Material characterization of a high-dielectric-constant polymer-ceramic composite for embedded capacitor for RF applications

Embedded capacitor technology can improve electrical performance and reduce assembly cost compared with traditional discrete capacitor technology. Polymer-ceramic composites have been of great interest as embedded capacitor materials because they combine the processability of polymers with the desired electrical properties of ceramics. We have developed a novel nariostructure polymer-ceramic composite with a very high dielectric constant (e(r) approximate to 150, a new record for the highest reported e(r) value of a nanocomposite) in a previous work. RF applications of embedded capacitors require that the insulating material have a high e(r) at a high frequency (in the gigahertz range), low leakage current, high breakdown voltage, and high reliability. A set of electrical tests were conducted in this study to characterize the electrical properties of the novel high-e(r) polymer-ceramic nanocomposite developed inhouse. The results show that this material had a fairly high e(r) in the RF range, low electrical leakage, and high breakdown voltage. An 85degreesC/85% thermal humidity aging test was been performed, and it showed that this novel high-K material had good reliability. An embedded capacitor prototype with a capacitance density of 35 nF/cm(2) was manufactured with this nanocomposite with spin-coating technology. This novel nanocomposite can be used for the integral capacitors for RF applications. (C) 2004 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.