CN116918177A

CN116918177A - Antenna and electronic device comprising same

Info

Publication number: CN116918177A
Application number: CN202280015709.1A
Authority: CN
Inventors: 赵南俊; 孙贞焕; 罗孝锡; 金英柱
Original assignee: Samsung Electronics Co Ltd
Current assignee: Samsung Electronics Co Ltd
Priority date: 2021-02-18
Filing date: 2022-01-13
Publication date: 2023-10-20

Abstract

Various embodiments of the present invention relate to an electronic device including an antenna. The electronic device may include: a housing; a main substrate disposed in an inner space of the case and including a first surface facing in a first direction, a second surface facing in a direction opposite to the first surface, and a through hole; and an antenna module disposed on the main substrate, wherein the antenna module includes: a wireless communication circuit disposed at least partially on the through-hole and configured to transmit and/or receive wireless signals of a specified frequency band through a plurality of antenna elements located at a second surface of the main substrate and a substrate including the plurality of antenna elements. Other embodiments may also be possible.

Description

Antenna and electronic device comprising same

Technical Field

Various embodiments of the present disclosure relate to an antenna and an electronic device including the same.

Background

With the development of wireless communication technology, electronic devices (e.g., electronic devices for communication) are generally used in daily life, and thus the use of content is being multiplied. Due to the rapid increase in the use of content, network capacity is gradually reaching its limits. After commercialization of a 4G (fourth generation) communication system, in order to meet the increasing demand for wireless data services, communication systems (e.g., a 5G (fifth generation) communication system, a quasi-5G communication system, or a New Radio (NR)) that transmit and/or receive signals using a high frequency band (e.g., a millimeter wave (mmWave) frequency band ranging from about 3GHz to about 300 GHz) have been and are being studied.

Disclosure of Invention

Technical problem

The electronic device may include an antenna capable of transmitting and/or receiving signals using frequencies of a high frequency band (e.g., mmWave band ranging from about 3GHz to 300 GHz). Antennas (e.g., antenna modules) are being developed to have efficient mounting structures to overcome free space loss due to characteristics of high frequency bands and to improve gain, and antennas (e.g., antenna modules) are being developed in various types corresponding to the efficient mounting structures. The antenna (e.g., antenna module) may include an array antenna in which a variable number of antenna elements (e.g., conductive patches and/or conductive patterns) are arranged at regular intervals on a dielectric structure (e.g., substrate).

The electronic device may include wireless communication circuitry (e.g., a Radio Frequency Front End (RFFE)) for substantially simultaneously transmitting and/or receiving signals through a plurality of antenna elements included in the array antenna. The wireless communication circuit may include a plurality of amplifier circuits (e.g., power Amplifiers (PA) and/or Low Noise Amplifiers (LNA)) and/or a plurality of frequency converters (e.g., mixers and/or Phase Locked Loops (PLLs)) to transmit and/or receive signals through each antenna element. As the structure of wireless communication circuitry (e.g., RFFE) becomes relatively more complex, a relatively large physical area may be required.

As electronic devices become slim, the size of the internal space of the electronic devices decreases. Therefore, it may be difficult to secure a space for arranging the array antenna and/or the wireless communication circuit.

Various embodiments of the present disclosure disclose an apparatus and method for reducing the size of a space (e.g., physical area) in an electronic device in which an antenna (e.g., antenna module) and/or wireless communication circuitry is disposed.

Solution to the problem

According to various embodiments, an electronic device may include: a housing; a main plate disposed in an inner space of the housing and including a first surface facing a first direction, a second surface facing away from the first surface, and a through hole; and the antenna module is arranged on the main board. The antenna module may include: a plate disposed at least partially in the through hole and including a plurality of antenna elements; and a wireless communication circuit configured to transmit and/or receive wireless signals of a predetermined frequency band via the plurality of antenna elements on the second surface of the motherboard.

According to various embodiments, an electronic device may include: a housing; a main plate disposed in an inner space of the housing and including a first surface facing a first direction, a second surface facing away from the first surface, and a through hole; and the antenna module is arranged on the main board. The antenna module may include: a board comprising a plurality of antenna elements; and a wireless communication circuit disposed at least partially in the through hole and electrically connected to the board, the wireless communication circuit configured to: wireless signals of a predetermined frequency band are transmitted and/or received via the plurality of antenna elements.

Advantageous effects of the invention

According to various embodiments of the present disclosure, an electronic device is configured such that a plurality of antenna elements, a first board including the plurality of antenna elements, and/or a wireless communication circuit are at least partially disposed in a through hole provided in a motherboard in the electronic device. Accordingly, a space in which the array antenna and/or the wireless communication circuit are provided can be ensured, and an impedance matching loss and/or an insertion loss caused by the motherboard can be reduced.

Drawings

FIG. 1 is a block diagram of an electronic device in a network environment according to various embodiments;

FIG. 2 is a block diagram of an electronic device configured to support legacy network communications and 5G network communications, in accordance with various embodiments;

FIG. 3a is a perspective view of a mobile electronic device according to various embodiments;

FIG. 3b is a rear perspective view of a mobile electronic device according to various embodiments;

FIG. 3c is an exploded perspective view of a mobile electronic device according to various embodiments;

fig. 4a and 4b are views schematically showing an exemplary structure of an antenna module according to various embodiments;

fig. 4c is a cross-sectional view of the antenna module taken along line A-A in fig. 4b, in accordance with various embodiments;

fig. 4d is a plan view of the antenna module, as viewed in the-z-axis direction in fig. 4b, in accordance with various embodiments;

Fig. 4e is a plan view of the antenna module, as viewed in the z-axis direction in fig. 4b, in accordance with various embodiments;

fig. 4f illustrates an exemplary wireless communication circuit disposed in an antenna module according to various embodiments;

fig. 5a and 5b are flowcharts illustrating steps in the manufacture of an antenna module according to various embodiments;

fig. 6 is a view showing an exemplary structure of an antenna module using an interposer (interposer) according to various embodiments;

fig. 7a, 7b, and 7c are diagrams each illustrating an exemplary matching circuit according to various embodiments;

fig. 8a and 8b are views each showing an exemplary structure provided in each through hole in the main board for each antenna element according to various embodiments;

fig. 9a and 9b are views illustrating another exemplary structure of an antenna module according to various embodiments;

fig. 9c is a cross-sectional view of the antenna module taken along line B-B in fig. 9B, in accordance with various embodiments;

fig. 9d is a plan view of the antenna module, as viewed in the-z-axis direction in fig. 9b, in accordance with various embodiments;

fig. 9e is a plan view of the antenna module, as viewed in the z-axis direction in fig. 9b, in accordance with various embodiments;

Fig. 9f illustrates another exemplary wireless communication circuit disposed in an antenna module in accordance with various embodiments;

fig. 10 is a view illustrating another exemplary structure of an antenna module using an interposer according to various embodiments;

fig. 11a and 11b are views each schematically showing an exemplary structure of an antenna module including a plurality of array antennas according to various embodiments;

fig. 12a and 12b are views showing a structure in which a through hole is provided in a partial region of an outer edge of a main board according to various embodiments;

fig. 13 is a diagram illustrating another exemplary structure of an antenna module including a plurality of array antennas according to various embodiments;

fig. 14 is a diagram showing an arrangement of an amplifying circuit according to various embodiments.

Detailed Description

Hereinafter, various embodiments will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

Fig. 1 is a block diagram illustrating an electronic device 101 in a network environment 100 according to various embodiments. Referring to fig. 1, an electronic device 101 in a network environment 100 may communicate with the electronic device 102 via a first network 198 (e.g., a short-range wireless communication network) or with at least one of the electronic device 104 or the server 108 via a second network 199 (e.g., a long-range wireless communication network). According to an embodiment, the electronic device 101 may communicate with the electronic device 104 via the server 108. According to an embodiment, the electronic device 101 may include a processor 120, a memory 130, an input module 150, a sound output module 155, a display module 160, an audio module 170, a sensor module 176, an interface 177, a connection end 178, a haptic module 179, a camera module 180, a power management module 188, a battery 189, a communication module 190, a Subscriber Identity Module (SIM) 196, or an antenna module 197. In some embodiments, at least one of the above-described components (e.g., connection end 178) may be omitted from electronic device 101, or one or more other components may be added to electronic device 101. In some embodiments, some of the components described above (e.g., sensor module 176, camera module 180, or antenna module 197) may be implemented as a single integrated component (e.g., display module 160).

The processor 120 may run, for example, software (e.g., program 140) to control at least one other component (e.g., hardware component or software component) of the electronic device 101 that is connected to the processor 120, and may perform various data processing or calculations. According to one embodiment, as at least part of the data processing or calculation, the processor 120 may store commands or data received from another component (e.g., the sensor module 176 or the communication module 190) into the volatile memory 132, process the commands or data stored in the volatile memory 132, and store the resulting data in the non-volatile memory 134. According to an embodiment, the processor 120 may include a main processor 121 (e.g., a Central Processing Unit (CPU) or an Application Processor (AP)) or an auxiliary processor 123 (e.g., a Graphics Processing Unit (GPU), a Neural Processing Unit (NPU), an Image Signal Processor (ISP), a sensor hub processor, or a Communication Processor (CP)) that is operatively independent of or combined with the main processor 121. For example, when the electronic device 101 comprises a main processor 121 and a secondary processor 123, the secondary processor 123 may be adapted to consume less power than the main processor 121 or to be dedicated to a particular function. The auxiliary processor 123 may be implemented separately from the main processor 121 or as part of the main processor 121.

The auxiliary processor 123 (instead of the main processor 121) may control at least some of the functions or states related to at least one of the components of the electronic device 101 (e.g., the display module 160, the sensor module 176, or the communication module 190) when the main processor 121 is in an inactive (e.g., sleep) state, or the auxiliary processor 123 may control at least some of the functions or states related to at least one of the components of the electronic device 101 (e.g., the display module 160, the sensor module 176, or the communication module 190) with the main processor 121 when the main processor 121 is in an active state (e.g., running an application). According to an embodiment, the auxiliary processor 123 (e.g., an image signal processor or a communication processor) may be implemented as part of another component (e.g., the camera module 180 or the communication module 190) functionally related to the auxiliary processor 123. According to an embodiment, the auxiliary processor 123 (e.g., a neural processing unit) may include hardware structures dedicated to artificial intelligence model processing. The artificial intelligence model may be generated through machine learning. Such learning may be performed, for example, by the electronic device 101 where artificial intelligence is performed or via a separate server (e.g., server 108). The learning algorithm may include, but is not limited to, for example, supervised learning, unsupervised learning, semi-supervised learning, or reinforcement learning. The artificial intelligence model may include a plurality of artificial neural network layers. The artificial neural network may be a Deep Neural Network (DNN), a Convolutional Neural Network (CNN), a Recurrent Neural Network (RNN), a boltzmann machine limited (RBM), a Deep Belief Network (DBN), a bi-directional recurrent deep neural network (BRDNN), or a deep Q network, or a combination of two or more thereof, but is not limited thereto. Additionally or alternatively, the artificial intelligence model may include software structures in addition to hardware structures.

The memory 130 may store various data used by at least one component of the electronic device 101 (e.g., the processor 120 or the sensor module 176). The various data may include, for example, software (e.g., program 140) and input data or output data for commands associated therewith. Memory 130 may include volatile memory 132 or nonvolatile memory 134.

The program 140 may be stored as software in the memory 130, and the program 140 may include, for example, an Operating System (OS) 142, middleware 144, or applications 146.

The input module 150 may receive commands or data from outside the electronic device 101 (e.g., a user) to be used by other components of the electronic device 101 (e.g., the processor 120). The input module 150 may include, for example, a microphone, a mouse, a keyboard, keys (e.g., buttons) or a digital pen (e.g., a stylus).

The sound output module 155 may output a sound signal to the outside of the electronic device 101. The sound output module 155 may include, for example, a speaker or a receiver. Speakers may be used for general purposes such as playing multimedia or playing a record. The receiver may be used to receive an incoming call. Depending on the embodiment, the receiver may be implemented separate from the speaker or as part of the speaker.

Display module 160 may visually provide information to the outside (e.g., user) of electronic device 101. The display device 160 may include, for example, a display, a holographic device, or a projector, and a control circuit for controlling a corresponding one of the display, the holographic device, and the projector. According to an embodiment, the display module 160 may comprise a touch sensor adapted to detect a touch or a pressure sensor adapted to measure the strength of the force caused by a touch.

The audio module 170 may convert sound into electrical signals and vice versa. According to an embodiment, the audio module 170 may obtain sound via the input module 150, or output sound via the sound output module 155 or headphones of an external electronic device (e.g., the electronic device 102) that is directly (e.g., wired) or wirelessly connected to the electronic device 101.

The sensor module 176 may detect an operational state (e.g., power or temperature) of the electronic device 101 or an environmental state (e.g., a state of a user) external to the electronic device 101 and then generate an electrical signal or data value corresponding to the detected state. According to an embodiment, the sensor module 176 may include, for example, a gesture sensor, a gyroscope sensor, an atmospheric pressure sensor, a magnetic sensor, an acceleration sensor, a grip sensor, a proximity sensor, a color sensor, an Infrared (IR) sensor, a biometric sensor, a temperature sensor, a humidity sensor, or an illuminance sensor.

Interface 177 may support one or more specific protocols that will be used to connect electronic device 101 with an external electronic device (e.g., electronic device 102) directly (e.g., wired) or wirelessly. According to an embodiment, interface 177 may include, for example, a High Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI), a Universal Serial Bus (USB) interface, a Secure Digital (SD) card interface, or an audio interface.

The connection end 178 may include a connector via which the electronic device 101 may be physically connected with an external electronic device (e.g., the electronic device 102). According to an embodiment, the connection end 178 may include, for example, an HDMI connector, a USB connector, an SD card connector, or an audio connector (e.g., a headphone connector).

The haptic module 179 may convert the electrical signal into a mechanical stimulus (e.g., vibration or motion) or an electrical stimulus that may be recognized by the user via his sense of touch or kinesthetic sense. According to an embodiment, the haptic module 179 may include, for example, a motor, a piezoelectric element, or an electrostimulator.

The camera module 180 may capture still images or moving images. According to an embodiment, the camera module 180 may include one or more lenses, an image sensor, an image signal processor, or a flash.

The power management module 188 may manage power supply to the electronic device 101. According to an embodiment, the power management module 188 may be implemented as at least part of, for example, a Power Management Integrated Circuit (PMIC).

Battery 189 may power at least one component of electronic device 101. According to an embodiment, battery 189 may include, for example, a primary non-rechargeable battery, a rechargeable battery, or a fuel cell.

