WO2023090765A1

WO2023090765A1 - Phased array antenna module

Info

Publication number: WO2023090765A1
Application number: PCT/KR2022/017757
Authority: WO
Inventors: 이세호; 백형일; 허정근
Original assignee: 주식회사 아모센스
Priority date: 2021-11-19
Filing date: 2022-11-11
Publication date: 2023-05-25
Also published as: KR20230073480A

Abstract

The present invention relates to a phased array antenna module. The phased array antenna module comprises: a package antenna having a plurality of patch antennas formed on an upper surface thereof; and a substrate having the package antenna mounted thereon and having a connection pattern electrically connected to the package antenna, wherein the package antenna includes a plurality of package antennas. The plurality of package antennas are arranged on the top surface of the substrate in a 2N × 2N array arrangement and are mounted without a gap by making one side surface come into contact with each other. N is a natural number. The present invention has advantages capable of providing a high yield, and replacing only a corresponding portion when a defect occurs, and stably implementing a fast speed of 5G due to a low dielectric constant, and a low loss material and structure.

Description

phased array antenna module

The present invention relates to a phased array antenna module, and more particularly, to a phased array antenna module for 5G mobile communication supporting a mmWave band of 28 GHz or higher.

5G mobile communication utilizes ultra-high frequencies below 6 GHz and above 28 GHz. Ultra-high frequency bands have short wavelengths and are highly linear, making it difficult to send signals far. Therefore, by designing several antennas in an array form, the signal is concentrated in one direction to increase the communication effect and reduce the size.

As shown in FIG. 1A, in the array antenna 1 for 5G mobile communication, a plurality of antenna patterns 3 are regularly arranged on the upper surface of one substrate 2 and operated as one to obtain a desired directivity.

However, since the conventional array antenna 1 for 5G mobile communication forms a large number of arrays (8Х8 array or more) antenna patterns 3 on the upper surface of one substrate 2, as shown in FIG. 1B, the via hole 5 is insufficiently filled. , There is a high probability of occurrence of defects during manufacturing, such as the occurrence of voids inside the via hole 5 of FIG. 1C, which leads to low yield and high price. That is, as the area of the substrate 2 increases, the defect rate increases, and when a defect occurs, the entire substrate must be replaced, resulting in a yield problem and an increase in cost.

Matters described in the background art above are intended to help understand the background of the invention, and may include matters that are not disclosed prior art.

An object of the present invention is to provide a phased array antenna module for 5G mobile communication supporting a mmWave band of 28 GHz or higher.

In addition, an object of the present invention is to configure a material that has a high yield and can replace only the corresponding part in case of a defect, can configure a target antenna array structure, and has little change in characteristics depending on the environment in the mmWave band of 28 GHz or higher. To provide a phased array antenna module for 5G mobile communication that can stably implement the fast speed of 5G using

A phased array antenna module according to an embodiment of the present invention for solving the above problems includes a package antenna on which a plurality of patch antennas are formed and a substrate having a connection pattern on which the package antenna is mounted and electrically connected to the package antenna. And, there are a plurality of package antennas, and the plurality of package antennas are arranged in a 2NХ2N array on the upper surface of the board and mounted by contacting one side surface with each other (N is a natural number).

In the package antenna, a plurality of patch antennas are formed in an M×M array antenna pattern (M is a natural number).

In the package antenna, a plurality of patch antennas may be formed in a 4Х4 array antenna pattern.

In the package antenna, a plurality of patch antennas has a uniform spacing L1 between the patch antennas.

The distance L1 between patch antennas and the distance L2 between patch antennas adjacent to each other in two neighboring package antennas are the same.

One or more RF chipsets are provided on the bottom surface of the package antenna, and the RF chipsets are connected to the connection pattern of the substrate.

A through hole accommodating the RF chipset is formed in the substrate.

The RF chipset contacts the heat sink disposed on the bottom surface of the substrate through the through hole.

One input/output port is installed on one side of the board, and one end of the connection pattern is connected to the input/output port and the other end is branched into a plurality of pieces, each connected to a package antenna. The connection pattern has the same length from one end to the other end.

The package antenna includes a transmit/receive terminal on a bottom surface, and the other end of the connection pattern is connected to the transmit/receive terminal.

