Custom RF & Microwave Component Design Capabilities
In-House Engineering from Specification to Production
MCLI’s custom RF and microwave component design starts where the standard catalog ends: modified frequency ranges, non-standard coupling and attenuation values, specific connector interfaces, and mechanical packages built to fit the assembly the part drops into. Every custom program shares one requirement, a design that meets its electrical specification on the bench and keeps meeting it across a full production run. For over 40 years, MCLI has taken customer specifications from concept through electromagnetic modeling, prototyping, production, and final test, with every stage completed in-house at our 50,000 sq. ft. USA facility.
Why Engineers Choose MCLI for Custom RF and Microwave Design
Custom RF and microwave design is not a matter of pulling a part from a catalog and changing a value. A shift in one parameter carries through the rest of the response: widening bandwidth raises insertion loss, tightening isolation moves return loss, and raising power handling changes the mechanical footprint. It takes an engineering team that reads those trade-offs across the full band and a manufacturing operation that holds the design to specification in production. MCLI has designed hundreds of custom passive and active components each year across four decades as an RF and microwave component supplier, backed by in-house production and testing that keeps the design intent intact from prototype to delivered part.
In-House Design, Manufacturing, and Testing Under One Roof
Custom components lose time and traceability every time a design moves between separate vendors for engineering, fabrication, and test. MCLI runs all three in a single 50,000 sq. ft. USA facility, keeping full control over quality and traceability from raw material through final S-parameter test and shortening the time between an approved design and a shipped part.
Custom Engineering Beyond Standard Catalog Specifications
Many programs need components that catalog products cannot cover: non-standard frequency ranges, specific coupling and attenuation values, phase and amplitude balance targets, and connector interfaces from SMA and Type N through precision millimeter-wave connectors. MCLI produces hundreds of custom-designed components each year, engineered directly to the electrical and mechanical requirements the program defines.
Broad Frequency Coverage from DC to 70 GHz
A design partner limited to a narrow frequency range forces programs to split component sourcing across multiple suppliers. MCLI designs passive and active RF and microwave components from DC to 70 GHz, spanning L, S, C, X, Ku, K, and Ka bands and into the millimeter-wave range, using stripline, microstrip, and lumped element construction methods selected for each design.
Prototyping and Verification Before Production
A custom design that has not been tested against its specification before release carries the risk of changes after production starts. MCLI prototypes and verifies custom designs in-house, confirming insertion loss, VSWR (Voltage Standing Wave Ratio), and isolation targets across the full operating band before a production run begins.
Direct Access to RF Engineering Support from Concept to Delivery
Custom design works best when the engineer specifying the part can talk directly to the engineer designing it. MCLI’s engineering team supports customers from initial specification through design feasibility, prototyping, production, and final test, with quote turnaround on standard catalog items within 24 hours.
The Challenge: What Makes Custom RF and Microwave Design Difficult
Designing an RF or microwave component to a specific set of requirements means holding several competing electrical and mechanical parameters within tolerance at the same time, then building the part so it performs the same way in production as it did on the bench. The design constraints below are the ones MCLI works through on custom programs, and the reasons custom RF design narrows the pool of capable suppliers.
Balancing Competing Electrical Parameters
Holding Tight Tolerances Across the Full Operating Band
Translating a System Requirement into a Manufacturable Design
Fitting the Component into a Constrained Mechanical Package
Keeping Lead Times Short on Non-Standard Work
The Solution: How MCLI Delivers Custom RF & Microwave Component Design
MCLI has run in-house RF design and testing for over 40 years, building the engineering depth and manufacturing control that custom component work requires. Design, fabrication, and test happen under one roof at our 50,000 sq. ft. USA facility, which keeps quality and traceability in place at every stage from specification through delivery. The result is a design partner whose custom components perform in the system the way they performed on the bench.
Engineering the Full Parameter Set Together
Programs need a design team that treats insertion loss, VSWR, isolation, power handling, and phase performance as one connected response, not a list of independent targets. MCLI engineers work the trade-offs across the full parameter set during design and electromagnetic modeling, arriving at the combination that closes the specification instead of maximizing one value at the expense of another.
Performance Verified Across the Band and Over Temperature
A specification only holds if it is measured everywhere the component operates. MCLI verifies every custom design on vector network analyzers, measuring S-parameters (insertion loss, return loss, VSWR, and isolation) across the full operating band before release to production and again before parts ship.
Designs Built for Repeatable Production
A custom component is only as good as the hundredth unit off the line. MCLI designs with production in mind from the first iteration, and because fabrication happens in the same facility as engineering, the design team confirms that each part holds insertion loss and VSWR across a full production lot rather than handing that risk to an outside vendor.
Electrical Performance Inside the Mechanical Envelope
Programs need components that meet specification within the footprint, height, connector orientation, and mounting configuration the assembly dictates. MCLI selects stripline, microstrip, lumped element, coaxial, or waveguide construction to fit the mechanical envelope, and engineers custom packages, adapters, and connector interfaces where standard formats do not fit.
One Facility from Specification to Shipment
Lead time on custom work is a function of how many vendors a design passes through. MCLI keeps design, fabrication, and test in one building, which removes hand-off delays and keeps custom microwave component manufacturing on schedules that outsourced workflows cannot match, with quote turnaround on standard catalog items within 24 hours.
Result: Custom components that close their specification, hold it in production, and arrive on schedule.
What Does MCLI Design? Custom RF Component Design Across Every Component Family
MCLI applies custom design and engineering across the full range of passive and active RF and microwave components. Each design area below covers a component family MCLI engineers to specification, the applications it supports, and the product lines the design work produces.
