US3860893A - Wide band active circuit three-port circulator for ultra-high frequencies and microwaves - Google Patents

Wide band active circuit three-port circulator for ultra-high frequencies and microwaves Download PDF

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Publication number
US3860893A
US3860893A US429741A US42974174A US3860893A US 3860893 A US3860893 A US 3860893A US 429741 A US429741 A US 429741A US 42974174 A US42974174 A US 42974174A US 3860893 A US3860893 A US 3860893A
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Prior art keywords
circulator
wide band
active circuit
port
amplifiers
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US429741A
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English (en)
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Raymond Ropars
Jean-Yves Herve
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Lignes Telegraphiques et Telephoniques LTT SA
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Lignes Telegraphiques et Telephoniques LTT SA
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    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H03—ELECTRONIC CIRCUITRY
    • H03H—IMPEDANCE NETWORKS, e.g. RESONANT CIRCUITS; RESONATORS
    • H03H11/00—Networks using active elements
    • H03H11/02—Multiple-port networks
    • H03H11/38—One-way transmission networks, i.e. unilines

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  • An active circuit one octave circulator made of three identical arms interconnected at the three-ports, each arm consisting of a gyrator comprising voltage and current single stage transistorized amplifiers, the impedance at each port being matched with the standard impedance of microwave circuits, and capacitive interconnecting means are provided at each end of the arms and between the two amplifiers.
  • the circulators are designed as microwave integrated circuits.
  • This invention relates to a wideband circulator for use in the frequency range from 100 megahertz to several gigahertz.
  • the word circulator often relates to an apparatus for microwave operations. It is here used in the following meaning.
  • n port circulator with the said ports connected to their matched impedance and numbered successively from 1 to n, the application of a signal to any port ranked k results in a response only at the port (k 1), when k is lower than n, and at the port 1 when k n.
  • FIG. 1 illustrates a three-port circulator in which, by way of example, the forward direction of propagation 1 2 3 is counter-clockwise.
  • Circulators are generally based on the microwave properties of ferrimagnetic materials.
  • the present invention relates to a circulator which utilises active four-terminal networks which are better adapted to operation in the lower part of the microwave range, i.e., between 0.1 GHZ and several GI-Iz.
  • active four-terminal networks which are better adapted to operation in the lower part of the microwave range, i.e., between 0.1 GHZ and several GI-Iz.
  • the gyrator is described as ideal when the input and output circuits impedances are zero and the equations of the voltages as a function of the currents are reduced to U -SI and U: S1,.
  • the highest frequency of the bandwidth remains limited to 30 MHz
  • the balancing for obtaining the best performances and a zero unidirectional voltage at the ports at zero input signal is critical.
  • the object of the present invention is to provide a circulator which can be used above MHz and which is capable of transmitting a power of the order of a milliwatt with a very low insertion loss and an isolation of at least 20 decibels within a one-octave band width.
  • the three-port circulator is obtained by interconnecting three gyrators made of identical active circuits, each of which consists of transistorized voltage and current amplifiers, said gyrators being designed as microwave integrated circuits on a single substrate, in which each comprises an input connecting a capacitor, matched with the impedance of one of the ports of the circulator, capacitive means connecting said voltage and said current amplifiers and capacitive connecting means between the input of said voltage amplifier and the output of the current amplifier of the preceding gyrator.
  • a circulator having a bandwidth from 0.55 to l GI-Iz can be designed with dimensions, in mm, of 35 X 35 X 14 or 28 X 39 X 14. If miniature coaxial connectors are used, the aforesaid dimensions are reumbled to 35 X 35 X 6 millimeters and the circulator weighs a few grammes.
  • a ferrite circulator marketed by the Assignee under the reference number R 2947 B having the same bandwidth, and comparable isolation and insertion loss values, weighs 1.3 Kg and occupies the volume of a cylinder of a diameter of millimeters and a height of 40 millimeters, which makes it impossible to introduce it in an integrated microwave design.
