A Novel K-Band Tunable Microstrip Bandpass Filter Using a Thin Film HTS/Ferroelectric/ Dielectric Configuration

We report on YBCO/strontium titanate (STO) thin film K-band tunable bandpass filters on lanthanum aluminate substrates. The 2 pole filters were designed for a center frequency of 19 GHz and 4% bandwidth. Tunability is achieved through the non-linear dc electric field dependence of the relative dielectric constant of STO (epsilon-rSTO). Center frequency shifts greater than 2 GHz were obtained at a 400V bipolar dc bias at temperatures below 77K, with minimum degradation in the insertion loss of the filters.