Acoustic mirror

• US 7,230,509 B2
• Filed: 12/06/2002
• Issued: 06/12/2007
• Est. Priority Date: 12/11/2001
• Status: Expired due to Fees

• Current Assignee: Snaptrack Incorporated (Qualcomm, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Epcos AG (TDK Corporation)
• Inventors: Stoemmer, Ralph
• Primary Examiner(s): Summons; Barbara
• Application Number:
  US10/498,203
• Publication Number:
  US 20050068124A1
• Time in Patent Office: 1,649 Days
• Field of Search: 333/133, 333/187, 333/189, 310/335
• US Class Current: 333/133
• CPC Class Codes: H03H 9/02149 of ageing changes of characteristics, e.g. electro-acousto-migration
• CPC Class Codes: H03H 9/175 Acoustic mirrors
• CPC Class Codes: H03H 9/585 Stacked Crystal Filters [SCF]
• CPC Class Codes: H03H 9/589 Acoustic mirrors

Abstract

An acoustic mirror includes constituent layers that are substantially odd multiples of λ/4. The constituent layers include a first impedance layer and a second impedance layer, where the first impedance layer includes a first material having a first acoustic impedance and a first dielectric constant, and the second impedance layer includes a second material having a second acoustic impedance and a second dielectric constant. The second acoustic impedance is higher than the first acoustic impedance, and the first dielectric constant is lower than the second dielectric constant.

Claims

1. An acoustic mirror comprising:

constituent layers comprising a layer having a thickness of substantially an odd multiple of λ

/4, where λ

corresponds to a length of an acoustic wave, the constituent layers comprising a single pair of layers, the single pair of layers comprising a first impedance layer and a second impedance layer,

the first impedance layer comprising a first material having a first acoustic impedance and a first dielectric constant, the first material comprising at least one of aluminum nitride, gallium nitride, and zinc oxide,

the second impedance layer comprising a second material having a second acoustic impedance and a second dielectric constant, the second material comprising a polymerized benzocyclobutene,

the first acoustic impedance being higher than the second acoustic impedance, and

the first dielectric constant being higher than the second dielectric constant.

2. The acoustic mirror of claim 1, wherein the acoustic mirror is on a top layer of a bulk acoustic wave resonator (BAW) resonator or a stacked-crystal filter, the acoustic mirror comprising an initial layer of the second material followed by a layer of the first material deposited on the layer of the second material.

3. The acoustic mirror of claim 1, wherein at least one of the constituent layers is substantially 3λ

/4.

4. The acoustic mirror of claim 1, wherein the second material has a density of at least 2.4 g/cm², an elastic constant with a value of less than 10 Gpa, and a dielectric constant of less than 3.

5. The acoustic mirror of claim 1, wherein the second material has nanopores.

6. The acoustic mirror of claim 1, wherein the second impedance layer is above the first impedance layer relative to a substrate that holds the acoustic mirror.

7. The acoustic mirror of claim 1, wherein the first material is gallium nitride.

8. The acoustic mirror of claim 1, wherein the first material is zinc oxide.

9. A duplexer comprising filters, the filters comprising first and second BAW resonators, each of the first and second BAW resonators comprising:

a substrate;

a first impedance layer comprising a first material having a first acoustic impedance and a first dielectric constant, the first material comprising at least one of aluminum nitride, gallium nitride, and zinc oxide;

a second impedance layer comprising a second material having a second acoustic impedance and a second dielectric constant, the second material comprising a polymerized benzocyclobutene;

the first acoustic impedance being higher than the second acoustic impedance, and

the first dielectric constant being higher than the second dielectric constant;

electrode layers that are above the second impedance layer relative to the substrate; and

a piezoelectric layer between the electrode layers.

10. The duplexer of claim 9, wherein the electrode layers comprise at least one of Al, W, Mo, Cu, and Au.

11. The duplexer of claim 9, wherein the second impedance layer is above the first impedance layer relative to the substrate.

12. The duplexer of claim 9, wherein the piezoelectric layer is one of plural piezoelectric layers between the electrode layers, each of the plural piezoelectric layers comprising at least one of zinc oxide, aluminum nitride, gallium nitride, and other piezoelectric materials.

13. The duplexer of claim 9, wherein the electrode layers comprise a first electrode and a second electrode, the second electrode being split into two partial electrodes;

and

wherein the duplexer further comprises at least one additional layer located between the two partial electrodes, the at least one additional layer comprising a layer that is substantially λ

/4 and that has a dielectric constant that is less than the first dielectric constant.

14. The duplexer of claim 9, wherein the first and second BAW reasonators are connected in serial and parallel relationships.

15. The duplexer of claim 9, wherein the first and second BAW resonators are connected in a lattice structure.

16. The duplexer of claim 9, wherein each substantially odd multiple of λ

/4 comprises either λ

/4 or 3λ

/4.

17. The duplexer of claim 9, wherein the first and second BAW resonators are over a common acoustic mirror.

18. The duplexer of claim 17, wherein the common acoustic mirror is formed over a substrate under the first and second BAW resonators.

19. The duplexer of claim 9, wherein the electrode layers comprise at least one of Al, W, Cu, and Au.

20. The duplexer of claim 9, wherein the piezoelectric layer comprises at least one of zinc oxide, aluminum nitride, gallium nitride, and other piezoelectric materials.