Radio frequency front-end module and radio frequency chip

Abstract

The application relates to the field of wireless communication technology and provides a radio frequency front-end module and a radio frequency chip.The radio frequency front-end module comprises a substrate, a first chip, a second chip and a third chip arranged on the substrate;the first chip is provided with a power amplification circuit for amplifying and processing a transmitted radio frequency signal;the second chip is provided with a first voltage conversion circuit for converting a power supply into a preset voltage and then outputting the preset voltage to the first chip to provide a power supply; the third chip is provided with a control module for processing an amplified signal output by the power amplification circuit and outputting a corresponding control signal to realize switching; an output end of the control module is used for controlling switching of different radio frequency signals to a signal receiving end; an input end of the first voltage conversion circuit is used for connecting a power supply; and the first voltage conversion circuit is used for converting the power supply into a working voltage and then outputting the working voltage to the power amplification circuit.The radio frequency front-end module can improve the switching effect and reliability of transmitted and received signals.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the field of wireless communication technology, and in particular to a radio frequency front-end module and a radio frequency chip. BACKGROUND

[0002] In a TDD system (Time Division Duplexing system) such as wireless communication and WIFI, the TDD system is a duplexing mode of a communication system, which is used to separate the receiving and transmitting channels. The TDD mode separates the receiving and transmitting by using different time slots in the same frequency channel. The TDD system often needs to use a radio frequency front-end module (FEM). The radio frequency front-end module is generally composed of a radio frequency switch, a radio frequency power amplifier (PA), a low noise amplifier (LNA) and the like. The radio frequency switch switches the radio frequency path according to the receiving / transmitting timing control signal; the radio frequency power amplifier is used to amplify the transmitted signal; and the low noise amplifier is used to amplify the received weak signal.

[0003] In actual circuit operation, the strength of the received signal changes greatly, and the dynamic range can reach more than 90dB. In order to cope with the received strong signal, the receiving path also needs a bypass channel (ByPass). When a strong signal is received, the bypass channel inside the radio frequency front-end module is opened, and the low noise amplifier channel is closed; otherwise, the bypass channel is closed, and the low noise amplifier channel is opened. However, due to the increase of the bypass channel, the circuit is too complex, which makes the radio frequency signal transmission and reception control effect of the radio frequency front-end module poor and the reliability is not good. SUMMARY

[0004] The embodiments of the present application provide a radio frequency front-end module to solve the problem of poor radio frequency signal transmission and reception control effect and poor reliability of the existing radio frequency front-end module.

[0005] In a first aspect, the embodiments of the present application provide a radio frequency front-end module, which comprises: a substrate, a first chip, a second chip and a third chip arranged on the substrate;

[0006] The first chip is provided with a power amplification circuit for amplifying and processing the transmitted radio frequency signal;

[0007] The second chip is provided with a first voltage conversion circuit for converting the power supply into a preset voltage and then outputting the power supply to the first chip;

[0008] The third chip is provided with a control module for processing the amplified signal output by the power amplification circuit and outputting a corresponding control signal to realize switching;

[0009] The first input end of the power amplification circuit is connected to a signal transmitting end, and the power amplification circuit is used for amplifying the input radio frequency signal; and the output end of the power amplification circuit is connected to the first input end of the control module.

[0010] The output end of the control module is used for controlling switching of different radio frequency signals to a signal receiving end.

[0011] The input end of the first voltage conversion circuit is connected to the power supply, the output end of the first voltage conversion circuit is connected to the second input end of the power amplification circuit, and the first voltage conversion circuit is used for converting the power supply into an operating voltage and outputting the operating voltage to the power amplification circuit; the second input end of the control module is connected to the power supply, and the control module is used for providing the power supply; and the control end of the control module is connected to an antenna end.

[0012] The control module comprises a switching circuit, a second voltage conversion circuit and a switch control circuit.

