C-band surface mount circulator

Abstract

This invention provides a C-band surface mount circulator, comprising a resin housing defining a mounting cavity with an open lower side. The mounting cavity houses a magnet, a ferrite sheet, a carrier plate, a resin substrate, an output electrode, and a substrate via electrode. The ferrite sheet is disposed below the magnet, and a microstrip circuit is formed on the ferrite sheet. The ferrite sheet is in close contact with the carrier plate above it, and the carrier plate has multiple slots. The resin substrate is disposed below the carrier plate, and the resin substrate has multiple substrate vias. The output electrode is disposed below the resin substrate, and the substrate via electrode passes through the substrate vias and slots to interconnect the output electrode with the ferrite sheet.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] This invention relates to circulators, and more specifically to a C-band surface mount circulator. Background Technology

[0002] 5.5G and 6G communication require C-band circulators with small size and low loss. Conventional stripline structures are relatively large. Simple microstrip solutions require micro-assembly and bonding processes, which are unsuitable for mass production requirements of communication manufacturers. Commonly used isolators or circulators mainly involve multiple steps such as assembling rotating magnetic sheets, center conductors, permanent magnets, and testing / debugging. This results in low production efficiency, cumbersome processes, and high production requirements, significantly increasing overall production costs and hindering large-scale marketization. Summary of the Invention

[0003] In a first aspect, the present invention provides a C-band surface mount circulator, the circulator comprising a resin housing defining a mounting cavity with a lower open side, the mounting cavity housing a magnet, a ferrite sheet, a carrier plate, a resin substrate, an output electrode, and a substrate through-hole electrode.

[0004] The ferrite sheet is disposed below the magnet, and a microstrip circuit is formed on the ferrite sheet. The ferrite sheet is closely attached to the upper part of the carrier plate, and multiple slots are provided on the carrier plate. The resin substrate is disposed below the carrier plate, and multiple substrate vias are provided on the resin substrate. The output electrode is disposed below the resin substrate, and the substrate via electrode passes through the substrate vias and slots to realize the interconnection between the output electrode and the electrode of the ferrite sheet.

[0005] In some embodiments, the upper surface of the ferrite sheet is formed with a microstrip circuit through a coating process.

[0006] In some embodiments, the output electrode is covered by an opening on the lower side of the resin housing.

[0007] In some embodiments, the substrate is provided with multiple grounding holes.

[0008] In some implementations, the plurality of grounding holes are arranged in a matrix.

[0009] In some embodiments, the resin substrate defines a groove into which the carrier plate is embedded.

[0010] In some embodiments, the resin substrate has a base plate and sidewalls extending upward from the periphery of the base plate. The base plate and sidewalls enclose a groove. A portion of the sidewalls extends toward the groove to form a plurality of protrusions. Each of the plurality of protrusions has a substrate through-hole. The base plate has a plurality of grounding holes. The carrier plate forms a slot axially corresponding to the region of the plurality of protrusions. The slot is positioned and engaged with the protrusions and allows the substrate through-hole electrodes to pass through.

[0011] In some embodiments, the carrier plate is a silver-plated iron-nickel alloy plate.

[0012] In some embodiments, the carrier plate, resin substrate, output electrode and substrate through-hole electrode are integrally formed.

[0013] In a second aspect, the present invention further provides an isolator, which includes the aforementioned circulator and a load resistor, wherein the load resistor is disposed on the circulator.

[0014] This invention improves upon microstrip structure devices by enabling surface mounting of the devices through an external substrate with vias. Simultaneously, the devices are encapsulated in a resin shell, providing excellent protection for the circuitry. The devices combine the advantages of microstrip devices—small size, low loss, and high reliability—with ease of mass production soldering.

