Nokia Bell Labs D Band Filter Enabled By Samtec Glass Core Technology
This is the final installment in a series of blogs about Samtec glass core technology as showcased at IMS 2025.
Samtec’s proprietary glass core technology, or GCT, enables high-performance connectivity. Current applications include filters, antennas, splitters, and phased-array modules from leading companies in the communications and medical electronics sectors.
Our most popular glass core technology products are through-glass vias (TGVs) and redistribution layer circuitry (RDLs). GCT allows for cleaner signals, less loss, and fewer discrete components to assemble.
In the video above, Michael Holyoak from Nokia Bell Labs discusses the filter and the benefits of using glass core technology instead of an organic approach. The device under test is a glass, 7-pole bandpass filter that incorporates Samtec glass core technology, or GCT. We see Rohde and Schwarz equipment (ZNA and up/down converters) at d band (110 – 170 GHz).
This demonstration showcases the performance of glass versus that of an ordinary substrate technology, like printed circuit board or organic. We observe the reliability of GCT simulations to actual performance, as compared to PCB.
Previous blogs about GCT at IMS include a discussion by Nokia Bell Labs’ Shahriar Shahramian on the benefits of glass substrates in their applications. Shahriar comments that “Samtec has a particular way of processing glass. It gives us lithography precision, predictability of the metalization, and these amazing vias that can be placed inside the glass. In fact, this processing almost allows us to treat the glass substrate as an extension of our silicon. Meaning, now we can architect the chip sets, and put things on glass that we couldn’t put before. And then bring an entirely new performance metric from these modules.”
In another GCT/IMS 2025 video, Michael Holyoak discusses the design of Nokia Bell Labs’ e band radio on glass. He explains that they “considered glass not only as a packaging platform but also as an ultra-high-performance platform to act as an extension for their ASICs. They were looking for a way to embed and … extract the performance of glass, and enable ultra-high performance at these high frequencies at mm wave.”
If you can stomach one more video, several exhibitors at IMS displayed products powered by Samtec glass core technology. This video provides a brief overview of six of those applications.
Still here? In that case, this blog might be of interest: Should I Design On Glass? The Top Five Things To Know About GCT.
