KR102509286B1 - Beam control device and fabricating method thereof, and communication device with the same - Google Patents

Abstract

A beam control device, a manufacturing method thereof, and a communication device including the same are disclosed. A beam control device according to an embodiment disclosed herein includes a communication end including one or more radiators for communication of a preset frequency band, a dielectric layer provided on the communication end, a directional member provided on the top of the dielectric layer, and a directional member. It is provided on, and a voltage is applied to include an electrode for forming an electromagnetic field in the directional member.

Description

Beam control device, manufacturing method thereof, and communication device having the same

An embodiment of the present invention relates to a beam control device and a communication device having the same.

In the millimeter wave frequency band (30 to 300 GHz), it is difficult to achieve Watt-class output transmission with a high signal-to-noise ratio due to limitations in the characteristics of semiconductor devices. As a method to overcome this problem, a space radiation coupling structure through output radiation coupling in free space has been proposed.

Conventional spatial radiation coupling-based millimeter wave transmission technology uses the characteristic of spatially combining millimeter wave signals output in the same phase through antennas from multiple transmitting ends, and controls the power transmission direction with a phase control device located at each transmitting end. will do However, the control of the power transmission direction using the phase control device has a problem in that the directional gain varies according to the radiation angle because the output coupling characteristics are different when the phase is 0 and when the phase is changed to the left and right angles.

Korean Patent Publication No. 10-2020-0008716 (2020.01.29)

An embodiment of the present invention is to provide a beam control device capable of maintaining spatial coupling efficiency and adjusting a radiation angle, a manufacturing method thereof, and a communication device having the same.

A beam control apparatus according to an embodiment disclosed herein includes a communication terminal including one or more radiators for communication of a preset frequency band; a dielectric layer provided on top of the communication end; a directional member provided on top of the dielectric layer; and an electrode provided on the directional member and applying a voltage to form an electromagnetic field in the directional member.

The dielectric layer may be disposed in an area where a signal of the radiator is spatially radiated on top of the radiator.

Signals of the radiator may be spatially coupled by in-phase characteristics inside the dielectric layer.

The dielectric layer may include a first dielectric layer made of a first dielectric; and a second dielectric layer made of a second dielectric different from the first dielectric.

The dielectric layer may be provided by alternately stacking the first dielectric layer and the second dielectric layer.

The first dielectric layer and the second dielectric layer may have non-uniform thicknesses.

The dielectric layer may further include an air gap provided in the middle where the first dielectric layer and the second dielectric layer are alternately stacked.

The signal of the radiator is spatially coupled inside the dielectric layer, the electrode includes one or more pairs of electrodes provided with the directional member interposed therebetween, and the signal spatially coupled inside the dielectric layer is It may be incident on the directional member.

The directional member may be provided to adjust a radiation angle of the incident signal according to a potential difference between the electrodes.

The directional member may be formed of a liquid crystal in which an arrangement direction of molecules is changed by the electromagnetic field.

The electrode may include a pair of first electrodes provided facing each other in a first direction on an outer surface of the directional member; and a pair of second electrodes provided facing each other in a second direction different from the first direction on an outer surface of the directional member.

The electrode may include a plurality of conductive layers provided spaced apart from each other in a height direction of the directional member; and a via hole provided to connect the conductive layer in a height direction.

A plurality of via holes may be formed to be spaced apart from each other between the conductive layers, and the electrode may further include a lattice-shaped air gap formed through the plurality of conductive layers and the via hole.

The size of the gap may be smaller than the wavelength of the signal.

A beam control apparatus according to another disclosed embodiment includes a communication terminal including one or more radiators for communication of a preset frequency band; a dielectric layer provided on top of the communication end and provided so that signals of the radiator are spatially coupled therein; a directional member provided on top of the dielectric layer, receiving the spatially coupled signal and adjusting a radiation angle of the signal; and one or more pairs of electrodes provided with the directional member interposed therebetween and configured to adjust a radiation angle by the directional member according to an applied voltage.

A manufacturing method of a beam control device according to an embodiment disclosed herein includes forming a communication terminal including one or more radiators for communication of a preset frequency band; Forming a dielectric layer on top of the communication end; forming a directional member on top of the dielectric layer; and forming one or more pairs of electrodes with the directional member interposed therebetween.

According to the disclosed embodiment, a transmission output of the communication terminal can be improved by forming a dielectric layer on top of a communication end having a radiator so that signals transmitted from the radiator are spatially coupled inside the dielectric layer. In addition, by adjusting the directivity of the directional member according to the intensity of the voltage applied to the electrode, it is possible to adjust the radiation angle of the signal incident to the directional member.

