PHASE SHIFTER AND ASSOCIATED METHOD FOR IMPEDANCE MATCHING
First Claim
1. A phase shifter comprising:
- a substrate;
first and second conductive portions adjacent said substrate with a gap therebetween, said first and second conductive portions defining a signal path; and
a body in the gap and comprising a phase shifting material having a controllable dielectric constant for causing a phase shift of a signal through the signal path, said body having an enlarged width medial portion tapering downwards in width towards respective end portions for impedance matching with said first and second conductive portions.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A transmission line phase shifter includes a substrate, and first and second conductive portions adjacent the substrate with a gap therebetween. The first and second conductive portions define a signal path. A body is in the gap and includes a phase shifting material having a controllable dielectric constant for causing a phase shift of a signal through the signal path. The body has an enlarged width medial portion tapering downwards in width towards respective end portions for impedance matching with the first and second conductive portions. The width of the tapered end portions of the phase shifting material body are selected so that a separate impedance matching network is not required for impedance matching with the first and second conductive portions.
15 Citations
60 Claims
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1. A phase shifter comprising:
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a substrate;
first and second conductive portions adjacent said substrate with a gap therebetween, said first and second conductive portions defining a signal path; and
a body in the gap and comprising a phase shifting material having a controllable dielectric constant for causing a phase shift of a signal through the signal path, said body having an enlarged width medial portion tapering downwards in width towards respective end portions for impedance matching with said first and second conductive portions. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20)
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21. A phased array antenna comprising:
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a plurality of antenna elements; and
a plurality of phase shifters connected to said plurality of antenna elements, each phase shifter comprising a substrate, first and second conductive portions adjacent said substrate with a gap therebetween, said first and second conductive portions defining a signal path, and a body in the gap and comprising a phase shifting material having a controllable dielectric constant for causing a phase shift of a signal through the signal path, said body having an enlarged width medial portion tapering downwards in width towards respective end portions for impedance matching with said first and second conductive portions. - View Dependent Claims (22, 23, 24, 25, 26, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 32, 33, 34, 35, 36, 37, 38, 39, 40)
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41. A method for making a phase shifter comprising:
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forming first and second conductive portions adjacent a substrate with a gap therebetween, the first and second conductive portions defining a signal path; and
inserting a body in the gap and comprising a phase shifting material having a controllable dielectric constant for causing a phase shift of a signal through the signal path, the body having an enlarged width medial portion tapering downwards in width towards respective end portions for impedance matching with the first and second conductive portions. - View Dependent Claims (42, 43, 44, 45, 46, 47, 48, 49, 50, 51, 52, 53, 54, 55, 56, 57, 58, 59, 60)
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Specification