[0013] The input end of the switch control circuit is connected to an external logic control circuit, the output end of the switch control circuit is used for outputting a control signal of the external logic control circuit to the switching circuit, and the switching function of the switching circuit is realized; the first input end of the switching circuit is used as the first input end of the control module, the input end of the second voltage conversion circuit is used as the second input end of the control module, the output end of the second voltage conversion circuit is connected to the second input end of the switching circuit; and the output end of the switching circuit is used as the output end of the control module, and the control end of the switching circuit is connected to the antenna end.

[0014] Preferably, the switching circuit comprises a first radio frequency switch and a receiving circuit.

[0015] The output end of the switch control circuit is used for controlling the operation of the first radio frequency switch; the control end of the first radio frequency switch is used as the control end of the switching circuit, the first output end of the first radio frequency switch is used as the first input end of the switching circuit, the second output end of the first radio frequency switch is connected to the input end of the receiving circuit, the input end of the receiving circuit is also used as the second input end of the switching circuit, and the output end of the receiving circuit is used as the output end of the switching circuit.

[0016] Preferably, the receiving circuit comprises a first low-noise amplifier and a second radio frequency switch.

[0017] The input end of the first low-noise amplifier is connected to the control end of the second radio frequency switch and is used as the input end of the receiving circuit, and the output end of the first low-noise amplifier is connected to the output end of the second radio frequency switch and is used as the output end of the receiving circuit.

[0018] Preferably, the switching circuit comprises a third radio frequency switch and a second low noise amplifier.

[0019] The output end of the switch control circuit is used for controlling the operation of the third radio frequency switch; the control end of the third radio frequency switch is used as the control end of the switching circuit, the first output end of the third radio frequency switch is used as the first input end of the switching circuit, the second output end of the third radio frequency switch is connected to the input end of the second low noise amplifier, the input end of the second low noise amplifier is also used as the second input end of the switching circuit and is connected to the output end of the second voltage conversion circuit; the third output end of the third radio frequency switch is connected to the output end of the second low noise amplifier and is used as the output end of the switching circuit.

[0020] Preferably, the power amplification circuit comprises a first matching circuit, a second matching circuit, a transmission bias circuit and a power amplifier.

[0021] The input end of the first matching circuit is used as the first input end of the power amplification circuit, the input end of the transmission bias circuit is used as the second input end of the power amplification circuit, the output end of the first matching circuit and the output end of the transmission bias circuit are respectively connected to the input end of the power amplifier, the output end of the power amplifier is connected to the input end of the second matching circuit, and the output end of the second matching circuit is used as the output end of the power amplification circuit; the input end of the power amplifier is also used for connecting a power supply voltage.

[0022] Preferably, the power amplifier is a multi-stage transistor amplification circuit.

[0023] Preferably, the first chip, the second chip and the third chip are fixedly connected to the substrate by means of silver paste or solder ball welding.

[0024] Preferably, the first chip is made of GaAs process, the second chip is made of CMOS process, and the third chip is made of PHEMT or SOI process.

[0025] In the second aspect, an embodiment of the present application provides a radio frequency chip comprising the radio frequency front-end module.

[0026] Compared with the prior art, the radio frequency front end module in the application, by setting the first chip, the second chip and the third chip on the substrate, the power amplification circuit is arranged on the first chip, which is used for amplifying the transmitted radio frequency signal; the first voltage conversion circuit is arranged on the second chip, which is used for converting the power supply into a preset voltage and then outputting the power supply to the first chip; the control module is arranged on the third chip, which is used for processing the amplified signal output by the power amplification circuit and outputting the corresponding control signal to realize the switching; the first voltage conversion circuit is used for converting the power supply into a working voltage and outputting the working voltage to the power amplification circuit; the power amplification circuit is used for amplifying the input radio frequency signal; the output end of the control module is used for controlling the switching of different radio frequency signals to the signal receiving end; the second input end of the control module is connected to the power supply, which is used for providing the power supply for the control module; the input end of the switch control circuit is used for being connected to the external logic control circuit, the output end of the switch control circuit is used for outputting the control signal of the external logic control circuit to the switching circuit, so as to realize the switching function of the switching circuit; the first input end of the switching circuit is used as the first input end of the control module, the input end of the second voltage conversion circuit is used as the second input end of the control module, and the output end of the second voltage conversion circuit is connected to the second input end of the switching circuit; the output end of the switching circuit is used as the output end of the control module, and the control end of the switching circuit is connected to the antenna end; the switching circuit is controlled by the switch control circuit to realize the corresponding switching, so that the radio frequency signals of different frequency bands are output through different switching channels, the radio frequency signal input and output control effect is good, and the overall reliability is high. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0027] In order to more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application or the prior art, the following will briefly introduce the drawings needed to be used in the embodiments or the prior art description. Obviously, the drawings in the following description are only some embodiments of the present application, and other drawings can also be obtained by those skilled in the art without any creative effort.