Here, the power coupling is performed in the dielectric layer, and the radiation angle control is performed in the directional member, so that the radiation angle adjustment by the directional member does not affect the power coupling characteristics, so that the spatial coupling efficiency can be kept constant, It is possible to form a constant output according to the radiation angle.

1 is a diagram schematically showing the configuration of a beam control device based on spatial radiation coupling according to an embodiment of the present invention.
Figure 2 schematically shows a dielectric layer in a beam control device according to an embodiment of the present invention
Figure 3 is a view schematically showing the state of the shape of the electrode viewed from the front in the beam control device according to an embodiment of the present invention
4 is a diagram showing a disposition structure of electrodes in a beam control device according to an embodiment of the present invention.
5 is a flowchart illustrating a method of manufacturing a beam control device according to an embodiment of the present invention

Hereinafter, specific embodiments of the present invention will be described with reference to the drawings. The detailed descriptions that follow are provided to provide a comprehensive understanding of the methods, devices and/or systems described herein. However, this is only an example and the present invention is not limited thereto.

In describing the embodiments of the present invention, if it is determined that the detailed description of the known technology related to the present invention may unnecessarily obscure the subject matter of the present invention, the detailed description will be omitted. In addition, terms to be described later are terms defined in consideration of functions in the present invention, which may vary according to the intention or custom of a user or operator. Therefore, the definition should be made based on the contents throughout this specification. Terminology used in the detailed description is only for describing the embodiments of the present invention and should in no way be limiting. Unless expressly used otherwise, singular forms of expression include plural forms. In this description, expressions such as "comprising" or "comprising" are intended to indicate any characteristic, number, step, operation, element, portion or combination thereof, one or more other than those described. It should not be construed to exclude the existence or possibility of any other feature, number, step, operation, element, part or combination thereof.

Meanwhile, directional terms such as upper side, lower side, one side, and the other side are used in relation to the orientation of the disclosed drawings. Since components of embodiments of the present invention may be positioned in a variety of orientations, directional terms are used for purposes of illustration and not limitation.

Also, terms such as first and second may be used to describe various components, but the components should not be limited by the terms. The terms may be used for the purpose of distinguishing one component from another. For example, a first element may be termed a second element, and similarly, a second element may be termed a first element, without departing from the scope of the present invention.

1 is a diagram schematically showing the configuration of a beam control device based on spatial radiation coupling according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 1 , a beam control device 100 based on spatial radiation coupling may include a communication end 102 , a dielectric layer 104 , a directional member 106 , and an electrode 108 .

The communication terminal 102 is provided to perform communication on a signal of a preset frequency band. Here, performing communication on a signal may include all of a transmission operation for transmitting a signal to the outside, a reception operation for receiving a signal from the outside, and a transmission/reception operation for transmitting a signal to the outside and receiving a signal from the outside.

That is, when performing a function of transmitting a signal to the outside, the communication terminal 102 may be a transmitting terminal. When performing a function of receiving a signal from the outside, the communication terminal 102 may be a receiving terminal. When performing both functions of transmitting signals to the outside and receiving signals from the outside, the communication terminal 102 may be a transmitting/receiving terminal.

Here, the transmitting end and the receiving end may be implemented in a separate form or a combined form. Also, the transmitting end and the receiving end may share an antenna or may each have an antenna. Hereinafter, for convenience of description, a case in which the communication terminal 102 is a transmitter that transmits a signal to the outside will be described as an example.

In an exemplary embodiment, the communication terminal 102 may perform communication on signals in the millimeter wave band. In this case, the beam control device 100 may be used for a millimeter wave communication system. However, the frequency band of the beam control device 100 is not limited thereto.

The communication terminal 102 may include a radiator 102a that transmits a signal (ie, a beam) of a preset frequency band. The communication terminal 102 may be formed of a semiconductor chip, and the radiator 102a may be implemented in an on-chip form. A plurality of radiators 102a may be provided. Each radiator 102a may be provided to transmit signals of the same phase through the communication terminal 102 .

A dielectric layer 104 is provided on top of the communication end 102 . For example, the dielectric layer 104 may be formed by an additional deposition process by a semiconductor post-process. The dielectric layer 104 may be provided on top of the radiator 102a. That is, the dielectric layer 104 is provided on top of the radiator 102a, so that it may be disposed in a region where signals are spatially radiated from the radiator 102a.