  • the bandwidth of active-circuit circulators is very much higher than that of ferrite circulators.
  • types F 58100 A and F 58101 A circulators marketed by the Assignee.
  • the overall dimensions are those of a cylinder of a diameter of 50 millimeters and a height of 20 millimeters. The first covers the bandwidth between 70 and 360 MHZ and the second the bandwidth between 200 and 500 MHz. In order to scan each of these two bands with ferrite circulators, it is necessary to use four different devices, each having a volume equivalent to that of the unique active-circuit circulator.
  • the circulator according to the invention requires a single supply, of which one output is earthed, and consequently there is no problem of balancing the voltages.
  • the circulator according to the invention may be operated in the very high-frequency and microwave ranges. As higher cut-off frequency transistors become commercially available, it will be possible to introduce them into the circulator according to the invention without modifying the circuit design and the maximum operating frequency of the circulator will be raised accordingly.
  • FIGS. 1 to 10 are given purely by way of illustration and have no limiting character, and in which:
  • FIG. 1 shows a three-part circulator
  • FIG. 2 is the block diagram of the circulator according to the invention.
  • FIG. 3 is the electric circuit diagram of one of the gyrator arms of the circulator
  • FIG. 4 illustrates, the design of the circulator
  • FIG. 5 illustrates the input standing wave ratio of a circulator of a first type, as seen from the outside
  • FIG. 6 illustrates a variant of the matching circuit of the ports of the circulator
  • FIG. 7a illustrates the insertion loss of a circulator of the first type and FIG. 7b that of a circulator of the second type,
  • FIG. 8a illustrates the isolation of a circulator of the first type and FIG. 8b that of a circulator of the second type,
  • FIG. 9 illustrates the figure of merit of a circulator of the first type
  • FIG. 10 illustrates an example of the variation of the insertion loss and of the isolation of a circulator as a function of the amplitude of the input signal.
  • FIG. 2 in which the ports of the circulator are denoted by l, 2 and 3, voltage amplifiers 30 are connected to current amplifiers 31 by capacitors 32; capacitors 33 connect the output of the amplifiers 31 to the following amplifier 30.
  • the ports of the circulator are connected to the input of the voltage amplifiers by means of capacitors 34. The supply of the amplifiers is not shown.
  • the interrupted-line contour 4 surrounds one of the three identical gyrators. Each of them comprises two transistors, i.e., the transistor 5 connected as a voltage amplifier corresponding to the reference 30 in FIG. 2, and the transistor 6 connected as a current amplifier corresponding to the reference 31 in FIG. 2.
  • the transistor 5 is connected through a capacitor 7 to the port which precedes it, and which is denoted by way of example by the numeral 2 in FIG. 3, and through a capacitor 8 to the current amplifier which precedes it.
  • Resistors 9 and 10 form a bridge between earth and the general supply voltage available at the end of a resistor 21 connected to a capacitor 22.
  • the base of the transistor 5 is connected to the intermediate point of this bridge.
  • a capacitor 7 in series with a low-value inductor 14 is connected by means of a capacitor 7 in series with a low-value inductor 14 to the port 2 and by means of a resistor 12 adjusted to an optimum value in the neighbourhood of 50 ohms in accordance with the operating frequency band in series with a capacitor 8 to the emitter of the output transistor of the preceding gyrator.
  • a 50-ohm resistor 13 connects the emitter of the said transistor to the emitter of the transistor 5.
  • a SO-ohm resistor denoted by ll connects the emitter of the transistor 5 to earth.
  • the capacitors 7 and 8 have the same capacitance value, for example 4,700 picofarads.
  • a capacitor 15 connects buffer resistor 16 of the transistor 5 to the base of the transistor 6.
  • the base of the latter transistor is in addition connected to the resistors 17 and 18.
  • a resistor 19 of low value is connected between the collector of the transistor 6 and that end of the resistor 21 which is connected to the decoupling capacitor 22.
  • a high frequency capacitor 23 of low value is connected in parallel with the capacitor 22.
  • a resistor 20 of a value of ohms provided between the emitter of the transistor 6 and earth constitutes the output of the current amplifier.
