WO2021082980A1

WO2021082980A1 - Lens structure, lens antenna, and electronic apparatus

Info

Publication number: WO2021082980A1
Application number: PCT/CN2020/122080
Authority: WO
Inventors: 杨帆
Original assignee: Oppo广东移动通信有限公司
Priority date: 2019-10-31
Filing date: 2020-10-20
Publication date: 2021-05-06
Also published as: CN110739552A; CN110739552B

Abstract

A lens structure comprising: multiple dielectric layers (100); and at least one conductive layer (200) alternately stacked with the dielectric layers (100) in a first direction. The conductive layer (200) is provided with one or more slot units (300), and if multiple slot units (300) are comprised, the multiple slot units (300) are spaced apart and arranged in parallel. The slot units (300) comprise a first slot and one or more pairs of second slots, each pair of the second slots are located on two sides of the first slot with respect to an axial direction thereof, and the second slots are communicated with the first slot. Multiple slot units (300) on the same axis in the multiple conductive layers (200) form a first gradually changing pattern in which the lengths of the second slots gradually change. The axis line is a line passing through any of the conductive layers (200) and parallel to the first direction, and a length direction of the second slots is perpendicular to the axial direction of the first slot.

Description

Lens structure, lens antenna and electronic equipment

Cross-references to related applications

This application claims the priority of a Chinese patent application filed with the Chinese Patent Office, the application number is 2019110547440, and the invention title is "lens structure, lens antenna and electronic equipment" on October 31, 2019, the entire content of which is incorporated into this application by reference in.

Technical field

This application relates to the field of antenna technology, in particular to a lens structure, lens antenna and electronic equipment.

Background technique

The statements here only provide background information related to this application, and do not necessarily constitute existing exemplary technologies.

A lens antenna is an antenna composed of a lens and a feed source. Using the convergence characteristics of the lens, it can ensure that the electromagnetic waves emitted from the feed source are emitted in parallel through the lens, or it can ensure that the parallel incident electromagnetic waves are converged to the feed source after passing through the lens. Since electromagnetic waves generally need to pass through multiple dielectric layers when entering the lens, the introduction of the medium will cause the loss of electromagnetic waves, thereby reducing the efficiency of the lens antenna.

Summary of the invention

According to various embodiments of the present application, a lens structure, a lens antenna, and an electronic device are provided.

A lens structure, including:

Multi-layer dielectric layer;

At least one conductive layer, the conductive layer and the dielectric layer are alternately stacked in a first direction, and the conductive layer is provided with:

At least one slot unit, when a plurality of said slot units are included, the plurality of said slot units are spaced apart and arranged in parallel; said slot unit includes a first slot and at least a pair of second slots, each pair of said second slots respectively Located on both axial sides of the first gap, the second gap communicates with the first gap;

There is a first gradual law of the length of the second gap between the plurality of slit units on the same axis among the plurality of conductive layers; the axis is through any of the conductive layers and is parallel to For the straight line in the first direction, the length direction of the second slot is perpendicular to the axial direction of the first slot.

A lens structure, including:

Multi-layer dielectric layer;

At least three slot units, a plurality of the slot units are spaced apart and arranged in parallel; the slot unit includes a first slot and at least a pair of second slots, each pair of the second slot is located in the axial direction of the first slot On both sides, the second gap is in communication with the first gap;

Wherein, the plurality of slit units of the same conductive layer have a second gradual law of the length of the second slit, and the length direction of the second slit is perpendicular to the axial direction of the first slit.

A lens antenna, including:

Feed array; and

The above-mentioned lens structure is arranged in parallel with the feed source array.

An electronic device includes the above-mentioned lens antenna.

In the above-mentioned lens structure, an artificial surface plasmon waveguide can be generated by using a symmetric second slit. By setting the gradual law of the length of the second slit of the interlayer or intralayer slit unit, the refractive index distribution rule is obtained to realize the beam convergence function. In addition, the medium loss of the electromagnetic wave along the waveguide is low, so in practical applications, a lens antenna with smaller loss, higher efficiency and wider bandwidth can be realized. In addition, through alternately stacked dielectric layers and conductive layers, the assembly and preparation of low-cost lenses can also be realized.

The above-mentioned lens antenna includes a feed array and a lens structure. Through the symmetric structure of the second slot in the lens structure and the gradual change of the length, a lens antenna with smaller loss, higher efficiency, larger bandwidth and lower cost can be realized; The setting of the feeder array can realize multi-beam emission and beam scanning.

The above-mentioned electronic equipment includes the lens antenna described above. Because the lens antenna has smaller loss, higher efficiency, larger bandwidth and lower cost, and can realize multi-beam emission and beam scanning, the electronic device can achieve high efficiency, High-gain, low-cost beam scanning.

The details of one or more embodiments of the present application are set forth in the following drawings and description. Other features, purposes and advantages of this application will become apparent from the description, drawings and claims.

Description of the drawings

In order to more clearly describe the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application or the prior art, the following will briefly introduce the drawings that need to be used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art. Obviously, the drawings in the following description are only These are some embodiments of the present application. For those of ordinary skill in the art, other drawings can be obtained based on these drawings without creative work.

FIG. 1 is a schematic structural diagram of a lens structure in an embodiment;

2 is a schematic diagram of the structure of the slot unit in an embodiment;

3 is a schematic diagram of the structure of the slot unit in another embodiment;

4 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a plurality of slit units when the first gradual change rule is in an embodiment;

5 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a plurality of slit units in the second gradual change rule in an embodiment;

FIG. 6 is a schematic structural diagram of the lens structure in the first alternative embodiment; FIG.