The communication module 190 may support establishing a direct (e.g., wired) communication channel or a wireless communication channel between the electronic device 101 and an external electronic device (e.g., the electronic device 102, the electronic device 104, or the server 108) and performing communication via the established communication channel. The communication module 190 may include one or more communication processors capable of operating independently of the processor 120 (e.g., an Application Processor (AP)) and supporting direct (e.g., wired) or wireless communication. According to an embodiment, the communication module 190 may include a wireless communication module 192 (e.g., a cellular communication module, a short-range wireless communication module, or a Global Navigation Satellite System (GNSS) communication module) or a wired communication module 194 (e.g., a Local Area Network (LAN) communication module or a Power Line Communication (PLC) module). A respective one of these communication modules may communicate with external electronic devices via a first network 198 (e.g., a short-range communication network such as bluetooth, wireless fidelity (Wi-Fi) direct, or infrared data association (IrDA)) or a second network 199 (e.g., a long-range communication network such as a conventional cellular network, a 5G network, a next-generation communication network, the internet, or a computer network (e.g., a LAN or wide-area network (WAN)). These various types of communication modules may be implemented as a single component (e.g., a single chip), or may be implemented as multiple components (e.g., multiple chips) separate from each other. The wireless communication module 192 may identify and authenticate the electronic device 101 in a communication network, such as the first network 198 or the second network 199, using user information (e.g., an International Mobile Subscriber Identity (IMSI)) stored in the user identification module 196.

The wireless communication module 192 may support a 5G network following a 4G network as well as next generation communication technologies (e.g., new Radio (NR) access technologies). NR access technologies may support enhanced mobile broadband (eMBB), large-scale machine type communication (mctc), or Ultra Reliable Low Latency Communication (URLLC). The wireless communication module 192 may support a high frequency band (e.g., millimeter wave band) to achieve, for example, a high data transmission rate. The wireless communication module 192 may support various techniques for ensuring performance over high frequency bands, such as, for example, beamforming, massive multiple-input multiple-output (massive MIMO), full-dimensional MIMO (FD-MIMO), array antennas, analog beamforming, or massive antennas. The wireless communication module 192 may support various requirements specified in the electronic device 101, an external electronic device (e.g., electronic device 104), or a network system (e.g., second network 199). According to an embodiment, the wireless communication module 192 may support a peak data rate (e.g., 20Gbps or greater) for implementing an eMBB, a lost coverage (e.g., 164dB or less) for implementing an emtc, or a U-plane delay (e.g., a round trip of 0.5ms or less, or 1ms or less for each of the Downlink (DL) and Uplink (UL)) for implementing a URLLC.

The antenna module 197 may transmit signals or power to the outside of the electronic device 101 (e.g., an external electronic device) or receive signals or power from the outside of the electronic device 101 (e.g., an external electronic device). According to an embodiment, the antenna module 197 may include an antenna including a radiating element composed of a conductive material or conductive pattern formed in or on a substrate, such as a Printed Circuit Board (PCB). According to an embodiment, the antenna module 197 may include a plurality of antennas (e.g., array antennas). In this case, at least one antenna suitable for a communication scheme used in a communication network, such as the first network 198 or the second network 199, may be selected from the plurality of antennas, for example, by the communication module 190 (e.g., the wireless communication module 192). Signals or power may then be transmitted or received between the communication module 190 and the external electronic device via the selected at least one antenna. According to an embodiment, further components (e.g., a Radio Frequency Integrated Circuit (RFIC)) other than radiating elements may additionally be formed as part of the antenna module 197.

According to various embodiments, antenna module 197 may form a millimeter wave antenna module. According to embodiments, a millimeter-wave antenna module may include a printed circuit board, a Radio Frequency Integrated Circuit (RFIC) disposed on a first surface (e.g., a bottom surface) of the printed circuit board or adjacent to the first surface and capable of supporting a specified high frequency band (e.g., a millimeter-wave band), and a plurality of antennas (e.g., array antennas) disposed on a second surface (e.g., a top surface or a side surface) of the printed circuit board or adjacent to the second surface and capable of transmitting or receiving signals of the specified high frequency band. For example, the plurality of antennas may include a patch array antenna and/or a dipole array antenna.

At least some of the above components may be interconnected via an inter-peripheral communication scheme (e.g., bus, general Purpose Input Output (GPIO), serial Peripheral Interface (SPI), or Mobile Industrial Processor Interface (MIPI)) and communicatively communicate signals (e.g., commands or data) therebetween.

According to an embodiment, commands or data may be sent or received between the electronic device 101 and the external electronic device 104 via the server 108 connected to the second network 199. Each of the electronic device 102 or the electronic device 104 may be the same type of device as the electronic device 101 or a different type of device from the electronic device 101. According to an embodiment, all or some of the operations to be performed at the electronic device 101 may be performed at one or more of the external electronic device 102, the external electronic device 104, or the server 108. For example, if the electronic device 101 should automatically perform a function or service or should perform a function or service in response to a request from a user or another device, the electronic device 101 may request the one or more external electronic devices to perform at least part of the function or service instead of or in addition to the function or service, or the electronic device 101 may request the one or more external electronic devices to perform at least part of the function or service. The one or more external electronic devices that received the request may perform the requested at least part of the function or service or perform another function or another service related to the request and transmit the result of the performing to the electronic device 101. The electronic device 101 may provide the result as at least a partial reply to the request with or without further processing of the result. For this purpose, for example, cloud computing technology, distributed computing technology, mobile Edge Computing (MEC) technology, or client-server computing technology may be used. The electronic device 101 may provide ultra-low latency services using, for example, distributed computing or mobile edge computing. In another embodiment, the external electronic device 104 may comprise an internet of things (IoT) device. Server 108 may be an intelligent server using machine learning and/or neural networks. According to an embodiment, the external electronic device 104 or the server 108 may be included in the second network 199. The electronic device 101 may be applied to smart services (e.g., smart home, smart city, smart car, or healthcare) based on 5G communication technology or IoT-related technology.

The electronic device according to various embodiments may be one of various types of electronic devices. The electronic device may include, for example, a portable communication device (e.g., a smart phone), a computer device, a portable multimedia device, a portable medical device, a camera, a wearable device, or a household appliance. According to the embodiments of the present disclosure, the electronic device is not limited to those described above.

It should be understood that the various embodiments of the disclosure and the terminology used therein are not intended to limit the technical features set forth herein to the particular embodiments, but rather include various modifications, equivalents or alternatives to the respective embodiments. For the description of the drawings, like reference numerals may be used to refer to like or related elements. It will be understood that a noun in the singular corresponding to a term may include one or more things unless the context clearly indicates otherwise. As used herein, each of the phrases such as "a or B", "at least one of a and B", "at least one of a or B", "A, B or C", "at least one of A, B and C", and "at least one of A, B or C" may include any or all possible combinations of items listed with a corresponding one of the plurality of phrases. As used herein, terms such as "1 st" and "2 nd" or "first" and "second" may be used to simply distinguish one element from another element and not to limit the element in other respects (e.g., importance or order). It will be understood that if the terms "operatively" or "communicatively" are used or the terms "operatively" or "communicatively" are not used, then if an element (e.g., a first element) is referred to as being "coupled to," "connected to," or "connected to" another element (e.g., a second element), it is intended that the element can be directly (e.g., wired) connected to, wireless connected to, or connected to the other element via a third element.

As used in connection with various embodiments of the present disclosure, the term "module" may include an element implemented in hardware, software, or firmware, and may be used interchangeably with other terms (e.g., "logic," "logic block," "portion," or "circuitry"). A module may be a single integrated component adapted to perform one or more functions or a minimal unit or portion of the single integrated component. For example, according to an embodiment, a module may be implemented in the form of an Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC).

The various embodiments set forth herein may be implemented as software (e.g., program 140) comprising one or more instructions stored in a storage medium (e.g., internal memory 136 or external memory 138) readable by a machine (e.g., electronic device 101). For example, under control of a processor, a processor (e.g., processor 120) of the machine (e.g., electronic device 101) may invoke and execute at least one of the one or more instructions stored in the storage medium with or without the use of one or more other components. This enables the machine to operate to perform at least one function in accordance with the at least one instruction invoked. The one or more instructions may include code generated by a compiler or code capable of being executed by an interpreter. The machine-readable storage medium may be provided in the form of a non-transitory storage medium. Wherein the term "non-transitory" merely means that the storage medium is a tangible device and does not include a signal (e.g., electromagnetic waves), but the term does not distinguish between data being semi-permanently stored in the storage medium and data being temporarily stored in the storage medium.

According to embodiments, methods according to various embodiments of the present disclosure may be included and provided in a computer program product. The computer program product may be used as a product for conducting transactions between sellers and buyers. The computer program product may be distributed in the form of a machine-readable storage medium, such as a compact disk read only memory (CD-ROM), or may be distributed via an application Store (e.g., a Play Store ^TM ) The computer program product may be published (e.g., downloaded or uploaded) online, or may be distributed (e.g., downloaded or uploaded) directly between two user devices (e.g., smartphones). At least some of the computer program product may be temporarily generated if published online, or at least some of the computer program product may be stored at least temporarily in a machine readable storage medium, such as the memory of a manufacturer's server, an application store's server, or a forwarding server.

According to various embodiments, each of the above-described components (e.g., a module or a program) may include a single entity or multiple entities, and some of the multiple entities may be separately provided in different components. According to various embodiments, one or more of the above components may be omitted, or one or more other components may be added. Alternatively or additionally, multiple components (e.g., modules or programs) may be integrated into a single component. In this case, according to various embodiments, the integrated component may still perform the one or more functions of each of the plurality of components in the same or similar manner as the corresponding one of the plurality of components performed the one or more functions prior to integration. According to various embodiments, operations performed by a module, a program, or another component may be performed sequentially, in parallel, repeatedly, or in a heuristic manner, or one or more of the operations may be performed in a different order or omitted, or one or more other operations may be added.

Fig. 2 is a block diagram 200 of an electronic device 101 for supporting legacy network communications and 5G network communications, in accordance with various embodiments.

Referring to fig. 2, according to various embodiments, the electronic device 101 may include a first communication processor 212 (e.g., including processing circuitry), a second communication processor 214 (e.g., including processing circuitry), a first Radio Frequency Integrated Circuit (RFIC) 222, a second RFIC 224, a third RFIC 226, a fourth RFIC 228, a first Radio Frequency Front End (RFFE) 232, a second RFFE 234, a first antenna module 242, a second antenna module 244, and an antenna 248. The electronic device 101 may include a processor 120 and a memory 130. The network 199 may include a first network 292 and a second network 294. According to another embodiment, the electronic device 101 may also include at least one of the components shown in fig. 1, and the network 199 may also include at least one other network. According to an embodiment, the first communication processor 212, the second communication processor 214, the first RFIC 222, the second RFIC 224, the fourth RFIC 228, the first RFFE 232, and the second RFFE 234 may be at least a portion of the wireless communication module 192. According to another embodiment, the fourth RFIC 228 may be omitted or may be included as part of the third RFIC 226.

The first communication processor 212 may establish a communication channel for a frequency band for wireless communication with the first network 292 and may support legacy network communication via the established communication channel. According to an embodiment, the first network may be a legacy network including a second generation (2G) network, a third generation (3G) network, a fourth generation (4G) network, or a Long Term Evolution (LTE) network. The second communication processor 214 may establish a communication channel corresponding to a designated frequency band (e.g., about 6GHz to 60 GHz) among frequency bands for wireless communication with the second network 294, and may support 5G network communication via the established communication channel. According to an embodiment, the second network 294 may be a 5G network (e.g., a New Radio (NR)) defined in 3 GPP. In addition, according to an embodiment, the first communication processor 212 or the second communication processor 214 may establish a communication channel corresponding to another designated frequency band (for example, about 6GHz or less) among frequency bands for wireless communication with the second network 294, and may support 5G network communication via the established communication channel. According to an embodiment, the first communication processor 212 and the second communication processor 214 may be implemented in a single chip or a single package. According to an embodiment, the first communication processor 212 or the second communication processor 214 may be implemented in a single chip or a single package together with the processor 120, the sub-processor 123 or the communication module 190.

According to an embodiment, the first communication processor 212 may perform data transmission or reception with the second communication processor 214. For example, data that has been classified as being transmitted via the second network 294 may be changed to be transmitted via the first network 292.

In this case, the first communication processor 212 may receive the transmission data from the second communication processor 214. For example, the first communication processor 212 may perform data transmission or reception with the second communication processor 214 via an inter-processor interface. The inter-processor interface may be implemented as, for example, a universal asynchronous receiver/transmitter (UART) (e.g., a high-speed UART (HS-UART)) or a peripheral component interconnect express bus (PCIe), although the type of interface is not limited thereto. For example, the first communication processor 212 and the second communication processor 214 may exchange control information and packet data information using, for example, a shared memory. For example, the first communication processor 212 may perform transmission or reception of various types of information such as sensing information, information associated with output strength, and Resource Block (RB) allocation information with the second communication processor 214.

Depending on the implementation, the first communication processor 212 may not be directly connected to the second communication processor 214. In this case, the first communication processor 212 may perform data transmission or reception with the second communication processor 214 via the processor 120 (e.g., an application processor). For example, the first communication processor 212 and the second communication processor 214 may perform data transmission or reception via the processor 120 (e.g., an application processor) and an HS-UART interface or PCIe interface, but the type of interface is not limited. For example, the first communication processor 212 and the second communication processor 214 may exchange control information and packet data information using the processor 120 (e.g., an application processor) and a shared memory. According to an embodiment, the first communication processor 212 and the second communication processor 214 may be implemented in a single chip or a single package. According to various embodiments, the first communication processor 212 or the second communication processor 214 may be implemented in a single chip or a single package with the processor 120, the sub-processor 123, or the communication module 190.

In the case of transmission, the first RFIC 222 may convert baseband signals generated by the first communication processor 212 to Radio Frequency (RF) signals in the range of approximately 700MHz to 3GHz for use in the first network 292 (e.g., a legacy network). In the case of reception, the RF signal is obtained from the first network 292 (e.g., a legacy network) via an antenna (e.g., the first antenna module 242) and may be preprocessed via an RFFE (e.g., the first RFFE 232). The first RFIC 222 may convert the preprocessed RF signal to a baseband signal such that the baseband signal is processed by the first communication processor 212.

In the case of transmission, the second RFIC 224 may convert the baseband signal generated by the first communication processor 212 or the second communication processor 214 into an RF signal (hereinafter, 5G Sub6RF signal) of a Sub6 band (for example, about 6GHz or less) used in the second network 294 (for example, 5G network). In the case of reception, the 5G Sub6RF signal may be obtained from the second network 294 (e.g., 5G network) via an antenna (e.g., second antenna module 244) and may be preprocessed by the RFFE (e.g., second RFFE 234). The second RFIC 224 may convert the pre-processed 5g sub6rf signal to a baseband signal so that the signal may be processed by a corresponding communication processor of the first communication processor 212 or the second communication processor 214.

The third RFIC 226 may convert baseband signals generated by the second communication processor 214 into RF signals (hereinafter 5G Above6 RF signals) of a 5G Above6 band (e.g., about 6GHz to 60 GHz) to be used in a second network 294 (e.g., a 5G network). In the case of reception, the 5G Above6 RF signal is obtained from the second network 294 (e.g., a 5G network) via an antenna (e.g., antenna 248) and may be preprocessed by the third RFFE 236. The third RFIC 226 may convert the preprocessed 5g Above6 RF signal to a baseband signal so that the signal is processed by the second communications processor 214. According to an embodiment, the third RFFE 236 may be implemented as part of the third RFIC 226.