The substrate is formed of a polymer material.

In the package antenna, the plurality of patch antennas are formed on the upper surface of the ceramic substrate 110, transmission/reception terminals are formed on the bottom surface of the ceramic substrate, and an RF chipset is provided, and the transmission/reception terminals are connected to the plurality of patch antennas through the RF chipset. do.

The ceramic substrate is made of LTCC.

A beamforming chipset is mounted on the substrate.

It may further include a heat sink disposed on a lower surface of the substrate and one or more heat radiation sheets disposed on an upper surface of the substrate.

The present invention forms a patch antenna of a package antenna in a maximum 4Х4 array and arranges the package antenna in a 2NХ2N array on a substrate to make the target patch antenna array structure uniform, and is complex and requires precision due to high frequency. There is an effect of stably implementing a phased array antenna for 5G mobile communication.

In addition, since the patch antenna of the present invention is manufactured in a maximum 4Х4 array, the yield is high, and only the corresponding part can be replaced in case of a defect, and the gain can be increased and power consumption can be reduced by applying low-dielectric constant and low-loss materials and structures. It has the effect of stably realizing the fast speed of 5G by reducing heat dissipation performance and improving heat dissipation performance.

1A is a diagram showing a conventional array antenna structure;

FIG. 1B is a photograph showing insufficient filling due to a defective via hole filling problem occurring in the array antenna of FIG. 1A.

FIG. 1C is a photograph showing a state in which voids are generated in the via hole due to a defective via hole filling problem occurring in the array antenna of FIG. 1A.

2 is a plan view showing a phased array antenna module according to an embodiment of the present invention.

3 is a plan view showing a package antenna according to an embodiment of the present invention.

4 is a bottom view showing a package antenna according to an embodiment of the present invention.

5 is a plan view showing a substrate according to an embodiment of the present invention.

6 is a bottom view showing a substrate according to an embodiment of the present invention.

7 is an A-A cross-sectional view of a phased array antenna module according to an embodiment of the present invention, a cross-sectional view schematically showing the inside.

8 is a plan view showing a modified example of a phased array antenna according to an embodiment of the present invention.

Hereinafter, preferred embodiments of the present invention will be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

As shown in FIG. 2, in the phased array antenna module 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention, a plurality of package antennas 100, 100-1, 100-2, and 100-3 are mounted on one substrate 200 without spacing and the substrate ( 200 has one input/output port 210.

A plurality of patch antennas 120 are formed on the upper surface of the package antennas 100, 100-1, 100-2, and 100-3.

The phased array antenna module 10 arranges a plurality of package antennas (100, 100-1,100-2, 100-3) in a matrix on the board 200, but makes one side of them contact each other, and mounts the plurality of package antennas on the board 200. A plurality of patch antenna patterns formed by (100,100-1,100-2,100-3) are regularly arranged and operated as one. The phased array antenna module 10 is applied to 5G mobile communication repeaters and small cells to support mmWave bands of 28 GHz or higher.

A plurality of patch antennas 120 are formed on the upper surface of the package antennas 100, 100-1, 100-2, and 100-3. The patch antenna 120 formed in one package antenna (100, 100-1, 100-2, 100-3) is formed in an MxM (M is a natural number) array antenna pattern. Preferably, the patch antennas 120 formed on the package antennas 100, 100-1, 100-2, and 100-3 are formed in a 4Х4 array antenna pattern. As the area of the substrate 110 constituting the package antennas (100,100-1,100-2,100-3) increases, the defect rate increases. 100,100-1,100-2,100-3) and arranging these package antennas (100,100-1,100-2,100-3) in a matrix without spacing to form a patch antenna such as a 6Х6 array or an 8Х8 array. If the patch antenna 120 is formed in a 4Х4 array, the defect rate is lower than that of an 8Х8 array.

The plurality of patch antennas 120 in the package antennas 100, 100-1, 100-2, and 100-3 have uniform horizontal and vertical spacing L1 between the patch antennas. A high gain can be obtained only when the spacing L1 between the patch antennas is uniform.