In this case, the signal transmitted from the radiator 102a is spatially radiated to the dielectric layer 104, and is spatially combined by the in-phase characteristic inside the dielectric layer 104 (ie, in-phase signals are combined in space to combine power). ) to form a signal output. That is, in the disclosed embodiment, the radiator 102a radiates signals into the dielectric layer 104 rather than into the air, and the effect of collecting signals inside the dielectric layer 104 is greater than in the air, so that the dielectric layer (104) It is possible to further improve the output by spatial combination inside.

The dielectric layer 104 may be formed of a single dielectric material, but is not limited thereto and may be formed by stacking dielectrics of different materials. 2 is a diagram schematically illustrating a dielectric layer in a beam control device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in (a) of FIG. 2 , the dielectric layer 104 may include a first dielectric layer 104-1 and a second dielectric layer 104-2. The first dielectric layer 104-1 and the second dielectric layer 104-2 may be made of different materials from each other. The first dielectric layer 104-1 and the second dielectric layer 104-2 may be alternately stacked.

At this time, the first dielectric layer 104-1 and the second dielectric layer 104-2 may be formed to have the same thickness and stacked alternately, but are not limited thereto, and as shown in FIG. 2(b), The first dielectric layer 104-1 and the second dielectric layer 104-2 may have different thicknesses. In addition, the first dielectric layer 104-1 and the second dielectric layer 104-2 may be alternately laminated with non-uniform thicknesses while having different thicknesses.

As such, by alternately stacking the first dielectric layer 104-1 and the second dielectric layer 104-2 of different materials, a band-pass filter or band-blocking signal is transmitted from the radiator 102a in a specific frequency band. Filters can be configured. In this case, the band-passing or band-blocking frequency band may be determined by permittivity and thickness of the first dielectric layer 104-1 and the second dielectric layer 104-1.

In addition, as shown in (c) of FIG. 2 , the dielectric layer 104 may further include an air gap 104a therein. For example, an air gap 104a may be formed in the middle where the first dielectric layer 104-1 and the second dielectric layer 104-2 are alternately stacked. In this case, the air gap 104a inside the dielectric layer 104 serves as a kind of resonator, so that the signal intensity of a specific frequency band can be increased or decreased. At this time, a spacer (not shown) may be provided to maintain the air gap 104a.

The directional member 106 may be provided on top of the dielectric layer 104 . Since the directional member 106 is formed on top of the dielectric layer 104 , signals emitted from the radiator 102a and spatially coupled in the dielectric layer 104 are incident to the directional member 106 . The directional member 106 may be provided to adjust a radiation angle (ie, a direction of the signal) of a signal incident to the directional member 106 by characteristics of an electromagnetic field applied to the directional member 106 . The directional member 106 may adjust a radiation angle of a signal according to a potential difference between the electrodes 108 .

Here, the directional member 106 may be a liquid crystal. That is, the directional member 106 may be a liquid crystal in which an arrangement direction (ie, directionality) of molecules is changed by an electromagnetic field. In this case, the directional member 106 also functions like a kind of lens, and thereby increases the directionality of the spatially radiated signal from the radiator 102a to improve antenna gain. When the directional member 106 is a liquid crystal, the effective permittivity of the directional member 106 is high, so that the radiation gain of the antenna can be increased.

Looking at the method of forming the directional member 106, after installing a case with an empty inside along the edge of the dielectric layer 104 on top of the dielectric layer 104 (for example, a case in the form of a film made of polymer), Drop the liquid crystal inside, and after the liquid crystal hardens, the case can be removed.

The electrode 108 may be provided on a sidewall of the directional member 106 . The electrodes 108 may be provided as a pair with the directional member 106 interposed therebetween. An external voltage is applied to the pair of electrodes 108, and the directionality of the directional member 106 is controlled by a potential difference between the electrodes 108. As a result, it is possible to adjust the radiation angle of the signal incident to the directional member 106 .

3 is a view schematically showing a state in which the shape of an electrode is viewed from the front in a beam control device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to (a) of FIG. 3 , the electrode 108 may be entirely provided on the sidewall of the directional member 106 . At this time, the electrode 108 may be formed through an electroplating method. However, it is not limited thereto, and electrodes in the form of a thin film may be attached to the sidewall of the directional member 106 .