Custom Filter Design
MCLI designs custom filters (bandpass, lowpass, highpass, and bandreject) to non-standard center frequencies, passband widths, and rejection requirements. Chebyshev, Butterworth, and elliptic responses are matched to each application’s insertion loss, passband ripple, and skirt-selectivity targets, with stripline, microstrip, or cavity construction chosen for the Q factor and power handling the design needs.
Applications:
- Channel selection and band definition
- Harmonic and spurious suppression
- Out-of-band and image rejection
- Narrow-passband, high-Q filtering
Signal Distribution and Combining Design
MCLI designs power dividers, combiners, and directional couplers with modified frequency ranges, coupling values, and port counts, engineered for low amplitude and phase imbalance, high isolation, and flat coupling across the operating band.
Applications:
- Antenna feed and beamforming networks
- Power splitting and combining
- Signal monitoring and sampling taps
- Multi-port distribution
Attenuation and Signal Control Design
MCLI engineers fixed, variable, and PIN diode attenuators along with phase shifters for precise control of signal level and phase, with attention to attenuation flatness, phase tracking, and switching speed across the band.
Applications:
- Level setting and gain balancing
- Automatic gain control loops
- Phase trimming and beam steering
- Test and calibration setups
Isolation and Switching Design
MCLI designs isolators, circulators, and switches to specific frequency, isolation, and power-handling requirements, holding low insertion loss and high port-to-port isolation for source protection and signal routing.
Applications:
- Source and amplifier protection
- Transmit and receive routing
- Signal path selection
- Port-to-port isolation
High-Frequency and Waveguide Design
MCLI designs waveguide components, terminations, bias tees, and zero-bias detectors across standard WR waveguide bands for high-frequency, high-power designs that hold VSWR and power handling under demanding operating conditions.
Applications:
- Millimeter-wave signal handling
- High-power termination
- DC bias insertion on RF lines
- Signal detection and monitoring
What Industries Does MCLI Support With RF and Microwave Design Services?
MCLI’s custom design work is cross-industry, engineered to the requirements of each program regardless of the market it serves. Each industry below places its own demands on frequency coverage, environmental qualification, and production volume, and MCLI designs to those requirements directly. The following are the primary industries MCLI designs RF and microwave components for.
Military and Defense
Defense programs need custom, ruggedized components qualified to MIL-STD-202 for radar, secure communications, and electronic warfare platforms operating on the ground, in the air, and at sea. MCLI designs and tests these components in-house across L through Ka band, with the qualification documentation defense procurement requires.
Biotech and Medical
Medical device OEMs and biotechnology companies need precision components for imaging systems (MRI, CT), diagnostic instrumentation, therapeutic RF and microwave ablation systems, and connected medical devices. MCLI designs to the signal accuracy, compact integration, and long-lifecycle requirements medical equipment demands.
Commercial Systems
Telecom infrastructure, test and measurement, and industrial RF programs need components that hold repeatable insertion loss and VSWR across a production lot and arrive on schedule. MCLI designs for commercial programs where production consistency and delivery timing carry as much weight as the electrical specification.
Research and Academia
Laboratories and research institutions developing new RF and microwave technology often need custom components and prototypes in single-piece or low-volume quantities. MCLI supports research programs with RF component prototyping and small-run custom manufacturing that most volume-oriented suppliers do not take on.
Why In-House Design Matters Across Every Industry
Running design, manufacturing, and test in one facility keeps quality control and traceability in place at every stage and shortens the path from an approved design to a delivered part. For programs that need a custom component built to specification, that control is the difference between a part that closes on the bench and one that performs in the system.
Talk to an RF Engineer About Your Custom Design Requirements
If you are designing a system that needs a custom RF or microwave component, our engineering team can help with specification matching, custom design feasibility, prototyping, and lead time planning. We respond to quote requests within 24 hours for standard catalog items and work directly with programs on custom design requirements from concept through delivery.
Custom RF & Microwave Component Design: Related Products and Capabilities
MCLI’s RF & microwave engineering capabilities cover design, manufacturing, and testing completed in-house at our USA facility under ISO 9001:2015 quality controls, with qualification to MIL-STD-202 test methods where the application requires it.
RF and Microwave Engineering Capabilities
Custom RF and Microwave Component Design
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Low-Loss, High-Reliability Design
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Ruggedized Design for Harsh Environments
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Frequency-Specific Design
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Construction Method Selection
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Featured RF and Microwave Products
Power Dividers and Combiners
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90° and 180° Hybrids
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Phase Shifters
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Electromechanical and PIN Diode Switches
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Waveguide Components
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Bias Tees
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Connectors and Adapters
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Directional Couplers
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Variable and Fixed Attenuators
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Isolators and Circulators
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Amplifiers
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Terminations
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Zero-Bias Diode Detectors
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Custom RF Assemblies
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Frequently Asked Questions: Custom RF & Microwave Component Design
What does the RF and microwave component design process involve?
What frequency bands does MCLI design components for?
Can MCLI design components that are not in the standard catalog?
What test equipment does MCLI use to verify custom designs?
What quality standards does MCLI design and manufacture to?
How long does a custom RF or microwave design take?
What construction methods does MCLI use for custom designs?
Does MCLI support prototyping before full production?
What types of RF and microwave components can MCLI design?
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How do I start a custom RF or microwave design project with MCLI?
Precision RF Design Starts Here
Partner with an engineering team that designs, manufactures, and tests high-reliability RF and microwave components in-house, from specification to delivery.