8Properties of Materials

8.1 Metals*

Metals serve many different functions in the realization of radio frequency (RF) and microwave devices, each of which results in different requirements that must be met. Thus, the optimum metal for each application will vary widely. Considerations include a wide range of electrical, mechanical, chemical, and thermal properties.

A first-order consideration in the choice of metals for many electrical applications is the electrical resistance of the metal conductor. DC resistance of a metal rod is given by

R=ρLA

8.1

where

  1. R is the resistance of the rod

  2. ρ is the resistivity of the metal

  3. L is the length of the rod

  4. A is the cross-sectional area of the rod

The dc electrical properties of metals are also ...

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