When the package antennas (100,100-1,100-2,100-3) are arranged in a matrix without spacing, the distance between the patch antennas (L1) based on the center point of the patch antennas and the two neighboring package antennas (100, 100-1) The spacing L2 between the patch antennas 110 and 110-1 adjacent to each other is the same. To this end, the distance between the patch antennas disposed in the outermost rows and columns of the package antenna 100 and each corner is formed as 1/2 of the interval L1 between the patch antennas. A plurality of patch antennas formed by the plurality of package antennas 100,100-1,100-2,100-3 mounted on the board 200 by the arrangement of the patch antennas 120 of the above-described package antennas 100,100-1,100-2,100-3 Patterns can be arranged regularly and act as one.

The package antennas 100, 100-1, 100-2, and 100-3 are arranged in a 2NХ2N array on the upper surface of the board 200 and are mounted by contacting one side to the other. Here, N is a natural number. For example, the package antennas 100,100-1,100-2,100-3 are arranged in a 2Х2 array on the top surface of the substrate 200, and one side is in contact with each other so that there is no gap between the package antennas 100,100-1,100-2,100-3. .

The substrate 200 has package antennas 100,100-1,100-2,100-3 mounted thereon, a connection pattern 220 electrically connected to a plurality of package antennas 100,100-1,100-2,100-3, and an input/output port 210. Equipped with a package antenna (100, 100-1, 100-2, 100-3) to transmit the signal received from the device or the signal transmitted by the device to the package antenna (100, 100-1, 100-2, 100-3) It serves to deliver.

The phased array antenna module 10 further includes a heat sink 300 for heat dissipation.

The heat sink 300 is disposed on the lower surface of the substrate 200 to dissipate heat generated from the package antennas 100, 100-1, 100-2, and 100-3. The heat sink 300 is coupled in a form in which both sides of the substrate 200 are inserted into gripping parts 320 at both ends, and is contacted with the bottom surface of the substrate 200 to dissipate heat generated from an RF chipset to be described later, thereby reducing power consumption. Reduce.

3 is a plan view showing a package antenna according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 4 is a bottom view showing a package antenna according to an embodiment of the present invention.

3 and 4, package antennas (AiPs) 100, 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 are packaged by integrating the patch antenna 120 and the RF chipset 130. The package antennas 100, 100-1, 100-2, and 100-3 have patch antennas 120 arranged in an MxM planar array on the upper surface, and one or more RF chipsets 130 and one transmit/receive terminal 140 are provided on the lower surface. For example, package antennas (100,100-1,100-2,100-3) have 16 patch antennas 120 arranged in a 4Х4 planar array on the upper surface, of which 8 are in charge of receiving and the remaining 8 are in charge of transmitting. can do.

Two RF chipsets 130 are provided in the package antennas 100,100-1,100-2,100-3, and the signals received from the patch antenna 120 on the top surface of the package antennas 100,100-1,100-2,100-3 and the patch antenna ( 120) may serve to process each signal to be transmitted. For example, in the package antennas 100,100-1,100-2,100-3, the transmit/receive terminals 140 on the bottom are connected to two RF chipsets 130 inside the package antennas 100,100-1,100-2,100-3, One of the RF chipsets 130 may be connected to 8 patch antennas among 16 patch antennas on the upper surface, and the other RF chipset 130 may be connected to the remaining 8 patch antennas 120 on the upper surface.

The transmission/reception terminal 140 is connected to the connection pattern 220 of the board 200 . The RF chipset 130 is connected to the connection pattern 220 of the board 200 through the transmission/reception terminal 140 .

In the package antennas (100,100-1,100-2,100-3), a 4Х4 array patch antenna is formed on the upper surface of the substrate 110, one transmit/receive terminal 140 is formed on the lower surface of the substrate 110, and two RF chipsets 130 ) is provided, and the transmit/receive terminal 140 has a structure connected to 16 patch antennas 120 on the upper surface through two RF chipsets 130. Although not shown, the transmission/reception terminal 140, the RF chipset 130, and the patch antenna 120 are connected in an internal pattern through a via fill formed in the substrate 110.

