Wireless devices, bidirectional variable gain amplifiers, and front-end systems

Abstract

To provide bidirectional variable gain amplifiers (VGAs) for radio frequency (RF) communication systems.SOLUTION: A bidirectional VGA 120 includes a first amplifier A1 having an input coupled to a transmit / receive port TR, a second amplifier A2 having an output coupled to a transmit port TX, a third amplifier A3 having an input coupled to a receive port RX, a fourth amplifier A4 having an output coupled to the transmit / receive port TR and to the input of the first amplifier A1, and a switch circuit S1, S2 that connects an output of the first amplifier A1 to an input of the second amplifier A2 in a transmit mode, and that connects an output of the third amplifier A3 to an input of the fourth amplifier A4 in a receive mode.SELECTED DRAWING: Figure 4

Description

Technical Field

[0001] Embodiments of the present invention relate to an electronic system, and more particularly to a radio frequency (RF) electronic device.

Background Art

[0002] In an RF communication system, a variable gain amplifier (VGA) is used to provide a controllable amount of amplification to RF signals transmitted and received wirelessly using an antenna.

[0003] Examples of RF communication systems that may include one or more VGAs include, but are not limited to, cellular phones, tablets, base stations, network access points, customer premise equipment (CPE), laptops, and wearable electronic devices. RF signals may have frequencies in the range of about 30 kHz to 300 GHz, such as in the range of about 425 MHz to about 7.125 GHz for frequency range 1 (FR1) of the 5th generation (5G) communication standard, or in the range of about 24.250 GHz to about 52.600 GHz for frequency range 2 (FR2) of the 5G communication standard.

Summary of the Invention

[0004] In certain embodiments, the present disclosure relates to a wireless device. The wireless device includes an antenna array including a plurality of antenna elements, a plurality of radio frequency signal conditioning circuits each operably associated with a corresponding one of the plurality of antenna elements and including a bidirectional variable gain amplifier, and a transceiver electrically coupled to the plurality of radio frequency signal conditioning circuits. The bidirectional variable gain amplifier includes a first amplifier including an input coupled to a transmit / receive port, a second amplifier including an output coupled to a transmit port, a third amplifier including an input coupled to a receive port, a fourth amplifier including an output coupled to the transmit / receive port and the input of the first amplifier, and a switch circuit configured to connect the output of the first amplifier to the input of the second amplifier in a transmit mode and connect the output of the third amplifier to the input of the fourth amplifier in a receive mode.

[0005] In various embodiments, the first amplifier is a first common-gate amplifier, and the fourth amplifier is a first common-drain amplifier. In a certain number of embodiments, the second amplifier is a second common-gate amplifier, and the third amplifier is a second common-drain amplifier.

[0006] In some embodiments, the first amplifier includes a first pair of transistors having a first pair of sources, and the second amplifier includes a second pair of transistors having a second pair of sources directly connected to the first pair of sources.

[0007] In some embodiments, the switch circuit includes a first switch and a second switch connected to a common node, and the bidirectional variable gain amplifier further includes a controllable resistor connected to the common node.

[0008] In various embodiments, at least one of the first or third amplifier includes a selectable first pair of input transistors and a second pair of input transistors, wherein the first pair of input transistors is configured to provide signal inversion when selected, and the second pair of input transistors is configured not to provide signal inversion when selected.

[0009] In some embodiments, each of the multiple radio frequency signal conditioning circuits further includes a phase shifter connected to a transmit / receive port.

[0010] In some embodiments, each of the multiple radio frequency signal conditioning circuits further includes a power amplifier having an input section connected to a transmitting port and a low-noise amplifier having an output section connected to a receiving port.

[0011] In a given embodiment, the present disclosure relates to a bidirectional variable gain amplifier. The bidirectional variable gain amplifier includes a first amplifier including an input section coupled to a transmit / receive port; a second amplifier including an output section coupled to a transmit port; a third amplifier including an input section coupled to a receive port; a fourth amplifier including an output section coupled to the transmit / receive port and the input section of the first amplifier; and a switch circuit configured to connect the output section of the first amplifier to the input section of the second amplifier in transmit mode and to connect the output section of the third amplifier to the input section of the fourth amplifier in receive mode.

[0012] In some embodiments, the first amplifier is a first common-gate amplifier, and the fourth amplifier is a first common-drain amplifier. In a certain number of embodiments, the second amplifier is a second common-gate amplifier, and the third amplifier is a second common-drain amplifier.

[0013] In some embodiments, the first amplifier includes a first pair of transistors having a first pair of sources, and the second amplifier includes a second pair of transistors having a second pair of sources directly connected to the first pair of sources. According to certain embodiments, the bidirectional variable gain amplifier further includes a pair of inductors connected to the first pair of sources and the second pair of sources, the pair of inductors configured to provide input matching to the first amplifier and output matching to the fourth amplifier.

[0014] In some embodiments, the switch circuit includes a first switch and a second switch connected to a common node. According to various embodiments, the bidirectional variable gain amplifier further includes a controllable resistor connected to a common node.

[0015] In certain embodiments, at least one of the first or third amplifier includes a selectable first pair of input transistors and a second pair of input transistors, wherein the first pair of input transistors is configured to provide signal inversion when selected, and the second pair of input transistors is configured not to provide signal inversion when selected.

[0016] In some embodiments, the bidirectional variable gain amplifier further includes bias and control circuits configured to turn off the third and fourth amplifiers in transmit mode and the first and second amplifiers in receive mode.

[0017] In a given embodiment, the disclosure relates to a front-end system. The front-end system includes a power amplifier, a low-noise amplifier, and a bidirectional variable-gain amplifier, the bidirectional variable-gain amplifier comprising: a first amplifier having an input connected to a transmit / receive port; a second amplifier having an output connected to the input of the power amplifier at the transmit port; a third amplifier having an input connected to the output of the low-noise amplifier at the receive port; a fourth amplifier having an output connected to the transmit / receive port and the input of the first amplifier; and a switch circuit configured to connect the output of the first amplifier to the input of the second amplifier in transmit mode and to connect the output of the third amplifier to the input of the fourth amplifier in receive mode.

[0018] In various embodiments, the first amplifier is a first common-gate amplifier, and the fourth amplifier is a first common-drain amplifier. According to some embodiments, the second amplifier is a second common-gate amplifier, and the third amplifier is a second common-drain amplifier.

[0019] In certain embodiments, the first amplifier includes a first pair of transistors having a first pair of sources, and the second amplifier includes a second pair of transistors having a second pair of sources directly connected to the first pair of sources.

[0020] In some embodiments, the switch circuit includes a first switch and a second switch connected to a common node, and the bidirectional variable gain amplifier further includes a controllable resistor connected to the common node.

[0021] In various embodiments, at least one of the first amplifier or the third amplifier includes a selectable first pair of input transistors and a second pair of input transistors, the first pair of input transistors is configured to provide signal inversion when selected, and the second pair of input transistors is configured not to provide signal inversion when selected.

[0022] In some embodiments, the front-end system further includes a phase shifter connected to the transmit / receive port.