According to an embodiment, the electronic device 101 may include a fourth RFIC 228, the fourth RFIC 228 being separate from the third RFIC 226 or being part of the third RFIC 226. In this case, the fourth RFIC 228 may convert the baseband signal generated by the second communication processor 214 into an RF signal (hereinafter, an IF signal) of an intermediate frequency band (for example, about 9GHz to 11 GHz), and may transmit the IF signal to the third RFIC 226. The third RFIC 226 may convert the IF signal to a 5gabove6 RF signal. In the case of reception, the 5G Above6 RF signal may be received from the second network 294 (e.g., a 5G network) via an antenna (e.g., antenna 248) and may be converted to an IF signal by the third RFIC 226. The fourth RFIC 228 may convert the IF signal to a baseband signal such that the second communication processor 214 may process the baseband signal.

According to embodiments, the first RFIC 222 and the second RFIC 224 may be implemented as at least a portion of a single chip or a single package. According to an embodiment, the first RFFE 232 and the second RFFE 234 may be implemented as at least a portion of a single chip or a single package. According to embodiments, at least one of the first antenna module 242 or the second antenna module 244 may be omitted or may be combined with another antenna module in order to process RF signals of a plurality of corresponding frequency bands.

According to an embodiment, the third RFIC 226 and the antenna 248 may be disposed in the same substrate and a third antenna module 246 may be formed. For example, the wireless communication module 192 or the processor 120 may be disposed in a first substrate (e.g., a main PCB). In this case, the third RFIC 226 is provided in a part (e.g., a lower part) of a second substrate (e.g., a sub PCB) different from the first substrate, and the antenna 248 is provided in another part (e.g., an upper part) so that the third antenna module 246 may be formed. By providing the third RFIC 226 and the antenna 248 in the same substrate, the length of the transmission line between the two may be reduced. This may reduce loss (e.g., attenuation) due to transmission lines of high-band signals (e.g., about 6GHz to 60 GHz) for 5G network communications, for example. Accordingly, the electronic device 101 may improve the quality or speed of communication with the second network 294 (e.g., a 5G network).

According to an embodiment, the antenna 248 may be implemented as an antenna array comprising a plurality of antenna elements that may be used for beamforming. In this case, the third RFIC 226 may include, for example, a plurality of phase shifters 238 corresponding to a plurality of antenna elements as part of the third RFFE 236. In the case of transmission, each phase shifter 238 of the plurality of phase shifters 238 may shift the phase of a 5G Above6 RF signal to be transmitted to the outside of the electronic device 101 (e.g., a base station of a 5G network) via a respective antenna element. In the case of reception, each of the plurality of phase shifters 238 may shift the phase of the 5g Above6 RF signal received from the outside via the corresponding antenna element into the same or substantially the same phase. This may enable transmission or reception between the electronic device 101 and the outside via beamforming.

The second network 294 (e.g., a 5G network) may operate independently of the first network 292 (e.g., a legacy network) (e.g., standalone (SA)) or may operate by connecting to the first network 292 (e.g., non-standalone (NSA)). For example, in a 5G network, only an access network (e.g., a 5G Radio Access Network (RAN) or a next generation RAN (NG RAN)) may exist, and a core network (e.g., a Next Generation Core (NGC)) may not exist. In this case, the electronic device 101 may access an access network of the 5G network and may access an external network (e.g., the internet) under the control of a core network of a legacy network (e.g., an Evolved Packet Core (EPC)). Protocol information for communicating with a legacy network (e.g., LTE protocol information) or protocol information for communicating with a 5G network (e.g., new Radio (NR) protocol information) may be stored in the memory 130 and may be accessed by another component (e.g., the processor 120, the first communication processor 212, or the second communication processor 214).

Fig. 3a is a front perspective view of an electronic device 300 according to various embodiments. Fig. 3b is a rear perspective view of an electronic device 300 according to various embodiments. The electronic device 300 in fig. 3a and 3b may be at least partially similar to the electronic device 101 of fig. 1 or 2, or may include other embodiments of electronic devices.

Referring to fig. 3a and 3B, an electronic device 300 (e.g., the electronic device 101 of fig. 1) according to various embodiments may include a housing 310, the housing 310 including a first surface (or front surface) 310A, a second surface (or rear surface) 310B, and a side surface 310C surrounding a space (or interior space) between the first surface 310A and the second surface 310B. In an embodiment (not shown), the term "housing 310" may refer to a structure that forms a portion of the first surface 310A, the second surface 310B, and the side surface 310C. According to an embodiment, at least a portion of the first surface 310A may be defined by a substantially transparent front plate 302 (e.g., a glass plate or a polymer plate including various coatings). The second surface 310B may be defined by a substantially opaque back plate 311. The rear plate 311 may be made of: for example, a coated or colored glass, ceramic, polymer, or metal (e.g., aluminum, stainless steel (STS), or magnesium), or a combination of two or more of the above-mentioned materials. The side surface 310C may be defined by a side frame structure (or "side member") 318, the side frame structure (or "side member") 318 being coupled to the front and rear panels 302, 311 and comprising metal and/or polymer. In some embodiments, the back panel 311 and the side frame structure 318 may be integrally constructed and may comprise the same material (e.g., a metallic material such as aluminum).

According to various embodiments, the front panel 302 may include first regions 310D at its long opposite side edges, these first regions 310D being curved and extending seamlessly from the first surface 310A toward the rear panel 311. In the illustrated embodiment (see fig. 3B), the back plate 311 may comprise second regions 310E at its long opposite side edges, these second regions 310E being curved and extending seamlessly from the second surface 310B towards the front plate 302. In some embodiments, the front plate 302 (or the rear plate 311) may include only one of the first regions 310D (or the second regions 310E). In an embodiment, the front plate 302 (or the rear plate 311) may not include a portion of the first region 310D (or the second region 310E). In an embodiment, the side frame structure 318 may have a first thickness (or width) on a side surface portion excluding the first region 310D or the second region 310E and a second thickness (or width) smaller than the first thickness on a side surface portion including the first region 310D or the second region 310E when viewed from a side of the electronic device 300.

According to an embodiment, the electronic device 300 may comprise at least one of: display 301, audio modules 303, 307, and 314, sensor modules 304 and 319, camera modules 305, 312, and 313, key input devices 317, indicators (not shown), and connector holes 308 and 309. In some embodiments, at least one component (e.g., key input device 317, indicators or connector holes 308 and 309) may be omitted in electronic device 300, or other components may be additionally included.

According to various embodiments, the display 301 may be visually exposed through a substantial portion of the front panel 302. In some embodiments, at least a portion of the display 301 may be visually exposed through the front panel 302, the front panel 302 defining a first surface 310A and a first region 310D of the side surface 310C. In some embodiments, the edge of the display 301 may be configured to be substantially the same shape as the perimeter of the front panel 302 adjacent thereto. In an embodiment (not shown), the distance between the perimeter of the display 301 and the perimeter of the front panel 302 may be substantially constant in order to expand the exposed area of the display 301.

In an embodiment (not shown), a recess or opening may be provided in a portion of the screen display area of the display 301, and at least one of the audio module 314, the sensor module 304, the camera module 305, or an indicator aligned with the recess or opening may be included. In an embodiment (not shown), on a rear surface of the screen display area of the display 301, at least one of an audio module 314, a sensor module 304, a camera module 305, or an indicator may be included. For example, the audio module 314, the camera module 305, the sensor module 304, and/or the indicator may be disposed in an interior space in the electronic device 300 to contact the external environment by perforating in the display 301 until the opening of the front panel 302. As another example, some of the sensor module 304, the camera module 305, and/or the indicator may be disposed in an interior space in the electronic device 300 so as to perform their functions without being visually exposed through the front plate 302. For example, the area of the display 301 facing the sensor module 304, the camera module 305, and/or the indicator may not require a perforation opening.

In an embodiment (not shown), the display 301 may be coupled to or disposed adjacent to: touch sensitive circuitry, pressure sensors capable of measuring touch intensity (pressure), and/or digitizers configured to detect magnetic field type handwriting pens. In some embodiments, at least some of the sensor modules 304 and 319 and/or at least some of the key input devices 317 may be disposed in the first region 310D and/or the second region 310E.

According to various embodiments, the audio modules 303, 307, and 314 may include microphone holes 303 and speaker holes 307 and 314. The microphone aperture 303 may include a microphone disposed therein to capture external sound, and in some embodiments, may include a plurality of microphones disposed therein to detect the direction of sound. Speaker apertures 307 and 314 may include an external speaker aperture 307 and a telephone call receiver aperture 314. In some embodiments, speaker holes 307 and 314 and microphone hole 303 may be implemented as a single hole, or may include speakers (e.g., piezoelectric speakers) without speaker holes 307 and 314.

According to various embodiments, the sensor modules 304 and 319 may generate electrical signals or data values corresponding to an internal operating state or an external environmental state of the electronic device 300. The sensor modules 304 and 319 may include, for example, a first sensor module 304 (e.g., a proximity sensor) and/or a second sensor module (not shown) (e.g., a fingerprint sensor) disposed on a first surface 310A of the housing 310, and/or a third sensor module 319 (e.g., a HRM sensor) disposed on a second surface 310B of the housing 310. The fingerprint sensor may be disposed not only on the first surface 310A (e.g., the display 301) of the housing 310, but also on the second surface 310B. For example, a fingerprint sensor (e.g., an ultrasonic fingerprint sensor or an optical fingerprint sensor) may be disposed below the display 301 of the first surface 310A. The electronic device 300 may also include at least one of a sensor module (not shown) such as a gesture sensor, a gyroscope sensor, an atmospheric pressure sensor, a magnetic sensor, an acceleration sensor, a grip sensor, a color sensor, an Infrared (IR) sensor, a biometric sensor, a temperature sensor, a humidity sensor, or an illuminance sensor 304.

According to various embodiments, camera modules 305, 312, and 313 may include: such as a first camera device 305 disposed on a first surface 310A of the electronic device 300, and a second camera device 312 and/or a flash 313 disposed on a second surface 310B of the electronic device 300. Camera modules 305 and 312 may include one or more lenses, image sensors, and/or image signal processors. The flash 313 may include, for example, a light emitting diode or a xenon lamp. In some embodiments, two or more lenses (e.g., an infrared camera, a wide-angle lens, and a telephoto lens) and an image sensor may be disposed on one surface of the electronic device 300.

According to various embodiments, the key input device 317 may be provided on the side surface 310C of the housing 310. In an embodiment, the electronic device 300 may not include some or all of the key input devices 317, and the key input devices 317 not included in the electronic device 300 may be implemented in the form of soft keys on the display 301. In some embodiments, the key input device 317 may be implemented using a pressure sensor included in the display 301.

According to various embodiments, an indicator (not shown) may be disposed on the first surface 310A of the housing 310. The indicator may provide status information of the electronic device 300 in an optical form, for example. In an embodiment, the indicator may provide a light source that is interlocked with the operation of the camera module 305, for example. The indicators may include, for example, LEDs, IR LEDs, and xenon lamps.

According to various embodiments, connector holes 308 and 309 may include: a first connector hole 308 capable of receiving a connector (e.g., a USB connector) for transmitting/receiving power and/or data to/from an external electronic device; and/or a second connector hole 309 capable of receiving a connector (e.g., a headphone jack) for transmitting/receiving audio signals to/from an external electronic device.

Fig. 3c is an exploded perspective view of an electronic device 300 according to various embodiments.

Referring to fig. 3c, according to various embodiments, the electronic device 300 may include a side frame structure 321, a first support member 3211 (e.g., a bracket), a front plate 322, a display 323, a printed circuit board 324 (e.g., a motherboard), a battery 325, a second support member 326 (e.g., a rear housing), an antenna 327, and a rear plate 328. In some embodiments, at least one component (e.g., the first support member 3211 or the second support member 326) may be omitted from the electronic device 300, or other components may be additionally included in the electronic device 300. At least one of the components of the electronic device 300 may be identical or similar to at least one of the components of the electronic device 300 of fig. 3a or 3b, and a redundant description thereof will be omitted below.

According to various embodiments, the first support member 3211 may be provided inside the electronic apparatus 300, and the first support member 3211 may be connected to the side frame structure 321, or may be integrated with the side frame structure 321. The first support member 3211 may be made of, for example, a metallic material and/or a non-metallic material (e.g., a polymer). The display 323 may be coupled to one surface of the first support member 3211, and the printed circuit board 324 may be coupled to the other surface of the first support member 3211. A processor (e.g., processor 120 of fig. 1), a memory (e.g., memory 130 of fig. 1), and/or an interface (e.g., interface 177 of fig. 1) may be mounted on printed circuit board 324. The processor may comprise at least one of: such as a central processing unit, an application processor, a graphics processor, an image signal processor, a sensor hub processor, or a communication processor.

The memory may include, for example, volatile memory (e.g., volatile memory 132 in FIG. 1) or nonvolatile memory (e.g., nonvolatile memory 134 in FIG. 1).

The interface may include, for example, a High Definition Multimedia Interface (HDMI), a Universal Serial Bus (USB) interface, an SD card interface, and/or an audio interface. The interface may electrically or physically connect, for example, the electronic device 300 to an external electronic device, and may include a USB connector, an SD card/MMC connector, or an audio connector.

According to various embodiments, the battery 325 is a device for supplying power to at least one component of the electronic device 300 and may include, for example, a primary non-rechargeable battery, a rechargeable secondary battery, or a fuel cell. At least a portion of the battery 325 may be disposed on substantially the same plane as, for example, the printed circuit board 324. The battery 325 may be integrally provided inside the electronic device 300 or may be detachably provided on the electronic device 300.

According to various embodiments, the antenna 327 may be disposed between the rear plate 328 and the battery 325. The antenna 327 may include, for example, a Near Field Communication (NFC) antenna, a wireless charging antenna, and/or a Magnetic Secure Transmission (MST) antenna. The antenna 327 may perform short-range communication with, for example, an external electronic device, or may wirelessly transmit/receive power necessary for charging to/from the external device. In an embodiment, the antenna structure may be constituted by a portion of the side frame structure 321 and/or the first support member 3211 or a combination thereof.

According to various embodiments, the electronic device 300 may have a straight plate shape or a plate shape appearance, but the appearance of the electronic device 300 is not limited thereto. For example, the electronic device 300 may be part of a foldable electronic device, a slidable electronic device, a retractable electronic device, and/or a rollable electronic device.

Fig. 4a and 4b are views schematically showing an exemplary structure of an antenna module according to various embodiments. According to an embodiment, the antenna module of fig. 4a and 4b may be at least partially similar to the third antenna module 246 of fig. 2, or may comprise other embodiments of antenna modules.

According to various embodiments, which will be described with reference to fig. 4a and 4b, the antenna module may comprise: a first board 410, the first board 410 comprising a plurality of antenna elements 420; and a wireless communication circuit 430 electrically connected to the first board 410.

According to various embodiments, the first plate 410 may include a plurality of conductive layers and a plurality of non-conductive layers alternately stacked with the conductive layers. The first board 410 may use wiring lines and conductive vias provided in the conductive layer to provide electrical connections between various electronic components disposed on the first board 410 and/or external to the first board 410.

According to various embodiments, the first plate 410 may include a plurality of antenna elements 420 arranged at predetermined intervals to form a directional beam. According to an embodiment, the antenna element 420 may be provided on the first surface 412 of the first plate 410 or inside the first surface 412. According to an embodiment, the plurality of antenna elements 420 may be configured to form a beam pattern in a first direction (e.g., a z-axis direction). In some alternative embodiments, the first plate 410 may include a single antenna element 420. In alternative embodiments, references to multiple antenna elements in this disclosure may include a single antenna element.