[0028] Figure 1 is the circuit of the radio frequency front end module provided by the embodiment of the present application Figure One ;

[0029] Figure 2 is the circuit diagram of the receiving circuit provided by the embodiment of the present application

[0030] Figure 3 is the circuit of the radio frequency front end module provided by the embodiment of the present application Figure Two .

[0031] In the figure, 100, radio frequency front end module, 1, first chip, 2, second chip, 3, third chip, 4, substrate, 5, power amplifier circuit, 51, first matching circuit, 52, second matching circuit, 53, transmission bias circuit, 54, power amplifier, 6, first voltage conversion circuit, 7, control module, 71, switching circuit, 711, first radio frequency switch, 712, receiving circuit, 7121, first low noise amplifier, 7122, second radio frequency switch, 713, third radio frequency switch, 714, second low noise amplifier, 72, second voltage conversion circuit, 73, switch control circuit. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0032] The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be clearly and completely described below with reference to the drawings in the embodiments of the present application. Obviously, the described embodiments are only part of the embodiments of the present application, rather than all the embodiments of the present application. Based on the embodiments in the present application, any person skilled in the art can obtain other embodiments without creative work, which are within the protection scope of the present application.

[0033] Embodiment one

[0034] In combination with the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 The embodiments of the present application provide a radio frequency front end module 100, which comprises a substrate 4, a first chip 1 (Die1), a second chip 2 (Die2) and a third chip 3 (Die3) arranged on the substrate 4; the first chip 1 is integrated with a power amplifier circuit 5 for amplifying and processing the transmitted radio frequency signals; the second chip 2 is integrated with a first voltage conversion circuit 6 for converting a power supply VCC into a preset voltage and then outputting the preset voltage to the first chip to provide power supply; and the third chip 3 is integrated with a control module 7 for processing the amplified signals output by the power amplifier circuit 5 and outputting corresponding control signals to realize switching.

[0035] The first input end of the power amplification circuit 5 is connected to a signal sending end TX In, and the power amplification circuit 5 is used for amplifying the input radio frequency signal; the output end of the power amplification circuit 5 is connected to the first input end of the control module 7; the output end of the control module 7 is used for controlling the switching of different radio frequency signals to the signal receiving end RXOut; the input end of the first voltage conversion circuit 6 is connected to a power supply VDD, and the output end of the first voltage conversion circuit 6 is connected to the second input end of the power amplification circuit 5, and the first voltage conversion circuit 6 is used for converting the power supply VDD into an operating voltage and outputting the operating voltage to the power amplification circuit 5; the second input end of the control module 7 is connected to the power supply VDD, which is used for providing power supply for the control module 7, and the control end of the control module 7 is connected to the antenna end ANT.

[0036] The first chip 1, the second chip 2 and the third chip 3 are in a Die structure; the substrate 4 can be formed in a frame or a multi-layer circuit board.