  • FIG. 4 illustrates the design of a circulator according to the invention according to microwave integrated circuit technology.
  • the standardized 50-ohm microwave outputs 41, 42, 43 serving as ports are fixed to the casing 45.
  • the amplifiers 30 of FIG. 2 are formed by the transistors 40, while the current amplifiers 3l consist of the transistors 44.
  • Transistors 35 821E marketed by the company Hewlett-Packard, transistors MS 175 marketed by Texas Instruments, transistors BS-Tl4 manufactured and marketed by the Assignee have been successfully used in such design.
  • the main technical data for this transistor are as follows: maximum operating frequency 6 to 7 GHz, cut-off frequency 4.5 GHz, noise factor at l GHz 2 dB, maximum power 100 milliwatts.
  • the supply means for the circulator which is separated from the closed metal casing 45, is connected by a coaxial line 46 having its sheathing connected to the earth of the casing.
  • the circulator operates as follows: the transistor 5 of FIG. 3 is located on the diagonal of a Wheatstone bridge consisting of the resistors 11, 12, 13 and the purely ohmic impedance of the load as seen through the port 2, which is balanced if the load is appropriate, because the capacitances 7 and 8 balance one another. Any signal coming from the resistor 20 situated on one of the diagonals of the bridge gives a zero resultant in the other diagonal, in which the transistor 5 is situated. The signal coming from the port 1 therefore cannot be transmitted to the port 3. On the other hand, in the arm at which the port 2 is connected, a signal appears which is transmitted through the latter to the output owing to the fact that its coefficient of reflection in this direction is zero. It is necessary for this condition to be satisfied throughout the operating frequency band.
  • FIG. 5 illustrates the standing wave ratio of a first type of circulator as seen from the outside through any one of its three ports.
  • This figure shows that the frequency band in which this type of circulator can be operated extends from to 500 megahertz.
  • FIG. 6 shows in the interrupted-line square a circuit for matching the ports of a second type of circulator designed with transistors BST 14 in the frequency band from 300 to 1,000 MHZ.
  • This circuit comprises a series inductor 62 whose characteristics are substantially the same as those of the inductance 14, a capacitor 63 (12 picofarads, for example), in series with a resistor 64, (for example of 220 ohms).
  • FIG. 7a illustrates the insertion loss, in decibels, of a circulator of the first type with respect to frequency. As this curve shows, at frequencies below 350 MHZ the circulator amplifies any wave entering through any one of its ports and leaving by the following one in the direct circulating direction of the circulator, and at frequencies above 350 MHZ it attenuates a wave propagating in the same circulating direction.
  • FIG. 7b illustrates the insertion loss of a circulator of the second type.
  • FIG. 8a illustrates the isolation in decibels of a circulator of the first type.
  • FIG. 9 which is derived from FIGS. 7a and 8a, is a curve illustrating the figure of merit of a circulator of the first type as a function of frequency; it shows the ratio of the power of the forward wave to that of the backward wave in decibels.
  • the curve denoted by 101 shows the insertion loss and the curve denoted by I02 shows the isolation of a circulator of the first type. measured at 200 MHZ, as a function of the amplitude of the voltage of the input ultra-high-frequency signal.
  • a wide band active circuit circulator made of three identical gyrators serially interconnected comprising each a current amplifier and a voltage amplifier serially connected and three ports respectively at the interconnections between two gyrators which comprises first capacitive coupling means between each port and the input of the connected gyrator, second capacitive coupling means between each port and the output of the connected gyrator, third capacitive coupling means be tween said current and voltage amplifiers of the same gyrator, and a single supply means for said amplifiers one output of which is earthed.
  • a wide band active circuit circulator according to claim 1 in which said first and second capacitive coupling means contain capacitors of the same value.
  • a wide band active circuit circulator according to claim 1 in which said first capacitive coupling means is serially connected with an impedance matching section.
  • a wide band active circuit circulator in which said impedance matching section consists of a series capacitorinductor circuit.