According to various embodiments, the first board 410 may be at least partially disposed within a hole (e.g., through hole 402) disposed in at least a portion of the motherboard 400 (e.g., printed circuit board 324 in fig. 3 c), as shown in fig. 4 b. As used herein, the term "aperture" may include an aperture or any type of opening in the motherboard that partially or completely passes through the motherboard 400, and the term "aperture" includes a recess or other type of aperture that may not extend completely through the motherboard 400. The term "hole" may include "groove", "cutout", and the like. These terms may be considered to refer to an area within the general plane of the plate (or general outline of the plate in the case of an uneven plate) where there is no physical substance of the plate through the entire thickness of the plate, thereby forming a space. In some examples, such space may be located within an interior region of the plane of the plate, thereby forming a hole (of any suitable shape). In some examples, such spaces may be located at edge regions of the plate and/or at corner regions of the plate (e.g., such that a portion of the outer perimeter of the plate has a concave shape at least partially surrounding the space), thereby forming "cut-outs". According to an embodiment, when the first plate 410 is disposed in the through hole 402 in the motherboard 400, the first surface 412 of the first plate 410 may protrude from the first surface 404 of the motherboard 400. According to an embodiment, when the first plate 410 is disposed in the through-hole 402 in the motherboard 400, the first surface 412 of the first plate 410 may be disposed substantially coplanar with the first surface 404 of the motherboard 400. According to an embodiment, when the first board 410 is disposed in the through hole 402 in the main board 400, the first surface 412 of the first board 410 may be disposed lower than the first surface 404 of the main board 400. According to an embodiment, the first plate 410 may be made of a material having a dielectric constant relatively lower than that of the main plate 400.

According to various embodiments, the first board 410, when configured to be inserted into the through-hole 402 in the motherboard 400, may be coupled or connected to a wireless communication circuit 430 disposed on the second surface 406 of the motherboard 400. According to an embodiment, the first board 410 and the wireless communication circuit 430 may be electrically and/or physically coupled to each other by a conductive bonding method. For example, the conductive bonding method may include soldering, spray soldering, and/or application of an Anisotropic Conductive Film (ACF).

According to an embodiment, as shown in fig. 4b, the wireless communication circuit 430 may be arranged to at least partially overlap the motherboard 400 when the first surface 404 of the motherboard 400 is viewed from above (e.g. in the-z axis direction). According to an embodiment, when the wireless communication circuit 430 is viewed in the z-axis direction, at least a portion of the wireless communication circuit 430 may overlap the main board 400, and at least a portion of the remaining portion of the wireless communication circuit 430 may overlap the first board 410 disposed in the through hole 402. For example, the wireless communication circuit 430 may be coupled or connected to the motherboard 400. For example, the wireless communication circuit 430 and the motherboard 400 may be electrically and/or physically coupled to each other by a conductive bonding method. For example, the wireless communication circuit 430 may include a chipset or package.

According to various embodiments, the wireless communication circuit 430 may transmit and/or receive wireless signals of a predetermined frequency band via the plurality of antenna elements 420 disposed on the first board 410. According to an embodiment, the wireless communication circuit 430 (e.g., the third RFIC 226 in fig. 2) may be electrically connected to at least one circuit (e.g., the Communication Processor (CP) 452 and/or the PMIC 454) disposed on the motherboard 400 via the motherboard 400. For example, during transmission, the wireless communication circuit 430 may up-convert the baseband signal acquired from the communication processor 452 into an RF signal of a predetermined frequency band. The RF signals may be transmitted to the plurality of antenna elements 420 via the first plate 410. During reception, the wireless communication circuit 430 may down-convert RF signals received through the plurality of antenna elements 420 (e.g., array antennas) disposed on the first board 410 into baseband signals, and may transmit the baseband signals to the communication processor 452. As another example, during transmission, the wireless communication circuit 430 may upconvert an IF signal (e.g., about 9GHz to about 11 GHz) acquired from an Intermediate Frequency Integrated Circuit (IFIC) (e.g., fourth RFIC 228 in fig. 2) to an RF signal of a predetermined frequency band. During reception, the wireless communication circuit 430 may down-convert the acquired RF signal received via the plurality of antenna elements 420 (e.g., array antennas) disposed on the first board 410 into an IF signal, and may transmit the IF signal to the IFIC.

According to various embodiments, motherboard 400 may be disposed in a housing (e.g., housing 310 in fig. 3 a) of an electronic device (e.g., electronic device 300 in fig. 3 a). According to an embodiment, at least one circuit may be disposed on one surface (e.g., first surface 404 and/or second surface 406) of motherboard 400. For example, the communication processor 452 and/or the Power Management Integrated Circuit (PMIC) 454 may be disposed on the first surface 404 (or the second surface 406) of the motherboard 400.

According to an embodiment, the communication processor 452 (e.g., the processor 120 in fig. 1, or the first communication processor 212 or the second communication processor 214 in fig. 2) may process the baseband signal. For example, the communication processor 452 may generate a baseband signal and transmit the baseband signal to the wireless communication circuit 430 via the motherboard 400. For example, the communication processor 452 may process baseband signals received from the wireless communication circuit 430 via the motherboard 400. According to an embodiment, the PMIC 454 may receive a voltage from the motherboard 400 and may provide required power to various components on the antenna module (e.g., the wireless communication circuit 430).

Fig. 4c is a cross-sectional view of the antenna module according to various embodiments, taken along line A-A in fig. 4 b. Fig. 4d is a plan view of the antenna module, as viewed in the-z-axis direction in fig. 4b, in accordance with various embodiments. Fig. 4e is a plan view of the antenna module, as viewed in the z-axis direction in fig. 4b, in accordance with various embodiments.

Referring to fig. 4c, 4d, and 4e, according to various embodiments, at least a portion of the first board 410 may be disposed in a through hole 402 provided in at least a portion of the main board 400, and may be coupled or connected to the wireless communication circuit 430. According to an embodiment, when the first surface 404 of the motherboard 400 is viewed from above (e.g. in the-z-axis direction), as shown in fig. 4d, the first board 410 may be disposed in the through hole 402 in the motherboard 400. According to an embodiment, when the second surface 406 of the motherboard 400 is viewed from below (e.g., in the z-axis direction), the wireless communication circuit 430 may be disposed to at least partially overlap the motherboard 400 such that the first board 410 disposed in the through-hole 402 in the motherboard 400 is supported, as shown in fig. 4 e.

According to various embodiments, the first board 410 may include a plurality of antenna elements 420 and/or a plurality of matching circuits 461, 462, 463, and 464. For example, the plurality of antenna elements 420 may include a first element 421, a second element 422, a third element 423, or a fourth element 424. According to an embodiment, a plurality of matching circuits 461, 462, 463 and 464 may be used to match the impedance of an antenna element 421, 422, 423 or 424 electrically connected thereto. For example, the first element 421 may be electrically connected to the first matching circuit 461 via a first via 471. The second element 422 may be electrically connected to the second matching circuit 462 via a second via 472. The third element 423 may be electrically connected to the third matching circuit 463 via a third path 473. Fourth element 424 may be electrically connected to fourth matching circuit 464 via fourth path 474. In this disclosure, a "via" (e.g., when referring to an "nth via," where n is an integer number distinguishing between different vias) may be understood to refer to a component (e.g., a wire or other portion of conductive material) that provides a connection (e.g., an electrical connection) between two or more other elements, components, circuits, etc. Such connection may be provided by yet further elements or components. For example, the first via 471 provides an electrical connection between the first element 421 and the first matching circuit 461 through the first plate 410.

According to various embodiments, the first board 410 may be electrically and/or physically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 by a conductive bonding method. According to an embodiment, the first matching circuit 461 of the first board 410 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via the fifth path 475. According to an embodiment, the second matching circuit 462 of the first board 410 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via the sixth via 476. According to an embodiment, the third matching circuit 463 of the first board 410 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via a seventh via 477. According to an embodiment, the fourth matching circuit 464 of the first board 410 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via an eighth via 478.

According to various embodiments, the wireless communication circuit 430 may be electrically connected to at least one circuit (e.g., the communication processor 452 and/or the PMIC 454) disposed on the motherboard 400. According to an embodiment, the wireless communication circuit 430 may be electrically connected to the second electrical wiring line 489 of the motherboard 400 via a fifteenth via 488 of the motherboard 400. The second electrical wiring line 489 of the motherboard 400 may be electrically connected to the communication processor 452 via a sixteenth via 490. For example, the wireless communication circuit 430 may send signals (e.g., control signals, baseband signals, or IF signals) to the communication processor 452 and/or receive signals (e.g., control signals, baseband signals, or IF signals) from the communication processor 452, wherein the communication processor 452 is electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via the motherboard 400.

According to an embodiment, the wireless communication circuit 430 may be electrically connected to the fourth electrical wiring line 495 of the motherboard 400 via the nineteenth via 494 of the motherboard 400. The fourth electrical wiring line 495 of the motherboard 400 may be electrically connected to the PMIC 454 via a twentieth via 496. For example, the wireless communication circuit 430 may receive a power signal from the PMIC 454, the PMIC 454 being electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via the motherboard 400.

According to various embodiments, motherboard 400 may include at least one circuit. According to an embodiment, a Communication Processor (CP) 452 and/or PMIC 454 may be disposed on the first surface 404 of the motherboard 400. According to embodiments, one or more other circuits 456 and/or 458 may be disposed on the second surface 406 of the motherboard 400. According to an embodiment, the main board 400 may further include a shielding member (not shown). For example, a shielding member may be disposed on a portion of motherboard 400 to electromagnetically shield one or more circuits 452, 454, 456, and/or 458 disposed on motherboard 400. For example, the shielding member may include a shielding can.

According to various embodiments, the first board 410 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via the motherboard 400. According to an embodiment, the first board 410 and the main board 400 may be electrically and/or physically coupled to each other by a conductive bonding method. The first board 410 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via the motherboard 400 electrically and/or physically coupled thereto by a conductive bonding method.

Fig. 4f illustrates an exemplary wireless communication circuit provided in an antenna module according to various embodiments.

Referring to fig. 4f, according to various embodiments, at least a portion of the first plate 410 may be disposed in a through hole 402 provided in at least a portion of the main plate 400, and may be coupled or connected to the second plate 440. According to an embodiment, when the second surface 406 of the main board 400 is viewed from below (e.g., in the-z-axis direction), the second board 440 may be disposed to at least partially overlap the main board 400 such that the first board 410 disposed in the through hole 402 in the main board 400 is supported. A detailed description of the first plate 410 of fig. 4f will be omitted to avoid redundancy with the detailed description made with reference to fig. 4 c.

According to various embodiments, the first plate 410 may be electrically and/or physically connected to the second plate 440 by an electrically conductive bonding method (e.g., soldering). According to an embodiment, the first matching circuit 461 of the first plate 410 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via the fifth and ninth vias 475 and 481 of the second plate 440. For example, the fifth via 475 and the ninth via 481 may be electrically and/or physically connected to each other by a conductive bonding method (e.g., soldering). According to an embodiment, the second matching circuit 462 of the first board 410 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via the sixth via 476 and the tenth via 482 of the second board 440. For example, sixth via 476 and tenth via 482 may be electrically and/or physically connected to each other by a conductive bonding method (e.g., soldering). According to an embodiment, the third matching circuit 463 of the first board 410 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via the seventh and eleventh vias 477 and 483 of the second board 440. For example, the seventh via 477 and the eleventh via 483 may be electrically and/or physically connected to each other by a conductive bonding method (e.g., soldering). According to an embodiment, the fourth matching circuit 464 of the first board 410 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via the eighth and twelfth vias 478, 484 of the second board 440. For example, the eighth via 478 and the twelfth via 484 may be electrically and/or physically connected to each other by a conductive bonding method (e.g., soldering).

According to various embodiments, the wireless communication circuit 430 may be disposed on one surface of the second board 440. According to an embodiment, the wireless communication circuit 430 may be fixed on one surface of the second board 440 through a protective layer 440-1 (e.g., resin).

According to various embodiments, the wireless communication circuit 430 may be electrically connected to at least one circuit (e.g., the communication processor 452 and/or the PMIC 454) disposed on the motherboard 400 via the second board 440 and the motherboard 400. According to an embodiment, the wireless communication circuit 430 may be electrically connected to the first electrical wiring line 486 of the second board 440 via a thirteenth via 485. The first electrical wiring line 486 of the second board 440 may be electrically connected to the second electrical wiring line 489 of the motherboard 400 via the fourteenth and fifteenth vias 487 and 488 of the motherboard 400. The second electrical wiring line 489 of the motherboard 400 may be electrically connected to the communication processor 452 via a sixteenth via 490. For example, the fourteenth and fifteenth vias 487 and 488 can be electrically and/or physically connected to each other by a conductive bonding method (e.g., soldering). For example, the wireless communication circuit 430 may send signals (e.g., control signals, baseband signals, or IF signals) to and/or receive signals (e.g., control signals, baseband signals, or IF signals) from the communication processor 452 electrically connected to the motherboard 400 via the second board 440.

According to an embodiment, the wireless communication circuit 430 may be electrically connected to the third electrical wiring line 492 of the second board 440 via a seventeenth via 491. The third electrical wiring line 492 of the second board 440 may be electrically connected to the fourth electrical wiring line 495 of the main board 400 via the eighteenth via 493 and the nineteenth via 494 of the main board 400. The fourth electrical wiring line 495 of the motherboard 400 may be electrically connected to the PMIC 454 via a twentieth via 496. For example, the eighteenth via 493 and the nineteenth via 494 may be electrically and/or physically connected to each other by a conductive bonding method (e.g., soldering). For example, the wireless communication circuit 430 may receive a power signal from the PMIC 454 electrically connected thereto via the second board 440 and the main board 400.

According to various embodiments, at least one of the circuits 452, 454, 456, and/or 458 disposed on the motherboard 400 may be disposed on the motherboard 400 via a separate board (not shown) like the wireless communication circuit 430.

According to various embodiments, in the electronic device 101 or 300, by disposing the first board 410 including the plurality of antenna elements 420 (e.g., array antennas) in the through-hole 402 in the main board 400, a space (e.g., height) required for the antenna module can be reduced.

Fig. 5a and 5b are a flowchart 500 illustrating steps of manufacturing an antenna module according to various embodiments.

Referring to fig. 5a and 5b, in accordance with various embodiments, in operation 501, a first board 410 may be connected to one surface (e.g., a first surface 432) of a wireless communication circuit 430. According to an embodiment, the first plate 410 may be electrically and/or physically coupled to the first surface 432 (510 and 520) of the wireless communication circuit 430. For example, the first board 410 may include a plurality of antenna elements 420 and/or a plurality of matching circuits 461, 462, 463 and 464, the plurality of antenna elements 420 and/or the plurality of matching circuits 461, 462, 463 and 464 being disposed inside the first surface 412 of the first board 410 or on the first surface 412 so as to form a directional beam. For example, the first plate 410 may include a ground disposed within the second surface 414 or on the second surface 414. According to an embodiment, the plurality of antenna elements 420 disposed on the first board 410 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via the first board 410.