FIG. 7 is a schematic structural diagram of the lens structure in the second alternative embodiment;

FIG. 8 is a schematic structural diagram of a lens structure in optional embodiment three;

FIG. 9 is a schematic structural diagram of a lens structure in optional embodiment four;

10 is a schematic diagram of the lens structure in the fifth alternative embodiment;

11 is a schematic diagram of the structure of the slot unit in another embodiment;

FIG. 12 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a slot unit in another embodiment;

FIG. 13 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a lens antenna in an embodiment;

FIG. 14 is a schematic diagram of the structure of the feed array in an embodiment;

15 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a lens antenna in another embodiment;

16 is a schematic diagram of the structure of a lens antenna in another embodiment;

FIG. 17 is a schematic diagram of the structure of an electronic device in an embodiment;

Figure 18 is a beam scanning pattern in an embodiment;

FIG. 19 is a schematic diagram of a middle frame structure of an electronic device in an embodiment;

FIG. 20 is a schematic diagram of the structure of an electronic device in an embodiment.

Detailed ways

In order to facilitate the understanding of the application, the application will be described in a more comprehensive manner with reference to the relevant drawings. The preferred embodiments of the application are shown in the accompanying drawings. However, this application can be implemented in many different forms and is not limited to the embodiments described herein. On the contrary, the purpose of providing these embodiments is to make the understanding of the disclosure of this application more thorough and comprehensive.

It can be understood that the terms "first", "second", etc. used in this application can be used herein to describe various elements, but these elements are not limited by these terms. These terms are only used to distinguish the first element from another element, and cannot be understood as indicating or implying relative importance or implicitly indicating the number of the indicated technical features. Therefore, the features defined with "first" and "second" may explicitly or implicitly include at least one of the features. In the description of the present application, "a plurality of" means at least two, such as two, three, etc., unless specifically defined otherwise.

Unless otherwise defined, all technical and scientific terms used herein have the same meaning as commonly understood by those skilled in the technical field of this application. The terminology used in the specification of the application herein is only for the purpose of describing specific embodiments, and is not intended to limit the application.

Refer to FIG. 1, which is a schematic structural diagram of a lens structure in an embodiment.

In this embodiment, the lens structure 10 is applied to a lens antenna. According to specific application scenarios of the lens antenna, the lens structure 10 is provided with different refractive index distribution rules, so as to realize the function of converging electromagnetic waves. Optionally, the lens structure 10 can work in a microwave frequency band, and can be adapted to different frequency bands such as millimeter waves and terahertz waves through adjustment of structural parameters.

Among them, millimeter waves refer to electromagnetic waves with wavelengths on the order of millimeters, and their frequencies are approximately between 20 GHz and 300 GHz. 3GP has designated a list of frequency bands supported by 5G NR. The 5G NR spectrum range can reach 100 GHz. It has specified two frequency ranges: Frequency range 1 (FR1), which is the frequency band below 6 GHz, and Frequency range 2 (FR2), which is millimeter wave frequency band. Frequency range 1 frequency range: 450MHz-6.0GHz, of which the maximum channel bandwidth is 100MHz. The frequency range of Frequency range2 is 24.25GHz-52.6GHz, and the maximum channel bandwidth is 400MHz. Nearly 11GHz spectrum used for 5G mobile broadband includes: 3.85GHz licensed spectrum, for example: 28GHz (24.25-29.5GHz), 37GHz (37.0-38.6GHz), 39GHz (38.6-40GHz) and 14GHz unlicensed spectrum (57-71GHz) . The working frequency band of 5G communication system has three frequency bands: 28GHz, 39GHz and 60GHz.

1, the lens structure 10 includes a multilayer dielectric layer 100 and a multilayer conductive layer 200; the conductive layer 200 and the dielectric layer 100 are alternately stacked in a first direction. Among them, the number of layers of the dielectric layer 100 and the conductive layer 200 is not limited (Figure 1 takes the five-layer dielectric layer 100 and the four-layer conductive layer 200 as an example). At the same time, the relative area between the dielectric layer 100 and the conductive layer 200 is not limited. Limited, can be adjusted according to actual application.

Among them, the dielectric layer 100 is a non-conductive functional layer that can be used to support the fixed conductive layer 200. By alternately stacking the dielectric layer 100 and the conductive layer 200, the interval distribution of the multilayer conductive layer 200 can be realized; at the same time, the dielectric layer 100 The lens structure 10 can be divided into multiple regions with non-continuous refractive index, so that the size of the conductive layer 200 in the first direction only needs to be changed within a small range to achieve the convergence effect and realize the assembly and preparation of low-cost lenses. Optionally, when the thicknesses of the plurality of dielectric layers 100 in the direction of alternate stacking are equal, the plurality of conductive layers 200 are distributed at equal intervals. Optionally, the material of the dielectric layer 100 is an electrically insulating material.

Wherein, the conductive layer 200 is a functional layer that can be used to transmit electromagnetic waves. The multiple conductive layers 200 can emit incident electromagnetic waves in parallel, or converge parallel incident electromagnetic waves to a focal point, or diverge parallel incident electromagnetic waves. The conductive layer 200 includes one or more slot units 300. When there are multiple slot units 300, the multiple slot units 300 are spaced apart and arranged in parallel. Optionally, a plurality of slit units 300 are arranged side by side at equal intervals. Optionally, the material of the conductive layer 200 may be a conductive material, such as a metal material, an alloy material, a conductive silica gel material, a graphite material, etc., and the material of the conductive layer 200 may also be a material with a high dielectric constant.

Wherein, the slot unit 300 includes a first slot 301 and at least a pair of second slots 302. Each pair of second slots 302 is located on both sides of the first slot 301 in the axial direction. The second slot 302 communicates with the first slot 301, and the electromagnetic wave It is incident on the lens structure 10 along the axial direction of the first slit 301.

