Monolithic SAW oscillators on silicon

In this report progress in development of a monolithic SAW silicon resonator is described. Specific studies and results in the areas of piezoelectric films for generation and detection of SAW are presented. A multi-mode SAW resonator using thin film ZnO on silicon was designed, fabricated and characterized. Methods were developed for a new technique of fabricating silicon SAW resonator cavity using orientational etching. It was concluded that this type of etching results in well-defined sidewall structures for reflector cavity element, producing a superior resonant performance with lower phase noise than conventional SAW resonators. Automated measurement equipment was employed to evaluate devices and confirm equivalent circuit models. Device performance very closely matched original circuit models showing excellent confirmation of design parameters.