[0037] The control module 7 includes a switching circuit 71, a second voltage conversion circuit 72 and a switch control circuit 73; the input end of the switch control circuit 73 is connected to an external logic control circuit; the output end of the switch control circuit 73 is used for outputting the control signal of the external logic control circuit to the switching circuit 71, so as to realize the switching function of the switching circuit 71; the first input end of the switching circuit 71 is used as the first input end of the control module 7; the input end of the second voltage conversion circuit 72 is used as the second input end of the control module 7; the output end of the second voltage conversion circuit is connected to the second input end of the switching circuit 71; the output end of the switching circuit 71 is used as the output end of the control module 7; and the control end of the switching circuit 71 is connected to the antenna end ANT. The switching circuit 71 is controlled by the switch control circuit 73 to perform corresponding switching, so that the radio frequency signals of different frequency bands are output through different switching channels, the radio frequency signal input and output control effect is good, and the overall reliability is high. The second voltage conversion circuit 72 is connected to the power supply VDD to provide power supply and control signal for the switching circuit 71.

[0038] In the embodiment, the switching circuit 71 comprises a first radio frequency switch 711 and a receiving circuit 712. The output end of the switch control circuit 73 is used to control the operation of the first radio frequency switch 711; the control end of the first radio frequency switch 711 is used as the control end of the switching circuit 71, the first output end of the first radio frequency switch 711 is used as the first input end of the switching circuit 71, the second output end of the first radio frequency switch 711 is connected to the input end of the receiving circuit 712, the input end of the receiving circuit 712 is also used as the second input end of the switching circuit 71, and the output end of the receiving circuit 712 is used as the output end of the switching circuit 71.

[0039] The radio frequency signal output by the power amplification circuit 5 passes through the first radio frequency switch 711, and in the transmitting stage, is transmitted to the antenna end ANT through the control end of the first radio frequency switch 711. In the receiving stage, the received signal enters through the antenna end ANT and is output to the receiving circuit 712 through the second output end of the first radio frequency switch 711, and the signal is received by the receiving circuit 712 and output to the signal receiving end RX Out. In this way, the first radio frequency switch 711 can effectively realize the switching between the transmitting signal and the receiving signal, and the switching control effect is good. The second voltage conversion circuit 72 is connected to the power supply VDD to provide power supply and control signals for the receiving circuit 712 and the first radio frequency switch 711 respectively.

[0040] In the embodiment, as shown in Figure 2 the receiving circuit 712 comprises a first low-noise amplifier 7121 and a second radio frequency switch 7122; the input end of the first low-noise amplifier 7121 is connected to the control end of the second radio frequency switch 7122 and used as the input end of the receiving circuit 712, and the output end of the first low-noise amplifier 7121 is connected to the output end of the second radio frequency switch 7122 and used as the output end of the receiving circuit 712. The second radio frequency switch 7122 is also used as a bypass circuit.

[0041] In the embodiment, as shown in Figure 3As shown, the switching circuit 71 comprises a third radio frequency switch 713 and a second low noise amplifier 714; an output terminal of the switch control circuit 73 is used for controlling the third radio frequency switch 713 to work; a control terminal of the third radio frequency switch 713 serves as a control terminal of the switching circuit 71, a first output terminal of the third radio frequency switch 713 serves as a first input terminal of the switching circuit 71, a second output terminal of the third radio frequency switch 713 is connected to an input terminal of the second low noise amplifier 714, the input terminal of the second low noise amplifier 714 also serves as a second input terminal of the switching circuit 71 and is connected to an output terminal of the second voltage conversion circuit 72; a third output terminal of the third radio frequency switch 713 is connected to an output terminal of the second low noise amplifier 714 and serves as an output terminal of the switching circuit 71. The third radio frequency switch 713 outputs signals to the antenna terminal ANT through an output control signal output by an external logic control circuit and through the first output terminal of the third radio frequency switch 713 which is used for connecting the output terminal of the power amplification circuit 5.

