A transceiver front-end module employing low-leakage switches

Abstract

The application discloses a kind of transceiving front end module using low leakage switch, including optimized stack structure power amplifier module, low leakage switch module, wideband current multiplexing low noise amplifier module, voltage control module and two alternative switch module, wherein: optimized stack structure power amplifier module is used to keep consistent the gate-drain voltage of transistor, improve the reliability and life of transistor under high power;Low leakage switch module is used to realize the low insertion loss and low leakage power of receiving mode input end and transmitting mode output end, and simultaneously integrates electrostatic protection module for realizing the electrostatic protection of transceiving front end module.The application can be widely applied to the field of radio frequency transceiver front end.

Description

TECHNICAL FIELD

[0001] The present application relates to the field of radio frequency transceiver front-end, and in particular to a transceiver front-end module using low leakage switch. BACKGROUND

[0002] With the continuous development of wireless communication technology, the radio frequency transceiver front-end switch is also evolving. On the one hand, with the continuous progress of integrated circuit technology, the integration of radio frequency switch is also continuously improved, making the entire radio frequency front-end system more compact and efficient. With the wide application and in-depth development of new generation wireless communication technologies such as 5G, Wi-Fi 6 and even future 6G, the significant improvement of data transmission rate, device connection density and network coverage range puts forward more stringent challenges to the performance of radio frequency switch. These technological innovations require radio frequency switch to have lower insertion loss to reduce energy loss of signals in the transmission process and improve signal quality; and lower leakage power to ensure that signals between different frequency bands or channels do not interfere with each other, and to ensure clear and stable communication. Under advanced process, in order to prevent the damage of instantaneous large charge release of antenna port to transistor, ESD static protection is also paid more and more attention, especially the static protection at the switch module directly connected with the antenna. Radio frequency transceiver MOS transistors are widely used in wireless communication systems such as mobile phones, base stations and satellite communications. These systems have very high reliability requirements for transistors, because any failure can cause communication interruption or performance degradation. With the continuous development of wireless communication technology, the demand for high-frequency and high-power applications of radio frequency transceiver MOS transistors is also increasing. This requires the transistor to maintain stable high performance under high frequency and high power conditions, thereby ensuring the reliability of the communication system.

[0003] In order to solve the problems of insertion loss and isolation of radio frequency transceiver front-end switch module, many switch structures have been proposed by predecessors. These attempts include radio frequency transceiver front-end switch module using non-lumped quarter wavelength transmission line parallel single transistor switch, and radio frequency transceiver front-end switch module based on transformer form of inductive coupling. However, these existing structures are still difficult to meet the needs of scenarios in terms of area, leakage power, insertion loss and complete static protection. SUMMARY

[0004] Therefore, in order to solve the technical problem that the existing transceiver front-end module cannot simultaneously meet the requirements of leakage power and insertion loss required by the scene, the present application proposes a transceiver front-end module using low leakage switch, comprising:

[0005] The optimized stack structure power amplifier module is used for amplifying the signal from the input in a high linear manner in the transmitting state of the transceiver front end module and outputting to the antenna end, and comprises an input matching network, a driving stage amplification module, an inter-stage matching network, a power stage amplification module and an output matching network which are connected in sequence.

[0006] The low leakage switch module is used for determining the connection relationship between the output end of the optimized stack structure power amplifier module and the input end of the wideband current multiplexing low noise amplifier module and switching the receiving state and the transmitting state of the transceiver front end module, and comprises a receiving path and a transmitting path which are connected with the input end of the wideband current multiplexing low noise amplifier module and the output end of the optimized stack structure power amplifier module respectively and integrated with an electrostatic protection module.

[0007] The wideband current multiplexing low noise amplifier module is used for amplifying the signal from the antenna and outputting in the receiving state of the transceiver front end module.

[0008] The voltage control module sets the direct current potential of each module and cooperates with the low leakage switch to switch the receiving state and the transmitting state of the transceiver front end module.

[0009] The two alternative switch module is used for switching the receiving state and the transmitting state of the transceiver front end module.

