CN114696058A - Liquid crystal antenna and communication device - Google Patents
Liquid crystal antenna and communication device Download PDFInfo
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- CN114696058A CN114696058A CN202210224286.6A CN202210224286A CN114696058A CN 114696058 A CN114696058 A CN 114696058A CN 202210224286 A CN202210224286 A CN 202210224286A CN 114696058 A CN114696058 A CN 114696058A
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01Q—ANTENNAS, i.e. RADIO AERIALS
- H01Q1/00—Details of, or arrangements associated with, antennas
- H01Q1/002—Protection against seismic waves, thermal radiation or other disturbances, e.g. nuclear explosion; Arrangements for improving the power handling capability of an antenna
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01Q—ANTENNAS, i.e. RADIO AERIALS
- H01Q1/00—Details of, or arrangements associated with, antennas
- H01Q1/12—Supports; Mounting means
- H01Q1/22—Supports; Mounting means by structural association with other equipment or articles
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01Q—ANTENNAS, i.e. RADIO AERIALS
- H01Q1/00—Details of, or arrangements associated with, antennas
- H01Q1/12—Supports; Mounting means
- H01Q1/22—Supports; Mounting means by structural association with other equipment or articles
- H01Q1/2258—Supports; Mounting means by structural association with other equipment or articles used with computer equipment
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01Q—ANTENNAS, i.e. RADIO AERIALS
- H01Q1/00—Details of, or arrangements associated with, antennas
- H01Q1/12—Supports; Mounting means
- H01Q1/22—Supports; Mounting means by structural association with other equipment or articles
- H01Q1/24—Supports; Mounting means by structural association with other equipment or articles with receiving set
- H01Q1/241—Supports; Mounting means by structural association with other equipment or articles with receiving set used in mobile communications, e.g. GSM
- H01Q1/242—Supports; Mounting means by structural association with other equipment or articles with receiving set used in mobile communications, e.g. GSM specially adapted for hand-held use
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01Q—ANTENNAS, i.e. RADIO AERIALS
- H01Q1/00—Details of, or arrangements associated with, antennas
- H01Q1/27—Adaptation for use in or on movable bodies
- H01Q1/273—Adaptation for carrying or wearing by persons or animals
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01Q—ANTENNAS, i.e. RADIO AERIALS
- H01Q1/00—Details of, or arrangements associated with, antennas
- H01Q1/36—Structural form of radiating elements, e.g. cone, spiral, umbrella; Particular materials used therewith
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01Q—ANTENNAS, i.e. RADIO AERIALS
- H01Q1/00—Details of, or arrangements associated with, antennas
- H01Q1/36—Structural form of radiating elements, e.g. cone, spiral, umbrella; Particular materials used therewith
- H01Q1/364—Structural form of radiating elements, e.g. cone, spiral, umbrella; Particular materials used therewith using a particular conducting material, e.g. superconductor
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01Q—ANTENNAS, i.e. RADIO AERIALS
- H01Q1/00—Details of, or arrangements associated with, antennas
- H01Q1/50—Structural association of antennas with earthing switches, lead-in devices or lightning protectors
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- H—ELECTRICITY
- H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
- H01Q—ANTENNAS, i.e. RADIO AERIALS
- H01Q3/00—Arrangements for changing or varying the orientation or the shape of the directional pattern of the waves radiated from an antenna or antenna system
- H01Q3/26—Arrangements for changing or varying the orientation or the shape of the directional pattern of the waves radiated from an antenna or antenna system varying the relative phase or relative amplitude of energisation between two or more active radiating elements; varying the distribution of energy across a radiating aperture
- H01Q3/30—Arrangements for changing or varying the orientation or the shape of the directional pattern of the waves radiated from an antenna or antenna system varying the relative phase or relative amplitude of energisation between two or more active radiating elements; varying the distribution of energy across a radiating aperture varying the relative phase between the radiating elements of an array
- H01Q3/34—Arrangements for changing or varying the orientation or the shape of the directional pattern of the waves radiated from an antenna or antenna system varying the relative phase or relative amplitude of energisation between two or more active radiating elements; varying the distribution of energy across a radiating aperture varying the relative phase between the radiating elements of an array by electrical means
- H01Q3/36—Arrangements for changing or varying the orientation or the shape of the directional pattern of the waves radiated from an antenna or antenna system varying the relative phase or relative amplitude of energisation between two or more active radiating elements; varying the distribution of energy across a radiating aperture varying the relative phase between the radiating elements of an array by electrical means with variable phase-shifters
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Abstract
The application provides a liquid crystal antenna and communication equipment, the liquid crystal antenna includes: the phase shifter comprises a first substrate, a second substrate, a phase shifter array layer, a substrate integrated waveguide and a radiator laminating layer, wherein the first substrate and the second substrate are arranged oppositely, the phase shifter array layer is located between the first substrate and the second substrate, the substrate integrated waveguide is located on one side, away from the second substrate, of the first substrate, and the radiator laminating layer is located on one side, away from the first substrate, of the second substrate. The substrate integrated waveguide is used for receiving a first radio frequency signal, the phase shifter array layer is used for adjusting the first radio frequency signal to obtain a second radio frequency signal, and the radiator attaching layer is used for radiating the second radio frequency signal to the outside. The liquid crystal antenna provided by the application can reduce the loss of the first radio frequency signal and improve the gain of the liquid crystal antenna by laminating the substrate integrated waveguide feed outside the phase shifter array.