In operation 503, at least a portion of the first board 410 disposed on one surface (e.g., the first surface 432) of the wireless communication circuit 430 may be disposed inside the through hole 402 in the main board 400. According to an embodiment, the wireless communication circuit 430 may be coupled to at least partially overlap the motherboard 400. For example, the wireless communication circuit 430 and the motherboard 400 may be electrically and/or physically coupled to each other in the partially overlapped region (530) by a conductive bonding method (e.g., soldering). According to an embodiment, the wireless communication circuit 430 may be electrically connected to at least one circuit (e.g., the communication processor 452 and/or the PMIC 454) disposed on the motherboard 400.

According to various embodiments, the order of operations for manufacturing the antenna module shown in fig. 5a may be at least partially changed, or some operations may be omitted. According to an embodiment, the wireless communication circuit 430 may be coupled to at least partially overlap the motherboard 400. The first board 410 may be disposed inside a through hole in the main board 400, wherein the main board 400 is coupled to the wireless communication circuit 430 in such a manner as to at least partially overlap the main board 400.

Fig. 6 is a view illustrating an exemplary structure of an antenna module using an interposer according to various embodiments. According to embodiments, the antenna module of fig. 6 may be at least partially similar to the third antenna module 246 of fig. 2, or may include other embodiments of antenna modules.

According to various embodiments, which will be described with reference to fig. 6, an antenna module may include: a first board 410, the first board 410 comprising a plurality of antenna elements 420; and a wireless communication circuit 430, the wireless communication circuit 430 being electrically connected to the first board 410. For example, the plurality of antenna elements 420 may include a first element 421, a second element 422, a third element 423, or a fourth element 424. Detailed descriptions of the first board 410 and the wireless communication circuit 430 of fig. 6 will be omitted in order to avoid redundancy with the detailed descriptions made with reference to fig. 4a, 4b, 4c and/or 4 f.

According to various embodiments, the wireless communication circuit 430 may be electrically connected with at least one circuit (e.g., the communication processor 452 and/or the PMIC 454) disposed on the motherboard 400 via the interposers 600 and/or 610 and the motherboard 400. According to an embodiment, the wireless communication circuit 430 may be electrically connected to the second electrical wiring line 489 of the motherboard 400 via the twenty-first via 621 of the first interposer 600 and the fifteenth via 488 of the motherboard 400. For example, the twenty-first via 621 and the fifteenth via 488 can be electrically and/or physically connected to each other by a conductive bonding method (e.g., soldering). For example, the wireless communication circuit 430 may send signals (e.g., control signals, baseband signals, or IF signals) to the communication processor 452 electrically connected thereto and/or receive signals (e.g., control signals, baseband signals, or IF signals) from the communication processor 452 electrically connected thereto.

According to an embodiment, the wireless communication circuit 430 may be electrically connected to the fourth electrical wiring line 495 of the motherboard 400 via the twenty-second via 623 of the second interposer 610 and the nineteenth via 494 of the motherboard 400. For example, the twenty-second via 623 and the nineteenth via 494 may be electrically and/or physically connected to each other by a conductive bonding method (e.g., soldering). For example, the wireless communication circuit 430 may receive a power signal from the PMIC 454 to which it is electrically connected.

According to various embodiments, in the electronic device 101 or 300, by electrically and/or physically connecting the main board 400 and the wireless communication circuit 430 to each other via the interposers 600 and 610 and disposing the first board 410 including the plurality of antenna elements 420 (e.g., array antennas) relatively deeper in the through-holes 402 in the main board 400, a space (e.g., height) required for the antenna module can be reduced.

Fig. 7a, 7b, and 7c are diagrams each illustrating an exemplary matching circuit according to various embodiments. Fig. 7b is a plan view of the second surface 414 of the first plate 410. Fig. 7c is a plan view of the first surface 432 of the wireless communication circuit 430. The antenna module of fig. 7a, 7b and 7c may be at least partially similar to the third antenna module 246 of fig. 2, or may include other embodiments of antenna modules, according to embodiments.

Referring to fig. 7a, 7b, and 7c, according to various embodiments, a plurality of matching circuits 701-1, 701-2, 702-1, 702-2, 703-1, 703-2, 704-1, and 704-2 may be disposed in a junction region between the first board 410 and the wireless communication circuit 430. According to an embodiment, at least some of the plurality of matching circuits 701-1, 701-2, 702-1, 702-2, 703-1, 703-2, 704-1, and 704-2 may be disposed on the first surface 432 of the wireless communication circuit 430. At least some of the remaining matching circuits of the plurality of matching circuits 701-1, 701-2, 702-1, 702-2, 703-1, 703-2, 704-1, and 704-2 may be disposed on the second surface 414 of the first plate 410.

According to an embodiment, among the plurality of matching circuits 701-1, 701-2, 702-1, 702-2, 703-1, 703-2, 704-1, and 704-2, a first matching circuit 701-1, a third matching circuit 702-1, a fifth matching circuit 703-1, and a seventh matching circuit 704-1 related to a first polarization (e.g., a horizontal polarization) may be disposed on the first surface 432 of the wireless communication circuit 430, as shown in fig. 7 c. For example, the first matching circuit 701-1 may be electrically connected to the first element 421 disposed on the first board 410 via the first via 471 of the first board 410. The first matching circuit 701 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430. For example, the third matching circuit 702-1 may be electrically connected to the second element 422 disposed on the first board 410 via the second via 472 of the first board 410. The third matching circuit 702-1 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430. For example, the fifth matching circuit 703-1 may be electrically connected to the third element 423 disposed on the first board 410 via the third path 473 of the first board 410. The fifth matching circuit 703-1 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430. For example, the seventh matching circuit 704-1 may be electrically connected to the fourth element 424 disposed on the first board 410 via the fourth channel 474 of the first board 410. The seventh matching circuit 704-1 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430.

According to an embodiment, among the plurality of matching circuits 701-1, 701-2, 702-1, 702-2, 703-1, 703-2, 704-1, and 704-2, a second matching circuit 701-2, a fourth matching circuit 702-2, a sixth matching circuit 703-2, and an eighth matching circuit 704-2 related to a second polarization (e.g., a vertical polarization) may be disposed on the second surface 414 of the first board 410, as shown in fig. 7 b. For example, the second matching circuit 701-2 may be electrically connected to the first element 421 via a via (not shown) of the first board 410. The second matching circuit 701-2 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430. For example, the fourth matching circuit 702-2 may be electrically connected to the second element 422 via a via (not shown) of the first board 410. The fourth matching circuit 702-2 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430. For example, the sixth matching circuit 703-2 may be electrically connected to the third element 423 via a via (not shown) of the first board 410. The sixth matching circuit 703-2 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430. For example, eighth matching circuit 704-2 may be electrically connected to fourth element 424 via a via (not shown) of first board 410. Eighth matching circuit 704-2 may be electrically coupled to wireless communication circuit 430. For example, each of the plurality of matching circuits 701-1, 701-2, 702-1, 702-2, 703-1, 703-2, 704-1, and 704-2 may include a port for electrically connecting with a via.

According to an embodiment, when the first surface 404 of the main board 400 is viewed from above (e.g., in the-z-axis direction), the first, third, fifth, and seventh matching circuits 701-1, 702-1, 703-1, and 704-1 disposed on the first surface 432 of the wireless communication circuit 430, and the second, fourth, sixth, and eighth matching circuits 701-2, 702-2, 703-2, and 704-2 disposed on the second surface 414 of the first board 410 may be disposed so as not to overlap each other, as shown in fig. 7b and 7 c.

According to an embodiment, a plurality of matching circuits 701-1, 701-2, 702-1, 702-2, 703-1, 703-2, 704-1, and 704-2 may be implemented on the first board 410 and/or the wireless communication circuit 430 in the form of conductive patterns. According to an embodiment, the plurality of matching circuits 701-1, 701-2, 702-1, 702-2, 703-1, 703-2, 704-1, and 704-2 may include passive elements disposed on one surface of the first board 410 and/or one surface of the wireless communication circuit 430.

According to an embodiment, a plurality of matching circuits 701-1, 701-2, 702-1, 702-2, 703-1, 703-2, 704-1, and 704-2 may be disposed on the second surface 414 of the first board 410 or the first surface 432 of the wireless communication circuit 430.

According to an embodiment, the wireless communication circuit 430 may include a plurality of conductive pads 730 for the interposer 600 and/or the interposer 610. For example, at least some of the plurality of conductive pads 730 may be connected to a ground layer via respective vias in order to electromagnetically shield the plurality of matching circuits 701-1, 701-2, 702-1, 702-2, 703-1, 703-2, 704-1, and 704-2. For example, at least some of the plurality of conductive pads 730 may be used as paths for electrical connection with the motherboard 400. For example, at least some of the plurality of conductive pads 730 may be used as conductive bond pads for conductive bonding (e.g., soldering) with the insert 600 and/or the insert 610.

According to various embodiments, in the antenna module, by disposing the plurality of matching circuits 701-1, 701-2, 702-1, 702-2, 703-1, 703-2, 704-1, and 704-2 for the plurality of antenna elements 420 in the joint region between the first board 410 and the wireless communication circuit 430, the ground layer related to the electrical wiring of the antenna elements 420 and the wireless communication circuit 430 can be eliminated from the inside of the first board 410, which enables the height of the first board 410 to be relatively reduced.

Fig. 8a and 8b are views each showing an exemplary structure provided in each through hole in the main board for each antenna element according to various embodiments. According to an embodiment, the antenna module of fig. 8a and 8b may be at least partially similar to the third antenna module 246 of fig. 2, or may comprise other embodiments of antenna modules. In the following description, a detailed description of the wireless communication circuit 430 of fig. 8a and 8b will be omitted in order to avoid redundancy with the detailed description made with reference to fig. 4a, 4b, 4c and/or 4 f.

According to various embodiments with reference to fig. 8a and 8b, a plurality of antenna structures 811, 812, 813, and 814 constituting an array antenna may be provided in such a manner as to be inserted into different through holes 801, 802, 803, and 804 provided in the main board 400, respectively. For example, the first plate (e.g., first plate 410) may be omitted. According to an embodiment, the first antenna structure 811 may be provided in the first through hole 801 in the motherboard 400. The second antenna structure 812 may be disposed in the second through hole 802 in the motherboard 400. The third antenna structure 813 may be disposed in the third through hole 803 in the main board 400. The fourth antenna structure 814 may be disposed in a fourth through hole 804 in the motherboard 400.

According to various embodiments, the plurality of antenna structures 811, 812, 813, and 814, when configured to be inserted into different through holes 801, 802, 803, and 804 in the motherboard 400, may be coupled or connected to a wireless communication circuit 430 disposed on the second surface 406 of the motherboard 400, as shown in fig. 8 a.

According to an embodiment, the plurality of antenna structures 811, 812, 813, and 814 may include a plurality of antenna elements 811-1, 812-1, 813-1, and 814-1, respectively. For example, the first antenna element 811-1 may be disposed on one surface of the first antenna structure 811 or disposed inside the first antenna structure 811. For example, the second antenna element 812-1 may be disposed on one surface of the second antenna structure 812 or disposed inside the second antenna structure 812. For example, third antenna element 813-1 may be disposed on one surface of third antenna structure 813 or inside third antenna structure 813. For example, the fourth antenna element 814-1 may be disposed on one surface of the fourth antenna structure 814 or disposed inside the fourth antenna structure 814.

According to an embodiment, the first element 811-1 included in the first antenna structure 811 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via a forty-eight via 811-2 of the first antenna structure 811.

According to an embodiment, the second element 812-1 included in the second antenna structure 812 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via a forty-ninth via 812-2 of the second antenna structure 812.

According to an embodiment, a third element 813-1 included in the third antenna structure 813 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via a fifty-th via 813-2 of the third antenna structure 813.

According to an embodiment, the fourth element 814-1 included in the fourth antenna structure 814 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via a fifty-first via 814-2 of the fourth antenna structure 814.

According to various embodiments, the plurality of antenna structures 811, 812, 813, and 814, when configured to be inserted into different through holes 801, 802, 803, and 804 in the motherboard 400, may be coupled or connected to a second board 440 disposed on the second surface 406 of the motherboard 400, as shown in fig. 8 b.

According to an embodiment, the first element 811-1 included in the first antenna structure 811 may be electrically connected to the first matching circuit 821 of the second board 440 via the forty-eight via 811-2 of the first antenna structure 811 and the twenty-eighth via 831 of the second board 440. The first matching circuit 821 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via a twenty-fourth path 832. For example, forty-eighth via 811-2 and twenty-third via 831 may be electrically and/or physically connected to each other by a conductive bonding method (e.g., soldering).

According to an embodiment, the second component 812-1 included in the second antenna structure 812 may be electrically connected to the second matching circuit 822 of the second board 440 via a forty-ninth via 812-2 of the second antenna structure 812 and a twenty-fifth via 833 of the second board 440. The second matching circuit 822 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via a twenty-sixth via 834. For example, the forty-ninth via 812-2 and the twenty-fifth via 833 may be electrically and/or physically connected to each other by a conductive bonding method (e.g., soldering).

According to an embodiment, a third element 813-1 included in the third antenna structure 813 may be electrically connected to the third matching circuit 823 of the second board 440 via a fifty-th via 813-2 of the third antenna structure 813 and a twenty-seventh via 835 of the second board 440. The third matching circuit 823 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via a twenty-eighth via 836. For example, the fifty-th and twenty-seventh vias 813-2 and 835 may be electrically and/or physically connected to each other by a conductive bonding method (e.g., soldering).

According to an embodiment, the fourth element 814-1 included in the fourth antenna structure 814 may be electrically connected to the fourth matching circuit 824 of the second board 440 via a fifty-first via 814-2 of the fourth antenna structure 814 and a twenty-ninth via 837 of the second board 440. The fourth matching circuit 824 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via a thirty-first via 838. For example, the fifty-first via 814-2 and the twenty-ninth via 837 may be electrically and/or physically connected to each other by a conductive bonding method (e.g., soldering).

According to various embodiments, an electronic device (e.g., electronic device 101 in fig. 1 or 2 or electronic device 300 in fig. 3 a-3 c) may include: a housing (e.g., housing 310 in fig. 3 a); a main plate (e.g., main plate 400 in fig. 4a, 6, 7a, 8a, or 8 b) disposed in the interior space of the housing and including a first surface facing in a first direction (e.g., first surface 404 in fig. 4a, 6, 7a, 8a, or 8 b), a second surface opposite the first surface (e.g., second surface 406 in fig. 4a, 6, 7a, 8a, or 8 b), and a through hole (e.g., through hole 402 in fig. 4a, 6, 7a, 8a, or 8 b); and the antenna module is arranged on the main board. The antenna module may include: a plate (e.g., first plate 410 in fig. 4a, 6, 8a, or 8 b) disposed at least partially in the through-hole and including a plurality of antenna elements (e.g., antenna element 420 in fig. 4a, 6, 8a, or 8 b); and a wireless communication circuit (e.g., wireless communication circuit 430 in fig. 4a, 6, 7a, 8a, or 8 b) configured to transmit and/or receive wireless signals of a predetermined frequency band via a plurality of antenna elements on the second surface of the motherboard.

According to various embodiments, the plate may protrude from the first surface of the main plate.

