Phase weighting apparatus, beamforming apparatus, system and method

Abstract

Provided in the present application are a phase weighting apparatus, a beamforming apparatus, a system and a method. The phase weighting apparatus comprises: a primary phase weighting network, used for performing first phase weighting on an optical wave signal, a first phase gradient obtained by means of the first phase weighting being determined on the basis of an input port via which the optical wave signal is fed into the primary phase weighting network; and a secondary phase weighting network, connected to the primary phase weighting network and used for performing second phase weighting on a plurality of optical wave signals, a second phase gradient obtained by means of the second phase weighting being determined on the basis of the wavelengths of the optical wave signals. In the embodiments of the present application, the secondary phase weighting network can perform phase weighting on the signals output by the primary phase weighting network again on the basis of the wavelengths. In this way, when optical wave signals of different wavelengths are input into the phase weighting apparatus via the same port, different phase weight values can be obtained, thereby supporting forming beams in multiple directions, and helping to increase the control dimensions of the beams and enhance the flexibility of beam steering.

Description

Phase weighting device, beamforming device, system and method

[0001] This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202411758125.0, filed on November 29, 2024, entitled “Phase Weighting Device, Beamforming Device, System and Method”, the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. Technical Field

[0002] This application relates to the field of communication technology, and more specifically, to phase weighting devices, beamforming devices, systems, and methods. Background Technology

[0003] Radio frequency photonic beamforming technology can load radio frequency signals onto light waves and process them in the optical domain to achieve phase shift of the radio frequency signals. This technology has advantages such as low loss, low power consumption, low cost, large bandwidth, easy integration, and resistance to electromagnetic interference.

[0004] Radio frequency photonic beamforming technology can include, for example, passive network beamforming technology based on Fourier transform devices such as matrices and Rowland circles. This passive network requires no electrical control and offers high scalability in the number of beams and radio frequency channels; however, it lacks controllability, and the beam direction formed by the passive network is fixed, limiting its flexibility. Summary of the Invention

[0005] This application provides a phase weighting device, beamforming device, system, and method that helps to improve the flexibility of beam direction.

[0006] In a first aspect, a phase weighting device is provided, comprising: a primary phase weighting network for receiving a first optical wave signal, the first optical wave signal carrying a first radio frequency signal, the primary phase weighting network for performing a first phase weighting on the first optical wave signal to obtain a plurality of second optical wave signals, the first phase gradient of the first optical wave signal obtained by the first phase weighting being determined based on the input port of the first optical wave signal fed into the primary phase weighting network; and a secondary phase weighting network connected to the primary phase weighting network, the secondary phase weighting network for performing a second phase weighting on the plurality of second optical wave signals to obtain a plurality of third optical wave signals, the second phase gradient of the plurality of second optical wave signals obtained by the second phase weighting being determined based on the wavelength of the second optical wave signal; wherein the third optical wave signal is used to generate a second radio frequency signal, the second radio frequency signal is used to feed into an antenna module to form a beam, the direction of the beam is determined based on the phase gradient of the second radio frequency signal, and the phase gradient of the second radio frequency signal is determined based on the first phase gradient and the second phase gradient.

[0007] For example, the phase weighting device provided in this application embodiment can be applied to scenarios such as wireless communication systems, radar systems, and sonar systems. For instance, this phase weighting device can be used in numerous radio frequency communication and remote sensing applications, such as radar detection and tracking, real-time monitoring and control of multiple IoT devices, and so on.

[0008] In this embodiment, a wavelength-sensitive secondary phase-weighting network is added to the primary phase-weighting network, enabling further phase weighting of the signal output from the primary phase-weighting network based on the wavelength. In this way, optical signals of different wavelengths can be input to the phase-weighting device provided in this embodiment through the same port to obtain different phase weights, thereby supporting the formation of beams in multiple directions. This helps increase the beam control dimensionality and improve the flexibility of beam direction.

[0009] Furthermore, in this embodiment, multiple optical signals of different wavelengths can reuse the channels of the first-level phase weighting network to obtain different additional phase weights in the second-level phase weighting network. In this way, multiple beams can be formed at a spatial location corresponding to one input port of the first-level phase weighting network, thereby helping to reduce coverage gaps between beams and improve coverage performance.