The transmit/receive terminal 140 may be formed in the center of the bottom surface, and the RF chipset 130 is disposed on both sides of the transmit/receive terminal 140 to form a pattern connecting the transmit/receive terminal 140 and the two RF chipsets 130. The lengths are the same, and the lengths of the patterns in which each RF chipset 130 and each patch antenna 120 are connected are also the same. The same length internal pattern between the transmit/receive terminal 140 and the two RF chipsets 130 and the same length internal pattern between each RF chipset 130 and the patch antenna 120 transmit signals transmitted through the transmit/receive terminal 140 to each patch. It is uniformly transferred and radiated to the antenna 120, and also allows signals received through each patch antenna 120 to be uniformly transmitted to the transmitting/receiving terminal 140. This makes the gain matching of the package antennas 100, 100-1, 100-2, and 100-3 good, so that a large gain can be obtained by forming a beam in a specific direction.

The substrate 110 is made of a ceramic substrate 110, and preferably, the substrate 110 is made of a low temperature co-fired ceramic (LTCC) material obtained by firing a ceramic material at a low temperature. The LTCC material is a material with little change in characteristics depending on the environment in the ultra-high frequency region. The LTCC material maintains a low permittivity even in the ultra-high frequency region, has a low loss rate in the ultra-high frequency region, and is easy to process, making it easy to secure the flatness of the package antennas 100, 100-1, 100-2, and 100-3. The flatness of the package antennas (100, 100-1, 100-2, 100-3) is important to stably implement high-speed 5G.

For example, the patch antenna 120 and the transmission/reception terminal 140 are thin plates made of a conductive material having high electrical conductivity, such as copper, aluminum, gold, or silver. The inner pattern connecting the patch antenna 120 and the RF chipset 130 and the inner pattern connecting the RF chipset 130 and the transmit/receive terminal 140 are made of a conductive material having high electrical conductivity, such as copper, aluminum, gold, or silver. It can be.

The package antenna 100 functions as a unit cell constituting the phased array antenna module 10, and these unit cells are mounted on the substrate 200 in a 2NХ2N array without spacing to form a plurality of planar array patch antennas.

5 is a plan view showing a substrate according to an embodiment of the present invention, and FIG. 6 is a bottom view showing a substrate according to an embodiment of the present invention.

As shown in FIGS. 5 and 6, the board 200 has an input/output port 210 installed on one side, and a connection that electrically connects the package antennas 100,100-1,100-2,100-3 and the input/output port 210. pattern 220. The input/output port 210 is responsible for inputting and outputting signals. One input/output port 210 is provided.

The connection pattern 220 is formed on the lower surface of the substrate 200 . In the connection pattern 220, one end 220a is connected to the input/output port 210 and the other end 220b is branched into a plurality and connected to each of the package antennas 100, 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 mounted on the board 200, respectively. do. In the case of an embodiment in which the package antennas 100, 100-1, 100-2, and 100-3 are mounted on the substrate 200 in a 2×2 array, the connection pattern 220 is divided into four branches and each other end is a via of the substrate 200. It is connected to the upper surface of the substrate 200 through 225 and is connected to the transmit/receive terminal 140 of each package antenna (100, 100-1, 100-2, 100-3). Transmitting/receiving terminals 140 of each of the package antennas 100, 100-1, 100-2, and 100-3 may be connected to the via 225 of the board 200 through a Surface Mounting Technology (SMT) process.

The connection pattern 220 has the same length from one end to the other branched end, so that signals received from each package antenna (100,100-1,100-2,100-3) can be uniformly transmitted to the input/output port 210, and the input/output The signal transmitted from the port 210 is uniformly transferred to each of the package antennas 100, 100-1, 100-2, and 100-3. This makes the gain matching of the package antennas 100, 100-1, 100-2, and 100-3 good, so that a large gain can be obtained by forming a beam in a specific direction.

A beamforming chipset is mounted on the substrate 200 . The beamforming chipset 230 may be mounted on the upper surface of the substrate 200 in a number corresponding to the number of package antennas 100, 100-1, 100-2, and 100-3. The beamforming chipset 230 serves to perform beamforming such that signals emitted from the package antennas 100, 100-1, 100-2, and 100-3 are concentrated in one direction and sent to a specific receiver. Beamforming is a method in which a base station antenna transmits an electron beam, and in 5G mobile communication, it is an essential configuration to optimize the signal size, direction, beam width, and transmission/reception timing of ultra-high frequencies.