According to various embodiments, the board may be substantially coplanar with the first surface of the motherboard or the board may be lower than the first surface of the motherboard.

According to various embodiments, the wireless communication circuit may be arranged to at least partially overlap the motherboard when the first surface of the motherboard is viewed from above.

According to various embodiments, the board and the wireless communication circuit may be electrically and/or physically coupled to each other by a conductive bonding method.

According to various embodiments, the wireless communication circuit may be coupled or connected to the motherboard, and the board may be coupled or connected to the wireless communication circuit.

According to various embodiments, the wireless communication circuit may be coupled or connected to the motherboard by a conductive bonding method.

According to various embodiments, the motherboard may include at least one circuit, and the wireless communication circuit may be electrically connected to the at least one circuit via the motherboard.

According to various embodiments, the at least one circuit may include a communication processor and/or a power management circuit.

According to various embodiments, the electronic device may further include an interposer (e.g., interposers 600 and 610 in fig. 6) disposed between the motherboard and the wireless communication circuitry, and the wireless communication circuitry may be electrically connected to the motherboard via the interposer.

According to various embodiments, the electronic device may further comprise at least one matching circuit (e.g., matching circuits 461, 462, 463 and/or 464 of fig. 4a or 6) disposed between the board and the wireless communication circuit and electrically connected to the plurality of antenna elements.

According to various embodiments, the matching circuit may include one or more conductive patterns disposed on the board and/or the wireless communication circuit.

According to various embodiments, one or more conductive patterns disposed on the board and/or the wireless communication circuit may be disposed so as not to overlap each other when the first surface of the motherboard is viewed from above.

According to various embodiments, the board may be made of a material having a dielectric constant lower than that of the main board.

According to various embodiments, the antenna module may include: another board (for example, a third board 1100 in fig. 11a or 11 b) including a plurality of other antenna elements disposed at predetermined intervals and electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit; and an interposer (e.g., interposers 1101 and 1102 in fig. 11 b) disposed between the wireless communication circuit and the other board, and the wireless communication circuit may be disposed between the board and the other board and electrically connected to the plurality of other antenna elements via the interposer and the other board.

Fig. 9a and 9b are views illustrating another exemplary structure of an antenna module according to various embodiments. The antenna module of fig. 9a and 9b may be at least partially similar to the third antenna module 246 of fig. 2, or may include other embodiments of antenna modules, according to embodiments.

According to various embodiments, which will be described with reference to fig. 9a and 9b, an antenna module may comprise a first board 910 and a wireless communication circuit 930, the first board 910 comprising a plurality of antenna elements 920, the wireless communication circuit 930 being electrically connected to the first board 910.

According to various embodiments, the first plate 910 may include a plurality of conductive layers and a plurality of non-conductive layers alternately stacked with the conductive layers. The first board 910 may use conductive vias and routing lines provided in the conductive layer to provide electrical connections between various electronic components provided on the first board 910 and/or external to the first board 910.

According to various embodiments, the first plate 910 may include a plurality of antenna elements 920 arranged at predetermined intervals to form a directional beam. According to an embodiment, the antenna element 920 may be disposed on the first surface 912 of the first plate 910 or disposed inside the first surface 912. According to an embodiment, the plurality of antenna elements 920 may be configured to form a beam pattern in a first direction (e.g., a z-axis direction).

According to various embodiments, as shown in fig. 9b, the first plate 910 may be configured to: when the first surface 904 of the motherboard 900 is viewed from above (e.g., in the-z-axis direction), the first plate 910 at least partially overlaps the motherboard 900 (e.g., the first plate 910 is disposed at least partially on the motherboard 900, rather than entirely within the perimeter of the aperture, for example, but not limited to, the first plate 910 may be disposed on the motherboard 900, rather than within the aperture 902). According to an embodiment, when the first plate 910 is viewed in the z-axis direction, at least a portion of the first plate 910 may overlap the main plate 900, and at least a portion of the remaining portion may overlap the second plate 940 disposed in the through hole 902 in the main plate 900. For example, the first board 910 may be coupled or connected to the motherboard 900. For example, the first board 910 and the main board 900 may be electrically coupled or connected and/or physically coupled or connected to each other by a conductive bonding method (e.g., soldering). According to an embodiment, the first plate 910 may be made of a material having a dielectric constant relatively lower than that of the main plate 900.

According to various embodiments, the wireless communication circuit 930 may be disposed in a manner to be inserted into a through-hole 902 disposed in at least a portion of a motherboard 900 (e.g., the printed circuit board 324 of fig. 3 c), as shown in fig. 9 b. For example, the wireless communication circuit 930 may include a chipset or package.

According to various embodiments, the wireless communication circuit 930, when disposed in the through-hole 902 in the motherboard 900, may be coupled or connected to a first board 910 disposed on the first surface 904 of the motherboard 900. According to an embodiment, the first board 910 and the wireless communication circuit 930 may be electrically coupled or connected and/or physically coupled or connected to each other by a conductive bonding method (e.g., soldering).

According to various embodiments, the wireless communication circuit 930 may transmit and/or receive wireless signals of a predetermined frequency band via the plurality of antenna elements 920 disposed on the first board 910. According to an embodiment, the wireless communication circuit 930 (e.g., the third RFIC 226 in fig. 2) may be electrically connected to at least one circuit (e.g., the Communication Processor (CP) 952 and/or the PMIC 954) disposed on the motherboard 900 via the first board 910 and the motherboard 900. For example, during transmission, the wireless communication circuit 930 may up-convert the baseband signal acquired from the communication processor 952 into an RF signal of a predetermined frequency band. The RF signals may be transmitted to the plurality of antenna elements 920 via the first board 910. During reception, the wireless communication circuit 930 may down-convert RF signals received through the plurality of antenna elements 920 (e.g., array antennas) disposed on the first board 910 into baseband signals, and may transmit the baseband signals to the communication processor 952. As another example, during transmission, the wireless communication circuit 930 may upconvert an IF signal (e.g., about 9GHz to about 11 GHz) acquired from an Intermediate Frequency Integrated Circuit (IFIC) (e.g., fourth RFIC 228 in fig. 2) to an RF signal of a predetermined frequency band. During reception, the wireless communication circuit 930 may down-convert the acquired RF signal received via the plurality of antenna elements 920 (e.g., array antennas) disposed on the first board 910 into an IF signal, and may transmit the IF signal to the IFIC.

According to various embodiments, motherboard 900 may be disposed in a housing (e.g., housing 310 in fig. 3 a) of an electronic device (e.g., electronic device 300 in fig. 3 a). According to an embodiment, at least one circuit may be disposed on one surface (e.g., first surface 904 and/or second surface 906) of motherboard 900. For example, a communication processor 952 and/or a Power Management Integrated Circuit (PMIC) 954 may be disposed on the first surface 904 (or the second surface 906) of the motherboard 900. A detailed description of the communication processor 952 and PMIC 954 of fig. 9a and 9b will be omitted in order to avoid redundancy with the detailed description made with reference to fig. 4a, 4b, 4c and/or 4 f.

Fig. 9c is a cross-sectional view of the antenna module taken along line B-B in fig. 9B, in accordance with various embodiments. Fig. 9d is a plan view of the antenna module, as viewed in the-z-axis direction in fig. 9b, in accordance with various embodiments. Fig. 9e is a plan view of the antenna module, as viewed in the z-axis direction in fig. 9b, in accordance with various embodiments.

Referring to fig. 9c, 9d, and 9e, according to various embodiments, the wireless communication circuit 930 may be disposed in a through hole 902 disposed in at least a portion of the motherboard 900 and may be coupled or connected to the first board 910. According to an embodiment, when the first surface 904 of the motherboard 900 is viewed from above (e.g., in the-z-axis direction), as shown in fig. 9d, the first board 910 may be arranged to at least partially overlap with the through-holes 902 in the motherboard 900 and to at least partially overlap with the motherboard 900 so as to be coupled or connected to the motherboard 900. According to an embodiment, when the second surface 906 of the motherboard 900 is viewed from below (e.g., in the z-axis direction), the wireless communication circuit 930 may be disposed in a through hole 902 in the motherboard 900, as shown in fig. 9 e.

According to various embodiments, the first board 910 may include a plurality of antenna elements 920 and/or a plurality of matching circuits 961, 962, 963, and 964. For example, the plurality of antenna elements 920 may include a first element 921, a second element 922, a third element 923, or a fourth element 924. According to an embodiment, the first element 921 may be electrically connected to the first matching circuit 961 via a first via 971. According to an embodiment, the second element 922 may be electrically connected to the second matching circuit 962 via a second via 972. According to an embodiment, the third element 923 may be electrically connected to the third matching circuit 963 via a third path 973. According to an embodiment, the fourth element 924 may be electrically connected to the fourth matching circuit 964 via a fourth path 974.

According to various embodiments, the first board 910 may be electrically and/or physically connected to the wireless communication circuit 930 by a conductive bonding method (e.g., soldering). According to an embodiment, the first matching circuit 961 of the first board 910 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 930 via the fifth path 975. According to an embodiment, the second matching circuit 962 of the first board 910 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 930 via a sixth via 976. According to an embodiment, the third matching circuit 963 of the first board 910 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 930 via the seventh via 977. According to an embodiment, the fourth matching circuit 964 of the first board 910 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 930 via the eighth via 978.

According to various embodiments, the wireless communication circuit 930 may be electrically connected to at least one circuit (e.g., the communication processor 952 and/or the PMIC 954) disposed on the motherboard 900 via the first board 910 and the motherboard 900. According to an embodiment, the wireless communication circuit 930 may be electrically connected to the first electrical wiring line 987 of the first board 910 via a fourteenth via 986 in the first board 910. The first electrical wiring line 987 of the first board 910 may be electrically connected to the second electrical wiring line 990 of the motherboard 900 via a fifteenth via 988 and a sixteenth via 989 of the motherboard 900. The second electrical wiring line 990 of the motherboard 900 may be electrically connected to the communication processor 952 via a seventeenth via 991. For example, the fifteenth via 988 and the sixteenth via 989 may be electrically and/or physically connected to each other by a conductive bonding method (e.g., soldering). For example, the wireless communication circuit 930 may send signals (e.g., control signals, baseband signals, or IF signals) to the communication processor 952 that is electrically connected via the first board 910 and the motherboard 900 and/or receive signals (e.g., control signals, baseband signals, or IF signals) from the communication processor 952 that is electrically connected via the first board 910 and the motherboard 900.

According to an embodiment, the wireless communication circuit 930 may be electrically connected to the third electrical wiring line 994 of the first board 910 via a nineteenth via 993 in the first board 910. The third electrical routing line 994 of the first board 910 may be electrically connected to the fourth electrical routing line 997 of the motherboard 900 via the twentieth via 995 and the twenty-first via 996 of the motherboard 900. The fourth electrical routing line 997 of the motherboard 900 may be electrically connected to the PMIC 959 via a twenty-second via 998. For example, the twentieth via 995 and the twenty-first via 996 may be electrically and/or physically connected to each other by a conductive bonding method (e.g., soldering). For example, the wireless communication circuit 930 may receive a power signal from the PMIC 959 electrically connected thereto via the first board 910 and the motherboard 900.

According to various embodiments, motherboard 900 may include at least one circuit. According to an embodiment, a Communication Processor (CP) 952 and/or a PMIC 954 may be disposed on the first surface 904 of the motherboard 900. According to an embodiment, one or more other circuits 956 may be disposed on the second surface 906 of the motherboard 900.

Fig. 9f illustrates another exemplary wireless communication circuit disposed in an antenna module, in accordance with various embodiments.

Referring to fig. 9f, according to various embodiments, a wireless communication circuit 930 may be disposed on one surface of the second board 940. The second board 940 may be disposed in a through hole 902 provided in at least a portion of the main board 900, and may be coupled or connected to the first board 910. According to an embodiment, the wireless communication circuit 930 may be fixed on one surface (e.g., the second surface 934) of the second board 440 through the protective layer 940-1 (e.g., a resin). According to an embodiment, the second plate 940 may be disposed in the through hole 902 in the motherboard 900 when the second surface 906 of the motherboard 900 is viewed from below (e.g., in the z-axis direction). A detailed description of the first plate 910 of fig. 9f will be omitted to avoid redundancy with the detailed description made with reference to fig. 9 c.

According to various embodiments, the first plate 910 may be electrically and/or physically connected to the second plate 940 by a conductive bonding method. According to an embodiment, the first matching circuit 961 of the first board 910 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 930 via the fifth via 975 of the first board 910 and the ninth via 981 of the second board 940. For example, fifth via 975 and ninth via 981 may be electrically and/or physically connected to each other by a conductive bonding method (e.g., soldering). According to an embodiment, the second matching circuit 962 of the first board 910 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 930 via the sixth via 976 of the first board 910 and the tenth via 982 of the second board 940. For example, sixth via 976 and tenth via 982 may be electrically and/or physically connected to each other by a conductive bonding method (e.g., soldering). According to an embodiment, the third matching circuit 963 of the first board 910 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 930 via the seventh via 977 of the first board 910 and the eleventh via 983 of the second board 940. For example, seventh via 977 and eleventh via 983 may be electrically and/or physically connected to each other by a conductive bonding method (e.g., soldering). According to an embodiment, the fourth matching circuit 964 of the first board 910 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 930 via the eighth via 978 of the first board 910 and the twelfth via 984 of the second board 940. For example, eighth via 978 and twelfth via 984 may be electrically and/or physically connected to each other by a conductive bonding method (e.g., soldering).

According to various embodiments, the wireless communication circuit 930 may be electrically connected to at least one circuit (e.g., the communication processor 952 and/or the PMIC 954) disposed on the motherboard 900 via the first board 910, the second board 940, and the motherboard 900. According to an embodiment, the wireless communication circuit 930 may be electrically connected to the first electrical wiring line 987 of the first board 910 via the thirteenth via 985 of the second board 940 and the fourteenth via 986 of the first board 910. The first electrical wiring line 987 of the first board 910 may be electrically connected to the second electrical wiring line 990 of the motherboard 900 via a fifteenth via 988 and a sixteenth via 989 of the motherboard 900. The second electrical wiring line 990 of the motherboard 900 may be electrically connected to the communication processor 952 via a seventeenth via 991. For example, thirteenth via 985 and fourteenth via 986 may be electrically and/or physically connected to each other by a conductive bonding method (e.g., soldering). For example, the fifteenth via 988 and the sixteenth via 989 may be electrically and/or physically connected to each other by a conductive bonding method (e.g., soldering). For example, the wireless communication circuit 930 may send signals (e.g., control signals, baseband signals, or IF signals) to the communication processor 952 electrically connected via the first board 910, the second board 940, and the motherboard 900 and/or receive signals (e.g., control signals, baseband signals, or IF signals) from the communication processor 952 electrically connected via the first board 910, the second board 940, and the motherboard 900.