[0010] In some embodiments, the second phase gradient of the second optical wave signal with different wavelengths is different, and / or the second phase gradient of the second optical wave signal with wavelengths belonging to different bands is different.

[0011] Phase weighting of the second optical signal at the wavelength level helps improve the control accuracy of the beam direction, supports continuous beam scanning, and the beam scanning range is related to the wavelength range.

[0012] In some embodiments, the secondary phase-weighted network includes multiple optical paths connected to multiple output ports of the primary phase-weighted network, and the second phase gradient is determined based on the relative optical path difference of the second optical signal in the multiple optical paths, wherein: multiple filter devices are disposed on some or all of the multiple optical paths, and the relative optical path difference of the second optical signal with wavelengths belonging to the reflection bands of different filter devices is different in the multiple optical paths; and / or dispersive devices are included on some or all of the multiple optical paths, and the relative optical path difference of the second optical signal with different wavelengths is different in the multiple optical paths.

[0013] In related technologies, flexible beamforming can be achieved through full-degree-of-freedom beamforming. However, as the number of beams and RF channels increases, the number of adjustable delay devices and the corresponding control point exponents also increase, making the implementation more complex and increasing hardware costs and size.

[0014] Compared with related technologies, the embodiments of this application realize second phase weighting based on the relative optical path difference of the second optical signal in multiple optical paths, which can expand the number of beams and help reduce control costs and hardware costs. Both the filter devices and the dispersive devices are passive devices; therefore, realizing the relative optical path difference of the second optical signal in multiple optical paths through filter devices and / or dispersive devices does not require additional control points, thereby helping to reduce complexity and the size of the phase weighting device.

[0015] In some embodiments, a plurality of the filter devices are disposed on some or all of the plurality of optical paths, and the relative optical path difference is determined based on the relative spacing of the filter devices corresponding to the wavelength of the second optical signal in the plurality of optical paths.

[0016] Because filtering devices allow light signals with wavelengths within their filtering band to pass through, and prohibit light signals with wavelengths outside their filtering band from passing through, such as reflecting light signals with wavelengths within their reflection band, the optical path length of the second light signal in different optical paths can be determined based on the position of the filtering devices. The relative optical path difference is achieved through the relative positions of the filtering devices in different optical paths.

[0017] In some embodiments, the number of beam directions supported by the phase weighting device is related to the number of filter devices disposed on one of the plurality of optical paths.

[0018] The number of beams can be adjusted by the number of filtering devices set along an optical path, which is simple to implement.

[0019] In some embodiments, some or all of the plurality of optical paths include dispersive devices, and the relative optical path difference is determined based on the wavelength of the second optical signal, the dispersion coefficient, and the length difference of the dispersive devices.

[0020] In some embodiments, the number of beam directions supported by the phase weighting device is related to the number of wavelengths of the second optical signal.

[0021] In this way, the number of beams can be controlled by adjusting the wavelength of the input optical signal of the phase weighting device, which is simple to implement.

[0022] In some embodiments, the dispersive device is included in some or all of the multiple optical paths, the second optical signal includes multiple optical signals with different wavelengths, and the value of the second phase gradient of the second optical signal is between -π and π.

[0023] For example, nonlinear scheduling of optical signals helps avoid the problem of large differences in the period of the same signal in multiple antenna elements. Nonlinear scheduling can be understood as multiple optical signals not being input to multiple ports in order of wavelength.

[0024] As an example, increasing the wavelength spacing between adjacent optical signals in multiple input optical signals at a single port, while simultaneously shortening the length difference of the dispersive fiber, helps reduce the number of cycles the optical signal spans. On the other hand, shortening the length difference of the dispersive fiber helps reduce the size of the phase weighting device and lowers hardware costs. The adjacent optical signals mentioned here refer to those optical signals that are expected to be mapped to adjacent spatial locations.

[0025] In some embodiments, if the difference between the horizontal phase gradient of the third optical signal at the first wavelength and the horizontal phase gradient of the third optical signal at the second wavelength is 2π, then the horizontal phase angle of the beam formed based on the third optical signal at the first wavelength is the same as the horizontal phase angle of the beam formed based on the third optical signal at the second wavelength; or, if the difference between the vertical phase gradient of the third optical signal at the first wavelength and the vertical phase gradient of the third optical signal at the second wavelength is 2π, then the vertical phase angle of the beam formed based on the third optical signal at the first wavelength is the same as the vertical phase angle of the beam formed based on the third optical signal at the second wavelength. This is because the phase period is 2π, and phase x + 2π is equivalent to phase x. Based on this principle, specific phase control can be achieved through wavelength control.