Referring to (b) of FIG. 3 , the electrode 108 may include a plurality of conductive layers 108a and via holes 108b. The plurality of conductive layers 108a may be spaced apart from each other in the height direction of the directional member 106 . The via hole 108b may be provided to electrically connect each conductive layer 108a. That is, the via hole 108b may be provided while connecting each conductive layer 108a in a height direction. When the electrode 108 of this structure is formed, a signal passing through the directional member 106 can have a high aspect ratio.

A plurality of via holes 108b may be provided spaced apart from each other between the two conductive layers 108a. In this case, the electrode 108 includes a plurality of conductive layers 108a and a lattice-shaped gap 108c including via holes 108b. Here, the size of the air gap 108c may be smaller than the wavelength of the signal transmitted from the radiator 102a. That is, the size of the gap 108c may be smaller than the wavelength of the signal so that the signal does not pass through the electrode 108 to the outside.

4 is a diagram showing a disposition structure of electrodes in a beam control device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to (a) of FIG. 4 , electrodes 108 may be formed as a pair facing each other with a directional member 106 interposed therebetween. In this case, the directionality of the directional member 106 can be adjusted in one dimension according to the strength of the voltage applied to the pair of electrodes 108 . That is, when the pair of electrodes 108 are provided on the left and right sides of the directional member 106, the directionality of the directional member 106 can be adjusted in the left and right directions according to the strength of the voltage applied to the pair of electrodes 108. there will be Accordingly, the signal incident on the directional member 106 can also be controlled in one-dimensional direction in the left and right directions.

Referring to (b) of FIG. 4 , the electrode 108 may include a pair of first electrodes 108-1 and a pair of second electrodes 108-2. The pair of first electrodes 108 - 1 may be provided facing each other on the left and right sides of the directional member 106 (that is, face each other in the first direction). The pair of second electrodes 108 - 2 may be provided facing each other on the front and rear sides of the directional member 106 (that is, facing in a second direction different from the first direction).

In this case, the directionality of the directional member 106 can be adjusted in two dimensions according to the intensity of the voltage applied to the pair of first electrodes 108-1 and the pair of second electrodes 108-2, respectively. That is, the directionality of the directional member 106 can be adjusted in the left and right directions according to the strength of the voltage applied to the pair of first electrodes 108-1. In addition, the directionality of the directional member 106 can be adjusted in the forward and backward directions according to the strength of the voltage applied to the pair of second electrodes 108-2. Accordingly, the signals incident on the directional member 106 can also be controlled in two dimensions in the left and right directions and in the forward and backward directions.

Meanwhile, when a voltage is applied to the electrode 108, the dielectric layer 104 formed under the directional member 106 also serves to protect the communication terminal 102 from the applied voltage. That is, the voltage applied to the electrode 108 corresponds to several tens of V, and the communication terminal 102 uses a voltage of 5V or less, and the dielectric layer 104 between the directional member 106 and the communication terminal 102 Not only physically separates the communication terminal 102 from the electrode 108, but also electrically prevents the signal applied to the electrode 108 from flowing to the communication terminal 102, thereby protecting the communication terminal 102.

In addition, although it has been described here that the spatial coupling of the signal transmitted from the radiator 102a is made in the dielectric layer 104, it is not limited thereto, and some spatial coupling is made in the dielectric layer 104 according to the thickness of the dielectric layer 104, Another partial spatial coupling may be made within the directional member 106 .

According to the disclosed embodiment, the dielectric layer 104 is formed above the communication end 102 having the radiator 102a so that the signal transmitted from the radiator 102a is spatially coupled inside the dielectric layer 104, The transmission output of the communication terminal 102 can be improved. Further, by adjusting the directionality of the directional member 106 according to the intensity of the voltage applied to the electrode 108, it is possible to adjust the radiation angle of the signal incident to the directional member 106.

Here, the power coupling is performed in the dielectric layer 104, and the radiation angle is controlled by the directional member 106, so that the radiation angle adjustment by the directional member 106 does not affect the power coupling characteristics, so that the spatial coupling is performed. Efficiency can be kept constant, and a constant output can be formed according to the radiation angle.

5 is a flowchart illustrating a method of manufacturing a beam control device according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Referring to FIG. 5, a communication terminal 102 having one or more radiators 102a is formed (FIG. 5(a)). Next, a dielectric layer 104 is formed in an area where the signal of the radiator 102a is spatially radiated from the top of the communication terminal 102 (FIG. 5(b)). That is, the dielectric layer 104 may be formed such that signals emitted from the radiator 102a are spatially coupled by in-phase characteristics inside the dielectric layer 104 .

