Patent ID: 6849879

Claim:
A crosspoint monolithic microwave integrated circuit (MMIC) switch array, wherein the crosspoint MMIC switch array operates in a range between DC and microwave frequencies, the crosspoint MMIC switch array comprising: a dielectric stack, including an upper dielectric layer and a lower dielectric layer; a substrate, including a first semiconductor; a first ground plane, the first ground plane being positioned between the dielectric stack and the substrate; a plurality of thyristor switches, the plurality of thyristor switches being embedded in the lower dielectric layer, and each of the plurality of thyristor switches including a top and a bottom; a plurality of signal transmission lines arranged in rows; a plurality of signal transmission lines arranged in columns, wherein the plurality of signal transmission lines arranged in columns intersect the plurality of signal transmission lines arranged in rows at a plurality of intersection points, wherein each of the plurality of thyristor switches is associated with one of the plurality of intersection points, wherein each of the plurality of thyristor switches is in electrical contact with the signal transmission lines that intersect at the associated intersection point, and wherein the first ground plane includes a plurality of apertures, each of the plurality of thyristor switches being associated with one of the plurality of apertures.