Brief Description of the Drawings

[0023] Embodiments of the present disclosure are described below through non-limiting examples with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0024] [Figure 1] It is a schematic diagram of an example of a communication network. [Figure 2A] It is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of a communication system operating by beamforming. [Figure 2B] It is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of beamforming for providing a transmit beam. [Figure 2C] It is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of beamforming for providing a receive beam. [Figure 3] It is a schematic diagram of a radio frequency (RF) signal conditioning circuit according to an embodiment. [Figure 4] It is a schematic diagram of a bidirectional variable gain amplifier (VGA) according to an embodiment. [Figure 5] It is a schematic diagram of a bidirectional VGA according to other embodiments. [Figure 6] It is a schematic diagram of a coarse phase shifter according to an embodiment. [Figure 7] It is a schematic diagram of an embodiment of a gain control circuit for a bidirectional VGA. [Figure 8] It is a schematic diagram of a mobile device according to an embodiment. [Figure 9] It is a plan view of a module according to an embodiment. [Figure 10A] This is a perspective view of a module in another embodiment. [Figure 10B] This is a cross-section of the module in Figure 10A, along the line 10B-10B. [Modes for carrying out the invention]

[0025] The following detailed description of a given embodiment presents various descriptions of a particular embodiment. However, the innovation described herein can be embodied in numerous different forms defined and covered, for example, by the claims. In this specification, the same reference numeral refers to drawings showing identical or functionally similar elements. It should be understood that the elements shown in the drawings are not necessarily to scale. It should also be understood that a given embodiment may include more elements than shown in the drawings, and / or subsets of the elements shown in the drawings. Furthermore, some embodiments may also include any suitable combination of features from two or more drawings.

[0026] The International Telecommunication Union (ITU) is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) and is responsible for global issues concerning information and communication technologies, including the global sharing of radio frequency bands.

[0027] The Third Generation Partnership Project (3GPP) is a collaborative project among a group of telecommunications standards organizations worldwide, including the Radio Industry Association (ARIB), the Telecommunications Technology Committee (TTC), the China Communications Standards Association (CCSA), the Telecommunications Industry Solutions Alliance (ATIS), the Telecommunications Technology Association (TTA), the European Telecommunications Standards Institute (ETSI), and the Telecommunications Standards Development Institute of India (TSDSI).

[0028] Within the scope of the ITU, 3GPP develops and maintains technical specifications for various mobile communication technologies, including, for example, second-generation (2G) technologies (e.g., Global System for Mobile Communications (GSM) (registered trademark) and Enhanced Data Rate for GSM Evolution (EDGE)), third-generation (3G) technologies (e.g., Universal Mobile Telecommunications System (UMTS) and High-Speed ​​Packet Access (HSPA)), and fourth-generation (4G) technologies (e.g., Long-Term Evolution (LTE) and LTE Advanced).

[0029] Technical specifications managed by 3GPP can be extended and revised through specification releases. These specification releases may span many years and may specify a wide range of new features and advancements.

[0030] For example, 3GPP introduced carrier aggregation (CA) for LTE in Release 10. Initially, 3GPP introduced two downlink carriers, but in Release 14, it expanded to include up to five downlink carriers and up to three uplink carriers. Other examples of new features and advancements provided by 3GPP releases include, but are not limited to, License-Assisted Access (LAA), Enhanced LAA (eLAA), Narrowband Internet of Things (NB-IOT), Vehicle-to-Everything (V2X), and High-Power User Equipment (HPUE).

[0031] 3GPP introduced Phase 1 of fifth-generation (5G) technology in Release 15 and Phase 2 of 5G technology in Release 16. Subsequent 3GPP releases will further evolve and expand 5G technology. Here, 5G technology is also referred to as 5G New Radio (NR).

[0032] 5GNR supports or is planned to support a variety of features such as millimeter-wave spectral communication, beamforming capability, high spectral efficiency waveforms, low latency communication, multiplex radio numerology, and / or non-orthogonal multiplex access (NOMA). Although such RF capabilities provide network flexibility and improve user data rates, there are a number of technical challenges in supporting these features.

[0033] The teachings herein are applicable to a wide variety of communication systems, including but not limited to those using advanced cellular technologies such as LTE Advanced, LTE Advanced Pro, and / or 5G NR.

[0034] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of an example of a communication network 10. The communication network 10 includes a macrocell base station 1, a small cell base station 3, and various examples of user equipment (UEs). User equipment (UEs) include a first portable device 2a, a wirelessly connected vehicle 2b, a laptop 2c, a stationary wireless device 2d, a wirelessly connected train 2e, a second portable device 2f, and a third portable device 2g.

[0035] Although specific examples of base stations and user equipment are shown in Figure 1, the communication network may include a wide variety of types and / or numbers of base stations and user equipment.

[0036] For example, in the illustrated example, the communication network 10 includes a macrocell base station 1 and a smallcell base station 3. The smallcell base station 3 may operate with relatively lower power, shorter range, and / or fewer concurrent users compared to the macrocell base station 1. The smallcell base station 3 may also be referred to as a femtocell, picocell, or microcell. Although the communication network 10 is shown to include two base stations, the communication network 10 may be implemented to include more or fewer base stations and / or other types of base stations.

[0037] Although various examples of user devices are presented, the teachings herein are applicable to a wide variety of user devices, including but not limited to mobile phones, tablets, laptops, Internet of Things (IoT) devices, wearable electronic devices, subscriber premises equipment (CPE), wirelessly connected vehicles, wireless relays, and / or a wide variety of other communication devices. Furthermore, user devices include not only currently available communication devices operating in cellular networks, but also subsequently developed communication devices that can be easily implemented in the systems, processes, methods and devices of the present invention described herein and claimed in the claims.

[0038] The communication network 10 illustrated in Figure 1 supports communication using various cellular technologies, including, for example, 4G LTE and 5G NR. In a given implementation example, the communication network 10 is further adapted to provide a wireless local area network (WLAN) such as Wi-Fi. Although various examples of communication technologies have been given, the communication network 10 can be adapted to support a wide variety of communication technologies.

[0039] Various communication links of the communication network 10 are depicted in Figure 1. Communication links can be duplicated (duplexed) in a wide variety of ways, including, for example, using frequency division duplication (FDD) and / or time division duplication (TDD). FDD is a type of radio frequency communication that uses different frequencies for transmitting and receiving signals. FDD can offer a number of advantages, such as high data rates and low latency. In contrast, TDD is a type of radio frequency communication that uses nearly the same frequency for transmitting and receiving signals, with the transmitting and receiving communications switching over time. TDD can offer a number of advantages, such as efficient use of the spectrum and variable allocation of throughput between the transmitting and receiving directions.

[0040] In a given implementation example, a user device (UE) can communicate with a base station using one or more of the following technologies: 4G LTE, 5G NR, and WiFi. In a given implementation example, Enhanced License-Assisted Access (eLAA) is used to aggregate one or more licensed frequency carriers (e.g., licensed 4G LTE and / or 5G NR frequencies) with one or more unlicensed carriers (e.g., unlicensed WiFi frequencies).