Next, a directional member 106 is formed on top of the dielectric layer 104 (FIG. 5(c)). Specifically, a case (for example, a case in the form of a film made of polymer) with an empty inside is installed along the edge of the dielectric layer 104 on top of the dielectric layer 104, and after filling the case with liquid crystal, the liquid crystal After hardening, the case may be removed to form the directional member 106 .

Next, one or more pairs of electrodes 108 are formed with the directional member 106 interposed therebetween (Fig. 5(d)). Here, the directivity of the directional member 106 is controlled by the potential difference between the pair of electrodes 108, and thus the radiation angle of the signal incident to the directional member 106 can be adjusted.

Although representative embodiments of the present invention have been described in detail above, those skilled in the art will understand that various modifications are possible to the above-described embodiments without departing from the scope of the present invention. . Therefore, the scope of the present invention should not be limited to the described embodiments and should not be defined, and should be defined by not only the claims to be described later, but also those equivalent to these claims.

100: beam control device
102: communication group
102a: emitter
104: dielectric layer
104-1: first dielectric layer
104-2: second dielectric layer
104a: air gap
106: directional member
108: electrode
108a: conductive layer
108b: via hole
108c: air gap
108-1: a pair of first electrodes
108-2: a pair of second electrodes

Claims (17)

a communication terminal including one or more radiators for communication in a preset frequency band;
a dielectric layer disposed above the radiator in a region where signals of the radiator are spatially radiated, and allowing signals emitted from the radiator to be spatially coupled therein;
a directional member provided on top of the dielectric layer and into which the spatially coupled signal is incident; and
A beam control device comprising an electrode provided on the directional member and applying a voltage to form an electromagnetic field on the directional member.
delete The method of claim 1,
The signal of the radiator is provided to be spatially coupled by in-phase characteristics inside the dielectric layer.
The method of claim 1,
The dielectric layer,
a first dielectric layer made of a first dielectric; and
and a second dielectric layer made of a second dielectric different from the first dielectric.
The method of claim 4,
The dielectric layer,
Wherein the first dielectric layer and the second dielectric layer are provided by being alternately laminated, the beam control device.
The method of claim 5,
The first dielectric layer and the second dielectric layer have a non-uniform thickness, the beam control device.
The method of claim 5,
The dielectric layer,
Further comprising an air gap provided in the middle where the first dielectric layer and the second dielectric layer are alternately stacked, the beam control device.
The method of claim 1,
The electrode includes at least one pair of electrodes provided with the directional member interposed therebetween.
The method of claim 8,
The directional member,
Provided to adjust the radiation angle of the incident signal according to the potential difference between the electrodes, the beam control device.
The method of claim 9,
The directional member,
A beam control device made of a liquid crystal in which the arrangement direction of molecules is changed by the electromagnetic field.
The method of claim 8,
the electrode,
a pair of first electrodes provided facing each other in a first direction on an outer surface of the directional member; and
Including a pair of second electrodes provided facing each other in a second direction different from the first direction on the outer surface of the directional member, the beam control device.
The method of claim 8,
the electrode,
a plurality of conductive layers provided spaced apart from each other in the height direction of the directional member; and
A beam control device comprising a via hole connected to the conductive layer in a height direction and provided.
The method of claim 12,
A plurality of via holes are formed to be spaced apart from each other between the conductive layers,
The electrode further comprises a lattice-shaped gap formed through the plurality of conductive layers and the via hole.
The method of claim 13,
The size of the gap is provided smaller than the wavelength of the signal, the beam control device.
a communication terminal including one or more radiators for communication in a preset frequency band;
a dielectric layer disposed on an upper portion of the radiator in a region where signals of the radiator are spatially radiated, and provided so that signals emitted from the radiator are spatially coupled therein;
a directional member provided on top of the dielectric layer, receiving the spatially coupled signal and adjusting a radiation angle of the signal; and
A beam control device comprising at least one pair of electrodes provided with the directional member interposed therebetween and configured to adjust a radiation angle by the directional member according to the strength of an applied voltage.
A communication device comprising the beam control device according to any one of claims 1 and 3 to 15.
Forming a communication terminal including one or more radiators for communication in a preset frequency band;
forming a dielectric layer on top of the radiator to be disposed in a region where signals of the radiator are spatially radiated, and to spatially couple signals emitted from the radiator;
forming a directional member on top of the dielectric layer so that the spatially coupled signal is incident; and
A method of manufacturing a beam control device comprising the step of forming one or more pairs of electrodes with the directional member interposed therebetween.

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