IEC 63155:2020 defines the measurement method for the determination of the durability of radio frequency (RF) surface acoustic wave (SAW) and bulk acoustic wave (BAW) devices, such as filters and duplexers, with respect to high power RF signals, which are used in telecommunications, measuring equipment, radar systems and consumer products. RF BAW devices include two types: those based on the film bulk acoustic resonator (FBAR) technology and those based on the solidly mounted resonator (SMR) technology.
This document includes basic properties of failure of RF SAW/BAW devices, and guidelines to set up the measurement system and to establish the procedure to estimate the time to failure (TF). Since TF is mainly governed by the RF power applied in the devices, discussions are focused on the power durability.
It is not the aim of this document to explain the theory, or to attempt to cover all the eventualities which can arise in practical circumstances. This document draws attention to some of the more fundamental questions which will need to be considered by the user before he/she places an order for an RF SAW/BAW device for a new application. Such a procedure will be the user's means of preventing unsatisfactory performance related to premature device failure resulting from high-power exposure of RF SAW/BAW devices.