[0041] As shown in Figure 1, the communication link includes not only the communication link between the UE and the base station, but also UE-to-UE communication and base station-to-base station communication. For example, the communication network 10 can be implemented to support self-fronthaul and / or self-backhaul (such as between mobile device 2g and mobile device 2f).

[0042] Communication links can operate across a wide variety of frequencies. In a given implementation example, communication is supported using 5GNR technology over one or more frequency bands below 6 gigahertz (GHz) and / or over one or more frequency bands above 6 GHz. For example, a communication link may have frequency range 1 (FR1), frequency range 2 (FR2), or a combination thereof. In one embodiment, one or more portable devices support the HPUE power class specification.

[0043] In a given implementation example, a base station and / or user equipment communicate using beamforming. For example, beamforming can be used to converge signal strength to overcome path loss, such as the high loss associated with communication over high signal frequencies. In a given embodiment, one or more user devices, such as mobile phones, communicate using beamforming in the millimeter-wave frequency band in the range of 30 GHz to 300 GHz, and / or in the upper centimeter-wave frequency band in the range of 6 GHz to 30 GHz, more specifically 24 GHz to 30 GHz.

[0044] Different users of the communication network 10 can share available network resources, such as the available frequency spectrum, in a wide variety of ways.

[0045] In one example, Frequency Division Multiple Access (FDMA) is used to divide a single frequency band into multiple frequency carriers. In addition, one or more carriers are allocated to a specific user. Examples of FDMA include, but are not limited to, single-carrier FDMA (SC-FDMA) and orthogonal FDMA (OFDMA). OFDMA is a multi-carrier technique that divides the available bandwidth into many mutually orthogonal narrowband subcarriers, which can be allocated separately to different users.

[0046] Other examples of shared access include, but are not limited to, time-division multiplexing (TDMA), where users are allocated specific time slots to use frequency resources; code-division multiplexing (CDMA), where frequency resources are shared among different users by assigning each user a unique code; spatial-division multiplexing (SDMA), where beamforming is used to provide spatially divided shared access; and non-orthogonal multiplexing (NOMA), where power domains are used for multiple access. For example, NOMA may be used to serve a large number of users at the same frequency, time, and / or code but at different power levels.

[0047] Enhanced Mobile Broadband (eMBB) refers to technologies that increase the system capacity of LTE networks. For example, eMBB may refer to communications with a peak data rate of at least 10 Gbps and a minimum of 100 Mbps per user. Ultra-High Reliability Low Latency Communications (uRLLC) refers to technologies for communications with extremely low latency, for example, less than 2 milliseconds. uRLLC can be used for mission-critical communications such as autonomous driving and / or remote surgery applications. Massive Machine-Type Communications (mMTC) refers to low-cost, low-data-rate communications associated with wireless connectivity to everyday objects, such as communications associated with Internet of Things (IoT) applications.

[0048] The communication network 10 in Figure 1 can be used to support a wide variety of advanced communication functions, including but not limited to eMBB, uRLLC, and / or mMTC.

[0049] Figure 2A is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of a communication system 110 that operates by beamforming. The communication system 110 includes a transceiver 105, RF signal conditioning circuits 104a1, 104a2…104an, 104b1, 104b2…104bn, 104m1, 104m2…104mn, and an antenna array 102. The antenna array 102 includes antenna elements 103a1, 103a2…103an, 103b1, 103b2…103bn, 103m1, 103m2…103mn.

[0050] Communication systems that communicate using millimeter-wave carriers, centimeter-wave carriers, and / or other frequency carriers may use antenna arrays such as antenna array 102 to provide beamformation and directivity for transmitting and / or receiving signals.

[0051] For example, in the illustrated embodiment, the communication system 110 includes an array 102 of m × n antenna elements, each of which is coupled to a separate RF signal conditioning circuit in this embodiment. As indicated by the ellipsis, the communication system 110 can implement any appropriate number of antenna elements and RF signal conditioning circuits.

[0052] With respect to signal transmission, the RF signal conditioning circuits 104a1, 104a2…104an, 104b1, 104b2…104bn, 104m1, 104m2…104mn can supply a transmit signal to the antenna array 102 such that the signals radiated from the antenna elements combine using constructive and destructive interference and produce an aggregated transmit signal exhibiting a beam-like quality with a strong signal intensity that propagates in a given direction away from the antenna array 102.

[0053] In the context of signal reception, the RF signal conditioning circuits 104a1, 104a2…104an, 104b1, 104b2…104bn, 104m1, 104m2…104mn process the received signal (for example, by individually controlling the received signal phase) so that more signal energy is received when the signal reaches the antenna array 102 from a particular direction. Thus, the communication system 110 also provides directivity for signal reception.

[0054] The relative concentration of signal energy that becomes the transmit or receive beam can be increased by increasing the size of the array. For example, a higher concentration of signal energy that becomes the transmit beam allows the signal to propagate over a longer range while providing a sufficient signal level for RF communication. For instance, a signal with a high ratio of signal energy that becomes the transmit beam can exhibit high effective isotropic radiated power (EIRP).

[0055] In the illustrated embodiment, the transceiver 105 transmits signals to RF signal conditioning circuits 104a1, 104a2…104an, 104b1, 104b2…104bn, 104m1, 104m2…104mn, and processes the signals received from the RF signal conditioning circuits.

[0056] As shown in Figure 2A, the transceiver 105 generates control signals for the RF signal conditioning circuits 104a1, 104a2…104an, 104b1, 104b2…104bn, 104m1, 104m2…104mn. The control signals can be used for various functions, such as controlling the gain and phase of the transmitted and / or received signals to control beamforming. For example, each of the RF signal conditioning circuits 104a1, 104a2…104an, 104b1, 104b2…104bn, 104m1, 104m2…104mn may include a phase shifter and a bidirectional VGA, which are implemented according to the teachings herein.

[0057] Figure 2B is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of beamforming that provides a transmit beam. Figure 2B shows a portion of a communication system including a first RF signal conditioning circuit 114a, a second RF signal conditioning circuit 114b, a first antenna element 113a, and a second antenna element 113b.

[0058] Although the communication system is shown to include two antenna elements and two RF signal conditioning circuits, it may include additional antenna elements and / or signal conditioning circuits. For example, Figure 2B shows one embodiment of a portion of the communication system 110 of Figure 2A.

[0059] The first RF signal conditioning circuit 114a includes a first phase shifter 130a, a first power amplifier 131a, a first low-noise amplifier (LNA) 132a, and a switch for controlling the selection of either the power amplifier 131a or the LNA 132a. In addition, the second RF signal conditioning circuit 114b includes a second phase shifter 130b, a second power amplifier 131b, a second LNA 132b, and a switch for controlling the selection of either the power amplifier 131b or the LNA 132b.

[0060] Although one embodiment of an RF signal conditioning circuit is presented, other implementations of RF signal conditioning circuits are also possible. For example, a signal conditioning circuit may include one or more bandfilters, VGAs, duplexers, diplexers, and / or other components.