[0042] In the embodiment, the power amplification circuit 5 comprises a first matching circuit 51, a second matching circuit 52, a transmission bias circuit 53 and a power amplifier 54. An input terminal of the first matching circuit 51 serves as a first input terminal of the power amplification circuit 5, an input terminal of the transmission bias circuit 53 serves as a second input terminal of the power amplification circuit 5, an output terminal of the first matching circuit 51 and an output terminal of the transmission bias circuit 53 are respectively connected to input terminals of the power amplifier 54, an output terminal of the power amplifier 54 is connected to an input terminal of the second matching circuit 52, and an output terminal of the second matching circuit 52 serves as an output terminal of the power amplification circuit 5; the input terminal of the power amplifier 54 is also used for connecting a power supply voltage VCC. The power supply voltage VCC is used for providing operating power supply for the power amplifier 54.

[0043] The first matching circuit 51 is used for realizing impedance conversion of the signal transmission terminal TX In into the optimal matching required by the power amplifier 54 input, the power amplifier 54 is used for performing power amplification processing on the input radio frequency signal, and the second matching circuit 52 is used for realizing the optimal matching effect between the output signal of the power amplifier 54 and the antenna terminal ANT. The power supply VDD is converted into a suitable voltage by the first voltage conversion circuit 6 and output to the transmission bias circuit 53, and the transmission bias circuit 53 performs corresponding voltage or current bias output, thereby ensuring the output stability of the power amplifier 54.

[0044] In the embodiment, the power amplifier 54 is composed of a plurality of transistor amplification circuits.

[0045] In the embodiment, the first chip 1, the second chip 2 and the third chip 3 are fixedly connected to the substrate 4 by silver paste or solder ball welding.

[0046] In the embodiment, the first chip 1 is made of GaAs process; the second chip 2 is made of CMOS process; and the third chip 3 is made of PHEMT or SOI process.

[0047] The first chip 1 is usually made of GaAs process, but is not limited to GaAs process. GaAs process is an important semiconductor process technology, mainly used for preparing gallium arsenide integrated circuits. GaAs process technology includes liftoff technology and the like, which is crucial for the preparation of GaAs integrated circuits.

[0048] The second chip 2 is usually made of CMOS process, but is not limited to CMOS process. CMOS is the abbreviation of Complementary Metal Oxide Semiconductor, which refers to a technology for manufacturing large-scale integrated circuit chips or chips manufactured by this technology.

[0049] The third chip 3 is usually made of PHEMT or SOI process, but is not limited to PHEMT or SOI process. PHEMT is an improved structure of high electron mobility transistor (HEMT), also known as pseudo-modulated doped heterojunction field effect transistor. SOI process, namely Silicon-On-Insulator technology, is an advanced semiconductor manufacturing technology, which realizes the medium isolation of integrated circuit components by introducing a buried oxide layer between the top layer of silicon and the back substrate, thereby reducing the parasitic capacitance, improving the running speed and reducing the power consumption.

[0050] Embodiment two

[0051] The embodiment of the present application provides a radio frequency chip, which comprises the radio frequency front-end module 100 of the above embodiment one.

[0052] It should be noted that in this document, the terms "comprising", "including" or any other variant thereof are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion, so that processes, methods, articles or devices including a series of elements not only include those elements, but also include other elements not explicitly listed or inherent to such processes, methods, articles or devices. Without more limitations, the element defined by the statement "including a" does not exclude the presence of another identical element in the process, method, article or device including the element.

[0053] Those skilled in the art can clearly understand the above-mentioned embodiment method can be realized by means of software and the necessary general hardware platform, of course, can also be realized by hardware, but in many cases, the former is a better embodiment. Based on such understanding, the technical solutions of the present application can be embodied in the form of a software product, which is stored in a storage medium (such as ROM / RAM, magnetic disk, optical disk) and includes a plurality of instructions for making a terminal (which can be a mobile phone, computer, server, air conditioner, or network device, etc.) execute the method described in each embodiment of the present application.

[0054] The above disclosure is only the preferred embodiment of the present application, and of course cannot limit the scope of the right of the present application, so the equivalent changes made according to the claims of the present application still fall within the scope of the present application.

