Enhanced microwave dielectric properties and 5G filter design of rare-earth-doped Zn1.8SiO3.8 ceramics

With the rapid development of 5G communication technology, there is an increasing demand for low-loss, thermally stable dielectric ceramics suitable for microwave filter applications. This study focuses on the effects of heavy rare-earth element doping (Dy 3+ , Ho 3+ , Er 3+ ) on the microwave dielectric properties of Zn 1.8 SiO 3.8 ceramics, aiming at potential applications in 5G communication filters. The doped ceramics, namely ZDSO, ZHSO, and ZESO, were synthesized and characterized by XRD , SEM, FTIR , Raman, and dielectric property measurements. The results show that the addition of rare-earth ions effectively reduces the sintering temperature to 1250 °C , promotes grain growth, and significantly improves the dielectric properties , with ZHSO being the best performer ( ε ᵣ  =  7.02 , Q × f = 97,782  GHz , τ f  =  -28.03 ppm/°C ). Subsequently, microwave filters based on ZDSO, ZHSO, and ZESO were designed using Ansys HFSS simulation software, and their performance was evaluated through return loss (S 11 ), insertion loss (S 21 ). Simulation results indicate that the filters exhibit low S 21 and excellent S 11 in the frequency range of 6.425–7.125 GHz, along with superior frequency selectivity . Finally, the ZHSO-based filter was fabricated and measured using a vector network analyzer , confirming the reliability of the simulation results. These results highlight the promise of rare-earth-doped Zn 1.8 SiO 3.8 ceramics as cost-effective, environmentally friendly dielectric materials for high-performance microwave devices.