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US429741A 1973-01-02 1974-01-02 Wide band active circuit three-port circulator for ultra-high frequencies and microwaves Expired - Lifetime US3860893A (en)

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FR7300013A FR2212653B1 (enrdf_load_stackoverflow) 1973-01-02 1973-01-02

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DE (1) DE2400059A1 (enrdf_load_stackoverflow)
FR (1) FR2212653B1 (enrdf_load_stackoverflow)
GB (1) GB1453751A (enrdf_load_stackoverflow)

Cited By (7)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US4015207A (en) * 1974-11-14 1977-03-29 U.S. Philips Corporation Anti-reciprocal network
US4679010A (en) * 1985-12-20 1987-07-07 Itt Gallium Arsenide Technology Center, A Division Of Itt Corporation Microwave circulator comprising a plurality of directional couplers connected together by isolation amplifiers
US4801901A (en) * 1987-03-13 1989-01-31 Hittite Microwave Corporation Non-ferrite non-reciprocal phase shifter and circulator
US5101179A (en) * 1990-11-14 1992-03-31 Hittite Microwave Corporation Y-connected three port circulator
US5144266A (en) * 1991-02-04 1992-09-01 Motorola, Inc. Broadband high frequency active MMIC circulator
US9641156B1 (en) * 2014-11-26 2017-05-02 Hrl Laboratories, Llc Active circulator with cascode transistor
US9893401B2 (en) 2014-11-26 2018-02-13 Hrl Laboratories, Llc Effective biasing active circulator with RF choke concept

Families Citing this family (1)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
DE19508429A1 (de) * 1995-03-09 1996-09-12 Daimler Benz Ag Zirkulatoranordnung

Citations (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3513401A (en) * 1966-04-15 1970-05-19 Hitachi Ltd Circuit arrangements employing active elements therein functioning as circulators,gyrators,inductors or filters
US3582803A (en) * 1968-03-15 1971-06-01 Postmaster General Uk Electrical networks having the properties of circulators
US3700832A (en) * 1971-08-19 1972-10-24 Bell Telephone Labor Inc N-port circulator
US3716729A (en) * 1969-09-08 1973-02-13 Post Office All-pass and low-pass filter comprised of active element circulators

Patent Citations (4)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US3513401A (en) * 1966-04-15 1970-05-19 Hitachi Ltd Circuit arrangements employing active elements therein functioning as circulators,gyrators,inductors or filters
US3582803A (en) * 1968-03-15 1971-06-01 Postmaster General Uk Electrical networks having the properties of circulators
US3716729A (en) * 1969-09-08 1973-02-13 Post Office All-pass and low-pass filter comprised of active element circulators
US3700832A (en) * 1971-08-19 1972-10-24 Bell Telephone Labor Inc N-port circulator

Cited By (7)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US4015207A (en) * 1974-11-14 1977-03-29 U.S. Philips Corporation Anti-reciprocal network
US4679010A (en) * 1985-12-20 1987-07-07 Itt Gallium Arsenide Technology Center, A Division Of Itt Corporation Microwave circulator comprising a plurality of directional couplers connected together by isolation amplifiers
US4801901A (en) * 1987-03-13 1989-01-31 Hittite Microwave Corporation Non-ferrite non-reciprocal phase shifter and circulator
US5101179A (en) * 1990-11-14 1992-03-31 Hittite Microwave Corporation Y-connected three port circulator
US5144266A (en) * 1991-02-04 1992-09-01 Motorola, Inc. Broadband high frequency active MMIC circulator
US9641156B1 (en) * 2014-11-26 2017-05-02 Hrl Laboratories, Llc Active circulator with cascode transistor
US9893401B2 (en) 2014-11-26 2018-02-13 Hrl Laboratories, Llc Effective biasing active circulator with RF choke concept

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GB1453751A (en) 1976-10-27
FR2212653B1 (enrdf_load_stackoverflow) 1977-04-22
DE2400059A1 (de) 1974-08-15
FR2212653A1 (enrdf_load_stackoverflow) 1974-07-26

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