Description
Technical Field
The application relates to the field of microwave and millimeter wave communication components, in particular to a liquid crystal antenna and communication equipment.
Background
With the high-speed development of modern microwave millimeter wave circuit systems, the functions are more and more complex, the electrical performance indexes are more and more high, and meanwhile, the microwave millimeter wave circuit systems are smaller and lighter; the whole system rapidly develops towards miniaturization, light weight, high reliability, multiple functionality and low cost. Low cost, high performance, high yield microwave and millimeter wave technology is critical to developing commercial low cost microwave and millimeter wave broadband systems.
The liquid crystal antenna utilizes the dielectric anisotropy of liquid crystal molecules to change the dielectric constant of the liquid crystal molecules by controlling the deflection direction of the liquid crystal so as to change the phase shift of the phase shifter and further adjust the radiation signal of the liquid crystal antenna. The existing liquid crystal antenna structure adopts an integrated manufactured microstrip line form, a voltage signal is applied to the microstrip line to drive liquid crystal molecules to deflect, and meanwhile, the microstrip line is also used for transmitting a radio frequency signal, so that the insertion loss of the microstrip line is large when the microstrip line transmits the signal.
Disclosure of Invention
The embodiment of the application provides a novel liquid crystal antenna and communication equipment, and aims to reduce the insertion loss of the liquid crystal antenna and improve the gain of the liquid crystal antenna.
An embodiment of a first aspect of the present application provides a liquid crystal antenna, including: the phase shifter comprises a first substrate, a second substrate, a phase shifter array layer, a substrate integrated waveguide and a radiator laminating layer, wherein the first substrate and the second substrate are arranged oppositely, the phase shifter array layer is located between the first substrate and the second substrate, the substrate integrated waveguide is located on one side, away from the second substrate, of the first substrate, and the radiator laminating layer is located on one side, away from the first substrate, of the second substrate. The substrate integrated waveguide is used for receiving a first radio frequency signal, the phase shifter array layer is used for adjusting the first radio frequency signal to obtain a second radio frequency signal, and the radiator attaching layer is used for radiating the second radio frequency signal to the outside.
The liquid crystal material has dielectric anisotropy, when the distance between the liquid crystal molecules and the electrodes is kept unchanged, the deflection angle of the liquid crystal molecules is not large at low voltage, and the deflection angle is maximum at high voltage; when the voltage is kept constant, the liquid crystal molecule deflection angle increases as the distance of the liquid crystal molecules from the electrodes increases. The phase shifter array layer realizes phase control by utilizing the self electric regulation characteristic of the liquid crystal to replace the traditional semiconductor switch, thereby modulating the macroscopic optical property and the electrical property of the liquid crystal.
Embodiments of the second aspect of the present application further provide a communication device, where the communication device includes the liquid crystal antenna in any of the embodiments of the first aspect.
In the liquid crystal antenna provided by the application, in the process that a first radio frequency signal is finally transmitted to a radiator attachment layer through a substrate integrated waveguide and a phase shifter array layer, the first radio frequency signal is transmitted and phase-shifted in the phase shifter array layer between a first substrate and a second substrate to obtain a second radio frequency signal, and the radiator attachment layer externally radiates the second radio frequency signal. Compared with a conventional microstrip feed network, the feed network of the substrate integrated waveguide has lower insertion loss, loss in the transmission process of the first radio-frequency signal can be reduced, and the gain of the liquid crystal antenna is improved.
Drawings
In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions of the embodiments of the present invention, the drawings required to be used in the embodiments of the present invention will be briefly described below, and for those skilled in the art, other drawings can be obtained according to the drawings without creative efforts. Other features, objects, and advantages of the present application will become apparent from the following detailed description of non-limiting embodiments thereof, when read in conjunction with the accompanying drawings, in which like or similar reference characters identify the same or similar features.