[0010] In some embodiments, the power stage amplification module specifically comprises:

[0011] The power stage optimized stack structure amplifier is used for high linear amplification of the input signal from the upper stage amplifier and output of the amplified signal, improves the linear power range of the stack structure power amplifier, controls the gate-drain voltage of the transistor in the large signal state, prevents the transistor from being broken down due to too large gate-drain voltage difference, and improves the service life and reliability of the transistor.

[0012] The transistor gate-drain cross neutralization capacitor is used for improving the gain and stability of the power stage optimized stack structure amplifier and reducing the influence of the odd harmonic through the transistor gate-drain parasitic capacitor feedthrough on the circuit.

[0013] The second harmonic filter network is used for filtering the second harmonic in the input signal from the upper stage amplifier and filtering the second harmonic in the output signal generated after the power stage optimized stack structure amplifier, and reduces the feedback of the even harmonic which causes additional third-order intermodulation distortion in the common mode.

[0014] In some embodiments, the receiving path specifically comprises:

[0015] The small transmission line adopts lumped quarter wavelength transmission line to realize impedance transformation, participates in input impedance matching and noise factor matching of the wideband current multiplexing low noise amplifier module in the receiving mode of the transceiving front end module, and makes the impedance of the antenna to the ground through the receiving path high impedance in the transmitting mode of the transceiving front end module, so as to reduce signal leakage in the transmitting mode.

[0016] The series switch is a switch for connecting the small transmission line and the input port connection point of the wideband current multiplexing low noise amplifier module to the ground, and is used for participating in switching the transmitting state and the receiving state of the transceiving front end module.

[0017] The first protection capacitor is used for electrostatic protection, prevents a large amount of charges of the port connected with the antenna from directly transferring to the gate end of the input transistor of the wideband current multiplexing low noise amplifier module, and protects the input transistor of the wideband current multiplexing low noise amplifier module.

[0018] In some embodiments, the transmitting path specifically comprises:

[0019] The parallel resonant cavity with a switch capacitor constitutes output matching of the power amplifier module with an optimized stack structure in the transmitting mode of the transceiving front end module, and makes the impedance of the antenna to the ground through the transmitting path high impedance in the receiving mode of the transceiving front end module, so as to reduce signal leakage in the receiving mode.

[0020] The second protection capacitor is used for electrostatic protection, prevents a large amount of charges of the port connected with the antenna from directly transferring to the switch capacitor transistor of the parallel resonant cavity, and protects the switch capacitor transistor.

[0021] Based on the above scheme, the application provides a transceiving front end module adopting a low leakage switch. BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

[0022] Figure 1 is a frame schematic diagram of a transceiving front end module adopting a low leakage switch of the application;

[0023] Figure 2is a schematic diagram of an optimized stack structure power amplifier module of an embodiment of the present application;

[0024] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of a low leakage switch module of an embodiment of the present application;

[0025] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of the low leakage switch module in receive mode of an embodiment of the present application;

[0026] Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of the low leakage switch module in transmit mode of an embodiment of the present application;

[0027] Figure 6 is a noise figure NF simulation curve of the low leakage switch module in receive mode of an embodiment of the present application;

[0028] Figure 7 is an S parameter simulation curve of the low leakage switch module in receive mode of an embodiment of the present application;

[0029] Figure 8 is an S parameter simulation curve of the low leakage switch module in transmit mode of an embodiment of the present application;

[0030] Figure 9 is a transistor gate-drain voltage transient curve of the low leakage switch module in transmit mode of an embodiment of the present application. DETAILED DESCRIPTION

[0031] The purpose of the present application is to provide a transceiver front-end module using an optimized stack structure power amplifier and a low leakage switch, which reduces the leakage power and insertion loss in the transceiver mode through the low leakage switch, reduces the chip area, integrates the electrostatic protection, and improves the reliability and life of the transistor through the optimized stack structure power amplifier.

