4 Locate the Position section. In the x edit field, type 5. 5 In the y edit field, type 7.

Array 1
1 On the Geometry toolbar, click Array. 2 Select the object cyl4 only. 3 In the Array settings window, locate the Size section. 4 In the x size edit field, type 11. 5 In the y size edit field, type 2. 6 Locate the Displacement section. In the x edit field, type 5. 7 In the y edit field, type 16.

Work Plane 3
1 On the Geometry toolbar, click Work Plane.

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2 In the Work Plane settings window, locate the Plane Definition section. 3 From the Plane list, choose zy-plane. 4 In the x-coordinate edit field, type 54.

Rectangle 1
1 In the Model Builder window, under Component 1>Geometry 1>Work Plane 3

right-click Plane Geometry and choose Rectangle.

2 In the Rectangle settings window, locate the Size section. 3 In the Height edit field, type w_s. 4 Locate the Position section. In the xw edit field, type 1.524. 5 In the yw edit field, type 12.1.

Rectangle 2
1 Right-click Plane Geometry and choose Rectangle. 2 In the Rectangle settings window, locate the Size section. 3 In the Width edit field, type 1.6. 4 In the Height edit field, type 6.8. 5 Locate the Position section. In the xw edit field, type 1.524. 6 In the yw edit field, type 11.6.

Difference 1
1 On the Work plane toolbar, click Difference. 2 Select the object r2 only. 3 In the Difference settings window, locate the Difference section. 4 Click the Active button next to the Objects to subtract selection list. 5 Select the object r1 only.

Rectangle 3
1 Right-click Plane Geometry and choose Rectangle. 2 In the Rectangle settings window, locate the Size section. 3 In the Height edit field, type 2.8. 4 Locate the Position section. In the xw edit field, type 1.524. 5 In the yw edit field, type 13.6.

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6 On the Home toolbar, click Build All.

The finished geometry should look like this. The inside metal body of the SMA connector and vias are not part of the model domain. By removing from the model domain, the exterior boundaries of those parts are set to PEC by default.
E LE C TROM A GN E TI C WAVES , FRE QU E NC Y D OM AI N

1 In the Model Builder window, under Component 1 click Electromagnetic Waves, Frequency Domain. 2 In the Electromagnetic Waves, Frequency Domain settings window, locate the Domain Selection section. 3 Click Clear Selection. 4 Select Domains 2, 5, and 6 only.

Perfect Electric Conductor 2

1 On the Physics toolbar, click Boundaries and choose Perfect Electric Conductor. 2 In the Perfect Electric Conductor settings window, locate the Boundary Selection

section.
3 Click Paste Selection. 4 Go to the Paste Selection dialog box.

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5 In the Selection edit field, type 55, 56, 67, 79, 213, 222, 223, 224. 6 Click the OK button.

Lumped Port 1
1 On the Physics toolbar, click Boundaries and choose Lumped Port. 2 Select Boundary 4 only. 3 In the Lumped Port settings window, locate the Lumped Port Properties section. 4 From the Type of port list, choose Coaxial. 5 From the Wave excitation at this port list, choose On.

Lumped Port 2
1 On the Physics toolbar, click Boundaries and choose Lumped Port. 2 Select Boundary 215 only.

Scattering Boundary Condition 1

1 On the Physics toolbar, click Boundaries and choose Scattering Boundary Condition. 2 Select Boundaries 49, 50, 52, 53, 81, 84, 227, and 228 only.
MATERIALS

Material 1
1 In the Model Builder window, under Component 1 right-click Materials and choose New Material. 2 In the Material settings window, locate the Material Contents section. 3 In the table, enter the following settings:
PROPERTY NAME VALUE UNIT PROPERTY GROUP

Relative permittivity Relative permeability Electrical conductivity

epsilonr mur sigma

1 1 0

1 1 S/m

Basic Basic Basic

Material 2
1 In the Model Builder window, right-click Materials and choose New Material. 2 Select Domain 2 only. 3 In the Material settings window, locate the Material Contents section.

