Work

High-Volume OTA Production Testing of Millimeter-Wave Antenna-in-Package Modules

Year: 2025

Type: article

Abstract: This paper discusses challenges and methods for production-level over-the-air (OTA) test of antenna-in-package (AiP) modules comprising antenna arrays operating at millimeter-wave frequencies. Starting with the requirements of testing specific properties of AiP modules, characteristics of far-field tests as well as different kind of near-field tests are presented. Considering the constraints of typical automatic test equipment (ATE) used by the semiconductor industry, the paper describes technical solutions for the integration of OTA testing into the ATE environment. Practical examples are discussed for testing AiP modules for 5G communication (frequency bands from 24 GHz to 53 GHz). Limitations of the proposed techniques are detailed, and in view of future requirements for testing larger arrays at higher frequency, novel scalable approaches are presented for probing in the reactive near-field of the antenna array radiators.

Source: IEEE Open Journal of Instrumentation and Measurement

DOI: 10.1109/ojim.2025.3527529

Authors: Jose Moreira, Athanasios Papanikolaou, Jan Hesselbarth

Institution: University of Stuttgart

Language: English

Topic: Electromagnetic Compatibility and Measurements

Subfield: Electrical and Electronic Engineering

Field: Engineering

Domain: Physical Sciences

SDG: Industry, innovation and infrastructure

Open Access status: gold

Estimated APC paid: $2,075