[0032] The technical solutions in the embodiments of the present application will be described clearly and completely 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. Based on the embodiments in the present application, all other embodiments obtained by those skilled in the art without creative work fall within the scope of protection of the present application.

[0033] It should be noted that, for the convenience of description, only the parts related to the present application are shown in the drawings. The embodiments in the present application and the features in the embodiments can be combined with each other without conflict.

[0034] It should be understood that the terms "system", "apparatus", "unit" and / or "module" used in the present application are a method for distinguishing different components, elements, parts, sections or assemblies of different levels. However, if other words can achieve the same purpose, the words can be replaced by other expressions.

[0035] As shown in the present application and claims, unless the context clearly indicates otherwise, the words "one", "an", "a", and / or "the" do not specify a singular number, but can also include a plural number. Generally, the terms "comprise" and "include" only indicate the inclusion of the steps and elements explicitly identified, and these steps and elements do not constitute an exclusive list, and the method or device can also include other steps or elements. The element defined by the statement "comprising a" does not exclude the presence of another identical element in the process, method, product or device comprising the element.

[0036] In the description of embodiments of the present application, "a plurality of" means two or more than two. The following terms "first", "second" are only for descriptive purposes, 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", "second" can explicitly or implicitly include one or more of the features.

[0037] Reference Figure 1 The structure block diagram of an optional example of the transceiver front-end module using a low-leakage switch proposed by the present application, the transceiver front-end module proposed by the present embodiment can include but is not limited to the following structure: an optimized stack structure power amplifier module, a low-leakage switch module, a wideband current multiplexing low-noise amplifier module, a voltage control module and a two-way switch module, the two-way switch module is connected with the optimized stack structure power amplifier module and the wideband current multiplexing low-noise amplifier module respectively, the optimized stack structure power amplifier module and the wideband current multiplexing low-noise amplifier module are connected with the low-leakage switch module respectively, the voltage control module is connected with the optimized stack structure power amplifier module, the wideband current multiplexing low-noise amplifier module and the low-leakage switch module respectively, wherein:

[0038] The optimized stack structure power amplifier module is used to amplify the signal from the input in a high linear manner when the transceiver front-end module is in a transmitting state, and output to the antenna end.

[0039] Specifically, the optimized stack structure power amplifier module includes an input matching network, a driving stage amplification module, an inter-stage matching network, a power stage amplification module and an output matching network, and the input matching network, the driving stage amplification module, the inter-stage matching network, the power stage amplification module and the output matching network are connected in sequence.

[0040] The low-leakage switch module is configured to determine the connection relationship between the output end of the optimized stacked structure power amplifier module and the input end of the wideband current multiplexing low-noise amplifier module and the antenna, and switch the receiving state and the transmitting state of the transceiver front-end module.

[0041] The wideband current multiplexing low-noise amplifier module is configured to amplify the signal from the antenna and output the signal when the transceiver front-end module is in the receiving state.

[0042] The voltage control module is configured to set the direct current potential of each module and switch the receiving state and the transmitting state of the transceiver front-end module in cooperation with the low-leakage switch.

[0043] The two-alternative switch module is configured to switch the receiving state and the transmitting state of the transceiver front-end module.

[0044] In some possible embodiments, with reference to Figure 2 , the power stage amplification module specifically comprises:

[0045] The power stage optimized stacked structure amplifier is configured to perform high-linearity amplification on the input signal from the upper-stage amplifier and output the amplified signal, improve the linear power range of the stacked structure power amplifier, control the gate-drain voltage of the transistor in the large-signal state, prevent the transistor from being broken down due to too large gate-drain voltage difference, and improve the service life and reliability of the transistor.

[0046] The transistor gate-drain cross neutralization capacitor is configured to improve the gain and stability of the power stage optimized stacked structure amplifier and reduce the influence of odd harmonics on the circuit through the transistor gate-drain parasitic capacitor feedthrough.

[0047] The second harmonic filter network is configured to filter the second harmonics in the input signal from the upper-stage amplifier and filter the second harmonics in the output signal generated after the power stage optimized stacked structure amplifier, and reduce the feedback of the even harmonics that can cause additional third-order intermodulation distortion in the common-mode mode.