[0015] The circulator provided by this invention has a wide operating frequency band, small size, simple process, easy debugging, and excellent performance. The device has a compact structure, high reliability, is suitable for surface mounting, and is compatible with existing large-scale PCB mounting production. Attached Figure Description

[0016] The above and / or additional aspects and advantages of the present invention will become apparent and readily understood from the description of the embodiments taken in conjunction with the following drawings, in which:

[0017] Figures 1-3 This is a schematic diagram of the structure of the circulator provided by the present invention;

[0018] Figure 4 The performance simulation diagram of the circulator provided by this invention; Detailed Implementation

[0019] The technical solution of the present invention will be further described in detail below through specific embodiments and with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0020] Example 1

[0021] See Figures 1-3This patent discloses a mounting structure for a circulator utilizing the non-reciprocal properties of a gyromagnetic ferrite sheet. The structure includes a resin housing 80, which defines a mounting cavity with an open lower side. The resin housing 80 provides the structural shape of the device and protects the internal ferrite sheet and microstrip circuit. The mounting cavity houses a magnet 70, a ferrite sheet 60, a carrier plate 40, a resin substrate 30, an output electrode 20, and a substrate via electrode 10. The magnet is magnetized to a suitable magnetic field strength to provide a bias magnetic field for the ferrite sheet. The microstrip circuit enables the device's electrical performance within a specified frequency range. The ferrite sheet 60 is positioned below the magnet 70, and a microstrip circuit 50 is formed on the ferrite sheet 60. The ferrite sheet 60 is closely attached to the carrier plate 40. The ferrite sheet uses a gyromagnetic material with a certain saturation magnetic moment and is the functional material for achieving the circulator effect. The upper layer forms the microstrip circuit through a coating process, which enables the device's electrical performance within the specified frequency range. To achieve a tight connection with the lower carrier plate, the lower layer of the ferrite sheet is metallized, and its pattern is consistent with the contact surface of the lower carrier. The carrier plate material can be a nickel-iron alloy, providing a similar coefficient of thermal expansion to the ferrite sheet material, protecting the ferrite sheet from temperature changes. The magnetic permeability of the carrier itself can homogenize the magnetic field in the ferrite sheet. The carrier plate 40 is provided with multiple slots 401. The resin substrate 30 is disposed below the carrier plate 40, and the resin substrate 30 is provided with multiple substrate through holes 301. The output electrode 20 is disposed below the resin substrate 30. The substrate through hole electrode 10 passes through the substrate through holes 301 and slots 401 to achieve electrode interconnection between the output electrode 20 and the ferrite sheet 60.

[0022] This implementation achieves miniaturization and surface mounting of the C-band circulator, greatly facilitating its use in 5G and 6G components. The device has a compact structure, high reliability, is suitable for surface mounting, and is compatible with existing large-scale PCB assembly production.

[0023] In some embodiments, the output electrode is covered by the lower opening of the resin housing. Specifically, the substrate size is slightly larger than the ferrite sheet, and the ferrite sheet is completely enclosed in the resin after the cover is pressed together.

[0024] In this embodiment, the resin substrate has multiple grounding holes 302 arranged in a matrix. The resin substrate defines a groove 303 into which the carrier plate 40 is embedded. The resin substrate has a base plate and sidewalls extending upward from the periphery of the base plate. The base plate and sidewalls enclose the groove. A portion of the sidewalls extends toward the groove to form multiple protrusions. Each of the multiple protrusions 31 has a substrate via 301. The base plate has multiple grounding holes. The carrier plate forms a slot 401 axially corresponding to the area of ​​the multiple protrusions. The slot and protrusions are positioned and fitted together, allowing the substrate via electrode to pass through. The carrier plate, resin substrate, output electrode, and substrate via electrode are integrally formed. By using an integrally formed composite substrate, grounding interconnection of microstrip structure devices is facilitated, eliminating the micro-assembly bonding process of traditional microstrip devices. This facilitates reflow soldering of devices such as circulators and isolators, greatly improving device efficiency. At the same time, the weight and volume are reduced, which is conducive to low-cost, mass production of components and improves product stability and reliability.

[0025] Specifically, the carrier plate is a silver-plated iron-nickel alloy plate, and the carrier is silver-plated to reduce the carrier resistance.

