Frequency agility frequency source system and device capable of simultaneously outputting multiple frequency points

Abstract

The invention relates to the technical field of microwaves, and particularly discloses a frequency agility frequency source system and device capable of simultaneously outputting multiple frequency points. According to the system, the collaborative design of a multi-phase-locked-source parallel architecture and a radio frequency switch matrix is adopted, multiple independent frequency agility output channels are integrated in a single module, and nanosecond-level fast switching of multiple outputs among different frequencies is achieved through the radio frequency switch matrix. A micro-assembly process and an LTCC (Low Temperature Co-fired Ceramic) multilayer wiring technology are adopted, the volume limitation of a traditional frequency source is broken through, and the module volume is reduced by more than 50%. The problem of compatibility of high integration level and small size of multi-channel independent agile signals is solved, and the multi-channel independent agile signal amplifier is particularly suitable for space-sensitive application scenes in aerospace electronic equipment and portable instruments.

Description

Technical Field

[0001] The present invention relates to the field of microwave technology, and in particular to a frequency agile source system and device capable of simultaneously outputting multiple frequencies. Background Art

[0002] As a core component in communication equipment and wireless measurement and control equipment, frequency sources play a vital role in communications, wireless measurement and control, radar and other fields. In communication and measurement systems, frequency sources provide highly stable reference signals for the transmit and receive channels, and their performance directly affects the overall performance of the system. At the same time, in the field of test and measurement, high-precision instruments and equipment rely on high-performance frequency sources to ensure the accuracy and reliability of measurement results. With the rapid development of modern communication and measurement and control technologies, the performance requirements for frequency sources are increasing. Wider bandwidth, faster frequency conversion speed, lower phase noise, smaller size and power consumption have become key indicators in frequency source design and are also the focus of current technological research. In recent years, as electronic systems have developed towards multi-functionality and high integration, the demand for frequency sources has expanded from traditional single-frequency output to the ability to agile frequency conversion and simultaneous multi-frequency output to meet the needs of complex application scenarios.

[0003] Currently, existing agile frequency sources typically require a combination of multiple independent frequency sources to achieve multi-frequency output, resulting in bulky size, increased power consumption, and signal crosstalk between modules that can affect performance. Furthermore, traditional agile frequency solutions often utilize complex frequency synthesis architectures (i.e., mixing schemes) or high-speed digital control technologies (such as high-speed digital-to-analog converters / digital-to-analog converters), which suffer from complex circuit design, high costs, and difficulty in compressing the size. These drawbacks are key bottlenecks hindering performance improvements in aerospace and portable devices. Therefore, how to achieve multiple independent agile frequency outputs in a single module while ensuring fast agile frequency performance, while also balancing high integration, miniaturization, low power consumption, and telecommunications performance, has become a pressing challenge in the field of frequency source technology. Summary of the Invention

[0004] In order to solve the problems of the prior art and realize multiple independent frequency-agile outputs in a single module, the present application provides a frequency-agile source system and device that can output multiple frequencies simultaneously.

[0005] In a first aspect, a frequency agile source system with simultaneous multi-frequency output is provided, comprising a power divider amplifier unit, a phase-locked source combination unit, and a frequency switching unit, wherein:

[0006] The power dividing and amplifying unit includes an amplifier, a filter and a first power divider connected in sequence;

[0007] The phase-locked source combination unit includes at least two phase-locked sources, and the input end of the phase-locked source is connected to the output end of the first power divider;

[0008] The frequency switching unit includes a second power divider and an n - to - 1 switch. The input end of the second power divider is connected to the output end of the phase - locked source, and the output end of the second power divider is connected to the input end of the n - to - 1 switch.

[0009] Furthermore, the first power divider includes an input port and n output ports. The first power divider evenly divides a single - path reference signal into n paths, where n is an integer greater than 1.

[0010] Furthermore, the number of phase - locked sources matches the number of output ports of the first power divider.

[0011] Furthermore, each phase - locked source independently sets frequency parameters to generate signals at different frequency points.

[0012] In a second aspect, a fast - frequency - switching frequency source device with simultaneous multi - frequency - point output is provided, which includes an upper cover plate, a housing, a chip, a circuit board, and a connector. It also includes an internal isolation plate and an internal isolation cover plate. The internal isolation plate, the internal isolation cover plate, and the housing form a cavity for isolating signals;

[0013] The chip is manufactured based on an integrated circuit of gallium arsenide semiconductor material; the radio - frequency devices on the circuit board are monolithic microwave integrated circuit bare chips;

[0014] The chip and the circuit board are used to implement the fast - frequency - switching frequency source system with simultaneous multi - frequency - point output as described in the first aspect.