[0048] The optimized stacked structure amplifier is different from a general stacked structure amplifier. The general stacked structure amplifier mainly considers controlling each transistor to have the same drain-source voltage to make the swing of the output end reach the maximum, so as to provide the largest possible output power. However, the optimized stacked structure amplifier mainly controls each transistor to have the same gate-drain voltage. Since the gate-drain voltage of the transistor is more likely to cause the breakdown of the transistor than the drain-source voltage, the optimized stacked structure amplifier reduces the possibility of the breakdown of the transistor, thereby providing a longer service life and reliability for the applied system. The transistor gate-drain cross neutralization capacitor and the second harmonic filter network jointly reduce the influence of high harmonics on the optimized stacked structure amplifier, and further improve the linearity of the optimized stacked structure amplifier.

[0049] In some possible embodiments, referring to Figure 3 , the receiving path specifically comprises:

[0050] The small transmission line, which is implemented by a lumped quarter-wavelength transmission line, is used for impedance transformation and participates in input impedance matching and noise coefficient matching of the wideband current multiplexing low-noise amplifier module in the receiving mode of the transceiver front-end module, and makes the impedance of the antenna to ground via the receiving path high impedance in the transmitting mode of the transceiver front-end module, thereby reducing signal leakage in the transmitting mode.

[0051] The series switch, which is a switch connecting the small transmission line and the input port connection point of the wideband current multiplexing low-noise amplifier module to ground, is used for participating in switching the transmitting state and the receiving state of the transceiver front-end module, and the diode on the series switch has the function of electrostatic protection, which makes the transistor gate voltage rise when a large amount of charge from the antenna end reaches the drain end of the transistor, so that the transistor is turned on, the series switch is closed, and a reverse ground discharge path is formed.

[0052] The first protection capacitor is used for electrostatic protection to prevent a large amount of charge of the port connected to the antenna from directly transferring to the gate end of the input transistor of the wideband current multiplexing low-noise amplifier module, thereby protecting the input transistor of the wideband current multiplexing low-noise amplifier module.

[0053] In some possible embodiments, referring to Figure 3 , the transmitting path specifically comprises:

[0054] The parallel resonant cavity with a switched capacitor constitutes output matching of the power amplifier module with an optimized stacked structure in the transmitting mode of the transceiver front-end module, and makes the impedance of the antenna to ground via the transmitting path high impedance in the receiving mode of the transceiver front-end module, thereby reducing signal leakage in the receiving mode.

[0055] The second protection capacitor is used for electrostatic protection to prevent a large amount of charge of the port connected to the antenna from directly transferring to the switched capacitor transistor of the parallel resonant cavity, thereby protecting the switched capacitor transistor.

[0056] That is, the receiving path is connected with the input end of the wideband current multiplexing low-noise amplifier module, and the transmitting path is connected with the output end of the power amplifier module with an optimized stacked structure.

[0057] Based on the specific structure of the transceiver front-end module, the working principle is as follows:

[0058] Referring to Figure 4When the transceiver front end module is in the receiving state, the receiving path series switch is opened, the receiving path series switch is equivalent to a capacitor to ground, participates in the input impedance matching and noise figure matching of the broadband current multiplexing low noise amplifier module, the transmitting path parallel resonant cavity switch capacitor transistor is turned on, the switch capacitor is equivalent to a resistor, the impedance of the antenna to ground through the transmitting path is high impedance, and signal leakage in the receiving mode is reduced.

[0059] With reference to Figure 5 When the transceiver front end module is in the transmitting state, the receiving path series switch is closed, the receiving path series switch is equivalent to a small resistor to ground, under the impedance transformation of the small transmission line, the impedance of the antenna to ground through the receiving path is high impedance, signal leakage in the transmitting mode is reduced, and the transmitting path parallel resonant cavity switch capacitor transistor is turned off, the off transistor is equivalent to a capacitor, and participates in the output matching of the stacked structure power amplifier module.