[0026] In some embodiments, the dispersive device is included in some or all of the multiple optical paths, the second optical signal includes multiple optical signals with different wavelengths, and the second phase gradient difference of at least some of the second optical signals is greater than or equal to 2π.

[0027] In other words, given the same first phase gradient, if the difference in the second phase gradient corresponding to light signals of different wavelengths is an integer multiple of 2π, then these light signals of different wavelengths can be mapped to the same spatial location through a phase weighting device. This phenomenon can be called phase folding. Therefore, based on the principle of phase folding, by adjusting the wavelength of the light signal, beam scanning within a horizontal or vertical range can be achieved, improving beam flexibility while helping to reduce hardware costs.

[0028] In some embodiments, the second phase gradient includes a horizontal phase gradient and / or a vertical phase gradient, wherein the horizontal phase gradient is determined based on the relative optical path difference of the second optical signal propagating in the horizontal direction of the plurality of optical paths, and the vertical phase gradient is determined based on the relative optical path difference of the second optical signal propagating in the vertical direction of the plurality of optical paths.

[0029] In some embodiments, the filtering device is a Bragg grating or a bandpass filter, and the dispersive device is a dispersive fiber or a dispersive waveguide.

[0030] In some embodiments, the first optical wave signal of the first wavelength and the first optical wave signal of the second wavelength are fed into the first-level phase weighting network through the same port, and the first phase gradient obtained by the first phase weighting of the first optical wave signal of the first wavelength and the first optical wave signal of the second wavelength is the same.

[0031] In a second aspect, a beamforming apparatus is provided, comprising: an optoelectronic modulation module, wherein the optoelectronic modulation module is used to modulate a first radio frequency signal carrying a baseband signal using an optical wave as a carrier to generate a first optical wave signal; and a phase weighting device as described in the first aspect, wherein the phase weighting device is connected to the optoelectronic modulation module, and the phase weighting device is used to receive the first optical wave signal and perform phase weighting on the first optical wave signal to obtain a plurality of third optical wave signals; wherein the third optical wave signals are used to generate a second radio frequency signal, and the second radio frequency signal is used to feed into an antenna module to form a beam.

[0032] In this embodiment, a wavelength-sensitive secondary phase-weighting network is added to the primary phase-weighting network, enabling further phase weighting of the signal output from the primary phase-weighting network based on the wavelength. In this way, optical signals of different wavelengths can be input to the phase-weighting device provided in this embodiment through the same port to obtain different phase weights, thereby supporting the formation of beams in multiple directions. This helps increase the beam control dimensionality and improve the flexibility of beam direction.

[0033] Furthermore, in this embodiment, multiple optical signals of different wavelengths can reuse the channels of the first-level phase weighting network to obtain different additional phase weights in the second-level phase weighting network. In this way, multiple beams can be formed at a spatial location corresponding to one input port of the first-level phase weighting network, thereby helping to reduce coverage gaps between beams and improve coverage performance.

[0034] In some embodiments, the first optical signal includes multiple sets of optical signals, each set of optical signals corresponding to an input port of the phase weighting device; the photoelectric modulation module is used for one of the following: sequentially feeding the multiple sets of optical signals into each of the multiple input ports of the phase weighting device; feeding the multiple optical signals into one or more input ports of the multiple input ports of the phase weighting device in different arrangements; simultaneously feeding at least two sets of optical signals from the multiple sets of optical signals into the phase weighting device; or simultaneously feeding at least two optical signals from the multiple sets of optical signals into the phase weighting device.

[0035] The different wavelength scheduling schemes mentioned above can achieve different beam scanning effects, thereby helping to improve the flexibility of the system.

[0036] For example, by feeding multiple sets of optical signals sequentially into each of the multiple input ports of the phase weighting device, the beam scanning method that can be achieved is to scan one subspace corresponding to the first-level phase weighting network at the same time, and then scan multiple subspaces sequentially.