Optionally, referring to FIG. 2 for assistance, each pair of second slits 302 are axially mirror-symmetrically arranged on both sides of the first slit 301. Wherein, mirror symmetry means that each pair of second slits 302 is symmetrical with respect to the axis of the first slit 301. Optionally, referring to FIG. 3 for assistance, each pair of second slits 302 are symmetrically arranged on both sides of the first slit 301 for axial sliding movement. Among them, the sliding symmetry means that the two second slits 302 originally symmetrical about the axis slide relative to each other by a certain distance along the axial direction of the first slit 301; the multiple slit units 300 are independent of each other and have similar shapes.

The length direction of the second slot 302 is substantially perpendicular to the axial direction of the first slot 301. When electromagnetic waves are incident on the lens structure 10 along the axial direction of the first slot 301, in the length direction of the second slot 302, an artificial surface plasmon waveguide (hereinafter abbreviated as waveguide) can be generated at the edge of each second slot 302 Multiple pairs of mirror-symmetric second slots 302 can generate mirror-symmetric waveguide pairs, and each slot unit is composed of multiple waveguides in a linear arrangement; multiple pairs of slip-symmetric second slots 302 can generate slide-symmetric waveguide pairs, Each slot unit is composed of multiple waveguides in a linear arrangement. Optionally, in each slot unit 300, multiple second slots 302 located on the same side of the first slot 301 are arranged in parallel with the same center distance p, and the multiple second slots 302 have the same length h, so that the multiple slot units 300 In this, the edges in the length direction of each second slot 302 can produce the same waveguide. Wherein, the center distance p can be understood as the distance between the geometric centers of two adjacent second slits 302.

When the electromagnetic wave is incident on the lens structure along the axial direction, the electromagnetic wave can continue to propagate along the waveguide, and the propagation constant is larger than the free space, that is, the equivalent refractive index greater than 1 is realized, and the convergence function is realized. Since most of the energy of the electromagnetic wave is concentrated on the longitudinal edge of the second slot 302 of the slot unit 300, only a small amount enters the medium, so it is hardly affected by the medium loss. Therefore, a lens antenna with smaller loss and higher efficiency can be realized in practical applications. . Wherein, when each pair of second slots 302 axially slip symmetrically, the equivalent refractive index changes less with frequency, so a lens antenna with a larger bandwidth can be realized in practical applications.

In some embodiments, the plurality of slot units 300 on the same axis in the plurality of conductive layers 200 have a first gradual law of the length of the second slot 302, and/or, the plurality of slot units 300 of the conductive layer 200 There is a second gradual law of the length of the second gap 302 therebetween. Wherein, the axis is a straight line passing through any conductive layer 200 and parallel to the first direction.

When electromagnetic waves are incident on the lens structure 10 along the axial direction of the first slit 301, the lens structure 10 with the first gradual law can realize the convergence of the electromagnetic wave beam in the first direction, and the lens structure 10 with the second gradual law can be To achieve the convergence of the electromagnetic wave beam in the second direction. Wherein, the second direction is substantially perpendicular to the first direction and the axial direction of the first slot 301 at the same time, that is, parallel to the length direction of the second slot 302.

Specifically, please refer to FIG. 4 for assistance. The first gradual law is that the length of the second slit 302 decreases symmetrically from the central position of the same axis to the slit units 300 on both sides, that is, from the slit units 300 in the central layer of the plurality of conductive layers 200 to The slot units 300 on both sides of the layer are symmetrically decreasing (Figure 4 takes the second slot 302 with sliding symmetry as an example, and only shows the schematic diagram of the slot unit 300 in each conductive layer 200 at the same time on the axis A, and the middle layer slot unit 300 The length of the second gap 302 is marked as h3A, the two layers on one side are marked as h2A and h1A, and the two layers on the other side are marked as h4A and h5A, h3A>h4A=h2A>h1A=h5A); see Figure 5, The second gradual law is that the length of the second slit 302 decreases symmetrically from the center of the arrangement of the plurality of slit units 300 of the conductive layer 200 to both sides, that is, from the slit unit 300 at the center of the layer to the slit units 300 on both sides of the layer symmetrically decrease (Figure 5 Take the second slit 302 with sliding symmetry as an example, and only display multiple slit units 300 of a certain conductive layer 200. The length of the pair of second slits 302 at the center of the layer is marked as hC, and the sides of the center of the layer are marked as hC. It is marked as hB and hA, and the other side of the layer center is marked as hD and hE, hC>hB=hD>hA=hE). When the center distances of two adjacent second slits 302 of the plurality of slit units 300 are the same, the greater the h, the greater the refractive index.

It should be noted that the decrease can be a linear gradual decrease or a non-linear gradual decrease. For example, a linear gradual decrease can be understood as a decrease according to the gradient of a geometric sequence or an arithmetic sequence or according to a specific rule.

Specifically, when the number of layers of the conductive layer 200 is at least three, the plurality of slit units 300 on the same axis in the plurality of conductive layers 200 have a first gradual law of the length of the second slit 302; and/or When there are at least three slot units 300 of the conductive layer 200, the plurality of slot units 300 of the conductive layer 200 has a second gradual law of the length of the second slot 302 between them. When the number of layers of the conductive layer 200 is one or two, the conductive layer includes at least three slot units 300, and the plurality of slot units 300 of the conductive layer 200 have a second gradual law of the length of the second slot 302 between them.

