Low RF noise and power loss for ion-implanted Si having an improved implantation process

Very-low-transmission line noise of <0.25 dB at 18 GHz and low power loss ≤0.6 dB at 110 GHz have been measured on transmission lines fabricated on proton-implanted Si. In contrast, a standard Si substrate gave much higher noise of 2.5 dB and worse power loss of 5 dB. The good RF integrity of proton-implanted Si results from the high isolation impedance to ground, as analyzed by an equivalent circuit model. The proton implantation is also done after forming the transmission lines at a reduced implantation energy of ∼4 MeV. This enables easier process integration into current VLSI technology.