[0037] For example, by feeding multiple optical signals into one or more of the multiple input ports of a phase weighting device in different arrangements, a beam scanning method can be achieved that allows for fine scanning at different positions in different subspaces.

[0038] In the process of optical wave scheduling, multiple optical signals or multiple sets of optical signals can be sequentially fed into one or more input ports of a first-level phase-weighted network. This can be understood as feeding multiple optical signals or multiple sets of optical signals into one or more input ports of a first-level phase-weighted network in a certain arrangement. The arrangement mentioned here can include the correspondence between multiple optical signals of different wavelengths and input ports, as well as the input timing sequence when multiple optical signals of different wavelengths are input into the first-level phase-weighted network.

[0039] Based on the positions of the multiple beams to be formed, the correspondence between multiple optical signals or groups of optical signals and the input ports can be determined. Based on the scanning method of the multiple beams to be formed, the timing of the input of the multiple optical signals to the first-level phase-weighted network can be determined.

[0040] When at least a portion of the optical signals of different wavelengths are provided by the same tunable light source, the arrangement determines the scheduling sequence of the tunable light source, and the wavelength of the optical signal output by the tunable light source corresponding to different timing sequences.

[0041] In some embodiments, the above arrangement can be adjusted according to system requirements to improve system flexibility.

[0042] In some embodiments, the photoelectric modulation module includes a multi-wavelength array light source or multiple tunable light sources. Multiple array elements in the multi-wavelength array light source are used to sequentially or simultaneously input to one or more input ports of the phase weighting device. The multiple tunable light sources are used to sequentially input to one or more input ports of the phase weighting device, or the multiple tunable light sources are used to simultaneously input to multiple input ports of the phase weighting device.

[0043] For example, a tunable light source can be used to generate a light wave signal λ1, or in other words, the center frequency of the tunable light source is λ1. By controlling the light wave signal to vary around the wavelength λ1 using a tunable light source, fine-tuning of the beam direction can be achieved, which helps to improve the flexibility of the beam direction.

[0044] For example, a tunable light source can be used to generate multiple light wave signals corresponding to one input port, which helps to reduce the number of light sources in the system, thereby reducing the size.

[0045] For example, multiple tunable light sources can be used to generate multiple optical signals corresponding to one input port, where each tunable light source can generate one optical signal. In this case, any two of the multiple optical signals can be input to the phase weighting device at the same time, thereby forming beams at any two locations among the multiple spatial positions corresponding to the multiple optical signals simultaneously.

[0046] For example, a tunable light source can be used to generate optical wave signals corresponding to multiple input ports, where a tunable light source can be used to generate multiple optical wave signals.

[0047] Thirdly, a beamforming system is provided, comprising: a first radio frequency (RF) module for modulating a baseband signal to generate a first RF signal; a beamforming apparatus as described in the second aspect, connected to the first RF module, for generating a plurality of third optical wave signals; a second RF module connected to the beamforming apparatus, for demodulating the plurality of third optical wave signals to obtain a second RF signal; and an antenna array, wherein antenna elements in the antenna array are connected to the output port of the beamforming apparatus, the antenna array for transmitting the second RF signal to form a beam, the direction of which is determined based on the phase gradient of the second RF signal.

[0048] In some embodiments, the first radio frequency signal includes a third radio frequency signal and a fourth radio frequency signal. The first radio frequency module is used to modulate the same baseband signal to obtain the third radio frequency signal and the fourth radio frequency signal. The phase difference between the third radio frequency signal and the fourth radio frequency signal is π or -π. The beamforming device is used to process the third radio frequency signal to obtain a third optical wave signal of a first wavelength. The third optical wave signal of the first wavelength is used to form a first beam. The beamforming device is used to process the fourth radio frequency signal to obtain a third optical wave signal of a second wavelength. The third optical wave signal of the second wavelength is used to form a second beam. The beamforming device is used to form multiple beams. The first beam and the second beam are two beams that are vertically adjacent or two beams that are horizontally adjacent among the multiple beams.

[0049] Beamwidth allows the same information, such as broadcast messages, to be sent to a wide range of users simultaneously, thus helping to improve system performance.

[0050] For example, the first beam and the second beam can be determined based on the optical signal input method of the phase weighting device and the phase weights added by the phase weighting device. For instance, the spatial positions of various beams supported by the beamforming system can be determined based on the optical signal input method of the phase weighting device and the phase weights added by the phase weighting device, and then the first beam and the second beam can be determined based on the spatial positions.