Fig. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional view of a liquid crystal antenna according to an embodiment of the present disclosure;
fig. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional structure diagram of another liquid crystal antenna provided in an embodiment of the present application;
fig. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional view of another liquid crystal antenna provided in an embodiment of the present application;
fig. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional view illustrating a further liquid crystal antenna according to an embodiment of the present application;
fig. 5 is a schematic cross-sectional structure diagram of another liquid crystal antenna provided in an embodiment of the present application;
fig. 6 is a schematic cross-sectional view of another liquid crystal antenna according to an embodiment of the present application;
fig. 7 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present application.
Description of reference numerals:
1. a first substrate; 11. frame glue;
2. a second substrate;
3. a phase shifter array layer; 31. a ground metal layer; 31a, a ground electrode; 31b, a first hollow part; 32. a transmission metal layer; 32a, a transmission electrode; 33. a liquid crystal layer;
4. a substrate integrated waveguide; 41. a third substrate; 41a, metallized holes; 411. a first metal layer; 412. a second metal layer; 412a, a metalized hollow;
5. a radiator laminating layer; 51. a radiation electrode;
100. a communication device.
Detailed Description
Features and exemplary embodiments of various aspects of the present invention will be described in detail below, and in order to make objects, technical solutions and advantages of the present invention more apparent, the present invention will be further described in detail below with reference to the accompanying drawings and specific embodiments. It should be understood that the specific embodiments described herein are merely illustrative of the invention and are not limiting. It will be apparent to one skilled in the art that the present invention may be practiced without some of these specific details. The following description of the embodiments is merely intended to provide a better understanding of the present invention by illustrating examples of the present invention.
It is noted that, herein, relational terms such as "first," "second," "third," and the like may be used solely to distinguish one entity or action from another entity or action without necessarily requiring or implying any actual such relationship or order between such entities or actions. Also, the terms "comprises," "comprising," or any other variation thereof, are intended to cover a non-exclusive inclusion, such that a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises a list of elements does not include only those elements but may include other elements not expressly listed or inherent to such process, method, article, or apparatus. Without further limitation, an element defined by the phrase "comprising … …" does not exclude the presence of other identical elements in a process, method, article, or apparatus that comprises the element.
For better understanding of the present application, the liquid crystal antenna and the communication device provided in the embodiments of the present application are described in detail below with reference to fig. 1 to 7.
Referring to fig. 1, fig. 1 is a schematic cross-sectional structure diagram of a liquid crystal antenna according to an embodiment of the present application. The embodiment of the first aspect of the present application provides a liquid crystal antenna, including a first substrate 1 and a second substrate 2 that are arranged oppositely, a phase shifter array layer 3, a substrate integrated waveguide 4, and a radiator attachment layer 5, where the phase shifter array layer 3 is located between the first substrate 1 and the second substrate 2, the substrate integrated waveguide 4 is located on one side of the first substrate 1 away from the second substrate 2, and the radiator attachment layer 5 is located on one side of the second substrate 2 away from the first substrate 1; the substrate integrated waveguide 4 is used for receiving a first radio frequency signal, the phase shifter array layer 3 is used for adjusting the first radio frequency signal to obtain a second radio frequency signal, and the radiator attachment layer 5 is used for radiating the second radio frequency signal to the outside.
In these alternative embodiments, the first substrate 1 and the second substrate 2 of the Liquid Crystal antenna may be made of one of hard materials such as glass and ceramic, or the first substrate 1 and the second substrate 2 may also be made of one of flexible materials such as a Polyimide (PI) substrate and a Liquid Crystal Polymer (LCP). The material can not absorb radio frequency signals, namely the insertion loss of the material per se in a radio frequency band is small, so that the insertion loss of the signals is favorably reduced, and the loss of the first radio frequency signals in the transmission process can be greatly reduced.
Optionally, a Printed Circuit Board (PCB) may be used as the first substrate 1 and the second substrate 2 of the liquid crystal antenna, and the dielectric constant and the dielectric loss of the Printed Circuit Board are lower than those of a glass substrate commonly used for the liquid crystal antenna, so that the dielectric loss is smaller, which is beneficial to improving the performance of the liquid crystal antenna in the ultra-high frequency band. In the embodiment of the present application, the materials of the first substrate 1 and the second substrate 2 are not specifically limited, and in the specific implementation, the materials for manufacturing the first substrate 1 and the second substrate 2 may be selected according to actual requirements.