[0026] The circulator provided in this embodiment meets the miniaturized and highly integrated communication requirements of the 5.5G and 6G generations. The device operates in frequencies above sub-6GHz, offering advantages in miniaturization and low power consumption, while remaining compatible with existing surface mount technology. This device is poised for widespread adoption as 5G and 6G become more prevalent.

[0027] Figure 4 The circulator performance simulation diagram provided in this embodiment shows that the port return loss and output loss of the device remain at a low level throughout the entire frequency range, which means that the device has low energy loss during signal transmission. Meanwhile, the isolation curve shows that the device can effectively isolate different signals, reducing the possibility of mutual interference.

[0028] Example 2

[0029] This embodiment provides a circulator, which includes the aforementioned circulator and a load resistor. If an isolator is required, a suitable load resistor can be connected to one port of the circuit, or a resistor design can be directly added to the circuit to turn the three-port circulator into a two-port isolator. This device structure can also be made into a multi-level interconnection form.

[0030] In the description of this specification, the references to terms such as "one embodiment," "some embodiments," "illustrative embodiment," "example," "specific example," or "some examples," etc., indicate that a specific feature, structure, material, or characteristic described in connection with that embodiment or example is included in at least one embodiment or example of the invention. In this specification, the illustrative expressions of the above terms do not necessarily refer to the same embodiment or example. Furthermore, the specific features, structures, materials, or characteristics described may be combined in any suitable manner in one or more embodiments or examples.

[0031] Although embodiments of the invention have been shown and described, those skilled in the art will understand that various changes, modifications, substitutions and alterations can be made to these embodiments without departing from the principles and spirit of the invention, the scope of which is defined by the claims and their equivalents.

Claims

1. A C-band surface mount circulator, characterized by, The circulator includes a resin housing that defines a mounting cavity with an open lower side. The mounting cavity contains a magnet, a ferrite sheet, a carrier plate, a resin substrate, an output electrode, and a substrate through-hole electrode. The ferrite sheet is disposed below the magnet, and a microstrip circuit is formed on the ferrite sheet. The ferrite sheet is closely attached to the upper part of the carrier plate, and multiple slots are provided on the carrier plate. The resin substrate is disposed below the carrier plate, and multiple substrate vias are provided on the resin substrate. The output electrode is disposed below the resin substrate, and the substrate via electrode passes through the substrate vias and slots to realize the interconnection between the output electrode and the electrode of the ferrite sheet. The carrier plate is a silver-plated iron-nickel alloy plate.

2. The C-band surface mount circulator of claim 1, wherein, The upper surface of the ferrite sheet is formed with a microstrip circuit through a coating process.

3. The C-band surface mount circulator of claim 1, wherein, The output electrode is covered by the lower opening of the resin housing.

4. The C-band surface mount circulator according to claim 1, characterized in that, The resin substrate is provided with multiple grounding holes.

5. The C-band surface mount circulator according to claim 4, characterized in that, The aforementioned multiple grounding holes are arranged in a matrix.

6. The C-band surface mount circulator of claim 2, wherein, The resin substrate defines a groove, into which the carrier plate is embedded.

7. The C-band surface mount circulator of claim 6, wherein, The resin substrate has a base plate and a sidewall extending upward from the periphery of the base plate. The base plate and the sidewall form a groove. A portion of the sidewall extends toward the groove to form a plurality of protrusions. Each of the plurality of protrusions has a substrate through-hole. The base plate has a plurality of grounding holes. The carrier plate forms a slot axially corresponding to the region of the plurality of protrusions. The slot is positioned and engaged with the protrusions and allows the substrate through-hole electrodes to pass through.

8. The C-band surface mount circulator of claim 1, wherein, The carrier plate, resin substrate, output electrode and substrate through-hole electrode are integrally formed.

9. An isolator characterized by, The isolator includes a circulator as described in any one of claims 1-8 and a load resistor disposed on the circulator.

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