According to an embodiment, the wireless communication circuit 930 may be electrically connected to the third electrical wiring line 994 of the first board 910 via the eighteenth via 992 of the second board 940 and the nineteenth via 993 of the first board 910. The third electrical routing line 994 of the first board 910 may be electrically connected to the fourth electrical routing line 997 of the motherboard 900 via the twentieth via 995 and the twenty-first via 996 of the motherboard 900. The fourth electrical routing line 997 of the motherboard 900 may be electrically connected to the PMIC 959 via a twenty-second via 998. For example, the eighteenth via 992 and the nineteenth via 993 may be electrically and/or physically connected to each other by a conductive bonding method (e.g., soldering). For example, the twentieth via 995 and the twenty-first via 996 may be electrically and/or physically connected to each other by a conductive bonding method (e.g., soldering). For example, the wireless communication circuit 930 may receive a power signal from a PMIC 959 electrically connected thereto via the first board 910, the second board 940, and the motherboard 900.

According to various embodiments, a plurality of matching circuits 961, 962, 963, and 964 may be provided in a junction area between the first board 910 and the second board 940 (or the wireless communication circuit 930). According to an embodiment, at least some of the plurality of matching circuits 961, 962, 963, and 964 (e.g., the first matching circuit 961 and the third matching circuit 963) may be disposed on the first surface 932 of the second board 940 (or the wireless communication circuit 930). The remaining matching circuits (e.g., the second matching circuit 962 and the fourth matching circuit 964) of the plurality of matching circuits 961, 962, 963, and 964 may be disposed on the second surface 914 of the first board 910. According to an embodiment, a plurality of matching circuits 961, 962, 963, and 964 may be provided on the second surface 914 of the first board 910 or the first surface 932 of the second board 940 (or the wireless communication circuit 930).

According to various embodiments, in the electronic device 101 or 300, by disposing at least a portion of the wireless communication circuit 930 or the second board 940 on which the wireless communication circuit 930 is disposed in the through hole 902 in the main board 900, a space (e.g., a height) required for the antenna module can be reduced.

Fig. 10 is a view illustrating another exemplary structure of an antenna module using an interposer according to various embodiments. According to embodiments, the antenna module of fig. 10 may be at least partially similar to the third antenna module 246 of fig. 2, or may include other embodiments of antenna modules.

Referring to fig. 10, motherboard 900 may be electrically and/or physically coupled to another motherboard 1030 via interposers 1000 and 1010, according to various embodiments. According to an embodiment, motherboard 900 may be electrically and/or physically connected to another motherboard 1030 via a twenty-fourth via 1021 of first interposer 1000 and a twenty-fourth via 1022 of second interposer 1010.

According to various embodiments, motherboard 900 and/or another motherboard 1030 may include at least one circuit disposed in interior space 1060 obtained by inserts 1000 and 1010. According to an embodiment, wireless communication circuit 930 may be located in space 1060 defined by motherboard 900 and another motherboard 1030. According to an embodiment, first circuit 1041 and/or second circuit 1042 may be disposed on a first surface 1032 of another main board 1030 defining an interior space 1060 obtained by inserts 1000 and 1010. According to an embodiment, third circuit 1043, fourth circuit 1044, and/or fifth circuit 1045 may be disposed on a second surface 1034 of another motherboard 1030 opposite first surface 1032.

According to an embodiment, another motherboard 1030 may also include a shielding member 1050. For example, shielding member 1050 may be disposed on a portion (e.g., second surface 1034) of another motherboard 1030 such that third circuit 1043, fourth circuit 1044, and/or fifth circuit 1045 disposed on second surface 1034 of another motherboard 1030 are electromagnetically shielded. For example, the shielding member 1050 may include a shielding can.

Fig. 11a and 11b are views each schematically showing an exemplary structure of an antenna module including a plurality of array antennas according to various embodiments. The antenna module of fig. 11a and 11b may be at least partially similar to the third antenna module 246 of fig. 2, or may include other embodiments of antenna modules, according to embodiments.

According to various embodiments, which will be described with reference to fig. 11a, the antenna module may comprise: a first board 410 including a plurality of antenna elements 420, a wireless communication circuit 430 electrically connected to the first board 410, and a third board 1100 including a plurality of other antenna elements. A detailed description of the first board 410 and the wireless communication circuit 430 of fig. 11a will be omitted in order to avoid redundancy with the detailed description made with reference to fig. 4a, 4b, 4c and/or 4 f.

According to various embodiments, the first plate 410 may include a plurality of antenna elements 420 arranged to form a beam in a first direction (e.g., in the z-axis direction). For example, the plurality of antenna elements 420 may include a first element 421, a second element 422, a third element 423, or a fourth element 424. According to an embodiment, at least a portion of the first board 410 may be disposed in a through hole 402 disposed in at least a portion of the motherboard 400 (e.g., the printed circuit board 324 in fig. 3 c). For example, at least a portion of the first board 410 may be disposed in the through-hole 402 in the motherboard 400 and may be coupled or connected to a wireless communication circuit 430 disposed on the second surface 406 of the motherboard 400.

According to various embodiments, the third plate 1100 may include a plurality of other antenna elements 1120 arranged to form a beam in the second direction (e.g., in the-z-axis direction). For example, the plurality of other antenna elements 1120 may include a fifth element 1121, a sixth element 1122, a seventh element 1123, or an eighth element 1124.

According to various embodiments, a plurality of other antenna elements 1120 disposed on the third board 1100 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via the third board 1100. According to an embodiment, the fifth member 1121 may be electrically connected to the fifth matching circuit 1111 of the third board 1100 via the thirty-first via 1131 of the third board 1100. The fifth matching circuit 1111 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via a thirty-second channel 1132. According to an embodiment, the sixth element 1122 may be electrically connected to the sixth matching circuit 1112 of the third board 1100 via the thirty-sixth via 1137 of the third board 1100. The sixth matching circuit 1112 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via a forty-sixth path 1156. According to an embodiment, the seventh element 1123 may be electrically connected to the seventh matching circuit 1113 of the third board 1100 via the thirty-seventh via 1138 of the third board 1100. The seventh matching circuit 1113 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via a forty-seventh via 1157. According to an embodiment, the eighth element 1124 may be electrically connected to the eighth matching circuit 1114 of the third plate 1100 via a thirty-eighth via 1139 of the third plate 1100. The eighth matching circuit 1114 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via a thirty-ninth path 1140.

According to various embodiments, motherboard 400 may be electrically and/or physically coupled to another motherboard 1180 via interposers 1150 and 1151. According to an embodiment, motherboard 400 may be electrically and/or physically connected to another motherboard 1180 via a forty-four channel 1153 of third interposer 1150 and a forty-five channel 1155 of fourth interposer 1151.

According to various embodiments, one or more circuits 1161, 1162, 1163, and/or 1164 may be provided on the motherboard 400 and/or another motherboard 1180. According to an embodiment, a first circuit (e.g., other IC # 1) 1161 may be disposed on the first surface 404 of the motherboard 400. For example, motherboard 400 may also include a first shield member 1171. The first shielding member 1171 may be disposed on a portion (e.g., the first surface 404) of the motherboard 400 such that the first circuit 1161 disposed on the first surface 404 of the motherboard 400 is electromagnetically shielded. For example, the first shield member 1171 may comprise a shield can.

According to an embodiment, motherboard 400 and another motherboard 1180 may include at least one circuit disposed in an interior space 1190 obtained by inserts 1150 and 1151. For example, a second circuit (e.g., other IC # 2) 1162 may be disposed on the second surface 406 of the motherboard 400 defining an interior space 1190 defined by the interposers 1150 and 1151. According to an embodiment, the second circuit 1162 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via the motherboard 400. For example, the wireless communication circuit 430 may be electrically connected to the second electrical wiring line 489 of the motherboard 400 via a fifteenth via 488 of the motherboard 400. The second electrical wiring line 489 of the motherboard 400 may be electrically connected to the second circuit 1162 via a forty-third via 1145.

According to an embodiment, third circuits (e.g., other ICs # 3) 1163 and/or fourth circuits (e.g., other ICs # 4) 1164 may be disposed on the second surface 1184 of the other motherboard 1180. For example, the other motherboard 1180 may also include a second shield member 1172. The second shielding member 1172 may be disposed on a portion (e.g., the second surface 1184) of the other motherboard 1180 such that the third circuit 1163 and/or the fourth circuit 1164 disposed on the second surface 1184 of the other motherboard 1180 is electromagnetically shielded. For example, the second shield member 1172 may comprise a shield can.

According to various embodiments, which will be described with reference to fig. 11b, the antenna module may comprise: a first board 410 including a plurality of antenna elements 420, a second board 440 electrically connected to the first board 410, a wireless communication circuit 430 disposed on the second board 440, and a third board 1100 including a plurality of other antenna elements. According to an embodiment, a detailed description of the first board 410 and the wireless communication circuit 430 of fig. 11b will be omitted in order to avoid redundancy with the detailed description made with reference to fig. 4a, 4b, 4c and/or 4 f.

According to various embodiments, the first plate 410 may include a plurality of antenna elements 420 arranged to form a beam in a first direction (e.g., in the z-axis direction). According to an embodiment, at least a portion of the first board 410 may be disposed in a through hole 402 disposed in at least a portion of the motherboard 400 (e.g., the printed circuit board 324 in fig. 3 c). For example, at least a portion of the first plate 410 may be disposed in the through-hole 402 in the motherboard 400 and may be coupled or connected to the second plate 440 disposed on the second surface 406 of the motherboard 400.

According to various embodiments, a plurality of other antenna elements 1120 disposed on the third board 1100 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 disposed on the second board 440 via the third board 1100, the interposers 1101 and 1102, and the second board 440. According to an embodiment, the fifth member 1121 may be electrically connected to the fifth matching circuit 1111 of the third board 1100 via the thirty-first via 1131 of the third board 1100. The fifth matching circuit 1111 may be electrically connected to the fifth electrical wiring line 1135 of the second board 440 via a thirty-second via 1132, a thirty-third via 1133 of the first interposer 1101, and a thirty-fourth via 1134 of the second board 440. The fifth electrical wiring line 1135 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via a thirty-fifth via 1136. For example, fifth element 1121 may be electrically connected to wireless communication circuit 430 via third plate 1100, first interposer 1101, and second plate 440. According to an embodiment, the sixth element 1122 may be electrically connected to the sixth matching circuit 1112 of the third board 1100 via the thirty-sixth via 1137 of the third board 1100. The sixth matching circuit 1112 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via a forty-sixth path 1156. According to an embodiment, the seventh element 1123 may be electrically connected to the seventh matching circuit 1113 of the third board 1100 via the thirty-seventh via 1138 of the third board 1100. The seventh matching circuit 1113 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via a forty-seventh via 1157.

According to an embodiment, the eighth element 1124 may be electrically connected to the eighth matching circuit 1114 of the third plate 1100 via a thirty-eighth via 1139 of the third plate 1100. The eighth matching circuit 1114 may be electrically connected to the sixth electrical wiring line 1143 of the second board 440 via the thirty-ninth via 1140, the forty-first via 1141 of the second interposer 1102, and the forty-first via 1142 of the second board 440. The sixth electrical wiring line 1143 may be electrically connected to the wireless communications circuit 430 via a forty-second via 1144. For example, the eighth element 1124 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via the third board 1100, the second interposer 1102, and the second board 440.

Fig. 12a and 12b are views showing a structure in which a through hole is provided in a partial region of an outer edge of a main board according to various embodiments. Fig. 12a is a plan view of an antenna module according to various embodiments, as viewed in the-z-axis direction in fig. 4 b. Fig. 12b is a plan view of the antenna module, as viewed in the z-axis direction in fig. 4b, in accordance with various embodiments.

According to various embodiments, which will be described with reference to fig. 12a and 12b, the antenna module may comprise: a first board 1210 including a plurality of antenna elements 1220 and a wireless communication circuit 1230 electrically connected to the first board 1210. According to an embodiment, the first plate 1210 may comprise a plurality of antenna elements 1220 arranged to form a directional beam.

According to various embodiments, the first plate 1210 may be disposed in a hole (or recess) 1202 disposed in at least a portion of an edge portion of the main plate 1200 (e.g., the printed circuit board 324 in fig. 3 c).

According to an embodiment, at least a portion of the first plate 1210, when disposed in the aperture 1202 in the motherboard 1200, may be coupled or connected to wireless communication circuitry 1230 disposed on the second surface 1206 of the motherboard 1200. For example, when the first surface 1204 of the motherboard 1200 is viewed from above (e.g., in the-z axis direction), the first plate 1210 may be disposed in the hole 1202 in the motherboard 1200, as shown in fig. 12 a. For example, when the second surface 1206 of the motherboard 1200 is viewed from below (e.g., in the z-axis direction), as shown in fig. 12b, the wireless communication circuitry 1230 may be disposed to overlap the aperture 1202 and at least partially overlap the motherboard 1200 so as to be coupled or connected to the motherboard 1200.

According to various embodiments, one or more circuits 1231, 1232, and/or 1233 may be disposed on one surface (e.g., first surface 1204 and/or second surface 1206) of motherboard 1200.

According to various embodiments, the wireless communication circuit 1230 may be disposed in a hole (or recess) 1202 disposed in at least a portion of an edge portion of the motherboard 1200 (e.g., the printed circuit board 324 in fig. 3 c).

According to an embodiment, at least a portion of the wireless communication circuit 1230, when disposed in the aperture 1202 in the motherboard 1200, may be coupled or connected to a first board 1210 disposed on the first surface 1204 of the motherboard 1200. For example, when the second surface 1206 of the motherboard 1200 is viewed from below (e.g., in the z-axis direction), the wireless communication circuitry 1230 may be disposed in the aperture 1202 in the motherboard 1200. For example, when the first surface 1204 of the main board 1200 is viewed from above (e.g., in the-z-axis direction), the first board 1210 may be disposed to overlap the through hole 1202 and at least partially overlap the main board 1200 so as to be coupled or connected to the main board 1200.

Fig. 13 is a diagram illustrating another exemplary structure of an antenna module including a plurality of array antennas according to various embodiments. According to embodiments, the antenna module of fig. 13 may be at least partially similar to the third antenna module 246 of fig. 2, or may include other embodiments of antenna modules.

According to various embodiments, which will be described with reference to fig. 13, an antenna module may include: a first board 410 including a plurality of antenna elements 420, a second board 440 electrically connected to the first board 410, a wireless communication circuit 430 disposed on the second board 440, and a third board 1310 including a plurality of other antenna elements 1321 and/or 1323. According to an embodiment, a detailed description of the first board 410 and the wireless communication circuit 430 of fig. 13 will be omitted in order to avoid redundancy with the detailed description made with reference to fig. 4a, 4b, 4c and/or 4 f.

According to various embodiments, the first plate 410 may include a plurality of antenna elements 420 arranged to form a beam in a first direction (e.g., in the z-axis direction). For example, the plurality of antenna elements 420 may include a first element 421, a second element 422, a third element 423, or a fourth element 424. According to an embodiment, at least a portion of the first board 410 may be disposed in a first through hole 402 disposed in at least a portion of the motherboard 400 (e.g., the printed circuit board 324 in fig. 3 c). For example, at least a portion of the first board 410 may be disposed in the first through hole 402 in the motherboard 400 and may be coupled or connected to a second board 440 disposed on the second surface 406 of the motherboard 400.