One or more heat dissipation sheets 240 are disposed on the upper surface of the substrate 200 . The heat dissipation sheet 240 quickly transfers the heat generated from the package antennas 100 , 100 - 1 , 100 - 2 , and 100 - 3 to the substrate 200 , so that it is easily discharged to the outside through the heat sink 300 . The heat radiation sheet 240 may be a thermal interface material (TIM) heat radiation sheet.

The substrate 200 is formed with one or more through holes 250 . When the package antennas 100, 100-1,100-2, and 100-3 are mounted on the board 200, the through-hole 250 of the board 200 has an RF chipset provided on the bottom of each package antenna (100, 100-1,100-2, 100-3). (130) is located. The RF chipset 130 accommodated in the through hole 250 of the substrate 200 may contact the heat sink 300 to increase heat dissipation efficiency. Alternatively, the RF chipset 130 accommodated in the through hole 250 of the substrate 200 may not contact the heat sink 300 . Even in this case, heat from the RF chipset 130 accommodated in the through hole 250 is transferred to the heat sink 300 through air, thereby increasing heat dissipation efficiency. When the RF chipset 130 is accommodated in the through hole 250 of the substrate 200, the height of the phased array antenna module can be reduced in addition to increasing heat dissipation efficiency.

In the embodiment, the position and size of the through hole 250 are formed to correspond to the position of the RF chipset 130 of the four package antennas 100,100-1,100-2,100-3, but the package antenna mounted on the substrate 200 ( 100,100-1,100-2,100-3), the position and size of the through hole 250 may be changed.

The substrate 200 may be formed of a polymer material. It maintains a low permittivity even in the ultra-high frequency region and has a low loss rate in the ultra-high frequency region, which is useful for stably implementing high-speed 5G. Since a PCB substrate such as FR4 has lower loss characteristics than a polymer material substrate, it is preferable to apply a polymer material substrate in an embodiment applied to an ultra-high frequency region.

The heat sink 300 may be attached by applying TIM to the lower surface of the substrate 200 to increase heat transfer efficiency. The heat sink 300 may have a heat dissipation fin 310 formed thereon. The heat sink 300 may be made of copper, aluminum, or an alloy thereof. Since the microwave antenna generates a lot of heat, the heat sink 300 and the TIM are applied to increase heat dissipation efficiency for stable operation.

7 is an A-A cross-sectional view of a phased array antenna module according to an embodiment of the present invention, schematically showing the inside.

As shown in FIG. 7, the patch antennas 120 of the package antennas 100, 100-1, 100-2, and 100-3 of the phased array antenna module 10 according to an embodiment of the present invention have a 4×4 arrangement as a base, and the package The antennas 100, 100-1, 100-2, and 100-3 are based on a 2×2 arrangement.

The package antennas 100, 100-1, 100-2, and 100-3 are mounted in a 2×2 array without gaps on the upper surface of the substrate 200, and the heat sink 300 is coupled to the lower surface of the substrate 200.

Each package antenna (100, 100-1, 100-2, 100-3) is provided with two RF chipsets 130 on the bottom and has one transmit/receive terminal 140 disposed, and the transmit/receive terminal 140 is a via of the substrate 200. Through 225, it is connected to the other end of the connection pattern 220 formed on the lower surface of the substrate 200. The connection pattern 220 has one end connected to the input/output port 210 and the other end connected to the via 225 . Four vias are formed on the substrate 200 to correspond to the transmit/receive terminals 140 of the package antennas 100, 100-1, 100-2, and 100-3.

The connection pattern 220 on the bottom of the substrate 200 is connected to the RF chipset 130 of each package antenna 100,100-1,100-2,100-3 through the via 225 of the substrate 200, and the RF chipset 130 ) is connected to 16 patch antennas 120 on the upper surface of each package antenna (100, 100-1, 100-2, 100-3).

In the above-described phased array antenna module 10, the connection pattern 220 connects the input/output port 210 and each package antenna 100,100-1,100-2,100-3 with the same length, and each package antenna 100,100-1,100-2,100 Since the pattern connection length between the two RF chipsets and the pattern connection length between each RF chipset and each patch antenna are the same in the transmit/receive terminal 140 of -3), uniform transmission and reception of signals is possible and it is easy to form a beam in a specific direction. and get great benefits.