Claims

1. A radio frequency front-end module, characterized in that: The RF front-end module includes: a substrate, a first chip, a second chip, and a third chip disposed on the substrate; the first chip is provided with a power amplifier circuit for amplifying the transmitted RF signal; The second chip is provided with a first voltage conversion circuit for converting the power supply into a preset voltage and outputting the voltage to provide power to the first chip; The third chip is provided with a control module for processing the amplified signal output by the power amplifier circuit and outputting a corresponding control signal to realize switch switching; The first input end of the power amplifier circuit is used to be connected to the signal transmitting end, and the power amplifier circuit is used to amplify the input radio frequency signal; the output end of the power amplifier circuit is connected to the first input end of the control module; The output end of the control module is used to control the switching of different radio frequency signals to the signal receiving end; The input end of the first voltage conversion circuit is used to connect to the power supply, and the output end of the first voltage conversion circuit is connected to the second input end of the power amplifier circuit. The first voltage conversion circuit is used to convert the power supply into an operating voltage and output it to the power amplifier circuit; the second input end of the control module is connected to the power supply, so as to provide power to the control module, and the control end of the control module is connected to the antenna end; The control module includes a switching circuit, a second voltage conversion circuit and a switch control circuit; The input end of the switch control circuit is used to be connected to an external logic control circuit, and the output end of the switch control circuit is used to output the control signal of the external logic control circuit to the switching circuit, thereby realizing the switching function of the switching circuit; the first input end of the switching circuit serves as the first input end of the control module, the input end of the second voltage conversion circuit serves as the second input end of the control module, and the output end of the second voltage conversion circuit is connected to the second input end of the switching circuit; the output end of the switching circuit serves as the output end of the control module, and the control end of the switching circuit is connected to the antenna end; The switching circuit includes a first radio frequency switch and a receiving circuit; The output end of the switch control circuit is used to control the operation of the first RF switch; the control end of the first RF switch serves as the control end of the switching circuit, the first output end of the first RF switch serves as the first input end of the switching circuit, the second output end of the first RF switch is connected to the input end of the receiving circuit, the input end of the receiving circuit also serves as the second input end of the switching circuit, and the output end of the receiving circuit serves as the output end of the switching circuit; The receiving circuit includes a first low noise amplifier and a second radio frequency switch; The input end of the first low noise amplifier is connected to the control end of the second radio frequency switch and serves as the input end of the receiving circuit, and the output end of the first low noise amplifier is connected to the output end of the second radio frequency switch and serves as the output end of the receiving circuit; Alternatively, the switching circuit includes a third radio frequency switch and a second low noise amplifier; The output end of the switch control circuit is used to control the operation of the third RF switch; the control end of the third RF switch serves as the control end of the switching circuit, the first output end of the third RF switch serves as the first input end of the switching circuit, the second output end of the third RF switch is connected to the input end of the second low-noise amplifier, and the input end of the second low-noise amplifier also serves as the second input end of the switching circuit and is connected to the output end of the second voltage conversion circuit; the third output end of the third RF switch is connected to the output end of the second low-noise amplifier and serves as the output end of the switching circuit; The power amplification circuit includes a first matching circuit, a second matching circuit, a transmission bias circuit and a power amplifier; The input end of the first matching circuit serves as the first input end of the power amplifier circuit, the input end of the transmit bias circuit serves as the second input end of the power amplifier circuit, the output end of the first matching circuit and the output end of the transmit bias circuit are respectively connected to the input end of the power amplifier, the output end of the power amplifier is connected to the input end of the second matching circuit, and the output end of the second matching circuit serves as the output end of the power amplifier circuit; the input end of the power amplifier is also used to connect to a power supply voltage; The power amplifier is composed of a multi-stage transistor amplifier circuit; The first chip, the second chip and the third chip are fixedly connected to the substrate by silver paste or solder ball welding; The first chip is manufactured using a GaAs process; the second chip is manufactured using a CMOS process; and the third chip is manufactured using a PHEMT or SOI process.

2. A radio frequency chip, characterized in that: Comprising the RF front-end module as claimed in claim 1.

Images