[0061] In the illustrated embodiment, the first antenna element 113a and the second antenna element 113b are spaced apart by a distance d. In addition, Figure 2B is annotated with an angle θ. In this example, θ is approximately 90° when the transmitting beam direction is substantially perpendicular to the plane of the antenna array, and approximately 0° when the transmitting beam direction is substantially parallel to the plane of the antenna array.

[0062] A desired transmission beam angle θ can be achieved by controlling the relative phase of the transmission signal applied to antenna elements 113a and 113b. For example, the first phase shifter 130a may have a reference value of 0°, and the second phase shifter 130b may be controlled to give a phase shift of approximately -2πf(d / ν)cosθ radians, where f is the fundamental frequency of the transmission signal, d is the distance between the antenna elements, ν is the velocity of the radiated wave, and π is the mathematical constant pi.

[0063] In a given implementation example, the distance d is implemented to be approximately λ / 2, where λ is the wavelength of the fundamental component of the transmitted signal. In such an implementation, the second phase shifter 130b can be controlled to provide a phase shift of approximately -πcosθ radians in order to achieve the transmitted beam angle θ.

[0064] Therefore, the relative phases of the phase shifters 130a and 130b can be controlled to provide transmit beamforming. In a given implementation example, a transceiver (e.g., transceiver 105 in Figure 2A) controls the phase values ​​of one or more phase shifters to control beamforming.

[0065] Figure 2C is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of beamforming that provides a receiving beam. Figure 2C is similar to Figure 2B, but differs in that Figure 2C shows beamforming in the context of a receiving beam rather than a transmitting beam.

[0066] As shown in Figure 2C, the relative phase difference between the first phase shifter 130a and the second phase shifter 130b can be selected to be approximately equal to -2πf(d / ν)cosθ radians in order to achieve the desired receiving beam angle θ. In an implementation example where the distance d corresponds to approximately λ / 2, the phase difference can be selected to be approximately equal to -πcosθ radians in order to achieve the receiving beam angle θ.

[0067] Although various formulas have been given for phase values ​​that give beamforming, other phase selection values ​​are also possible, such as phase values ​​selected based on the antenna array implementation, the RF signal conditioning circuit implementation, and / or the radio environment.

[0068] Bidirectional VGA for RF Communication Systems

[0069] Antenna arrays can be used to transmit and / or receive radio frequency (RF) signals in base stations, network access points, mobile phones, tablets, customer premises equipment (CPE), laptops, computers, wearable electronic devices, and / or other communication devices. For example, communication devices utilizing millimeter-wave carriers (e.g., 30 GHz to 300 GHz), centimeter-wave carriers (e.g., 3 GHz to 30 GHz), and / or other carrier frequencies can use antenna arrays to provide beamforming and directivity for signal transmission and / or reception.

[0070] In the context of signal transmission, signals from the antenna elements of an antenna array are combined using constructive and destructive interference to produce an aggregated transmitted signal that exhibits beam-like quality with a strong signal intensity propagating in a given direction away from the antenna array. In the context of signal reception, more signal energy is received by the antenna array when the signal arrives from a particular direction. Thus, the antenna array also provides directivity for signal reception.

[0071] In other words, many millimeter-wave (mmW) systems can use multi-element antenna arrays to generate a steered beam. The gain of the transmitter or receiver is increased in a specific spatial direction, at the expense of other directions. Beam steering improves both path loss and robustness against interference. The direction and width of the beam are controlled by arranging the relative phase and amplitude of the transmitter or receiver signals at each antenna.

[0072] RF signal conditioning circuits can be used to condition a transmit signal for transmission through antenna elements of an antenna array, and / or to condition a receive signal from an antenna element to achieve a desired gain and phase. Such an RF signal conditioning circuit may include at least one phase shifter that provides controllable phase adjustment to an RF signal associated with a particular antenna element, and at least one variable gain amplifier (VGA) that provides controllable gain adjustment to the RF signal. To provide flexibility for beamforming, it is desirable that the available phase adjustment for phase shifting extends over a wide angular range, for example, a full 360°. The RF signal conditioning circuit may further include other circuits such as a power amplifier that amplifies the signal for transmission, and / or a low-noise amplifier (LNA) that amplifies the receive signal while introducing a relatively small amount of noise.

[0073] For gain control purposes, the RF signal conditioning circuit may include a transmit VGA and a power amplifier cascaded together to amplify the RF transmit signal for transmission at the antenna element, and an LNA and a receive VGA cascaded together to amplify the RF receive signal received from the antenna element. The transmit VGA / power amplifier or LNA / receive LNA can be selected using a pair of transmit / receive switches.

[0074] For phase control purposes, coarse and fine phase shifters can be cascaded and used to shift the phase of an RF transmit or receive signal. In a given implementation example, the coarse phase shifter provides phase swapping (0° shift or 180° shift), while the fine phase shifter allows for fine gain control steps over a 180° range. That is, the combination of coarse and fine phase shifters provides a phase shift over a full 360° range.

[0075] To reduce die area, it is desirable to combine a transmit VGA and a receive VGA to create a single bidirectional VGA that can be used to amplify either the RF transmit signal or the RF receive signal. Such a configuration not only reduces die area but also reduces losses by eliminating one of the transmit or receive switches.

[0076] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of an RF signal conditioning circuit 110 according to one embodiment. The RF signal conditioning circuit 110 includes a micro-phase shifter PS1, a bidirectional VGA (BVGA), a power amplifier (PA), a low-noise amplifier (LNA), an antenna ANT, and a transmit / receive switch TRS.

[0077] Antenna ANT is coupled to the antenna terminal of the transmit / receive switch TRS. Antenna ANT may correspond to an antenna element of a large antenna array used for beamforming (e.g., antenna array 102 in Figure 2A). As shown in Figure 3, the transmit and receive terminals of the transmit / receive switch TRS are connected to the output of the PA and the input of the LNA, respectively. The PA receives the transmit signal TX from BVGA, while the LNA provides the receive signal RX to BVGA. The gain of VGA is controlled by the gain control signal GAIN. CTL It is controlled by the following. Signal TR can correspond to either the input transmit signal given to the BVGA in transmit mode, or the amplified receive signal output by the BVGA in receive mode. Signal TR is controlled by the phase control signal PHASE CTL The phase is shifted by a micro-phase shifter PS1 controlled by [unclear].

[0078] The RF signal conditioning circuit 110 provides a reduced die area compared to a configuration with separate transmit VGA and separate receive VGA. Furthermore, since the RF signal conditioning circuit 110 includes only one transmit / receive switch, it operates with lower switch losses compared to a configuration that uses a pair of transmit / receive switches to select transmit VGA / PA or LNA / receive VGA.

[0079] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of a bidirectional VGA120 according to one embodiment. The bidirectional VGA120 includes a first matched network M1, a second matched network M2, a third matched network M3, a first amplifier A1, a second amplifier A2, a third amplifier A3, a fourth amplifier A4, a first switch S1, a second switch S2, and a controllable resistor R1. The bidirectional VGA120 further includes a TR port, a TX port, and an RX port.

[0080] The TR port may be connected to a micro-phase shifter (e.g., PS1 in Figure 3) that can provide a phase shift of 0° to 180° (e.g., in fine steps or increments based on a phase control signal). The first matching network M1 is used for matching both the input of the first amplifier A1 and the output of the fourth amplifier A4.

