| It is essential for RF design engineers to know the electrical properties of dielectric materials with certainty. Among the literature there are papers that tout the virtues of a particular manufacturer's material with sparse discussion of how those properties were ascertained. It is commonly known that various transmission line structures, including ring resonators, can enable the test engineer to determine these properties, having been given the physical dimensions of the structure, using modern s-parameter measurement instruments.; This thesis will first describe the scientific theory of transmission line operation. Then it will elaborate upon the various test methods. Finally, it will describe in detail, using original mechanical analogies the theory of operation of the ring resonator. Experimental examples will include ring resonator test structures made from Heraeus LTCC material and coaxial cable segments of RG 58 A/U using the Hewlett Packard 8510C Vector Network Analyzer. |
