LAMINATES: DK, DF AND TRACE WIDTH

What are the Dk and Df of ITEQ IT140G?

ITEQ IT140G has a dielectric constant (Dk) of 4.5 and a loss factor (Df) of 0.015 at 1 GHz, as published by its maker. A 50 ohm surface microstrip over a 0.2 mm dielectric comes out about 0.346 mm wide on it, against 0.353 mm on standard FR-4.

  • Dielectric loss on that microstrip is about 0.055 dB per inch at 1 GHz, and the signal travels at about 152 ps per inch.
  • Buried as a stripline between planes 0.4 mm apart, 50 ohms needs a trace about 0.120 mm wide.

50 ohm surface microstrip, 1 oz copper

Dielectric heightTrace width on IT140GOn standard FR-4
0.1 mm0.163 mm0.166 mm
0.2 mm0.346 mm0.353 mm
0.5 mm0.904 mm0.920 mm
1.6 mm2.97 mm3.02 mm

As published

PropertyValue
Tg (°C)155
Td (°C)365
Dk @ 1GHz4.5
Df @ 1GHz0.015
IPC-4101/21
Lead-FreeYes
Halogen-FreeYes

How this was counted

Dk and Df are the maker's published values at 1 GHz, from the MPBxChange material catalogue, which keeps each source's test frequency and method. Where a maker publishes a range, the midpoint is used. Widths are solved with the Hammerstad and Jensen microstrip equations and Wadell's stripline form, for 1 oz copper, and are a starting point: Dk moves with frequency, resin content and glass style, and a fabricator's field solver is the authority. Standard FR-4 here is the median of 22 FR-4 grades in the catalogue (Dk 4.4).