According to the liquid crystal antenna provided by the embodiment of the application, the phase shifter array layer 3 is arranged between the first substrate 1 and the second substrate 2, the phase shifter array layer 3 is a core component of the liquid crystal antenna, the phase shifter array layer 3 is connected with an external circuit, and the external circuit inputs a bias voltage to the phase shifter array layer 3 to control the deflection of liquid crystal molecules in the phase shifter array layer 3, so that the phase of a first radio frequency signal is adjusted. The first radio frequency signal refers to a signal transmitted from the outside to the substrate integrated waveguide 4, and the second radio frequency signal refers to a signal output from the first radio frequency signal through the phase shifter array layer 3. And whether the second rf signal is the same signal as the first rf signal is related to the bias voltage input to the phase shifter array layer 3. Namely, a bias voltage is input to the phase shifter array layer 3, the bias voltage can form an electric field for controlling the deflection of liquid crystal molecules, a first radio frequency signal can change the phase due to the action of the deflection of the liquid crystal molecules in the transmission process and is correspondingly converted into a second radio frequency signal, and the first radio frequency signal and the second radio frequency signal are different signals; if no bias voltage is input to the phase shifter array layer 3, the first radio frequency signal will not shift the phase after passing through the phase shifter array layer 3, so the second radio frequency signal at this time is still the first radio frequency signal. Specifically, whether the first rf signal and the second rf signal are the same or not is not limited herein and may be determined according to a subsequently provided bias voltage.
It will be understood by those skilled in the art that the phase shifter array layer 3 may further include a circuit structure for controlling the deflection of the liquid crystal molecules, an alignment film (not shown) for assisting the deflection of the liquid crystal molecules, and the like, and the circuit structure may form an electric field for controlling the deflection of the liquid crystal molecules to change the equivalent dielectric constant of the liquid crystal molecules, thereby adjusting the first rf signal received by the substrate integrated waveguide 4 and outputting a second rf signal. Alternatively, alignment films may be disposed on a surface of the first substrate 1 facing the second substrate 2 and a surface of the second substrate 2 facing the first substrate 1 to assist the liquid crystal molecules to normally deflect.
The Substrate Integrated Waveguide 4 (SIW) is a closed structure, and the Substrate Integrated Waveguide 4 can effectively suppress leakage of the first radio frequency signal after receiving the first radio frequency signal, thereby suppressing surface wave loss and electromagnetic stray, and reducing interference. Compared with the traditional metal waveguide, the substrate integrated waveguide 4 has the advantages of easy integration, small volume, easy processing, light weight and the like. The substrate integrated waveguide 4 is adopted to feed the liquid crystal antenna, so that the first radio frequency signal can be bound in the cavity, signal leakage is prevented, transmission loss is reduced, gain is improved, and the bandwidth of the liquid crystal antenna is improved.
With reference to fig. 1, when the liquid crystal antenna according to the embodiment of the present disclosure transmits a signal, a first radio frequency signal is transmitted to the phase shifter array layer 3 along the substrate integrated waveguide 4, when the first radio frequency signal is transmitted through the phase shifter array layer 3, liquid crystal molecules in the phase shifter array layer 3 deflect to shift the phase of the first radio frequency signal, so as to adjust the phase of the first radio frequency signal, thereby obtaining a second radio frequency signal, the phase shifter array layer 3 radiates the second radio frequency signal to the radiator attachment layer 5, and the radiator attachment layer 5 transmits the second radio frequency signal to the outside.
Optionally, the first radio frequency signal received by the liquid crystal antenna may be, for example, a high frequency signal, and the frequency of the high frequency signal is, for example, greater than or equal to 1GHz, so that the liquid crystal antenna may be applied to an electronic device that is in a vehicle, a satellite, a base station, and the like and is propagated in a long distance and at a high speed, and the liquid crystal antenna provided by the present application has a small volume, and is beneficial to miniaturization of the electronic device when applied to the electronic device.
In the liquid crystal antenna provided by the application, the feed network is changed by attaching the substrate integrated waveguide 4 outside the phase shifter array 3, compared with the conventional microstrip feed network, the feed network of the substrate integrated waveguide 4 has lower insertion loss, so that the loss in the transmission process of the first radio-frequency signal can be reduced, and the gain of the liquid crystal antenna is improved.
In some alternative embodiments, the phase shifter array layer 3 includes a ground metal layer 31 and a transmission metal layer 32, and a liquid crystal layer 33 disposed between the first substrate 1 and the second substrate 2, one of the ground metal layer 31 and the transmission metal layer 32 is disposed on a side of the first substrate 1 close to the second substrate 2, and the other is disposed on a side of the second substrate 2 close to the first substrate 1.
In these alternative embodiments, a plurality of liquid crystal molecules are distributed in the liquid crystal layer 33, the ground metal layer 31 and the transmission metal layer 32 are connected to an external circuit to form an electric field for controlling the deflection of the liquid crystal molecules, so that the electrode materials for preparing the ground metal layer 31 and the transmission metal layer 32 need to have better conductivity and meet certain thickness requirements, and the electrode materials for the ground metal layer 31 and the transmission metal layer 32 may be one of molybdenum, gold, silver, copper, aluminum, zinc, nickel or alloy. The alloy can be copper nickel, nickel copper titanium or indium zinc oxide.
