New Q-Enhanced Planar Resonators for Low Phase-Noise Radio Frequency Oscillators

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The completion of this dissertation would not have been possible without the help and encouragement of many people. First, I would like to sincerely thank my research advisor Professor Amir Mortazawi for his continuous support and encouragement, and for the opportunity he provided for me to conduct independent research. I also sincerely thank my other committee members, Professor Kamal Sarabandi, Professor Anthony Grbic, and Professor Jerome Lynch for their interest and valuable expertise, time, and effort in advising my dissertation work. I also would like to thank all my friends with whom my relationship expands beyond the circle of professional acquaintances. Specially thanks to my very good friends, Dr. Ali Nazari and Dr. Alireza Tabatabaeenejad, for their invaluable friendship and support since the very first days I came to the United States. My special thanks also to my other good friend Sepehr Entezari with whom I spent wonderful times during the past three years. Also my gratitude to all my other friends in the Radiation Laboratory and EECS department, and my friends in Ann Arbor, who made my stay in Michigan enjoyable. Finally, I am most grateful to my family in Iran, whose unconditional love and support has lit my way through the life. Specially, I thank my father Gholam-Abbas and my mother Najmeh, who were my first teachers and their love and encouragement inspired my passion for learning. It is to commemorate their love that I dedicate this thesis to them.