[0015] The beneficial effects of the present invention are as follows:

[0016] When existing fast - frequency - switching frequency sources achieve multi - frequency - point output, they usually require a combination of multiple independent frequency sources, resulting in a large volume, increased power consumption, and signal crosstalk between modules that can affect performance. In addition, traditional fast - frequency - switching schemes mostly adopt complex frequency synthesis architectures or high - speed digital control technologies, which have defects such as high cost and difficulty in reducing volume.

[0017] The fast - frequency - switching frequency source with simultaneous multi - frequency - point output provided in this application adopts a parallel architecture of multiple phase - locked sources combined with a radio - frequency switch matrix to achieve multiple independent fast - frequency - switching outputs within a single module; the multiple outputs are switched through radio - frequency switches to achieve a switching speed at the nanosecond level.

[0018] By adopting micro - assembly technology and LTCC (Low - Temperature Co - Fired Ceramic) multi - layer wiring, ultra - high integration is achieved, and the volume is reduced by more than 50%. The fully enclosed cavity isolation design ensures high isolation between channels and guarantees signal purity. Brief Description of the Drawings

[0019] Figure 1It is the block diagram of the fast frequency conversion frequency source with simultaneous multi-frequency output of the present invention;

[0020] Figure 2 It is the block diagram of the power splitting and amplifying unit of the present invention;

[0021] Figure 3 It is the block diagram of the phase-locked source combination unit of the present invention;

[0022] Figure 4 It is the block diagram of the frequency switching unit of the present invention.

[0023] Figure 5 The block diagram of the fast frequency conversion frequency source with simultaneous two-frequency output of the embodiment of the present invention;

[0024] Figure 6 It is the block diagram of the fast frequency conversion frequency source with simultaneous four-frequency output of the embodiment of the present invention;

[0025] Figure 7 It is the block diagram of the fast frequency conversion frequency source with simultaneous eight-frequency output of the embodiment of the present invention.

[0026] Figure 8 It is the structural diagram of the fast frequency conversion frequency source device of the embodiment of the present invention. Detailed implementation manners

[0027] The present invention will be further described below.

[0028] In the description of the present invention, "a plurality of" means two or more.

[0029] The present invention provides a fast frequency conversion frequency source with simultaneous multi-frequency output, and the block diagram is as Figure 1 shown, including a power splitting and amplifying unit, a phase-locked source combination unit and a frequency switching unit, wherein:

[0030] The power splitting and amplifying unit is composed of an amplifier, a filter and a first power splitter connected in sequence, as Figure 2 shown. The amplifier is used to increase the power level of the input reference signal and compensate for the losses of subsequent links, including the insertion loss of the filter, the distribution loss of the first power splitter, etc. The filter is used to suppress the spurs and noise outside the reference signal frequency band. The first power splitter includes an input port and n output ports. The first power splitter evenly divides the single-channel reference signal into n channels, where n is an integer greater than 1, ensuring the phase consistency of the signals at each output port and providing a phase-coherent reference signal for each subsequent phase-locked source.

[0031] The phase-locked source combination unit consists of independent phase-locked sources. The phase-locked source combination unit includes at least two phase-locked sources. The number of phase-locked sources matches the number of output ports of the first power divider (i.e., the number of phase-locked sources is the same as the number of output ports of the first power divider). The output ports of the first power divider are connected to the input ends of the phase-locked sources, and the output ends of the phase-locked sources are respectively connected to the input ends of the corresponding second power dividers, as Figure 3 shown. Through phase-locked loop technology, the phase-locked source locks the frequency and phase of the output signal to the frequency and phase of the reference signal, thereby realizing the generation of a frequency signal with high stability and low noise.

[0032] The frequency switching unit includes a second power divider and an n-to-1 switch, as Figure 4 shown. The second power divider includes an input port and n output ports. The second power divider evenly divides a single-channel reference signal into n channels, where n is an integer greater than 1, ensuring the phase consistency of the signals at each output port for subsequent use by the n-to-1 switch. The number of second power dividers matches the number of phase-locked sources. Each phase-locked source drives a second power divider, that is, the input end of the second power divider is connected to the output end of the phase-locked source; the input end of the n-to-1 switch is connected to the output end of the second power divider. The frequency switching unit realizes the free combination function of n different phase-locked signals to achieve the independent switching function of the n-channel output of the frequency source.

[0033] The working process of the agile frequency source system with simultaneous multi-frequency point output is as follows:

[0034] The reference signal enters the system from the external input port. First, it passes through the amplifier in the power division and amplification unit to increase the signal amplitude to the level required by each phase-locked source, ensuring the signal-to-noise ratio requirements for subsequent processing. The amplified signal enters the filter for spectrum purification to effectively suppress out-of-band noise and spurious components and ensure the spectrum purity of the reference signal. The reference signal after amplification and filtering enters the first power divider and is evenly distributed into n identical signals.