Optionally, when the first direction of the conductive layer 200 and the dielectric layer 100 is perpendicular to the polarization direction of the lens antenna in the actual application scenario, the multiple slot units 300 are set as: There is a first gradual law of the length of the second slit 302 between the plurality of slit units 300; at this time, if the length of the second slit 302 of the plurality of slit units 300 in the conductive layer 200 is the same (see optional embodiment one and may Optional embodiment 2), the lens structure 10 only realizes the electromagnetic wave convergence in the first direction; if there is a second gradual law of the length of the second slit 302 between the multiple slit units 300 in the same conductive layer 200 (see optional implementation Example 3), the lens structure 10 can simultaneously realize the convergence of electromagnetic waves in the first direction and the second direction. specifically:

Optional embodiment one: please refer to FIG. 6 for assistance. FIG. 6 uses each pair of second slits 302 to slide symmetrically, five conductive layers 200 and each conductive layer 200 has only one slit unit 300 as an example (in the nth layer) The length of the second slot 302 of the slot unit 300 of the conductive layer 200 is marked as hn). At this time, there is a first gradual law of the length of the second slot 302 between the five slot units 300: h3>h4=h2>h5= h1, that is, the value of h decreases from the slot unit 300 of the conductive layer 200 in the center to the slot unit 300 of the two side layers, so that the refractive index of the lens structure 10 decreases from the middle layer to the two side layers, and the lens structure 10 realizes the first direction (Figure In the y direction) the convergence of electromagnetic waves.

Optional embodiment two: please refer to FIG. 7 for assistance. In FIG. 7, each pair of second slits 302 are slidingly symmetrically arranged, five conductive layers 200 and each conductive layer 200 are two slit units 300 as an example. At this time, five The plurality of slot units 300 on the same axis in the conductive layer 200 has a first gradual law of the length of the second slot 302, and the length of the second slot 302 of the two slot units 300 in the conductive layer 200 is the same. Specifically: the gradual change of the length is: h3A=h3B>h4A=h4B=h2A=h2B>h5A=h5B=h1A=h1B (wherein, the plurality of slot units 300 on the A axis are located in the A area of the conductive layer 200, respectively. The length of the second slot 302 of the slot unit 300 in the area A of the nth conductive layer 200 is marked as hnA; the plurality of slot units 300 on the B axis are respectively located in the B area of the conductive layer 200, and are located in the nth conductive layer 200. The length of the second slot 302 of the slot unit 300 in area B is marked as hnB), that is, the value of h decreases from the middle layer to the two side layers, so that the refractive index of the lens structure 10 decreases from the middle layer to the two side layers, and the lens structure 10 realizes the first Convergence of electromagnetic waves in one direction.

Optional embodiment three: please refer to FIG. 8 for assistance. FIG. 8 takes each pair of second slits 302 sliding symmetrically, five conductive layers 200 and each conductive layer 200 has three slit units 300 as an example. At this time, five There is a first gradual law of the length of the second gap 302 between the plurality of slot units 300 on the same axis in the conductive layer 200, and the length of the second gap 302 is between the plurality of slot units 300 in the same conductive layer 200 The second law of gradual change. Specifically: five slits on the axis A of different conductive layers 200 (corresponding to the area A of the conductive layer 200, the length of the second slit 302 of the slit unit 300 in the area A of the nth conductive layer 200 is marked as hnA) There is a first gradual law of the length of the second gap 302 between the cells 300: h3A>h4A=h2A>h5A=h1A, located on the axis B of the different conductive layer 200 (corresponding to the area B of the conductive layer 200, in the nth conductive layer The length of the second slot 302 of the slot unit 300 in the area B of 200 is marked as hnB) There is a first gradual law of the length of the second slot 302 between the five slot units 300: h3B>h4B=h2B>h5B=h1B , The five slot units 300 on the axis C of the different conductive layer 200 (corresponding to the area C of the conductive layer 200, the length of the second slot 302 of the slot unit 300 in the area C of the nth conductive layer 200 is marked as hnC) There is a first gradual law of the length of the second gap 302 between them: h3C>h4C=h2C>h5C=h1C, and the length of each conductive layer 200 exhibits a second gradual law: hA=hC<hB. Therefore, the refractive index of the lens structure 10 decreases from the middle layer to the two side layers, and decreases from the center position in the layer to the two sides. The lens structure 10 can realize the first direction and the second direction at the same time (that is, the x direction in the figure). Convergence of electromagnetic waves.

Optionally, when the first direction of the conductive layer 200 and the dielectric layer 100 is parallel to the polarization direction of the lens antenna in the actual application scenario, the plurality of slot units 300 are set as: between the plurality of slot units 300 in the conductive layer 200 There is a second gradual law of the length of the second slit 302; at this time, if the lengths of the second slits 302 of the plurality of slit units 300 on the same axis in different conductive layers 200 are the same (see optional embodiment 4), then The lens structure 10 only realizes the concentration of electromagnetic waves in the second direction; if there is a first gradual law of the length of the second slit 302 between the multiple slit units 300 on the same axis in different conductive layers 200 (see optional embodiment 5) , The lens structure 10 can simultaneously realize the electromagnetic wave convergence in the second direction and the first direction. specifically:

Alternative embodiment four: please refer to FIG. 9 for assistance. FIG. 9 uses the sliding symmetrical arrangement of each pair of second gaps 302, three conductive layers 200 and each conductive layer 200 has five gap units 300 as an example. At this time, the conductive There is a second gradual law of the length of the second gap 302 between the plurality of slot units 300 in the layer 200, and the lengths of the plurality of slot units 300 on the same axis in different conductive layers 200 are the same. Specifically: the five slot units 300 of the same conductive layer 200 have a first gradual law of the length of the second slot 302: hC>hB=hD>hA=hE, that is, the value of h goes from the slot unit 300 at the center of the layer to The slit units 300 on both sides decrease gradually, so that the refractive index of the lens structure 10 decreases from the center of the layer toward both sides, and the lens structure 10 realizes the convergence of electromagnetic waves in the second direction.

