Electrooptic mapping of near-field distributions in integrated microwave circuits

A field mapping system based on external electrooptic sampling has been developed in order to determine the vectorial components of the electric near-field distribution within microwave integrated circuits. The capabilities of the setup are demonstrated by two-dimensional measurements of normal and tangential fields in a coplanar microwave distribution network at frequencies up to 15 GHz. Results obtained on a functioning power-distribution network, as well as on two nonfunctioning networks, show the ability of the technique to interrogate internal circuit operation and to isolate faults through investigation of the field distributions.