[0081] In transmit mode, the second amplifier A2 and the second matching network M2 direct the signal from the first amplifier A1 to the TX port. In receive mode, the third amplifier A3 and the third matching network M3 receive the received signal from the RX port and direct it to the TR port via the fourth amplifier A4. A switch circuit (including switches S1 and S2 in this example) controls the connection of the output of the first amplifier A1 to the input of the second amplifier A2 in transmit mode, and the connection of the output of the third amplifier A3 to the input of the fourth amplifier A4 in receive mode.

[0082] In a given implementation example, the first amplifier A1 is a common-gate (CG) amplifier, and the second amplifier A4 is a common-drain (CD) amplifier. By implementing the first amplifier A1 and the fourth amplifier A4 in this manner, the source terminals of amplifiers A1 and A4 can be easily connected together, and the first matching network M1 can be implemented as an array of two inductors and two capacitors. When the first amplifier A1 is appropriately disabled, it does not interfere with the operation of the fourth amplifier A4, and vice versa. Furthermore, by appropriately selecting the size and bias conditions of the field-effect transistors (FETs), the first matching network M1 can provide matching to both the input of the first amplifier A1 and the output of the fourth amplifier A4.

[0083] In a given implementation example, the second amplifier A2 is a CD amplifier, and the third amplifier A3 is a CG amplifier. For example, the second amplifier A2 may be a replica of the fourth amplifier A4, while the third amplifier A3 may be a replica of the first amplifier A1. By implementing the amplifiers in this manner, matching of the amplitude, phase, and / or group delay of the transmit and receive gains is supported. To further enhance this matching, the second matching network M2 and the third matching network M3 can correspond to replicas of the first matching network M1, thereby reducing the frequency-dependent group delay variation compared to networks used in configurations employing cascode amplifiers.

[0084] Furthermore, the use of CD and CG amplifiers avoids the need for large matching inductors and / or the use of cascode amplifiers, which have unsuitable output compression points when the supply voltage is low. For example, when using a cascode amplifier, the VGA port is connected to a high-capacitance FET gate, necessitating the use of a large matching inductor. In contrast, by using CD and CG amplifiers, the VGA port can be connected to an FET source with relatively low capacitance compared to the FET gate.

[0085] Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of a bidirectional VGA130 according to another embodiment. The bidirectional VGA130 includes a first amplifier 121, a second amplifier 122, a third amplifier 123, a fourth amplifier 124, a bias and control circuit 125, a controllable resistor R1, a first switch S1, a second switch S2, a first capacitor C1, a second capacitor C2, a third capacitor C3, a fourth capacitor C4, a fifth capacitor C5, a sixth capacitor C6, a seventh capacitor C7, an eighth capacitor C8, a ninth capacitor C9, a tenth capacitor C10, an eleventh capacitor C11, a twelfth capacitor C12, a thirteenth capacitor C13, a fourteenth capacitor C14, a first inductor L1, a second inductor L2, a third inductor L3, a fourth inductor L4, a fifth inductor L5, a sixth inductor L6, a seventh inductor L7, an eighth inductor L8, a ninth inductor L9, and a tenth inductor L10. The bidirectional VGA130 further includes differential TR ports, differential TX ports, and differential RX ports.

[0086] The first amplifier 121 includes a bias resistor Rb1, transistors N1 and N2, and uses inductors L5 and L6 as loads. The first amplifier 121 is implemented as a CG amplifier controlled by a first gate bias voltage Vg1 from the bias and control circuit 125.

[0087] The second amplifier 122 includes bias resistors RB2a and RB2b, transistor N3, and transistor N4. The second amplifier 122 is implemented as a CD amplifier controlled by a second gate bias voltage Vg2 from the bias and control circuit 125.

[0088] The third amplifier 123 includes a bias resistor Rb3, transistors N5 and N6, and uses inductors L9 and L10 as loads. The third amplifier 123 is implemented as a CG amplifier controlled by a third gate bias voltage Vg3 from the bias and control circuit 125.

[0089] The fourth amplifier 124 includes bias resistors Rb4a and Rb4b, transistor N7, and transistor N8. The fourth amplifier 124 is implemented as a CD amplifier controlled by a fourth gate bias voltage Vg4 from the bias and control circuit 125.

[0090] As shown in Figure 5, the bias and control circuit 125 sets the gain control signal GAIN of the bidirectional VGA 130. CTL It receives a mode signal MODE, which indicates either the transmit mode or the receive mode. However, other configurations for controlling the bidirectional VGA130 are also possible.

[0091] In this embodiment, the bias and control circuit 125 generates Vg1, Vg2, Vg3, and Vg4 to bias amplifiers A1, A2, A3, and A4 respectively, and selectively enables the amplifiers based on whether the bidirectional VGA 130 is operating in transmit mode or receive mode. The bias and control circuit 125 also controls the resistance of resistor R1 to change the gain setting of the bidirectional VGA with a gain signal GAIN. VGA And, a switch control signal S that controls switches S1 and S2. CTL To generate and

[0092] Transistors N1 and N2 (working together with load inductors L5 and L6) form the transmit-direction CG input amplifier. Inductors L1 and L2, along with capacitors C1 and C2, form a matching network for the TR port. Additionally, capacitors C5, C6, C7, and C8 act as DC block capacitors used to isolate the DC bias of variable resistor R1 from the drawn CG and CD amplifiers. Transistors N3 and N4 together form the transmit-direction output CD stage. The matching network for the TX port includes inductors L3 and L4, along with capacitors C3 and C4.

[0093] In the receiving direction, transistors N5 and N6, together with inductors L9 and L10, form a CG input amplifier, and transistors N7 and N8 form an output CD amplifier. In the illustrated embodiment, the sources of transistors N7 and N8 are directly connected to the sources of transistors N1 and N2, respectively, and these four FETs share a TR port matching network. Therefore, an explicit transmit / receive switch is not required, resulting in reduced losses and a smaller area.

[0094] Furthermore, the CG and CD amplifiers shown in Figure 5 provide fairly good isolation between RF ports, so the RF port impedance has little to no variation with respect to the setting of the variable resistor R1. The CG and CD amplifiers avoid device stacking (compared to cascode amplifiers), allowing for large output voltage swings and excellent output compression points, which are particularly desirable in low supply voltage (VDD) applications.

[0095] Therefore, the bidirectional VGA130 in Figure 5 may exhibit a number of advantages, including, but not limited to, a small die area, low loss, broadband matching of termination impedance, gain flatness, low group delay variation, and / or a high output 1dB compression point (OP1dB) from low power supply voltages.

[0096] Figure 6 is a schematic diagram of a coarse-phase shifter 150 according to one embodiment. The coarse-phase shifter 150 includes transistors N1a, N1b, N2a, N2b, bias resistors Rb1a and Rb1b. The coarse-phase shifter 150 includes a differential input port IN and a differential output port OUT. The gate bias voltage Vg1a biases the gates of transistors N1a and N1b, while the gate bias voltage Vg1b biases the gates of transistors N2a and N2b.