Alternative Embodiment 5: Please refer to FIG. 10 for assistance. FIG. 10 uses the sliding symmetrical arrangement of each pair of second gaps 302, three conductive layers 200 and five gap units 300 in each conductive layer 200 as an example. At this time, the conductive There is a second gradual law of the length of the second gap 302 between the plurality of slit units 300 in the layer 200, and the length of the second gap 302 is between the plurality of slit units 300 on the same axis in different conductive layers 200. A gradual law. Specifically: the five slot units 300 of the same conductive layer 200 have a first gradual law of the length of the second slot 302: hC>hB=hD>hA=hE, that is, the value of h goes from the slot unit 300 at the center of the layer to The slot units 300 on both sides decrease gradually, and there is a first gradual law of the length of the second slot 302 between the three slot units 300 in the A region in different conductive layers 200: h2A>h1A=h3A, in different conductive layers 200 There is a first gradual law of length between the three slot units 300 in the B region: h2B>h1B=h3B, and the first with the length of the second slot 302 between the three slot units 300 in the C region in different conductive layers 200 Gradual law: h2C>h1C=h3C. Therefore, the equivalent refractive index of the lens structure 10 decreases from the center of the layer to the positions on both sides, and at the same time, decreases from the middle layer to the two side layers, and the lens structure 10 realizes the convergence of electromagnetic waves in the second direction and the first direction.

Further, referring to FIG. 11, the first slit 301 is provided with a first communication area 301A and a second communication area 301B in the axial direction, and the second slit 302 is located on the second communication area 301B, wherein the second communication area 301B may be a slit The incident area of the unit 300 may also be the exit area of the slot unit 300. The slot unit 300 further includes at least a pair of third slots 303 (FIG. 11 takes two pairs of third slots 303 as an example).

At least a pair of third slits 303 are located on the first communication area 301A, each pair of third slits 303 are respectively located on both sides of the first slit 301, and the length direction of the third slit 303 is parallel to the length direction of the second slit 302; In the length direction, the length of the third slot 303 of the same slot unit 300 is smaller than the length of the second slot 302.

The structure of the third slit 303 is similar to the structure of the second slit 302. Optionally, each pair of third slits 303 are axially mirror-symmetrically arranged on both sides of the first slit 301; optionally, please refer to the figure for assistance. 3. Each pair of third slits 303 are symmetrically arranged on both sides of the first slit 301 for axial sliding movement. Optionally, the structure of the third slot 303 is similar to the structure of the second slot 302.

Since the length of the third slot 303 is smaller than the length of the second slot 302, when the electromagnetic wave enters the third slot 303 through the second slot 302, the refractive index gradually decreases; when the first connected area 301A is the incident area of the slot unit 300, the third The slit 303 can realize the impedance matching between the electromagnetic wave incident area and the free space of the lens structure 10, and reduce the energy loss of the electromagnetic wave; when the first communication area 301A is the exit area of the slit unit 300, the third slit 303 can respectively realize the electromagnetic wave emission of the lens structure 10 The impedance matching between the zone and the free space reduces the energy loss of electromagnetic waves, thereby increasing the transmission distance of electromagnetic waves and improving the efficiency of the lens antenna.

Optionally, please refer to FIG. 12 for assistance. The first slot 301 is further provided with a third communication area 301C in the axial direction, and the first communication area 301A, the second communication area 301B and the third communication area 301C are arranged along the axial direction; the slit unit 300 includes a plurality of pairs of third slits 303 which are respectively provided in the first communication area 301A and the third communication area 301C, that is, the plurality of pairs of third slits 303 are respectively located in the incident area and the exit area of the lens structure 10. There is a third gradual change law between the pairs of third slits 303. The third gradual law is that the lengths of the multiple pairs of third slits 303 extend from the side of the first communication area 301A of the first slit 301 close to the second communication area 301B to the first The side of the communication area 301A away from the second communication area 301B decreases gradually, and/or from the side of the third communication area 301C of the first gap 301 close to the second communication area 301B to the third communication area 301C away from the second communication area 301B Decrease on one side. The number of pairs of the third slits of the first communication area 301A and the third communication area 301C may be the same or different. In FIG. 12, two pairs of third slits 303 are provided in each connected area of each slit unit 300, and each pair of second slits 302 and each pair of third slits 303 are slidingly symmetrically arranged as an example. The lengths of the third slits 303 are respectively H1 and h2, h1 and h2 are gradually reduced relative to h (h is the length of the second gap 302), that is, h>h1>h2, p (p is the geometric center between two adjacent third gaps 303 The distance) remains unchanged.

Since the lengths of the plurality of pairs of third slits 303 decrease from the side of the first communication area 301A of the first slit 301 close to the second communication area 301B to the side of the first communication area 301A away from the second communication area 301B, and/or from The side of the third communication area 301C of the first gap 301 close to the second communication area 301B decreases toward the side of the third communication area 301C away from the second communication area 301B, which can gradually reduce the refractive index at both ends of the waveguide and further reduce the lens structure 10 The impedance mismatch with free space can more effectively reduce the energy loss of electromagnetic waves and improve the efficiency of the lens antenna more effectively.

Optionally, the distance between two adjacent second slits 302 on the slit unit is equal to the distance between two adjacent third slits 303, so that the spatial distribution of impedance matching is more uniform.

In the lens structure provided in this embodiment, an artificial surface plasmon waveguide can be generated by using multiple pairs of symmetrical second slits. By setting the gradual law of the length of the slit unit between or within the layer, different refractive index distributions can be obtained to achieve beam convergence. Function, and low dielectric loss during the electromagnetic wave transmission along the waveguide, so in practical applications, a lens antenna with smaller loss, higher efficiency, and wider bandwidth can be realized. Furthermore, by arranging multiple pairs of third slots at both ends of each slot unit, the impedance mismatch between the lens structure and the free space can be reduced, the energy loss of electromagnetic waves can be reduced more effectively, and the efficiency of the lens antenna in practical applications can be improved. . In addition, by alternately stacking dielectric layers and conductive layers, the assembly and preparation of low-cost lenses can also be realized.

