Dielectric properties of semi-insulating silicon at microwave frequencies

The permittivity and dielectric loss tangent of high-purity silicon with semi-insulating properties achieved by the irradiation with 23-MeV protons have been measured at frequencies from 1 GHz to 15 GHz. The dielectric losses were separated from the conductor losses on the basis of the total loss tangent measurements versus frequency. The resistivity measurements of the material performed at radio frequencies (RF) by means of the capacitance spectroscopy method have shown the non-uniform resistivity distribution in the direction perpendicular to the surface of the semi-insulating wafer. The excellent agreement between the resistivity measurements results at RF and those obtained by using microwave methods have been achieved. It has been confirmed that high-purity, semi-insulating silicon is practically non-dispersive and possesses extremely low dielectric losses that are constant to within experimental errors in the frequency range from 1 GHz to 350 GHz. In this frequency range, the dielectric loss tangen...