[0097] The coarse phase shifter 150 replaces the input transistor pair of the CG amplifier, such as the first amplifier A1 and / or the third amplifier A3 in Figure 5, thus providing the flexibility to achieve the desired 180° phase shift.

[0098] In other words, phase swapping can be easily performed in a bidirectional VGA when using the entire differential signal path. For example, the first amplifier A1 and the third amplifier A3 are each implemented as two FET pairs with cross-connected drains as shown in Figure 6 (rather than a single FET pair). Phase swapping is performed by enabling one or the other FET pair according to the desired phase shift (0° or 180°).

[0099] For example, if Vg1a is high and Vg1b is low, transistors N1a and N1b conduct, so the amplifier is non-inverting (phase shift of 0°). However, if Vg1b is high and Vg1a is low, transistors N2a and N2b conduct, so the amplifier inverts (phase shift of 180°).

[0100] Figure 7 is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of a gain control circuit 160 for a bidirectional VGA. The gain control circuit 160 includes three resistor selectors that control the amount of resistance present between the first port RFP and the second port RFN. Although three resistor selectors are shown in this example, more or fewer resistor selectors may be included, as indicated by the ellipsis. Although one example of a gain control circuit is depicted, other implementations of the gain control circuit may be used in a bidirectional VGA.

[0101] In the given implementation example presented here, gain adjustment is performed by a digitally controlled resistor connected across the differential signal path. For example, this resistor may be implemented as a series of resistors connected to or disconnected from the differential signal path by a digitally switched FET.

[0102] In the illustrated embodiment, each resistor selection circuit includes a first FET, a resistor, and a second FET connected in series between the first port RFP and the second port RFN, the gates of these FETs being biased by a control voltage using a pair of resistors. For example, as shown in Figure 6, the first resistor selection circuit includes a transistor N61a, a resistor RR1, and a transistor N61b connected in series between the RFP and RFN, as well as bias resistors R61a and R61b that bias the gates of N61a and N61b respectively by a first control voltage Vc1. Similarly, the second resistor selection circuit includes a transistor N62a, a resistor RR2, and a transistor N62b connected in series between the RFP and RFN, as well as bias resistors R62a and R62b that bias the gates of N62a and N62b respectively by a second control voltage Vc2. Furthermore, the third resistor selection circuit includes transistor N63a, resistor RR3, and transistor N63b connected in series between RFP and RFN, as well as bias resistors R63a and R63b that bias the gates of N63a and N63b respectively with a third control voltage Vc3. The values ​​of the control voltages Vc1, Vc2, and Vc3 can be set by a bias and control circuit (for example, the bias and control circuit in Figure 5).

[0103] In a given implementation example, the RF ports RFP and RFN of the resistors are DC-biased to a desired DC value (e.g., voltage Vsd). For example, if Vc1 is higher than Vsd, RR1 is connected between RFP and RFN. Similarly, if Vc2 is higher than Vsd, RR2 is connected between RFP and RFN. Similarly, if Vc3 is higher than Vsd, RR3 is connected between RFP and RFN. In some implementation examples, all resistors have the same value, but in other implementation examples, these resistors and their transconductance values ​​can be weighted using binary weighting or other desired weighting schemes.

[0104] Figure 8 is a schematic diagram of one embodiment of the portable device 800. The portable device 800 includes a baseband system 801, a transceiver 802, a front-end system 803, an antenna 804, a power management system 805, a memory 806, a user interface 807, and a battery 808.

[0105] The mobile device 800 can be used to communicate using a wide variety of communication technologies, including but not limited to 2G, 3G, 4G (LTE, LTE Advanced, and LTE Advanced Pro), 5G NR, WLAN (e.g., Wi-Fi), WPAN (e.g., Bluetooth® and ZigBee®), WMAN (e.g., WiMAX), and / or GPS technology.

[0106] The transceiver 802 generates an RF signal for transmission and processes the incoming RF signal received from the antenna 804. It is understood that the various functions associated with transmitting and receiving RF signals can be achieved by one or more components, collectively represented as the transceiver 802 in Figure 8. In one example, a separate component (e.g., a separate circuit or die) may be provided to handle a predetermined type of RF signal.

[0107] The front-end system 803 assists in conditioning the signals transmitted to and / or received from antenna 804. In the illustrated embodiment, the front-end system 803 includes a power amplifier (PA) 811, a low-noise amplifier (LNA) 812, a filter 813, a switch 814, and a VGA 815. However, other implementations are possible.

[0108] For example, the front-end system 803 can provide a certain number of functions, including, but not limited to, amplification of the transmit signal, amplification of the receive signal, filtering of the signal, switching between different bands, switching between different power modes, switching between the transmit mode and the receive mode, duplexing of the signal, multiplexing of the signal (e.g., diplexing or triplexing), or any combination thereof.

[0109] The portable device 800 operates in conjunction with beamforming. For example, the front-end system 803 includes a phase shifter 810 having variable phase controlled by a transceiver 802, and a VGA 815 having variable gain controlled by the transceiver 802. The VGA 815 may include one or more bidirectional VGAs implemented according to the teachings herein. In a given implementation example, the transceiver 802 controls the phase of the phase shifter 810 and the gain of the VGA 815 based on data received from the processor 801.

[0110] The phase shifter 810 and VGA815 are controlled to provide beamforming and directivity for transmitting and / or receiving signals using antenna 804. For example, in the context of signal transmission, the phase and gain of the transmitted signal given to the antenna array used for transmission are controlled so that the radiated signals are coupled using constructive and destructive interference, resulting in an aggregated transmitted signal that exhibits beam-like quality with strong signal intensity propagating in a given direction. In the context of signal reception, the phase and gain are controlled so that more signal energy is received when the signal arrives at the antenna array from a particular direction.

[0111] The VGA815 can be implemented according to any of the embodiments described herein. Although Figure 8 shows an example of a portable device that may include a phase shifter implemented according to the teachings herein, the VGA described herein can be used in communication systems implemented in a wide variety of ways. Therefore, other implementation examples are also possible.

[0112] In a given implementation example, the portable device 800 supports carrier aggregation, providing flexibility to increase the peak data rate. Carrier aggregation can be used with both frequency-division duplexing (FDD) and time-division duplexing (TDD), and may be used to aggregate multiple carriers or channels. Carrier aggregation includes continuous aggregation, where continuous carriers are aggregated within the same operating frequency band. Carrier aggregation may be discontinuous and may include carriers whose frequencies are separated within a common band or different bands.

[0113] The multiple antennas 804 may include antennas used for a wide variety of types of communication. For example, antennas 804 may include antennas for transmitting and / or receiving signals associated with a wide variety of frequencies and communication standards.

[0114] In a given implementation example, antenna 804 supports MIMO communication and / or switched diversity communication. For example, MIMO communication uses multiple antennas to communicate multiplexed data streams over a single radio frequency channel. MIMO communication benefits from a high signal-to-noise ratio, improved coding, and / or reduced signal interference due to the spatial multiplexing of the radio environment. Switched diversity refers to communication in which a specific antenna is selected to operate at a particular time. For example, a switch can be used to select a specific antenna from a group of antennas based on various factors such as the observed bit error rate and / or signal strength index.