Refer to FIG. 13, which is a schematic diagram of the structure of the lens antenna 1 in an embodiment.

In this embodiment, the lens antenna 1 includes the lens structure 10 and the feed array 20 as described in the above embodiment.

For the lens structure 10, please refer to the related description of the above-mentioned embodiment, which will not be repeated here.

Wherein, the feed source array 20 and the lens structure 10 are arranged in parallel. The feed array 20 includes a plurality of feed units. Optionally, please refer to FIG. 14 (5 feed units are taken as an example in the figure). The multiple feed units 20a are arranged in a linear manner, and the center of the linear arrangement is located at the focal point of the lens structure 10, so that the feed array 20 Multi-beam emission can be realized; by feeding different feed units of the feed array 20, different beam directions can be obtained, thereby realizing beam scanning, which is suitable for the application of millimeter wave lens antennas. It can be understood that the feed array 20 in this embodiment may be an array of radiating elements arranged on a millimeter-wave integrated module, and the feed unit 20a may be a radiating element of various forms, for example, rectangular, ring-shaped, cross-shaped, etc. Different forms of radiation patches.

The lens antenna provided in this embodiment includes a feed array and a lens structure. Through the symmetric structure of the second slot in the lens structure and the gradual change in length, it can achieve smaller loss, higher efficiency, larger bandwidth and lower cost. The lens antenna; through the setting of the feed array can achieve multi-beam emission and beam scanning.

Referring to FIGS. 15 and 16, 15 and FIG. 16 are schematic diagrams of the structure of the lens antenna 1 in another embodiment.

In this embodiment, the lens antenna 1 includes the lens structure 10 and the feed array 20 as described in the above embodiment, the first metal plate 30 and the second metal plate 40 arranged at an interval 20 from the first metal plate. The lens structure 10 and the feed array 20 are respectively arranged between the first metal plate 30 and the second metal plate 40.

For the lens structure 10 and the feed array 20, please refer to the relevant description of the above-mentioned embodiment, which will not be repeated here. Moreover, according to the above-mentioned embodiment, the lens structure 10 can be applied to application scenarios with different polarization directions through different settings of the conductive layer 200 and the dielectric layer 100 in the first direction.

Optionally, please refer to FIG. 15 for assistance. The first directions of the conductive layer 200 and the dielectric layer 100 are parallel to the first metal plate 30 and the second metal plate 40 respectively (the conductive layer 200 is a slot unit 300 and each pair of second The slit 302 is set to slide symmetrically as an example, the first direction in the drawing is perpendicular to the paper), so that the lens structure 10 can be applied to vertical polarization application scenarios, and the polarization direction of the lens antenna 1 is perpendicular to the first metal plate 30 and The second metal plate 40.

Optionally, please refer to FIG. 16, the first direction of the conductive layer 200 and the dielectric layer 100 is perpendicular to the first metal plate 30 and the second metal plate 40 respectively (the first direction in the drawing is parallel to the paper surface), so that the lens structure 10 can be applied to horizontal polarization application scenarios, and the polarization direction of the lens antenna 1 is parallel to the first metal plate 30 and the second metal plate 40, respectively.

Among them, both the first metal plate 30 and the second metal plate 40 can be used to reflect internal electromagnetic waves and shield external interference. Placing the lens structure 10 and the feed array 20 between the first metal plate 30 and the second metal plate 40 can reduce the leakage of electromagnetic waves radiated by the feed, thereby improving the efficiency of the lens antenna 1 and the structural strength of the lens antenna 1 . Optionally, the first metal flat plate 30 and the second metal flat plate 40 are made of super-hard aluminum plates, of course, they can also be made of other metal materials such as stainless steel.

The lens antenna provided by this embodiment includes a first metal plate, a second metal plate, a feed array, and a lens structure. On the one hand, through the symmetric structure of the second slot in the lens structure and the gradual change in length, the loss can be reduced. , A lens antenna with higher efficiency, wider bandwidth and lower cost; on the other hand, the arrangement of the first metal plate and the second metal plate can reduce the leakage of electromagnetic waves radiated by the feed source, thereby improving antenna efficiency and improving antenna performance. Structural strength; In addition, multi-beam emission and beam scanning can be realized by setting the feeder array.

The present application also provides an electronic device 2. The electronic device 2 includes the lens antenna 1 as in the above-mentioned embodiment. Because the lens antenna 1 has smaller loss, higher efficiency, larger bandwidth and lower cost, and can realize multi-beam Outgoing and beam scanning, so the electronic device 2 can achieve high efficiency, high gain, low cost beam scanning, which can be suitable for the transmission and reception of 5G communication millimeter wave signals. At the same time, the lens antenna 1 has a short focal length, a small size, and is easy to integrate in electronics. In the device 2, the space occupied by the lens antenna 1 in the electronic device 2 can be reduced at the same time.

Optionally, referring to FIG. 17, the electronic device 2 further includes a detection module 170, a switch module 171 and a control module 172.

The detection module 170 is used to obtain the beam signal strength of the electromagnetic wave radiated by the lens antenna 1 when the feed unit 20a is in the working state, and can also be used to detect and obtain the electromagnetic wave power and electromagnetic wave absorption ratio of the lens antenna 1 when the feed unit 20a is in the working state. Or specific absorption rate (Specific Absorption Rate, SAR) and other parameters.