In addition, since the patch antennas 120 of the package antennas 100,100-1,100-2,100-3 basically have a 4×4 array, the generation of voids inside the vias and the insufficient filling problem are prevented compared to the 8×8 array antennas, thereby reducing the defect rate. is minimized

In addition, even if the package antennas 100, 100-1, 100-2, and 100-3 are mounted on a board in an array of 2N×2N without spacing, a high gain can be obtained because uniform spacing is secured between the patch antennas 120.

In addition, since the package antennas (100,100-1,100-2,100-3) and the substrate 200 are manufactured using low-dielectric constant and low-loss materials, there is little change in characteristics depending on the environment in the mmWave band of 28 GHz or higher, so that high speed of 5G is stable. can be implemented with

As shown in FIG. 8, in the modified example phased array antenna 10-1, package antennas 100, 100-1, 100-2, 100-3 are mounted on a substrate 200 in a 4×4 array without spacing, thereby forming a large-area antenna. can be configured. In this case, the substrate 200 preferably has connection patterns and vias corresponding to the number of transmit/receive terminals 140 of the package antennas 100,100-1,100-2,100-3, and through-holes corresponding to the RF chipset. do.

The above-described phased array antennas 10 and 10-1 may be applied to 5G mobile communication repeaters and small cells to support mmWave bands of 28 GHz or higher.

The above description is merely an example of the technical idea of the present invention, and various modifications and variations can be made to those skilled in the art without departing from the essential characteristics of the present invention. Therefore, the embodiments disclosed in the present invention are not intended to limit the technical idea of the present invention, but to explain, and the scope of the technical idea of the present invention is not limited by these embodiments. The protection scope of the present invention should be construed according to the claims below, and all technical ideas within the equivalent range should be construed as being included in the scope of the present invention.

Claims

a package antenna on which a plurality of patch antennas are formed; and

a substrate on which the package antenna is mounted and having a connection pattern electrically connected to the package antenna;

including,

The phased array antenna module of claim 1 , wherein a plurality of package antennas are arranged in a 2NХ2N array on the upper surface of the substrate and mounted in contact with each other. (N is a natural number)
According to claim 1,

In the package antenna

The plurality of patch antennas are formed in an M×M array antenna pattern. (M is a natural number).
According to claim 1,

In the package antenna

The plurality of patch antennas are formed in a 4Х4 array antenna pattern.
According to claim 1,

In the package antenna, the plurality of patch antennas have a uniform distance (L1) between the patch antennas phased array antenna module.
According to claim 4,

The distance L1 between the patch antennas and the distance L2 between the patch antennas adjacent to each other in two neighboring package antennas are the same.
According to claim 1,

The package antenna is provided with one or more RF chipsets on the bottom,

The RF chipset is a phased array antenna module connected to the connection pattern of the substrate.
According to claim 6,

A phased array antenna module having a through hole accommodating the RF chipset in the substrate.
According to claim 7,

The RF chipset contacts a heat sink disposed on a lower surface of the substrate through the through hole.
According to claim 1,

The substrate has one input/output port installed on one side,

One end of the connection pattern is connected to the input/output port and the other end is branched into a plurality of pieces and connected to a package antenna.

The connection pattern is a phased array antenna module having the same length from one end to each other end.
According to claim 9,

The phased array antenna module of claim 1 , wherein the package antenna includes a transmit/receive terminal on a bottom surface, and the other end of the connection pattern is connected to the transmit/receive terminal.
According to claim 1,

The substrate is a phased array antenna module formed of a polymer material.
According to claim 1,

The package antenna is

The plurality of patch antennas are formed on an upper surface of a ceramic substrate,

Transmitting and receiving terminals are formed on the bottom surface of the ceramic substrate and an RF chipset is provided,

The transmitting and receiving terminals are connected to the plurality of patch antennas through the RF chipset.
According to claim 12,

The ceramic substrate is a phased array antenna module made of LTCC material.
According to claim 1,

A phased array antenna module having a beamforming chipset mounted on the substrate.
According to claim 1,

a heat sink disposed on a lower surface of the substrate; and

one or more heat dissipation sheets disposed on an upper surface of the substrate;

A phased array antenna module further comprising a.