Empirical design consideration of the Q-factor of on-chip square spiral inductors on silicon-on-sapphire
Yang B., Skafidas E., Evans R.
An important component in the design of radio frequency integrated circuits is the design and fabrication of integrated on-chip inductors. Design of integrated inductors is a time consuming process usually requiring significant amount of electromagnetic simulation. During this process a designer simulates an inductor geometry that will provide the requisite inductance and usually iterates the design to achieve the maximum quality factor (Q). Due to the complexity and the lack of formulae this process is an art and the designer is guided by past designs and experience. This paper investigates the effect of geometric parameters on the Q (quality factor) of an inductor. In this paper formula are established that relate Q factor to inductor geometry.