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4 In the table, enter the following settings:

PROPERTY NAME VALUE UNIT PROPERTY GROUP

Relative permittivity Relative permeability Electrical conductivity

epsilonr mur sigma

2.1 1 0

1 1 S/m

Basic Basic Basic

Material 3
1 Right-click Materials and choose New Material. 2 Select Domain 6 only. 3 In the Material settings window, locate the Material Contents section. 4 In the table, enter the following settings:
PROPERTY NAME VALUE UNIT PROPERTY GROUP

Relative permittivity Relative permeability Electrical conductivity

MESH 1

epsilonr mur sigma

3.38 1 0

1 1 S/m

Basic Basic Basic

Size 1
1 In the Model Builder window, under Component 1 right-click Mesh 1 and choose Size. 2 In the Size settings window, locate the Element Size section. 3 Click the Custom button. 4 Locate the Element Size Parameters section. Select the Maximum element size check

box.
5 In the associated edit field, type lda0/5.

Size 2
1 In the Model Builder window, right-click Mesh 1 and choose Size. 2 In the Size settings window, locate the Geometric Entity Selection section. 3 From the Geometric entity level list, choose Domain. 4 Select Domain 6 only. 5 Locate the Element Size section. Click the Custom button. 6 Locate the Element Size Parameters section. Select the Maximum element size check

box.

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7 In the associated edit field, type lda0/5/sqrt(3.38).

Size 3
1 Right-click Mesh 1 and choose Size. 2 In the Size settings window, locate the Geometric Entity Selection section. 3 From the Geometric entity level list, choose Domain. 4 Select Domains 13 and 7 only. 5 Locate the Element Size section. From the Predefined list, choose Fine.

Size 4
1 Right-click Mesh 1 and choose Size. 2 In the Size settings window, locate the Geometric Entity Selection section. 3 From the Geometric entity level list, choose Boundary. 4 Select Boundaries 61, 67, 77, and 213215 only. 5 Locate the Element Size section. From the Predefined list, choose Extremely fine.

Free Tetrahedral 1
1 Right-click Mesh 1 and choose Free Tetrahedral. 2 In the Model Builder window, under Component 1>Mesh 1 right-click Free Tetrahedral 1 and choose Build All.
DEFINITIONS

View 1
1 In the Model Builder window, under Component 1>Definitions right-click View 1 and

choose Hide Geometric Entities.

2 In the Hide Geometric Entities settings window, locate the Geometric Entity Selection

section.
3 From the Geometric entity level list, choose Boundary. 4 Select Boundaries 49, 50, 52, 84, and 227 only.

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MESH 1

STUDY 1

Step 1: Frequency Domain

1 In the Model Builder window, under Study 1 click Step 1: Frequency Domain. 2 In the Frequency Domain settings window, locate the Study Settings section. 3 In the Frequencies edit field, type 1[GHz]. 4 On the Home toolbar, click Compute.
RESULTS

Electric Field (emw)

1 In the Multislice settings window, locate the Multiplane Data section. 2 Find the x-planes subsection. In the Planes edit field, type 0. 3 Find the y-planes subsection. In the Planes edit field, type 0. 4 Find the z-planes subsection. From the Entry method list, choose Coordinates. 5 In the Coordinates edit field, type 1.524. 6 Click to expand the Range section. Select the Manual color range check box.

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7 In the Maximum edit field, type 1500. 8 On the Electric Field (emw) toolbar, click Plot.

Derived Values
1 On the Results toolbar, click Global Evaluation. 2 In the Global Evaluation settings window, click Replace Expression in the upper-right

corner of the Expression section. From the menu, choose Electromagnetic Waves, Frequency Domain>Ports>S-parameter, dB (emw.S11dB).
3 Click the Evaluate button.

Place the listener port between the CPW center conductor and air-bridge. Compute again.
ELECTROMAGNETIC WAVES, FREQUENCY DOMAIN

Lumped Port 2
1 In the Model Builder window, under Component 1>Electromagnetic Waves, Frequency Domain click Lumped Port 2. 2 In the Lumped Port settings window, locate the Boundary Selection section. 3 Click Clear Selection. 4 Select Boundary 214 only.
STUDY 1

On the Home toolbar, click Compute.

RESULTS

Derived Values
1 On the Results toolbar, click Global Evaluation. 2 In the Global Evaluation settings window, click Replace Expression in the upper-right

corner of the Expression section. From the menu, choose Electromagnetic Waves, Frequency Domain>Ports>S-parameter, dB (emw.S11dB).
3 Click the Evaluate button.

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