Dispersion Compensation in MM-Wave Communication over Plastic Waveguide using Composite Right/Left-Handed Metamaterial Assembly

• US 20200136726A1
• Filed: 10/06/2019
• Published: 04/30/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 10/25/2018
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Marvell Asia Pte Limited (Marvell Technology Group Limited)
• Original Assignee: Marvell World Trade Limited (Marvell Technology Group Limited)
• Inventors: Tam, Sai-Wang, Wong, Alden C., Chenxin, Su, Huang, Rulin, Tsang, Randy
• Granted Patent: US 11,128,375 B2
• Time in Patent Office: Days
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/25133 including a lumped electrical or optical dispersion compensator H04B10/2519, H04B10/2525 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 10/90 Non-optical transmission systems, e.g. transmission systems employing non-photonic corpuscular radiation
• CPC Class Codes: H04B 3/52 Systems for transmission between fixed stations via waveguides

Abstract

A millimeter-wave communication device includes a coupler, Radio-Frequency (RF) circuitry and a composite right/left-handed metamaterial assembly. The coupler is configured to connect to a waveguide, the waveguide being transmissive at millimeter-wave frequencies and having a given dispersion characteristic over a predefined band of the millimeter-wave frequencies. The RF circuitry is configured to transmit a millimeter-wave signal into the waveguide via the coupler, or to receive a millimeter-wave signal from the waveguide via the coupler, and to process the millimeter-wave signal. The composite right/left-handed metamaterial assembly is formed to apply to the millimeter-wave signal, or to an Intermediate-Frequency (IF) signal corresponding to the millimeter-wave signal, a dispersion compensation that compensates for at least part of the dispersion characteristic of the waveguide over the predefined band.

Claims

1. A millimeter-wave communication device, comprising:

a coupler, configured to connect to a waveguide, the waveguide being transmissive at millimeter-wave frequencies and having a given dispersion characteristic over a predefined band of the millimeter-wave frequencies;

Radio-Frequency (RF) circuitry that is configured to transmit a millimeter-wave signal into the waveguide via the coupler, or to receive a millimeter-wave signal from the waveguide via the coupler, and to process the millimeter-wave signal; and

a composite right/left-handed metamaterial assembly, which is formed to apply to the millimeter-wave signal, or to an Intermediate-Frequency (IF) signal corresponding to the millimeter-wave signal, a dispersion compensation that compensates for at least part of the dispersion characteristic of the waveguide over the predefined band.

2. The millimeter-wave communication device according to claim 1, wherein the composite right/left-handed metamaterial assembly comprises a cascade of multiple transmission-line unit cells, each unit cell comprising (i) a series capacitance and a series inductance, and (ii) a shunt capacitance in parallel to a shunt inductance.

3. The millimeter-wave communication device according to claim 1, wherein the dispersion characteristic of the waveguide exhibits a group-delay that increases with frequency over the predefined band of the millimeter-wave signal, and wherein the composite right/left-handed metamaterial assembly exhibits a group-delay that decreases with frequency over the predefined band.

4. The millimeter-wave communication device according to claim 1, wherein the RF circuitry is configured to transmit the millimeter-wave signal into the waveguide, and wherein the composite right/left-handed metamaterial assembly is configured to compensate for the at least part of the dispersion characteristic by pre-distorting the millimeter-wave signal prior to transmission into the waveguide.

5. The millimeter-wave communication device according to claim 1, wherein the RF circuitry is configured to receive the millimeter-wave signal from the waveguide, and wherein the composite right/left-handed metamaterial assembly is configured to compensate for the at least part of the dispersion characteristic by applying the dispersion compensation to the millimeter-wave signal received from the waveguide.

6. The millimeter-wave communication device according to claim 1, wherein the RF circuitry and the composite right/left-handed metamaterial assembly are integrated in a same semiconductor chip.

7. The millimeter-wave communication device according to claim 1, further comprising digital baseband circuitry, wherein the digital baseband circuitry and the composite right/left-handed metamaterial assembly are integrated in a same semiconductor chip.

8. The millimeter-wave communication device according to claim 1, further comprising digital baseband circuitry, wherein the digital baseband circuitry, the RF circuitry and the composite right/left-handed metamaterial assembly are packaged in a same device package.

9. The millimeter-wave communication device according to claim 8, wherein the digital baseband circuitry, the RF circuitry and the composite right/left-handed metamaterial assembly are mounted on a same substrate in the same device package.

10. The millimeter-wave communication device according to claim 1, wherein the composite right/left-handed metamaterial assembly is externally configurable to select a setting of the dispersion compensation from among multiple predefined settings of the dispersion compensation.

11. The millimeter-wave communication device according to claim 10, further comprising digital baseband circuitry configured to identify, from among the multiple predefined settings, a setting that best compensates for the dispersion characteristic of the waveguide, and to set the composite right/left-handed metamaterial assembly to the identified setting.

12. A method for millimeter-wave communication, comprising:

transmitting a millimeter-wave signal into, or receiving a millimeter-wave signal from, a waveguide, the waveguide being transmissive at millimeter-wave frequencies and having a given dispersion characteristic over a predefined band of the millimeter-wave frequencies; and

using a composite right/left-handed metamaterial assembly, applying to the millimeter-wave signal, or to an Intermediate-Frequency (IF) signal corresponding to the millimeter-wave signal, a dispersion compensation that compensates for at least part of the given dispersion characteristic of the waveguide over the predefined band.

13. The method according to claim 12, wherein applying the dispersion compensation comprises passing the millimeter-wave signal, or the IF signal, through a cascade of multiple transmission-line unit cells, each unit cell comprising (i) a series capacitance and a series inductance, and (ii) a shunt capacitance in parallel to a shunt inductance.

14. The method according to claim 12, wherein the dispersion characteristic of the waveguide exhibits a group-delay that increases with frequency over the predefined band of the millimeter-wave signal, and wherein applying the dispersion compensation comprises applying, by the composite right/left-handed metamaterial assembly, a group-delay that decreases with frequency over the predefined band.

15. The method according to claim 12, wherein applying the dispersion compensation comprises pre-distorting the millimeter-wave signal prior to transmission into the waveguide.

16. The method according to claim 12, wherein applying the dispersion compensation comprises applying the dispersion compensation to the millimeter-wave signal received from the waveguide.

17. The method according to claim 12, wherein applying the dispersion compensation comprises configuring the composite right/left-handed metamaterial assembly to select a setting of the dispersion compensation from among multiple predefined settings of the dispersion compensation.

18. The method according to claim 17, wherein configuring the composite right/left-handed metamaterial assembly comprises identifying, from among the multiple predefined settings, a setting that best compensates for the dispersion characteristic of the waveguide, and setting the composite right/left-handed metamaterial assembly to the identified setting.

19. A millimeter-wave communication system, comprising:

a first communication device, configured to transmit a millimeter-wave signal into a waveguide, the waveguide being transmissive at millimeter-wave frequencies and having a given dispersion characteristic over a predefined band of the millimeter-wave frequencies; and

a second communication device, configured to receive the millimeter-wave signal from the waveguide and to process the received millimeter-wave signal,

wherein at least one of the first communication device and the second communication device comprises a composite right/left-handed metamaterial assembly, which is formed to apply to the millimeter-wave signal, or to an Intermediate-Frequency (IF) signal corresponding to the millimeter-wave signal, a dispersion compensation that compensates for at least part of the dispersion characteristic of the waveguide over the predefined band.