Optionally, the phase shifter array layer 3 further includes a ground signal terminal and a transmission signal terminal, the ground signal terminal is electrically connected to the ground metal layer 31, and the ground signal terminal provides a ground signal to the ground metal layer 31. The transmission signal terminal is electrically connected to the transmission metal layer 32, and the transmission signal terminal supplies a transmission signal to the transmission metal layer 32. By controlling the voltages of the ground signal terminal and the transmission signal terminal, the electric field intensity between the ground metal layer 31 and the transmission metal layer 32 can be regulated, and further the deflection angle of liquid crystal molecules in the liquid crystal layer 33 between the first substrate 1 and the second substrate 2 can be regulated, so that the liquid crystal layer 33 has different dielectric constants, the phase shifter array layer 3 shifts the phase of the first radio frequency signal, and the second radio frequency signal is obtained after the phase of the first radio frequency signal is changed.
Optionally, the ground signal terminal and the transmission signal terminal may be fixed by a connector, or fixed by a bonding (bonding) manner, or fixed to the phase shifter array layer 3 by a flexible printed circuit board. And the ground signal terminal and the transmission signal terminal are fixed to the side of the phase shifter array layer 3.
Referring to fig. 2, fig. 2 is a schematic cross-sectional structure diagram of another liquid crystal antenna according to an embodiment of the present application. In some alternative embodiments, the ground metal layer 31 includes a plurality of ground electrodes 31a disposed on the first substrate 1 and a first hollow 31b formed between two adjacent ground electrodes 31a, and the transmission metal layer 32 includes a plurality of transmission electrodes 32a disposed on the second substrate 2; the projection of the first hollow portion 31b on the second substrate 2 at least partially overlaps the projection of the transmission electrode 32a on the second substrate 2.
Alternatively, the ground electrode 31a may be connected to an external circuit through a signal line, the ground electrodes 31a have the same potential, the plurality of transmission electrodes 32a may be connected to the external circuit through different signal lines, and the different signal lines may independently control the respective transmission electrodes 32a, so that the respective transmission electrodes 32a have different potentials. The grounding electrode 31a and the transmission electrode 32a form an electric field for controlling liquid crystal molecules after being electrified, and the first radio frequency signal can carry out phase shift in different degrees under the action of different electric field intensities, so that various second radio frequency signals with different phases are radiated, the main lobe direction of a liquid crystal antenna beam is further adjusted, and the performance requirement of the liquid crystal antenna is met.
In these alternative embodiments, the adjacent ground electrodes 31a are disposed at intervals in an insulating manner by the first hollow portion 31b, a projection of the first hollow portion 31b on the second substrate 2 overlaps with a projection of the transmission electrode 32a on the second substrate 2, so that the first radio frequency signal transmitted by the substrate integrated waveguide 4 is transmitted to the transmission electrode 32a through the first hollow portion 31b, the first radio frequency signal is subjected to phase shift to obtain a second radio frequency signal, the transmission electrode 32a couples the second radio frequency signal to the radiation electrode 51, and the radiation electrode 51 radiates the second radio frequency signal outwards.
Optionally, the projection of the first hollow portion 31b on the second substrate 2 completely overlaps with the projection of the transmission electrode 32a on the second substrate 2, so that the loss of the first radio frequency signal in the transmission process can be reduced, and the gain of the liquid crystal antenna can be improved.
In some optional embodiments, the radiator lamination layer 5 includes a plurality of radiation electrodes 51 disposed at intervals, and a projection of the radiation electrode 51 on the second substrate 2 at least partially overlaps a projection of the transmission electrode 32a on the second substrate 2.
In these alternative embodiments, the plurality of radiation electrodes 51 arranged at intervals as independent radiators radiate the second rf signal separately. The projection of the radiation electrode 51 on the second substrate 2 overlaps with the projection of the transmission electrode 32a on the second substrate 2; so that the second rf signal transmitted on the transmission electrode 32a is coupled to the radiation electrode 51, and the radiation electrode 51 radiates the second rf signal outwards.
Referring to fig. 3, fig. 3 is a schematic cross-sectional structure diagram of another liquid crystal antenna according to an embodiment of the present application. Optionally, the projection of the radiation electrode 51 on the second substrate 2 and the projection of the transmission electrode 32a on the second substrate 2 may completely overlap, and the second radio frequency signal may be completely coupled to the radiation electrode 51, so that the loss of the second radio frequency signal in the outward radiation process may be reduced, and the gain of the liquid crystal antenna may be improved.
In some alternative embodiments, the chip-integrated waveguide 4 includes a third substrate 41, a plurality of metalized holes 41a disposed on the third substrate 41, and a first metal layer 411 and a second metal layer 412 respectively disposed on two sides of the third substrate 41, where the first metal layer 411, the second metal layer 412, and the plurality of metalized holes 41a form a plurality of feeding areas, and a projection of the feeding areas on the first substrate 1 at least partially overlaps a projection of the first hollow portion 31b on the first substrate 1.