[0115] In a given implementation example, the antenna 804 includes one or more arrays of antenna elements to enhance beamforming.

[0116] The baseband system 801 is coupled to a user interface 807 that facilitates the processing of various user input / output (I / O) such as voice and data. The baseband system 801 provides a digital representation of the transmit signal to the transceiver 802, which processes this to generate the RF signal for transmission. The baseband system 801 also processes the digital representation of the receive signal provided by the transceiver 802. As shown in Figure 8, the baseband system 801 is coupled to a memory 806 to facilitate the operation of the portable device 800.

[0117] Memory 806 can be used for a wide variety of purposes, such as storing data and / or instructions, in order to facilitate the operation of the portable device 800 and / or to provide storage for user information.

[0118] The power management system 805 provides a certain number of power management functions for the portable device 800. In a given implementation example, the power management system 805 includes a PA supply control circuit that controls the supply voltage of a plurality of power amplifiers 811. For example, the power management system 805 may be configured to change the supply voltage supplied to one or more of the plurality of power amplifiers 811 in order to improve an efficiency such as power added efficiency (PAE).

[0119] As shown in Figure 8, the power management system 805 receives the battery voltage from the battery 808. The battery 808 may be any suitable battery for use in the portable device 800, including, for example, a lithium-ion battery.

[0120] Figure 9 is a plan view of module 680 in one embodiment. Module 680 includes a substrate 690 and various structures formed on and / or mounted on the substrate 690. For example, module 680 includes an antenna array 681, a phase-shift transmission line 682, an enclosure 683, an IC 684 (including a control circuit 691 and a VGA 692 in this embodiment), a surface-mount device, i.e., an SMD 685, an integrated passive device, i.e., an IPD 686, and a shield 687. Module 680 illustrates various examples of components and structures that may be included in a module of a communication device including one or more VGAs as taught herein.

[0121] Although examples of component and structural combinations are shown, modules may contain more or fewer components and / or structures.

[0122] Figure 10A is a perspective view of module 700 in another embodiment. Figure 10B is a cross-section of module 700 in Figure 10A along the line 10B-10B.

[0123] Module 700 includes a laminated substrate or laminated material 701, a semiconductor die or IC 702 (invisible in Figure 10A), an SMD (invisible in Figure 10A), and an antenna array including antenna elements 710a1, 710a2, 710a3…710an, 710b1, 710b2, 710b3…710bn, 710c1, 710c2, 710c3…710cn, 710m1, 710m2, 710m3…710mn.

[0124] Notwithstanding Figures 10A and 10B, Module 700 may include additional structural elements and components that have been omitted from the drawings for clarity. Furthermore, Module 700 may be modified or adapted in a wide range of manner as desired for a particular application and / or implementation.

[0125] Antenna elements 710a1, 710a2, 710a3…710an, 710b1, 710b2, 710b3…710bn, 710c1, 710c2, 710c3…710cn, 710m1, 710m2, 710m3…710mn may be formed on the first surface of the laminate 701 and can be used to receive and / or transmit signals based on the implementation example. Although a 4×4 array of antenna elements is shown, more or fewer antenna elements are possible, as indicated by the ellipsis. Furthermore, the antenna elements may be arrayed in other patterns or configurations, including, for example, arrays that use a non-uniform arrangement of antenna elements. Furthermore, in other embodiments, multiple antenna arrays are provided, such as separate antenna arrays for transmission and reception.

[0126] In the illustrated embodiment, IC702 is located on the second surface of the laminate 701, opposite to the first surface. However, other mounting configurations are possible. In one example, IC702 is integrated into the interior of the laminate 701.

[0127] In a given implementation example, IC702 includes an RF signal conditioning circuit including a VGA implemented according to the teachings herein, associated with antenna elements 710a1, 710a2, 710a3…710an, 710b1, 710b2, 710b3…710bn, 710c1, 710c2, 710c3…710cn, 710m1, 710m2, 710m3…710mn. Although an implementation example with a single semiconductor chip is shown, the teachings herein are also applicable to implementation examples with additional chips.

[0128] The laminate 701 may include various structures, such as conductive layers, dielectric layers, and / or solder masks. The number of layers, layer thickness, and materials used to form these layers can be selected based on a wide variety of factors and may vary depending on the application and / or mounting. The laminate 701 may include vias that provide electrical connections to the signal feed and / or ground feed of the antenna element. For example, in a given mounting example, vias may help provide an electrical connection between the RF signal conditioning circuit of IC 702 and the corresponding antenna element.

[0129] Antenna elements 710a1, 710a2, 710a3…710an, 710b1, 710b2, 710b3…710bn, 710c1, 710c2, 710c3…710cn, 710m1, 710m2, 710m3…710mn can correspond to antenna elements implemented in a wide variety of ways. In one example, an array of antenna elements includes patch antenna elements formed from a first-side patterned conductive layer of the laminate 701, which has a ground plane formed using a conductive layer on the opposite side of the laminate 701 or inside the laminate 701. Other examples of antenna elements include, but are not limited to, dipole antenna elements, ceramic resonators, stamped metal antennas, and / or laser-directly structured antennas.

[0130] application

[0131] The principles and advantages of the embodiments described herein can be used for a wide variety of applications.

[0132] For example, VGA can include a wide range of electronic devices, including but not limited to consumer electronic products, components for consumer electronic products, and electronic testing equipment. Examples of electronic devices include, but are not limited to, base stations, wireless network access points, mobile phones (e.g., smartphones), tablets, televisions, computer monitors, computers, handheld computers, personal digital assistants (PDAs), microwave ovens, refrigerators, automobiles, stereo systems, disc players, digital cameras, portable memory chips, washing machines, dryers, photocopiers, facsimile machines, scanners, multifunction peripheral devices, watches, and clocks. Furthermore, electronic devices may also include unfinished products.

[0133] In conclusion

[0134] Unless the context explicitly requires otherwise, throughout the specification and claims, terms such as “includes,” “equip,” and so on should be interpreted in a comprehensive sense, the opposite of an exclusive or exhaustive sense, i.e., “includes but not limited to.” The term “combined,” as used herein, refers to two or more elements that may be directly connected or connected via one or more intermediate elements. Similarly, the term “connected,” as used herein, refers to two or more elements that may be directly connected or connected via one or more intermediate elements. In addition, where used in this application, the terms “here,” “above,” “below,” and similar terms refer to the entire application and not to any particular part of it. Where contextually permissible, terms in the above detailed description that use singular or plural numbers may also include plural or singular numbers. The terms “or” and “or” referring to a list of two or more items cover all of the following interpretations of the term: any of the items in the list, all of the items in the list, and any combination of the items in the list.

[0135] Furthermore, unless specifically stated or understood otherwise in the context in which they are used, conditional language used herein, in particular, such as “can,” “may,” “may,” “for example,” and “like,” is generally intended to indicate that a given embodiment includes a given feature, element, and / or state, while other embodiments do not. That is, such conditional language is generally not intended to imply that the feature, element, and / or state exists in any manner necessary for one or more embodiments, or that one or more embodiments necessarily include logic to determine whether or not these features, elements, and / or states are included, or should be done, with or without the author’s input or prompt.

