Antenna with a conductive layer and a two-band transmitter including the antenna

• US 20020003499A1
• Filed: 07/03/2001
• Published: 01/10/2002
• Est. Priority Date: 07/10/2000
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Alcatel-Lucent SA (Nokia Corporation)
• Original Assignee: Alcatel SA (Nokia Corporation)
• Inventors: Coupez, Jean-Philippe, Kouam, Charles Ngounou
• Granted Patent: US 6,496,148 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• US Class Current: 343/700MS
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/243 with built-in antennas
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 5/371 Branching current paths
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 9/0421 with a shorting wall or a shorting pin at one end of the element H01Q9/0414 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 9/045 with particular feeding means for circular polarisation H01Q9/0428

Abstract

The antenna of said transmitter is a microstrip antenna. A rear edge of its patch is provided with a short circuit by means of which a quarter-wave primary resonance can be excited by a coplanar line formed by two coupling slots in an area. Separator slots separate said area from another area in which a secondary resonance can be established at twice the frequency of the primary resonance from a slotted line extending one slot of the coplanar line. The invention applies in particular to the production of a dual-mode mobile telephone to the GSM and DCS standards.

Claims

1. An antenna with a conductive layer and a coupling system which includes a coplanar line formed by two primary coupling slots in a conductive layer of said antenna, wherein said coupling system further includes a slotted line formed by a slot connected to one of said two primary coupling slots and constituting a secondary coupling slot.

2. An antenna according to claim 1, including a patch and an earth layer co-operating with said patch in accordance with the microstrip technology, and wherein said coupling slots extend in said patch.

3. An antenna according to claim 2, wherein said patch includes a separator system including at least one separator slot and defining two areas in said patch respectively constituting:

a primary resonance area including said coplanar line, and

a secondary resonance area including said slotted line.

4. A two-band transmitter including:

a signal processor adapted to be connected at frequencies in two working bands centered on two respective predetermined center frequencies to send and/or receive an electrical signal in each of said two bands, and

an antenna including a plurality of superposed conductive layers to constitute at least one resonant structure and a coupling system and being adapted to be connected to said processor via said coupling system to couple said electrical signal to radiated waves, wherein said coupling system includes a coplanar line formed by two slots facing each other in one of said conductive layers and respectively constituting two coupling slots, said coplanar line couples a resonance of said antenna to said electrical signal, said resonance constitutes a primary resonance and has a primary frequency substantially equal to one of said two center frequencies, and another resonance of said antenna constitutes a secondary resonance having a secondary frequency substantially equal to the other of said two center frequencies,

wherein said coupling system further includes a slotted line which is formed by a slot connected to one of said two primary coupling lines and constituting a secondary coupling slot and which couples said secondary resonance to said electrical signal.

5. A transmitter according to claim 4, wherein said antenna includes:

a dielectric substrate having two mutually opposed principal surfaces extending in horizontal directions of said antenna and respectively constituting a bottom surface and a top surface,

a bottom conductive layer extending over said bottom surface and constituting an earth layer of said antenna, and

a top conductive layer extending over an area of said top surface above said earth layer to constitute a patch cooperating with said earth layer in accordance with the microstrip technology,

wherein said coupling slots are in said patch.

6. A transmitter according to claim 5, wherein said patch includes a separator system including at least one separator slot and defining in said patch two areas respectively constituting:

a primary resonance area including said coplanar line, and

a secondary resonance area including said slotted line.

7. A device according to claim 6, wherein said patch has an edge provided with a short circuit electrically connecting said patch to said earth layer, said edge extends in one of said horizontal directions constituting a transverse direction and constitutes a rear edge, said patch also has a front edge opposite said rear edge and two lateral edges joining said rear edge to said front edge and respectively constituting two lateral edges, a length of said patch extends between said rear edge and said front edge in a longitudinal direction which is another of said horizontal directions, a width of said patch extends between said two lateral edges, said short circuit enables said quarter-wave primary resonance to be established in said primary resonance area with an at least virtual electric field node fixed by short circuit and a resonance path extending from said rear edge towards said front edge, edges of said areas include said two lateral edges, said secondary resonance area extends in said longitudinal direction at a distance from the rear edge and extends in said transverse direction over a middle part of said width of the patch at a distance from each of said two lateral edges, and said two coupling slots form said coplanar line by extending in said longitudinal direction from said rear edge.

8. A transmitter according to claim 7, wherein said slotted line extends in said longitudinal direction so that said secondary resonance is a half-wave resonance having a resonance path extending in said transverse direction.

9. A transmitter according to claim 8, wherein said separator system includes two separator slots in said patch extending in said longitudinal direction from said front edge of said patch so that two lateral edges of said secondary resonance area are formed by respective edges of said two slots and a front edge of said area is formed by a segment of said front edge of the patch between said two slots.

10. A transmitter according to claim 8, wherein said separator system includes a U-shaped separator slot at a distance from said edges of the patch and having two branches which are connected together by a base and extend in said longitudinal direction, facing and at a distance from respective lateral edges, and said base extends in said transverse direction, facing and spaced from said front edge.