The switch module 171 is connected to the switch module 171 and is used to select a connection path with any one of the feed units 20a. Optionally, the switch module 171 may include an input terminal and multiple output terminals, the input terminal is connected to the control module 172, and the multiple output terminals are respectively connected to the multiple feed units 20a in a one-to-one correspondence. The switch module 171 can be used to receive a switching instruction issued by the control module 172 to control the on and off of each switch in the switch module 171, thereby controlling the conduction connection between the switch module 171 and any feed unit 20a, Put any one of the feed units 20a in an operating (conducting) state.

The control module 172 is respectively connected to the detection module 170 and the switch module 171, and controls the switch module 171 according to the beam signal strength to make the feed unit 20a corresponding to the strongest beam signal strength work.

Therefore, through the detection module 170, the switch module 171, and the control module 172, any one of the feed units 20a can be operated to obtain different beam directions, thereby realizing beam scanning, which can be applied to the application of millimeter wave lens antennas; and, beam scanning The process does not require a shifter and attenuator, which greatly reduces the cost.

Taking the feeder array 20 including five feeder units as an example, the detection module 170 can correspondingly obtain the signal strength of the five beams, filter out the strongest beam signal strength, and compare the strongest beam signal strength to the feed source The unit 20a serves as the target feed unit, and the switching instruction issued by the control module 172 controls the conduction connection between the switch module 171 and the target feed unit, so that the target feed unit is in a working (conducting) state. The simulation obtains the beam scanning pattern as shown in FIG. 18. According to the simulation results, it can be seen that the mobile phone can realize the 6G millimeter wave beam scanning with high efficiency, high gain and low cost through the arrangement of the two lens antennas 1 of the mobile phone.

Optionally, the electronic device 2 includes multiple lens antennas 1, and the multiple lens antennas 1 are distributed on different sides of the middle frame of the electronic device 2. Optionally, referring to FIG. 19, the middle frame of the electronic device 2 includes a first side 191 and a third side 193 arranged opposite to each other, and a second side 192 and a fourth side 194 arranged opposite to each other. The two sides 192 are connected to one end of the first side 191 and the third side 193, and the fourth side 194 is connected to the other end of the first side 191 and the third side 193. At least two sides of the first side 191, the second side 192, the third side 193, and the fourth side 194 are respectively provided with a lens antenna 1.

Take the electronic device 2 including two lens antennas 1 as an example. Optionally, please refer to FIG. 20 for assistance. The two lens antennas 1 are arranged on the two long sides of the mobile phone (for example, the first side 191 and the third side 193). ) To cover the space on both sides of the phone.

It should be noted that the electronic device 2 in the foregoing embodiment includes, but is not limited to, any products and components that have antenna transceiver functions, such as mobile phones, tablet computers, displays, smart watches, and so on. The division of the units in the above electronic device 2 is only for illustration. In other embodiments, the electronic device 2 can be divided into different modules as needed to complete all or part of the functions of the above electronic device 2.

The technical features of the above-mentioned embodiments can be combined arbitrarily. In order to make the description concise, all possible combinations of the various technical features in the above-mentioned embodiments are not described. However, as long as there is no contradiction in the combination of these technical features, All should be considered as the scope of this specification.

The above-mentioned embodiments only express several implementation manners of the present application, and their description is relatively specific and detailed, but they should not be understood as a limitation on the scope of the invention patent. It should be pointed out that for those of ordinary skill in the art, without departing from the concept of this application, several modifications and improvements can be made, and these all fall within the protection scope of this application. Therefore, the scope of protection of the patent of this application shall be subject to the appended claims.

Claims

A lens structure, including:

Multi-layer dielectric layer;

At least one conductive layer, the conductive layer and the dielectric layer are alternately stacked in a first direction, and the conductive layer is provided with:

At least one slot unit, when a plurality of said slot units are included, the plurality of said slot units are spaced apart and arranged in parallel; said slot unit includes a first slot and at least a pair of second slots, each pair of said second slots respectively Located on both axial sides of the first gap, the second gap communicates with the first gap;

There is a first gradual law of the length of the second gap between the plurality of slit units on the same axis among the plurality of conductive layers; the axis is through any of the conductive layers and is parallel to For the straight line in the first direction, the length direction of the second slot is perpendicular to the axial direction of the first slot.
The lens structure according to claim 1, wherein the first gradual law is that the length decreases symmetrically from the center position of the axis toward the slit units on both sides;

Wherein, the number of layers of the conductive layer is at least three.
The lens structure according to claim 1, wherein each pair of the second slits are axially and mirror-symmetrically arranged on both sides of the first slit.
The lens structure according to claim 1, wherein each pair of the second slits is symmetrically arranged on both sides of the first slit with axial sliding movement.
The lens structure according to claim 1, wherein in the slit unit, a plurality of the second slits located on the same side of the first slit are equally spaced and arranged in parallel, and a plurality of the second slits The length is the same.
The lens structure according to claim 1, wherein a plurality of the slit units in the conductive layer are arranged at equal intervals.
The lens structure according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein the lengths of the plurality of slit units in the conductive layer are the same.
The lens structure according to any one of claims 1 to 6, wherein when the number of slit units of the conductive layer is at least three, the plurality of slit units of the conductive layer have a first 2. The law of gradual change.
8. The lens structure according to claim 8, wherein the second gradual law is that the length decreases symmetrically from the center of the arrangement of the plurality of slit units of the conductive layer to both sides.
8. The lens structure according to claim 8, wherein the first slit is provided with a first communication area and a second communication area in the axial direction, and the second slit is located on the second communication area, and the The slot unit also includes:

At least a pair of third slits are located on the first communication area, each pair of the third slits are respectively located on both sides of the first slit, and the length direction of the third slit is parallel to the second slit The length direction of, the length direction is perpendicular to the axial direction;