[0035] The n identical signals are respectively input into n independent phase-locked sources. Each phase-locked source generates a specific target frequency signal according to the system configuration. Each phase-locked source can be independently set with different frequency parameters to achieve the function of generating multi-frequency point signals.

[0036] The signal output by each phase-locked source is distributed by the second power divider to support multi-channel application requirements. The multiple distributed signals enter the n-to-1 switch. The n-to-1 switch is a high-speed radio frequency switch array. This switch array quickly selects the signal output of the specified path according to the system control instruction to achieve the functions of arbitrary independent combination and agile frequency conversion of the output signal.

[0037] The finally selected signal is sent out from the radio frequency output port to the frequency source. The entire signal path adopts a strict impedance matching design and electromagnetic shielding measures to ensure signal transmission quality and system stability. Through this modular architecture design, the system not only realizes the parallel generation ability of multi-frequency signals but also has the agile characteristic of fast switching output, meeting the application requirements of high-performance frequency synthesis.

[0038] Taking the agile frequency source that can output two, four, and eight frequency points simultaneously as an example for illustration, the scheme of the agile frequency source system that outputs two frequency points simultaneously is as Figure 5 shown, the scheme of the agile frequency source system that outputs four frequency points simultaneously is as Figure 6 shown, and the scheme of the agile frequency source system that outputs eight frequency points simultaneously is as Figure 7 shown.

[0039] The present invention also provides an agile frequency source device with simultaneous multi-frequency point output, as Figure 8 shown. It includes an upper cover plate, a housing, an internal isolation plate, an internal isolation cover plate, chips, a circuit board, and a connector. Based on the micro-assembly technology, the device adopts a form of multiple cavity partitions. The internal isolation plate, the internal isolation cover plate, and the housing form cavities for isolating signals. By adopting the form of cavity separation in the structure, the isolation degree between channels is improved, and finally, the airtightness of the module is realized by laser welding.

[0040] The radio frequency devices (including amplifiers, filters, power dividers) are all MMIC (Monolithic Microwave Integrated Circuit) bare chips. The radio frequency chips and the control chips are both based on the integrated circuit manufacturing technology of gallium arsenide semiconductor materials. It can be realized by micro-assembly process, which can greatly improve the integration degree, reduce the weight and volume of the module. Various bare chips are realized by surface mounting technology and integrated inside the cavity on the surface of the multi-layer substrate, realizing lightweight and miniaturized design.

[0041] The chips and the circuit board are used to realize the agile frequency source system with simultaneous multi-frequency point output described in the present application.

[0042] Although the present invention has been disclosed above with preferred embodiments, the embodiments are not used to limit the present invention. Any equivalent changes or modifications made without departing from the spirit and scope of the present invention also belong to the protection scope of the present invention. Therefore, the protection scope of the present invention should be based on the content defined by the claims of this application.

Claims

1. A frequency agile frequency source system with simultaneous multi-frequency output, characterized in that It includes a power splitting and amplifying unit, a phase-locked source combination unit, and a frequency switching unit, where: The power splitting and amplifying unit includes an amplifier, a filter, and a first power splitter connected in sequence; The phase-locked source combination unit includes at least two phase-locked sources, and the input ends of the phase-locked sources are connected to the output end of the first power splitter; The frequency switching unit includes a second power splitter and an n-to-1 switch. The input end of the second power splitter is connected to the output end of the phase-locked source, and the output end of the second power splitter is connected to the input end of the n-to-1 switch.

2. The agile frequency source system with simultaneous multi-frequency output according to claim 1, wherein The first power splitter includes an input port and n output ports. The first power splitter evenly divides a single-channel reference signal into n channels, where n is an integer greater than 1.

3. The agile frequency source system with simultaneous multi-frequency output according to claim 2, characterized in that, The number of the phase-locked sources matches the number of the output ports of the first power splitter.

4. The agile frequency source system with simultaneous multi-frequency point output according to claim 3, wherein Each phase-locked source independently sets frequency parameters to generate signals at different frequency points.

5. A fast frequency hopping frequency source device with simultaneous multi-frequency point output, including an upper cover plate, a housing, a chip, a circuit board, and a connector, characterized in that: It further includes an internal isolation board and an internal isolation cover plate. The internal isolation board, the internal isolation cover plate, and the housing form a cavity for isolating signals; The chip is manufactured based on an integrated circuit of gallium arsenide semiconductor material; the radio frequency device of the circuit board is a monolithic microwave integrated circuit bare chip; The chip and the circuit board are used to implement the fast frequency hopping frequency source system with simultaneous multi-frequency point output as described in claim 1.

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