[0060] In some possible embodiments, the series switch, the protection capacitor of the low leakage switch receiving path, and the protection capacitor of the low leakage switch transmitting path jointly constitute an electrostatic protection module of the low leakage switch, prevent the input transistor of the broadband current multiplexing low noise amplifier module from being broken down, prevent the switch capacitor of the transistor of the low leakage switch transmitting path from being broken down, and prevent the transistor of the series switch of the low leakage switch receiving path from being broken down.

[0061] The protection capacitor of the low leakage switch receiving path is used for preventing a large amount of charges of the port connected with the antenna from being directly transferred to the gate end of the input transistor of the broadband current multiplexing low noise amplifier module, and protecting the input transistor of the broadband current multiplexing low noise amplifier module. The protection capacitor of the low leakage switch transmitting path is used for preventing a large amount of charges of the port connected with the antenna from being directly transferred to the switch capacitor transistor of the parallel resonant cavity, and protecting the switch capacitor transistor. When a large amount of charges from the antenna end reaches the drain end of the series switch transistor, the diode on the series switch raises the voltage at the gate end of the transistor, turns on the transistor, closes the series switch, forms a back-to-earth discharge path, and prevents the series switch transistor from being broken down.

[0062] Based on the specific structure of the transceiver front end module, the present application further provides related experimental data:

[0063] With reference to Figure 6 When the transceiver front end module is in the receiving state, the noise figure of the transceiver front end module is less than 3 in the frequency band of 9.5G-13G, and the transceiver front end module still has good noise performance under the condition of considering the switch loss.

[0064] With reference to Figure 7When the transceiver front-end module is in the receiving state, in the frequency band of 10G-13G, the transceiver front-end module has high gain and high gain flatness, input conjugate matching is less than -10dB, and output matching is good.

[0065] With reference to Figure 8 When the transceiver front-end module is in the transmitting state, in the frequency band of 12G-16G, the transceiver front-end module has high gain and high gain flatness, input conjugate matching is good, and output matching uses loadpull matching to achieve higher output saturation output power and transmitting efficiency.

[0066] With reference to Figure 9 The proposed optimized stacked structure amplifier can control the gate-drain voltages of the transistors to be equal, reduce the possibility of the transistors being broken down, improve the service life of the transistors, and improve the reliability and service life of the transceiver front-end module.

[0067] The above is a specific description of the preferred embodiment of the application, but the application is not limited to the described embodiments, and those skilled in the art can make various equivalent modifications or replacements without departing from the spirit of the application. These equivalent modifications or replacements are all included in the scope defined by the claims of the present application.

Claims

1. A transceiver front-end module employing low-leakage switches, characterized by, The transceiver front end module comprises an optimized stack structure power amplifier module, a low leakage switch module, a broadband current multiplexing low noise amplifier module, a voltage control module and a two-way switch module, the two-way switch module is connected with the optimized stack structure power amplifier module and the broadband current multiplexing low noise amplifier module respectively, the optimized stack structure power amplifier module and the broadband current multiplexing low noise amplifier module are connected with the low leakage switch module respectively, and the voltage control module is connected with the optimized stack structure power amplifier module, the broadband current multiplexing low noise amplifier module and the low leakage switch module respectively. The optimized stack structure power amplifier module is used for amplifying the signal from the input in a high linear manner when the transceiver front end module is in a transmitting state, and outputting to an antenna end. The low leakage switch module is used for determining the connection relationship between the output end of the optimized stack structure power amplifier module and the input end of the broadband current multiplexing low noise amplifier module and the antenna, and switching the receiving state and the transmitting state of the transceiver front end module. The broadband current multiplexing low noise amplifier module is used for amplifying the signal from the antenna and outputting when the transceiver front end module is in a receiving state. The voltage control module sets the direct current potential of each module, and switches the receiving state and the transmitting state of the transceiver front end module in cooperation with the low leakage switch. The two-way switch module is used for switching the receiving state and the transmitting state of the transceiver front end module. The optimized stack structure power amplifier module comprises an input matching network, a driving stage amplification module, an inter-stage matching network, a power stage amplification module and an output matching network, and the input matching network, the driving stage amplification module, the inter-stage matching network, the power stage amplification module and the output matching network are connected in sequence. The power stage amplification module comprises: A power stage optimized stack structure amplifier is used for high linear amplification of the input signal from the upper amplifier and output of the amplified signal, and improves the linear power range of the stack structure power amplifier; and is used for controlling the gate-drain voltage of the transistor in a large signal state. A transistor gate-drain cross neutralization capacitor is used for improving the gain and stability of the power stage optimized stack structure amplifier, and reducing the influence of the odd harmonic through the transistor gate-drain parasitic capacitor on the circuit. A second harmonic filter network is used for filtering the second harmonic in the input signal from the upper amplifier, and filtering the second harmonic in the output signal after passing through the power stage optimized stack structure amplifier, and reducing the feedback of the even harmonic which causes additional third-order intermodulation distortion in the common mode.