In these alternative embodiments, the substrate-integrated waveguide 4 further includes a radio frequency signal terminal (not shown), a third substrate 41, and a first metal layer 411 and a second metal layer 412 respectively disposed on two sides of the third substrate 41. The first metal layer 411 and the second metal layer 412 respectively form upper and lower waveguide walls of the substrate integrated waveguide 4, a plurality of metalized holes 41a are formed in the third substrate 41, and the plurality of metalized holes 41a form a side wall of a feeding area of the substrate integrated waveguide 4. Specifically, when the liquid crystal antenna emits a beam, the radio frequency signal end emits a first radio frequency signal to the substrate integrated waveguide 4, after the feed area receives the first radio frequency signal, the first radio frequency signal is limited in the feed area formed by the two metalized holes 41a, the first metal layer 411 and the second metal layer 412, the metalized holes 41a isolate the first radio frequency signal in the adjacent feed area, the first radio frequency signals in the multiple feed areas cannot affect each other, and the loss and the benefit are reduced.
The projection of the feeding area on the first substrate 1 overlaps with the projection of the first hollow part 31b on the first substrate 1; so that the first rf signal transmitted by the feeding region is coupled to the transmission electrode 32a through the first hollow portion 31 b.
Optionally, the projection of the feeding region on the first substrate 1 and the projection of the first hollow portion 31b on the first substrate 1 may completely overlap, and a transmission path of the first radio frequency signal may be optimized, so that signal loss in the transmission process of the first radio frequency signal may be reduced.
Referring to fig. 4, fig. 4 is a schematic cross-sectional structure diagram of another liquid crystal antenna according to an embodiment of the present application. In other alternative embodiments, the transmission metal layer 32 includes a plurality of transmission electrodes 32a disposed on the first substrate 1; the ground metal layer 31 includes a plurality of ground electrodes 31a disposed on the second substrate 2 and a first hollow portion 31b formed between two adjacent ground electrodes 31a, and a projection of the first hollow portion 31b on the first substrate 1 at least partially overlaps a projection of the transmission electrode 32a on the first substrate 1.
Unlike the liquid crystal antenna shown in fig. 2 and 3, the transmission metal layer 32 and the ground metal layer 31 are mounted at different positions in the liquid crystal antenna in the present embodiment. It can be understood by those skilled in the art that, in the present embodiment, the phase shifter array layer 3 may also include a ground signal terminal and a transmission signal terminal, and the ground signal terminal and the transmission signal terminal are the same as those in the foregoing embodiments, and will not be described herein again.
In these alternative embodiments, the adjacent ground electrodes 31a are insulated and spaced by the first hollow portion 31b, and the projection of the first hollow portion 31b on the first substrate 1 overlaps with the projection of the transmission electrode 32a on the first substrate 1, so that the first rf signal is transmitted from the transmission electrode 32a to the first hollow portion 31 b.
Optionally, the projection of the first hollow portion 31b on the first substrate 1 completely overlaps with the projection of the transmission electrode 32a on the first substrate 1, so that the loss of the first radio frequency signal in the transmission process can be reduced, and the gain of the liquid crystal antenna can be improved.
Referring to fig. 5, fig. 5 is a schematic cross-sectional structure diagram of another liquid crystal antenna according to an embodiment of the present application. In some optional embodiments, the radiator attachment layer 5 includes a plurality of radiation electrodes 51 arranged at intervals, and a projection of the radiation electrode 51 on the second substrate 2 at least partially overlaps a projection of the first hollow portion 31b on the second substrate 2.
In these alternative embodiments, the plurality of radiation electrodes 51 arranged at intervals as insulation act as mutually independent radiators for radiating the second rf signal.
A projection of the radiation electrode 51 on the second substrate 2 and a projection of the first hollow portion 31b on the second substrate 2 may partially overlap; thereby, the second rf signal is coupled to the radiation electrode 51 through the first hollow portion 31b, and the radiation electrode 51 radiates the second rf signal outwards.
Optionally, the projection of the radiation electrode 51 on the second substrate 2 and the projection of the first hollow portion 31b on the second substrate 2 may completely overlap, and the second radio frequency signal may be completely coupled to the radiation electrode 51, so that the loss of the second radio frequency signal in the outward radiation process may be reduced, and the gain of the liquid crystal antenna may be improved.
In some alternative embodiments, the chip-integrated waveguide 4 includes a third substrate 41, a plurality of metallized holes 41a disposed on the third substrate 41, and a first metal layer 411 and a second metal layer 412 respectively disposed on two sides of the third substrate 41, where the first metal layer 411, the second metal layer 412, and the plurality of metallized holes 41a form a plurality of feeding areas, and a projection of the feeding areas on the first substrate 1 at least partially overlaps a projection of the transmission electrode 32a on the first substrate 1.
