US Patent 7638790 - RF nanoswitch

http://www.freepatentsonline.com/7638790.html

Carbon nanotubes have been proposed for RF switches in the past but suffer from a significant contact resistance producing signal loss. This patent from Samsung teaches an alternative nanoswitch configuration designed to minimize the on resistance. Claim 1 reads:

1. A radio frequency (RF) nanoswitch comprising:

a first electrode unit connected to one terminal of a driving power supply;

a second electrode connected to the other terminal of the driving power supply; and

a dielectric material fixed to a nanotube, the dielectric material selectively coming into contact with at least one of the first electrode unit and the second electrode, depending on whether or not power is applied from the driving power supply, wherein the dielectric material is configured to allow a signal to transfer between the second electrode and the first electrode unit, via the nanotube, when the dielectric material is in contact with one of the first electrode unit and the second electrode.