According to various embodiments, the third plate 1310 may include a plurality of other antenna elements 1321 and/or 1323 arranged to form a beam in the second direction (e.g., in the-z-axis direction). According to an embodiment, at least a portion of the third plate 1310 may be disposed in the second through hole 1300 disposed in at least a portion of the second plate 440. For example, at least a portion of the third plate 1310 may be disposed in the second through hole 1300 in the main board 400, and may be coupled or connected to the first plate 410 disposed in the first through hole 402 in the main board 400. For example, the second through-hole 1300 may be disposed to at least partially overlap the first through-hole 402.

According to various embodiments, the plurality of other antenna elements 1321 and/or 1323 disposed on the third board 1310 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 disposed on the second board 440 via the third board 1310, the first board 410, and the second board 440. According to an embodiment, the fifth element 1321 may be electrically connected to the seventh electrical wiring line 1333 of the first board 410 via the fifty-first via 1331 of the third board 1310 and the fifty-second via 1332 of the first board 410. The seventh electrical wiring line 1333 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via a fifty-fourth via 1334 of the first board 410 and a fifty-fifth via 1335 of the second board 440. For example, fifth element 1321 may be electrically connected to wireless communication circuit 430 via third plate 1310, first plate 410, and second plate 440.

According to an embodiment, the sixth element 1323 may be electrically connected to the eighth electrical wiring line 1343 of the first board 410 via a fifty-sixth via 1341 of the third board 1310 and a fifty-seventh via 1342 of the first board 410. The eighth electrical wiring line 1343 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via a fifty-eighth via 1344 of the first board 410 and a fifty-ninth via 1345 of the second board 440. For example, the sixth element 1323 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via the third board 1310, the first board 410, and the second board 440.

According to various embodiments, in the electronic device 101 or 300, by disposing the first board 410 including the plurality of antenna elements 420 (e.g., array antennas) in the first through-hole 402 in the main board 400 and disposing the third board 1310 including the plurality of other antenna elements 1321 and/or 1323 (e.g., array antennas) in the second through-hole 1300 in the second board 440, a space (e.g., height) required for the antenna module may be reduced.

Fig. 14 is a diagram showing an arrangement of an amplifying circuit according to various embodiments. According to embodiments, the antenna module of fig. 14 may be at least partially similar to the third antenna module 246 of fig. 2, or may include other embodiments of antenna modules.

According to various embodiments, which will be described with reference to fig. 14, an antenna module may include: a first board 410 including a plurality of antenna elements 420, a second board 440 electrically connected to the first board 410, a wireless communication circuit 430 disposed on the second board 440, and an amplifying circuit (e.g., millimeter wave amplifier (mmW AMP)) 1410. A detailed description of the first board 410 and the wireless communication circuit 430 of fig. 14 will be omitted in order to avoid redundancy with the detailed description made with reference to fig. 4a, 4b, 4c and/or 4 f.

According to various embodiments, at least a portion of the amplifying circuit 1410 may be disposed in the second through hole 1400 disposed in at least a portion of the second plate 440. For example, at least a portion of the amplifying circuit 1410 may be disposed in the second through hole 1400 in the second board 440, and may be coupled or connected to the first board 410 disposed in the first through hole 402 in the main board 400. For example, the second through-hole 1400 may be disposed to at least partially overlap the first through-hole 402.

According to various embodiments, the amplification circuit 1410 may be electrically connected to the plurality of antenna elements 420 and/or the wireless communication circuit 430 via the first board 410 and/or the second board 440.

According to an embodiment, the amplifying circuit 1410 may be electrically connected to a ninth electrical wiring line 1422 of the first board 410 via a sixty via 1421 in the first board 410. The ninth electrical wiring line 1422 may be electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit 430 via a sixty-first via 1423 of the first board 410 and a sixty-second via 1424 of the second board 440.

According to an embodiment, the amplifying circuit 1410 may be electrically connected to the fourth antenna element 424 via a sixty-third path 1431 of the first board 410. As an example, the amplifying circuit 1410 may be electrically connected to the first antenna element 421, the second antenna element 422, and/or the third antenna element 423 via respective vias (not shown) included in the first board 410.

According to an embodiment, the amplifying circuit 1410 may be electrically connected to the tenth electrical wiring line 1442 of the first board 410 via the sixty-fourth path 1441 of the first board 410. The tenth electrical routing line 1442 may be electrically connected to the eleventh electrical routing line 1445 of the second board 440 via a sixty-fifth via 1443 of the first board 410 and a sixty-sixth via 1444 of the second board 440. The eleventh electrical routing line 1445 may be electrically connected to the twelfth electrical routing line 1448 of the motherboard 400 via a sixty-seventh via 1446 of the second board 440 and a sixty-eighth via 1447 of the motherboard 400. The twelfth electrical wiring line 1448 may be electrically connected to the PMIC 454 via a sixty-ninth via 1449 of the motherboard 400. For example, the amplifying circuit 1410 may be electrically connected to the PMIC 454 provided on the main board 400 via the first board 410 and the second board 420.

According to various embodiments, an electronic device (e.g., electronic device 101 in fig. 1 or 2 or electronic device 300 in fig. 3 a-3 c) may include: a housing (e.g., housing 310 in fig. 3 a); a main plate (e.g., main plate 900 in fig. 9a or 10) disposed in the interior space of the housing and including a first surface facing in a first direction (e.g., first surface 904 in fig. 9a or 10), a second surface facing away from the first surface (e.g., second surface 906 in fig. 9a or 10), and a through hole (e.g., through hole 902 in fig. 9a or 10); and the antenna module is arranged on the main board. The antenna module may include: a plate (e.g., first plate 910 in fig. 9a or 10) comprising a plurality of antenna elements (e.g., plurality of antenna elements 920 in fig. 9a or 10); and a wireless communication circuit (e.g., wireless communication circuit 930 in fig. 9a or 10) disposed at least partially in the through-hole and electrically connected to the board, the wireless communication circuit configured to transmit and/or receive wireless signals of a predetermined frequency band via the plurality of antenna elements.

According to various embodiments, the panel may be arranged to at least partially overlap the main panel when the second surface of the main panel is viewed from above.

According to various embodiments, the board may be coupled or connected to a motherboard, and the wireless communication circuit may be coupled or connected to the board.

According to various embodiments, the motherboard may include at least one circuit, and the wireless communication circuit may be electrically connected to the at least one circuit via the board and the motherboard.

According to various embodiments, an electronic device (e.g., electronic device 101 in fig. 1 or 2 or electronic device 300 in fig. 3 a-3 c) may include: a housing (e.g., housing 310 in fig. 3 a); a main plate (e.g., main plate 400 in fig. 4a, 6, 7a, 8b, 13, or 14) disposed in the interior space of the housing and including a first surface facing in a first direction (e.g., first surface 404 in fig. 4a, 6, 7a, 8b, 13, or 14), a second surface opposite the first surface (e.g., second surface 406 in fig. 4a, 6, 7a, 8b, 13, or 14), and a through hole (e.g., through hole 402 in fig. 4a, 6, 7a, 8b, 13, or 14); and the antenna module is arranged on the main board. The antenna module may include: a first plate (e.g., first plate 410 in fig. 4a, 6, 8a, 8b, 13, or 14) disposed at least partially in the first through-hole and including a plurality of antenna elements (e.g., antenna element 420 in fig. 4a, 6, 8a, 8b, 13, or 14); a second board (e.g., second board 440 in fig. 4f, 13 or 14) disposed on the second surface of the main board and electrically connected to the first board; and a wireless communication circuit (e.g., wireless communication circuit 430 in fig. 4f, 13 or 14) configured to transmit and/or receive wireless signals of a predetermined frequency band via a plurality of antenna elements on the second surface of the motherboard.

According to various embodiments, the second panel may be arranged to at least partially overlap the main panel when the first surface of the main panel is viewed from above.

According to various embodiments, the second board may include a second through hole (e.g., the second through hole 1300 in fig. 13), and the antenna module may further include a third board (e.g., the third board 1310 in fig. 13) disposed in the second through hole and including a plurality of other antenna elements (e.g., the plurality of other antenna elements 1321 and/or 1323 in fig. 13) disposed at predetermined intervals.

According to various embodiments, the electronic device may further include an amplifying circuit (e.g., amplifying circuit 1410 in fig. 14), and the amplifying circuit may include a second through hole (e.g., second through hole 1400 in fig. 14) included in the second board.

According to various embodiments, an electronic device may include: a first plate comprising a first surface facing in a first direction, a second surface facing away from the first surface, and one or more through holes and/or cutouts; and an antenna module including one or more antenna elements and wireless communication circuitry configured to transmit and/or receive wireless signals via the one or more antenna elements, wherein at least a portion of the antenna module may be at least partially disposed in the one or more through-holes and/or cutouts.

According to various embodiments, the electronic device of the immediately preceding paragraph may further comprise a housing, wherein the first plate may be disposed in an interior space of the housing.

According to various embodiments, the electronic device of the preceding two paragraphs, the first board may be a motherboard.

According to various embodiments, the electronic device of the preceding three paragraphs, the antenna module may be disposed on the first board.

According to various embodiments, the electronic device of the preceding four paragraphs, the antenna module may further comprise a second board comprising one or more antenna elements.

According to various embodiments, the electronic device of the immediately preceding paragraph, the second plate may be at least partially disposed in the through hole.

According to various embodiments, the electronic device of the preceding six paragraphs, the wireless communication circuit may be configured to transmit and/or receive wireless signals of a predetermined frequency band.

According to various embodiments, the electronic device of the preceding seven paragraphs, the wireless communication circuit may be disposed on the second surface of the first board.

According to various embodiments, the electronic device of the preceding eight paragraphs, at least a portion of one or more of the wireless communication circuit, the one or more antenna elements and the second plate is at least partially disposed in the one or more through holes and/or the cut-out.

According to various embodiments, the electronic device of the first eight paragraphs, the second plate may protrude from the first surface of the first plate.

According to various embodiments, the electronic device of the preceding nine paragraphs, the surface of the second plate may be substantially coplanar with the first surface of the first plate or recessed relative to the first surface of the first plate.

According to various embodiments, the electronic device of the preceding eleven paragraphs, the wireless communication circuit may be configured to: the first surface of the first plate at least partially overlaps the first plate when the first surface is viewable in a direction opposite the first direction.

According to various embodiments, the electronic device of the preceding eleven paragraphs, the second board and the wireless communication circuit may be electrically and/or physically coupled to each other by conductive engagement.

According to various embodiments, the electronic device of the preceding thirteen paragraphs, the wireless communication circuit may be coupled or connected to the first board.

According to various embodiments, the electronic device of the preceding thirteen paragraphs, the second board may be coupled or connected to a wireless communication circuit.

According to various embodiments, the electronic device of the preceding two paragraphs, the wireless communication circuit may be coupled or connected to the first board by conductive bonding.

According to various embodiments, the electronic device of the preceding sixteen paragraphs, the first board may comprise at least one circuit.

According to various embodiments, the electronic device of the immediately preceding paragraph, the wireless communication circuit may be electrically connected to the at least one circuit via the first board.

According to various embodiments, the electronic device of the preceding two paragraphs, the at least one circuit may comprise a communication processor and/or a power management circuit.

According to various embodiments, the electronic device of the nineteenth paragraph above, the electronic device may further comprise an interposer disposed between the first board and the wireless communication circuit.

According to various embodiments, the electronic device of the immediately preceding paragraph, the wireless communication circuit may be electrically connected to the first board via the interposer.

According to various embodiments, the electronic device of the preceding twenty paragraphs, at least one matching circuit is disposed between the second board and the wireless communication circuit and is electrically connected to one or more antenna elements.

According to various embodiments, the electronic device of the immediately preceding paragraph, the matching circuit may comprise one or more conductive patterns provided on the second board and/or the wireless communication circuit.

According to various embodiments, the electronic device of the immediately preceding paragraph, the one or more conductive patterns provided on the second board and/or the wireless communication circuit may be arranged to not overlap each other when the first surface of the first board is viewed in a direction opposite to the first direction.

According to various embodiments, the electronic device of the preceding twenty-three paragraphs, the second plate may be made of a material having a dielectric constant lower than that of the first plate.

According to various embodiments, the electronic device of the preceding twenty-five paragraphs, the antenna module may further comprise: a third board including one or more other antenna elements electrically connected to the wireless communication circuit.

According to various embodiments, the electronic device of the immediately preceding paragraph may further comprise an interposer disposed between the wireless communication circuit and the third board.

According to various embodiments, the electronic device of the immediately preceding paragraph, the wireless communication circuit may be disposed between the second board and the third board and electrically connected to one or more other antenna elements via the interposer and the third board.

According to various embodiments, the electronic device of the preceding three paragraphs, other antenna elements may be arranged at predetermined intervals.

The various embodiments of the present disclosure disclosed in the specification and the drawings are presented merely to facilitate easy description of the technical content and aid understanding of the embodiments of the present disclosure in accordance with the embodiments of the present disclosure and are not intended to limit the scope of the embodiments of the present disclosure. Therefore, the scope of the various embodiments of the present disclosure should be interpreted such that all changes or modifications derived from the technical ideas of the various embodiments of the present disclosure are included in the scope of the various embodiments, except for the embodiments disclosed herein.

Claims

1. An electronic device, the electronic device comprising:

a first plate including a first surface facing in a first direction, a second surface facing away from the first surface, and one or more through holes; and

an antenna module, the antenna module comprising:

one or more antenna elements; and

a wireless communication circuit configured to transmit and/or receive wireless signals via the one or more antenna elements,

wherein at least a portion of the antenna module is at least partially disposed in the one or more through holes.

2. The electronic device of claim 1, further comprising a housing, wherein the first plate is disposed in an interior space of the housing.

3. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the first board is a motherboard.

4. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the antenna module is disposed on the first board, and

wherein the wireless communication circuit is disposed on the second surface of the first board.

5. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the wireless communication circuitry is configured to at least partially overlap the first board when the first surface of the first board is viewed in a direction opposite the first direction.

6. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the antenna module further comprises a second board comprising the one or more antenna elements, and

wherein the second plate is at least partially disposed in the through hole.

7. The electronic device of claim 6, wherein at least a portion of one or more of the following is at least partially disposed in the one or more through holes:

the wireless communication circuit;

the one or more antenna elements; and

the second plate.

8. The electronic device of claim 6, wherein the second board and the wireless communication circuit are electrically and/or physically coupled to each other by conductive engagement.

9. The electronic device of claim 6, wherein the wireless communication circuit is connected to the first board, and

wherein the second board is connected to the wireless communication circuit.

10. The electronic device of claim 6, the electronic device further comprising:

at least one matching circuit disposed between the second board and the wireless communication circuit and electrically connected to the one or more antenna elements.

11. The electronic device of claim 10, wherein the matching circuit comprises one or more conductive patterns disposed on the second board and/or the wireless communication circuit.

12. The electronic device of claim 11, wherein the one or more conductive patterns disposed on the second board and/or the wireless communication circuit are disposed such that they do not overlap each other when the first surface of the first board is viewed in a direction opposite the first direction.

13. The electronic device of claim 1, wherein the first board comprises at least one circuit, and

wherein the wireless communication circuit is electrically connected to the at least one circuit via the first board.

14. The electronic device of claim 13, wherein the at least one circuit comprises a communication processor and/or a power management circuit.

15. The electronic device of claim 1, the electronic device further comprising:

an interposer disposed between the first board and the wireless communication circuit, and

wherein the wireless communication circuit is electrically connected to the first board via the interposer.