Monolithic planar doped barrier subharmonic mixer
First Claim
1. A monolithic signal mixer for millimeter wave frequency applications, comprising:
- a dielectric transmission line medium including a semi-insulating substrate of a given material located on a conductive ground plane, said dielectric transmission line including first and second transmission line portions extending in opposite directions along said ground plane and an intermediate area of reduced thickness separating said portions;
a monolithic semiconductor signal mixing device including a substrate of said given material integral with and grown on said intermediate area and spaced from the intermediate area ends of said transmission line, said mixing device including conductive means coupling across said area of reduced thickness to respective said intermediate ends of each of said first and second transmission line portions;
an input signal source and a local oscillator signal source being respectively coupled to opposite ends of said transmission line; and
intermediate frequency transmission line means located on said ground plane and being coupled to said mixing device for translating an intermediate frequency signal resulting from the heterodyne action between said input signal and said local oscillator signal.
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Accused Products
Abstract
A single planar doped barrier diode is grown by the selective deposition of gallium arsenide using molecular beam epitaxy (MBE) in the center of a gallium arsenide dielectric waveguide member mounted on a ground plane. The waveguide member includes two portions which extend in opposite directions and terminating in respective metal to dielectric waveguide transition sections which are coupled to an RF input signal and local oscillator signal, respectively. The planar doped barrier diode operates as an intrinsic subharmonic mixer and accordingly the local oscillator signal has frequency of one half the input signal frequency. An IF output signal is coupled from the mixer diode to a microstrip transmission line formed on an insulating layer fabricated on the ground plane. Dielectric waveguide isolators are additionally included on the dielectric waveguide segments to mutually isolate the input signal and local oscillator signal. A monolithic form of circuit fabrication is thus provided which allows the planar doped barrier mixer circuit to be extremely small and the cost of mass producing such a circuit to be very economical.
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Citations
13 Claims
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1. A monolithic signal mixer for millimeter wave frequency applications, comprising:
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a dielectric transmission line medium including a semi-insulating substrate of a given material located on a conductive ground plane, said dielectric transmission line including first and second transmission line portions extending in opposite directions along said ground plane and an intermediate area of reduced thickness separating said portions; a monolithic semiconductor signal mixing device including a substrate of said given material integral with and grown on said intermediate area and spaced from the intermediate area ends of said transmission line, said mixing device including conductive means coupling across said area of reduced thickness to respective said intermediate ends of each of said first and second transmission line portions; an input signal source and a local oscillator signal source being respectively coupled to opposite ends of said transmission line; and intermediate frequency transmission line means located on said ground plane and being coupled to said mixing device for translating an intermediate frequency signal resulting from the heterodyne action between said input signal and said local oscillator signal. - View Dependent Claims (2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 10, 11, 12, 13)
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Specification