LAMINATES: DK, DF AND TRACE WIDTH

What are the Dk and Df of Rogers SpeedWave 300P?

Rogers SpeedWave 300P has a dielectric constant (Dk) of 3 and a loss factor (Df) of 0.0019 at 10 GHz, as published by its maker. A 50 ohm surface microstrip over a 0.2 mm dielectric comes out about 0.469 mm wide on it, against 0.353 mm on standard FR-4.

  • Dielectric loss on that microstrip is about 0.058 dB per inch at 10 GHz, and the signal travels at about 130 ps per inch.
  • Buried as a stripline between planes 0.4 mm apart, 50 ohms needs a trace about 0.191 mm wide.

50 ohm surface microstrip, 1 oz copper

Dielectric heightTrace width on Rogers SpeedWave 300POn standard FR-4
0.1 mm0.223 mm0.166 mm
0.2 mm0.469 mm0.353 mm
0.5 mm1.22 mm0.920 mm
1.6 mm3.97 mm3.02 mm

As published

PropertyValue
Prepreg GradeSpeedWave 300P
ChemistryLow-Dk Glass/Resin
Dk @ 10 GHz3.0–3.3
Df @ 10 GHz0.0019–0.0022
Tg (°C)170–220
Td (°C)390
Target Data Rate56–112 Gbps

How this was counted

Dk and Df are the maker's published values at 10 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).