In these alternative embodiments, the substrate integrated waveguide 4 also includes a radio frequency signal terminal (not shown), and the first metal layer 411 and the second metal layer 412 of the substrate integrated waveguide 4 respectively form the upper and lower waveguide walls of the substrate integrated waveguide 4. A plurality of metallized holes 41a are formed in the third substrate 41, and the plurality of metallized holes 41a form a sidewall of a feeding region of the substrate integrated waveguide 4. Specifically, when the liquid crystal antenna emits a beam, the radio frequency signal end emits a first radio frequency signal to the substrate integrated waveguide 4, after the feed area receives the first radio frequency signal, the first radio frequency signal is limited in the feed area formed by the two metalized holes 41a, the first metal layer 411 and the second metal layer 412, the metalized holes 41a isolate the first radio frequency signal in the adjacent feed area, the first radio frequency signals in the multiple feed areas cannot affect each other, and the loss and the benefit are reduced. The first rf signal is fed into the first hollow portion 31b and transmitted to the transmission electrode 32 a.
The projection of the feeding region on the first substrate 1 overlaps with the projection of the transmission electrode 32a on the first substrate 1; so that the first rf signal transmitted on the feeding region is coupled to the first hollow portion 31b through the transmission electrode 32 a.
Alternatively, the projection of the feeding region on the first substrate 1 and the projection of the transmission electrode 32a on the first substrate 1 may completely overlap, and the transmission path of the first radio frequency signal may be optimized, so that the signal loss during the transmission of the first radio frequency signal can be reduced.
In some alternative embodiments, the feed area is formed by a plurality of spaced metallized holes 41 a.
In these alternative embodiments, the metallized holes 41a form sidewalls of the feeding regions, and the first radio frequency signal is limited in each feeding region by the metallized holes 41a, so that leakage of the first radio frequency signal can be effectively suppressed, thereby suppressing surface wave loss and electromagnetic stray, improving the loss, and reducing interference.
Alternatively, the plurality of metalized holes 41a may be arranged on the third substrate 41 in a shape of "line", "double-inverted" L "," cross ", or H", or in other distribution forms, which is not limited in this application.
In some alternative embodiments, a plurality of metalized hollow-outs 412a are spaced on the second metal layer 412.
In these alternative embodiments, a plurality of metalized hollow-outs 412a may be formed on the second metal layer 412 of the substrate integrated waveguide 4 by etching through a mask process, the metalized hollow-outs 412a divide the second metal layer 412 into a plurality of resonant plates insulated from each other, and the first rf signal couples the first rf signal to the second metal layer 412 through the plurality of feeding areas of the third substrate 41.
Referring to fig. 6, fig. 6 is a schematic cross-sectional structure diagram of another liquid crystal antenna according to an embodiment of the present application. In some optional embodiments, a sealant 11 is disposed between the first substrate 1 and the second substrate 2, and is used to encapsulate the liquid crystal between the first substrate 1 and the second substrate 2.
In these optional embodiments, a sealant 11 is correspondingly disposed between the first substrate 1 and the second substrate 2, and the sealant 11 is used for encapsulating and defining the liquid crystal layer 33 and supporting the first substrate 1 and the second substrate 2.
Optionally, a whole liquid crystal layer 33 is disposed in the liquid crystal antenna, and at this time, the liquid crystal antenna only needs to be provided with the frame sealing glue 11 on the periphery of the liquid crystal layer 33, so that the processing technology is simple.
Optionally, a first alignment mark and a second alignment mark (not shown in the figure) may be respectively disposed on the first substrate 1 and the second substrate 2, and when the frame sealing adhesive 11 is attached to the first substrate 1 and the second substrate 2, the first alignment mark and the second alignment mark may be used for alignment, so as to facilitate attachment of the first substrate 1 and the second substrate 2, and improve alignment accuracy.
Referring to fig. 7, fig. 7 is a schematic structural diagram of a communication device according to an embodiment of the present disclosure. Based on the same inventive concept, an embodiment of the second aspect of the present application further provides a communication device 100, where the communication device 100 includes the liquid crystal antenna provided in any embodiment of the first aspect.
Optionally, the communication device 100 provided in the embodiment of the second aspect of the present application may be a wearable product, a computer, a vehicle-mounted electronic device, a mobile phone, and the like, which is not particularly limited in the present application.
The communication device 100 provided in the second aspect of the present application has the beneficial effects of the liquid crystal antenna provided in the first aspect of the present application, and specific reference may be specifically made to the specific description of the antenna in each of the above embodiments, and this embodiment is not described herein again.
