Spatial coupler and antenna for splitting and combining electromagnetic signals

• US 10,741,899 B2
• Filed: 06/12/2018
• Issued: 08/11/2020
• Est. Priority Date: 12/22/2015
• Status: Active Grant

• Current Assignee: Qorvo US, Inc. (Qorvo, Inc.)
• Original Assignee: Qorvo US, Inc. (Qorvo, Inc.)
• Inventors: Kitt, John
• Primary Examiner(s): Nguyen, Hoang V
• Application Number:
  US16/005,794
• Publication Number:
  US 20180294539A1
• Time in Patent Office: 791 Days
• CPC Class Codes: H01P 5/024 between hollow waveguides
• CPC Class Codes: H01P 5/12 Coupling devices having more than two ports H01P5/04 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/24 with receiving set
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 1/38 formed by a conductive layer on an insulating support patch antennas H01Q9/0407; microstrip dipole antennas H01Q9/065; microstrip slot antennas H01Q13/106; transmission line microstrip antennas H01Q13/206; manufacturing reflecting surfaces using insulating material for supporting the reflecting surface H01Q15/142
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 13/00 Waveguide horns or mouths; Slot antennas; Leaky-waveguide antennas; Equivalent structures causing radiation along the transmission path of a guided wave
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 7/06 with core of ferromagnetic material H01Q7/02 takes precedence
• CPC Class Codes: H01Q 9/28 Conical, cylindrical, cage, strip, gauze, or like elements having an extended radiating surface; Elements comprising two conical surfaces having collinear axes and adjacent apices and fed by two-conductor transmission lines waveguide horns or mouths H01Q13/00; slot antennas H01Q13/00

Abstract

A spatium amplifier includes a plurality of amplifiers connected between a pair of spatial couplers, each having a core member and a shell member forming an antenna. The core member includes a cylindrical core portion and a plurality of tapering core fins extending radially outwardly from the cylindrical core portion. The shell member includes a cylindrical shell portion and a plurality of tapering shell fins extending radially inwardly from the cylindrical shell portion to form a plurality of fin pairs. Each fin pair forms a tapering channel having a first channel height at a first end of the antenna and a second channel height larger than the first channel height at a second end of the antenna. Each of the plurality of amplifiers is electromagnetically coupled to a respective fin pair at the first end of each of the antennas.

Claims

1. A spatial coupler assembly comprising:

an antenna sub-assembly comprising;

a core member comprising a plurality of core fins; and

a shell member disposed around the core member, the shell member comprising a plurality of shell fins corresponding to the plurality of core fins to form a plurality of fin pairs; and

a plurality of amplifiers, wherein each amplifier of the plurality of amplifiers is electromagnetically coupled to a respective fin pair of the plurality of fin pairs.

2. The spatial coupler assembly of claim 1 wherein the plurality of core fins are unitary with the core member and the plurality of shell fins are unitary with the shell member.

3. The spatial coupler assembly of claim 1 wherein the core member and the shell member comprise metal.

4. The spatial coupler assembly of claim 1 wherein the core member and the shell member form an antenna that does not comprise a printed circuit board.

5. The spatial coupler assembly of claim 1, wherein the antenna sub-assembly comprises an input antenna sub-assembly configured to:

receive an input electromagnetic signal;

split the input electromagnetic signal into a plurality of split input electromagnetic signals corresponding to a respective fin pair of the plurality of fin pairs; and

pass a corresponding split input electromagnetic signal of the plurality of split input electromagnetic signals to a corresponding amplifier of the plurality of amplifiers.

6. The spatial coupler assembly of claim 5, further comprising a first coaxial interface configured to pass the input electromagnetic signal from a coaxial input to the input antenna sub-assembly.

7. The spatial coupler assembly of claim 6, wherein the first coaxial interface comprises:

a tapering core portion coupled to the core member; and

a tapering shell portion coupled to the shell member.

8. The spatial coupler assembly of claim 5, further comprising an output antenna sub-assembly configured to:

receive a plurality of split amplified electromagnetic signals from the plurality of amplifiers; and

combine the plurality of split amplified electromagnetic signals into a combined electromagnetic signal.

9. The spatial coupler assembly of claim 8, further comprising a second coaxial interface configured to pass the combined electromagnetic signal from the output antenna sub-assembly to a coaxial output.

10. The spatial coupler assembly of claim 1 wherein the plurality of amplifiers comprise a plurality of monolithic microwave integrated circuits.

11. A spatial coupler assembly comprising:

a first antenna sub-assembly configured to split an input signal into a plurality of split input signals via a plurality of tapering channels;

a plurality of amplifiers configured to receive the plurality of split input signals and output a plurality of amplified output signals;

a second antenna sub-assembly configured to combine the plurality of amplified output signals into an amplified output signal; and

a heat sink, wherein the plurality of amplifiers are fastened radially around to a surface of the heat sink.

12. The spatial coupler assembly of claim 11 wherein the surface of the heat sink comprises an interior surface of the heat sink.

13. The spatial coupler assembly of claim 12 wherein the heat sink, the first antenna sub-assembly, and the second antenna sub-assembly form a hermetic seal around the plurality of amplifiers.

14. The spatial coupler assembly of claim 13 further comprising a liquid coolant surrounding the plurality of amplifiers.

15. The spatial coupler assembly of claim 11 wherein the surface of the heat sink comprises an outward face of the heatsink.

16. The spatial coupler assembly of claim 11 wherein the plurality of amplifiers are fastened to the surface of the heat sink by at least one of a screw, a bolt, or a thermally conductive adhesive.

17. The spatial coupler assembly of claim 11, further comprising a first coaxial interface configured to pass the input signal from a coaxial input to the first antenna sub-assembly.

18. The spatial coupler assembly of claim 17, further comprising a second coaxial interface configured to pass the amplified output signal from the second antenna sub-assembly to a coaxial output.

19. The spatial coupler assembly of claim 11 wherein the plurality of amplifiers comprise a plurality of monolithic microwave integrated circuits.