Minimizing the bulk-wave scattering loss in dual-mode SAW devices

The losses arising from the scattering of SAW into bulk waves in the nonsynchronous areas of SAW devices are studied numerically using the boundary element method combined with the finite element method. As a reference structure, we use a typical one-port hiccup resonator on 42 degrees Y-LiTaO3. Strong scattering into bulk wave occurs in the central gap due to an abrupt change in periodicity. To reduce the scattering, we replace the gap with electrodes having reduced pitches. We show that it is possible to significantly increase the Q-factor of the resonator while keeping the resonant frequency unchanged. Two types of structures are studied: the "distributed" gap and the "accordion" gap. To minimize the bulk-wave scattering in dual-mode SAW filters, we replace the metallized gaps in the traditional filter with distributed gaps. We find an optimal combination of pitch and metallization ratio in the gaps, reducing the insertion loss by 0.3 dB.