It should be noted that while the invention has been described with reference to a preferred embodiment, various changes may be made and equivalents may be substituted for elements thereof without departing from the scope of the invention. In particular, the technical features mentioned in the embodiments can be combined in any way as long as there is no structural conflict. It is intended that the invention not be limited to the particular embodiments disclosed, but that the invention will include all embodiments falling within the scope of the appended claims.
Claims (11)
1. A liquid crystal antenna, comprising:
the first substrate and the second substrate are oppositely arranged;
a phase shifter array layer between the first substrate and the second substrate;
the substrate integrated waveguide is positioned on one side of the first substrate, which is far away from the second substrate;
the radiator laminating layer is positioned on one side of the second substrate, which is far away from the first substrate; the substrate integrated waveguide is used for receiving a first radio frequency signal, the phase shifter array layer is used for adjusting the first radio frequency signal to obtain a second radio frequency signal, and the radiator attaching layer is used for radiating the second radio frequency signal to the outside.
2. The liquid crystal antenna according to claim 1, wherein the phase shifter array layer comprises a ground metal layer and a transmission metal layer, and a liquid crystal layer provided between the first substrate and the second substrate, one of the ground metal layer and the transmission metal layer being provided on a side of the first substrate close to the second substrate, and the other of the ground metal layer and the transmission metal layer being provided on a side of the second substrate close to the first substrate.
3. The liquid crystal antenna of claim 2, wherein the ground metal layer comprises a plurality of ground electrodes disposed on the first substrate and a first hollow portion formed between two adjacent ground electrodes, and the transmission metal layer comprises a plurality of transmission electrodes disposed on the second substrate; the projection of the first hollow-out part on the second substrate is at least partially overlapped with the projection of the transmission electrode on the second substrate.
4. The liquid crystal antenna of claim 3, wherein the radiator attachment layer comprises a plurality of spaced apart radiation electrodes, and a projection of the radiation electrodes on the second substrate at least partially overlaps a projection of the transmission electrodes on the second substrate.
5. The liquid crystal antenna of claim 4, wherein the substrate-integrated waveguide comprises a third substrate, a plurality of metalized holes disposed on the third substrate, and a first metal layer and a second metal layer disposed on two sides of the third substrate, and the first metal layer, the second metal layer, and the plurality of metalized holes form a plurality of feeding areas, and a projection of the feeding areas on the first substrate at least partially overlaps a projection of the first hollow on the first substrate.
6. The liquid crystal antenna of claim 2, wherein the transmission metal layer comprises a plurality of transmission electrodes disposed on the first substrate; the ground metal layer comprises a plurality of ground electrodes arranged on the second substrate and a first hollow-out part formed between every two adjacent ground electrodes, and the projection of the first hollow-out part on the first substrate is at least partially overlapped with the projection of the transmission electrode on the first substrate.
7. The liquid crystal antenna of claim 6, wherein the radiator attachment layer includes a plurality of radiation electrodes disposed at intervals, and a projection of the radiation electrodes on the second substrate at least partially overlaps a projection of the first hollow portion on the second substrate.
8. The liquid crystal antenna of claim 7, wherein the substrate-integrated waveguide comprises a third substrate, a plurality of metalized holes disposed on the third substrate, and a first metal layer and a second metal layer disposed on two sides of the third substrate, and the first metal layer, the second metal layer, and the plurality of metalized holes form a plurality of feeding areas, and a projection of the feeding areas on the first substrate at least partially overlaps a projection of the transmission electrode on the first substrate.
9. The liquid crystal antenna according to claim 5 or 8, wherein a plurality of metalized hollow-outs are disposed at intervals on the second metal layer.
10. The liquid crystal antenna of claim 1, wherein a sealant is disposed between the first substrate and the second substrate for encapsulating the liquid crystal between the first substrate and the second substrate.
11. A communication device characterized by comprising the liquid crystal antenna of any one of claims 1 to 10.
Priority Applications (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CN202210224286.6A CN114696058B (en) | 2022-03-07 | Liquid crystal antenna and communication device |
Applications Claiming Priority (1)
| Application Number | Priority Date | Filing Date | Title |
|---|---|---|---|
| CN202210224286.6A CN114696058B (en) | 2022-03-07 | Liquid crystal antenna and communication device |
Publications (2)
| Publication Number | Publication Date |
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| CN114696058A true CN114696058A (en) | 2022-07-01 |
| CN114696058B CN114696058B (en) | 2024-06-07 |
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| CN109687165A (en) * | 2018-12-29 | 2019-04-26 | 瑞声科技（南京）有限公司 | Millimeter wave array antenna mould group and mobile terminal |
| CN113219688A (en) * | 2020-02-05 | 2021-08-06 | 群创光电股份有限公司 | Electronic device |
| CN111293425A (en) * | 2020-03-24 | 2020-06-16 | 北京华镁钛科技有限公司 | Liquid crystal active phased array antenna |
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