[0136] The above description of embodiments of the present invention is not intended to be exhaustive or to limit the invention to any specific form of the above disclosure. While specific embodiments and examples of the present invention are described above for illustrative purposes, various equivalent modifications are possible within the scope of the invention, as will be apparent to those skilled in the art. For example, while processes or blocks are presented in a given order, alternative embodiments may employ systems having routines or blocks with steps in a different order, and some processes or blocks may be deleted, moved, added, subdivided, combined, and / or modified. Each of these processes or blocks may be implemented in various different ways. Furthermore, while processes or blocks may be shown to be executed in series, these processes or blocks may instead be executed in parallel or at different times.

[0137] The teachings of the present invention given herein can be applied to other systems, not necessarily those described above. The elements and operations of the various embodiments described above may be combined to provide further embodiments.

[0138] While certain embodiments of the present invention have been described, these embodiments are presented only as examples and are not intended to limit the scope of this disclosure. In fact, the novel methods and systems described herein may be embodied in various other forms, and various omissions, substitutions, and modifications of the methods and systems described herein may be made without departing from the spirit of this disclosure. The appended claims and their equivalents are intended to cover forms or modifications that fall within the scope and spirit of this disclosure.

Claims

1. A wireless device, An antenna array including multiple antenna elements, Each of the multiple radio frequency signal conditioning circuits, each operably associated with a corresponding antenna element among the multiple antenna elements, includes a bidirectional variable gain amplifier. A transceiver electrically coupled to the plurality of radio frequency signal conditioning circuits and Includes, The aforementioned bidirectional variable gain amplifier is A first amplifier including an input section coupled to a transmit / receive port, A second amplifier including an output section coupled to the transmission port, A third amplifier including an input section coupled to the receiving port, A fourth amplifier including an output section coupled to the transmitting / receiving port and also coupled to the input section of the first amplifier, A switch circuit configured to connect the output of the first amplifier to the input of the second amplifier in transmission mode, and the output of the third amplifier to the input of the fourth amplifier in reception mode. Includes, The first amplifier is a first common gate amplifier, The fourth amplifier is a first common drain amplifier in a wireless device.

2. The second amplifier is a second common drain amplifier, The wireless device according to claim 1, wherein the third amplifier is a second common gate amplifier.

3. The first amplifier includes a first pair of transistors having a first pair of sources, The wireless device according to claim 1, wherein the fourth amplifier includes a second pair of transistors having a second pair of sources directly connected to the first pair of sources.

4. The switch circuit includes a first switch and a second switch provided in the path between the output section of the first amplifier and the input section of the second amplifier. The wireless device of claim 1, wherein the bidirectional variable gain amplifier further includes a controllable resistor connected to a common node which is a connection point between the first switch and the second switch.

5. At least one of the first amplifier or the third amplifier includes a selectable first pair of input transistors and a second pair of input transistors, The first pair of input transistors are configured to provide signal inversion when selected, The wireless device according to claim 1, wherein the second pair of input transistors are configured not to provide signal inversion when selected.

6. The wireless device according to claim 1, wherein each of the plurality of radio frequency signal conditioning circuits further includes a phase shifter connected to the transmit / receive port.

7. The aforementioned multiple radio frequency signal conditioning circuits further, A power amplifier having an input section connected to the transmission port, A low-noise amplifier having an output section connected to the receiving port A wireless device according to claim 1, including the above.

8. A bidirectional variable gain amplifier, A first amplifier including an input section coupled to a transmit / receive port, A second amplifier including an output section coupled to the transmission port, A third amplifier including an input section coupled to the receiving port, A fourth amplifier including an output section coupled to the transmitting / receiving port and the input section of the first amplifier, A switch circuit configured to connect the output of the first amplifier to the input of the second amplifier in transmission mode, and the output of the third amplifier to the input of the fourth amplifier in reception mode. Includes, The first amplifier is a first common gate amplifier, The fourth amplifier is a first common-drain amplifier, a bidirectional variable-gain amplifier.

9. The second amplifier is a second common drain amplifier, The bidirectional variable gain amplifier according to claim 8, wherein the third amplifier is a second common-gate amplifier.

10. The first amplifier includes a first pair of transistors having a first pair of sources, The bidirectional variable-gain amplifier of claim 8, wherein the fourth amplifier includes a second pair of transistors having a second pair of sources directly connected to the first pair of sources.

11. The system further includes a pair of inductors connected to the first pair of sources and the second pair of sources, The pair of inductors are configured to provide input matching to the first amplifier and output matching to the fourth amplifier, in the bidirectional variable gain amplifier according to claim 10.

12. The bidirectional variable gain amplifier according to claim 8, wherein the switch circuit includes a first switch and a second switch provided in the path between the output section of the first amplifier and the input section of the second amplifier.

13. The bidirectional variable gain amplifier according to claim 12, further comprising a controllable resistor connected to a common node which is a connection point between the first switch and the second switch.

14. At least one of the first amplifier or the third amplifier includes a selectable first pair of input transistors and a second pair of input transistors, The first pair of input transistors are configured to provide signal inversion when selected, The bidirectional variable gain amplifier according to claim 8, wherein the second pair of input transistors are configured not to provide signal inversion when selected.

15. The bidirectional variable gain amplifier according to claim 8, further comprising a bias and control circuit configured to turn off the third and fourth amplifiers in the transmission mode and the first and second amplifiers in the reception mode.

16. It is a front-end system, Power amplifier and Low-noise amplifier and Bidirectional variable gain amplifier and Includes, The aforementioned bidirectional variable gain amplifier is A first amplifier including an input section coupled to a transmit / receive port, A second amplifier including an output section coupled to the input section of the power amplifier at the transmission port, A third amplifier including an input section coupled to the output section of the low-noise amplifier at the receiving port, A fourth amplifier including an output section coupled to the transmitting / receiving port and the input section of the first amplifier, A switch circuit configured to connect the output of the first amplifier to the input of the second amplifier in transmission mode, and the output of the third amplifier to the input of the fourth amplifier in reception mode. Includes, A front-end system in which the first amplifier is a first common-gate amplifier and the fourth amplifier is a first common-drain amplifier.

17. The front-end system of claim 16, wherein the second amplifier is a second common-drain amplifier and the third amplifier is a second common-gate amplifier.

18. The first amplifier includes a first pair of transistors having a first pair of sources, The front-end system of claim 16, wherein the fourth amplifier includes a second pair of transistors having a second pair of sources directly connected to the first pair of sources.

19. Further comprising a pair of inductors connected to the first pair of sources and the second pair of sources, The front-end system of claim 18, wherein the pair of inductors are configured to provide input matching to the first amplifier and output matching to the fourth amplifier.

20. The switch circuit includes a first switch and a second switch provided in the path between the output section of the first amplifier and the input section of the second amplifier, The front-end system of claim 16, wherein the bidirectional variable gain amplifier further includes a controllable resistor connected to a common node which is a connection point between the first switch and the second switch.

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