In the length direction, the length of the third slit of the same slit unit is smaller than the length of the second slit.
11. The lens structure according to claim 10, wherein each pair of the third slits are axially and mirror-symmetrically arranged on both sides of the first slit.
11. The lens structure according to claim 10, wherein each pair of the third slits is symmetrically arranged on both sides of the first slit with axial sliding movement.
The lens structure according to claim 10, wherein a third communication area is further provided in the axial direction of the first slit, the first communication area, the second communication area, and the third communication area Arranged along the axial direction; the slot unit includes:

The plurality of pairs of the third gaps are respectively located in the first communication area and the third communication area, and there is a third gradual law between the plurality of pairs of the third gaps.
The lens structure according to claim 13, wherein the third gradual law is that the lengths of multiple pairs of the third slits extend from the side of the first communication area close to the second communication area to the The side of the first communication area away from the second communication area decreases gradually.
The lens structure according to claim 13, wherein the third gradual law is that the lengths of multiple pairs of the third slits extend from the side of the third communication area close to the second communication area to the The side of the third communication area away from the second communication area decreases gradually.
The lens structure according to claim 13, wherein the third gradual law is that the lengths of multiple pairs of the third slits extend from the side of the first communication area close to the second communication area to the The side of the first communication area away from the second communication area decreases gradually, and from the side of the third communication area close to the second communication area to a side of the third communication area far from the second communication area Decrease side.
10. The lens structure according to claim 10, wherein the gap between two adjacent second gaps on the gap unit is equal to the gap between two adjacent third gaps.
A lens structure, including:

Multi-layer dielectric layer;

At least one conductive layer, the conductive layer and the dielectric layer are alternately stacked in a first direction, and the conductive layer is provided with:

At least three slot units, a plurality of the slot units are spaced apart and arranged in parallel; the slot unit includes a first slot and at least a pair of second slots, each pair of the second slot is located in the axial direction of the first slot On both sides, the second gap is in communication with the first gap;

Wherein, the plurality of slit units of the same conductive layer have a second gradual law of the length of the second slit, and the length direction of the second slit is perpendicular to the axial direction of the first slit.
18. The lens structure according to claim 18, wherein the second gradual law is that the length decreases symmetrically from the center of the arrangement of the plurality of slit units of the conductive layer to both sides.
The lens structure according to claim 18, wherein the lengths of the plurality of the slit units on the same axis in the plurality of conductive layers are the same, and the axis passes through any of the conductive layers and A straight line parallel to the first direction.
The lens structure according to any one of claims 18 to 20, wherein the first slit is provided with a first communication area and a second communication area in the axial direction, and the second slit is located in the second communication area. In the area, the slot unit further includes:

At least a pair of third slits are located on the first communication area, each pair of the third slits are respectively located on both sides of the first slit, and the length direction of the third slit is parallel to the second slit The length direction of, the length direction is perpendicular to the axial direction;

In the length direction, the length of the third slot of the same slot unit is smaller than the length of the second slot.
22. The lens structure of claim 21, wherein each pair of the third slits are axially and mirror-symmetrically arranged on both sides of the first slit.
The lens structure according to claim 21, wherein each pair of the third slits is symmetrically arranged on both sides of the first slit with axial sliding movement.
22. The lens structure according to claim 21, wherein a third communication area is further provided in the axial direction of the first slit, and the first communication area, the second communication area, and the third communication area Arranged along the axial direction; the slot unit includes:

The plurality of pairs of the third gaps are respectively located in the first communication area and the third communication area, and there is a third gradual law between the plurality of pairs of the third gaps.
The lens structure according to claim 24, wherein the third gradual law is that the lengths of multiple pairs of the third slits extend from the side of the first communication area close to the second communication area to the The side of the first communication area away from the second communication area decreases gradually.
The lens structure according to claim 24, wherein the third gradual law is that the lengths of multiple pairs of the third slits extend from the side of the third communication area close to the second communication area to the The side of the third communication area away from the second communication area decreases gradually.
The lens structure according to claim 24, wherein the third gradual law is that the lengths of multiple pairs of the third slits extend from the side of the first communication area close to the second communication area to the The side of the first communication area away from the second communication area decreases gradually, and from the side of the third communication area close to the second communication area to a side of the third communication area far from the second communication area Decrease side.
22. The lens structure according to claim 21, wherein the gap between two adjacent second gaps on the gap unit is equal to the gap between two adjacent third gaps.
A lens antenna, including:

Feed array; and

The lens structure according to any one of claims 1-28 arranged in parallel with the feed source array.
The lens antenna according to claim 29, further comprising:

First metal plate

A second metal plate arranged parallel to and spaced apart from the first metal plate;

Wherein, the lens structure and the feed source array are respectively arranged between the first metal plate and the second metal plate.
The lens antenna according to claim 30, wherein the first direction is parallel to the first metal plate and the second metal plate, respectively.
The lens antenna according to claim 31, wherein the polarization direction of the lens antenna is perpendicular to the first metal plate and the second metal plate, respectively.
The lens antenna according to claim 30, wherein the first direction is perpendicular to the first metal plate and the second metal plate, respectively.
The lens antenna according to claim 33, wherein the polarization direction of the lens antenna is parallel to the first metal flat plate and the second metal flat plate, respectively.
An electronic device, characterized by comprising the lens antenna according to any one of claims 29-34.
The electronic device according to claim 35, wherein the feed source array comprises a plurality of feed source units, and the electronic device further comprises:

A detection module, configured to obtain the beam signal strength of the lens antenna when the feed unit is in a working state;

A switch module, connected to the feed array, and used to select a connection path with any one of the feed units;

The control module is respectively connected with the detection module and the switch module, and is used to control the switch module according to the beam signal strength so that the feed unit corresponding to the strongest beam signal strength is in the working state.