2. The transceiver front-end module employing low-leakage switches of claim 1, wherein, The low leakage switch module comprises a receiving path and a transmitting path, wherein: The receiving path is connected with the input end of the broadband current multiplexing low noise amplifier module; The transmitting path is connected with the output end of the optimized stack structure power amplifier module.

3. The transceiver front end module employing low leakage switches of claim 2, wherein, The low leakage switch module further integrates an electrostatic protection module.

4. The transceiver front end module employing low leakage switches of claim 2, wherein, The receiving path comprises: The transmission line is a lumped quarter-wave transmission line, which is used for impedance transformation, participates in input impedance matching and noise factor matching of the wideband current multiplexing low noise amplifier module in the receiving mode of the transceiver front end module, and makes the impedance of the antenna to the ground via the receiving path high impedance in the transmitting mode of the transceiver front end module, so as to reduce signal leakage in the transmitting mode. The series switch is a switch for connecting the transmission line and the input port connection point of the wideband current multiplexing low noise amplifier module to the ground, which is used for switching the transmitting state and the receiving state of the transceiver front end module. The first protection capacitor is used for electrostatic protection, which prevents the excess charge of the port connected to the antenna from being directly transferred to the gate end of the input transistor of the wideband current multiplexing low noise amplifier module, and protects the input transistor of the wideband current multiplexing low noise amplifier module.

5. The transceiver front end module employing low leakage switches of claim 4, wherein, Further comprising: The diode on the series switch has the effect of electrostatic protection, which makes the voltage of the gate end of the transistor rise when the excess charge from the antenna end reaches the drain end of the transistor, so that the transistor is turned on, the series switch is closed, and a reverse ground discharge path is formed.

6. The transceiver front end module employing low leakage switches of claim 2, wherein, The transmitting path comprises: The parallel resonant cavity with a switch capacitor constitutes output matching of the power amplifier module with an optimized stack structure in the transmitting mode of the transceiver front end module, and makes the impedance of the antenna to the ground via the transmitting path high impedance in the receiving mode of the transceiver front end module, so as to reduce signal leakage in the receiving mode. The second protection capacitor is used for electrostatic protection, which prevents the excess charge of the port connected to the antenna from being directly transferred to the switch capacitor transistor of the parallel resonant cavity, and protects the switch capacitor transistor.

7. The transceiver front end module employing low leakage switches of claim 2, wherein, The working principle is specifically as follows: When the transceiver front end module is in the receiving state, the series switch of the receiving path participates in input impedance matching and noise factor matching of the wideband current multiplexing low noise amplifier module, and the switch capacitor transistor of the parallel resonant cavity of the transmitting path reduces signal leakage in the receiving mode; When the transceiver front end module is in the transmitting state, the receiving path reduces signal leakage in the transmitting mode, and the switch capacitor transistor of the parallel resonant cavity of the transmitting path participates in output matching of the power amplifier module with an optimized stack structure.

Images