[0051] Fourthly, a beamforming method is provided, comprising: using an optical wave as a carrier wave to modulate a first radio frequency signal carrying a baseband signal to generate a first optical wave signal; performing a first phase weighting on the first optical wave signal based on the transmission path of the first optical wave signal to obtain a plurality of second optical wave signals, wherein the first optical wave signal obtains a first phase gradient through the first phase weighting; performing a second phase weighting on the plurality of second optical wave signals based on the wavelengths of the plurality of second optical wave signals to obtain a plurality of third optical wave signals, wherein the plurality of second optical wave signals obtain a second phase gradient through the second phase weighting; demodulating the plurality of third optical wave signals to obtain a second radio frequency signal; and transmitting the second radio frequency signal to form a beam, wherein the direction of the beam is determined based on the phase gradient of the second radio frequency signal, and the phase gradient of the second radio frequency signal is determined based on the first phase gradient and the second phase gradient.

[0052] Fifthly, a computer-readable storage medium is provided, which stores a computer program that, when part or all of the computer program is executed, performs the method described in the fourth aspect above.

[0053] In a sixth aspect, a computer program product is provided, the computer program product including computer program instructions that cause the computer to perform the method described in the fourth aspect above. Attached Figure Description

[0054] Figure 1 illustrates a communication system applicable to an embodiment of this application;

[0055] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of the radio frequency photonic beamforming system;

[0056] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a fully free-degree-of-freedom beamforming system;

[0057] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of the beamforming network based on passive network;

[0058] Figure 5 is a schematic diagram of the phase weighting device provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0059] Figure 6 shows an example of a two-dimensional network for a first-level phase-weighted network;

[0060] Figure 7 shows an example of a first-level phase-weighted network being a one-dimensional network;

[0061] Figure 8 shows the spatial location of the beams corresponding to the two-dimensional network in Figure 6.

[0062] Figure 9A shows an example of the vertical relative spacing of the filter devices;

[0063] Figure 9B shows an example of the horizontal relative spacing of the filter components;

[0064] Figure 10 is an example of a spatial location diagram formed based on the filtering devices in Figures 9A and 9B;

[0065] Figure 11A shows the antenna pattern corresponding to the first phase gradient in Table 1;

[0066] Figure 11B shows the antenna pattern corresponding to the superposition of the first and second phase gradients in Table 1.

[0067] Figure 12 is an example diagram of a beam formed with the support of a phase weighting device;

[0068] Figure 13 shows the antenna pattern corresponding to the beam in Figure 12;

[0069] Figure 14 shows another example of a beam formed with the support of a phase weighting device;

[0070] Figure 15 shows the antenna pattern corresponding to the beam in Figure 14;

[0071] Figure 16 shows another example of a beam formed with the support of a phase weighting device;

[0072] Figure 17 shows the antenna pattern corresponding to the beam in Figure 16;

[0073] Figure 18 is another structural example of the phase weighting device provided in the embodiment of this application;

[0074] Figure 19 is a schematic diagram of the wavelength distribution of the input optical signal in Figure 18;

[0075] Figure 20 is an example of a beam azimuth map supported by the first-level phase weighting network in Figure 18;

[0076] Figure 21 is an example of a beam azimuth diagram supported by the phase weighting device shown in Figure 18;

[0077] Figure 22 is another structural example of the phase weighting device provided in the embodiment of this application;

[0078] Figure 23 is a schematic diagram of the wavelength distribution of the input optical signal in Figure 22;

[0079] Figure 24 is an example of a beam azimuth map supported by the first-level phase weighting network in Figure 22;

[0080] Figure 25 shows an example of the delay spectrum corresponding to dispersive devices of different lengths;

[0081] Figure 26 is another structural example of the phase weighting device provided in the embodiment of this application;

[0082] Figure 27 is an example of a beam azimuth map supported by the first-level phase weighting network in Figure 26;

[0083] Figure 28 is an example of a beam azimuth diagram supported by the phase weighting device in Figure 26;

[0084] Figure 29 is another structural example of the phase weighting device provided in the embodiment of this application;

[0085] Figure 30 is an example of a beam azimuth diagram supported by the phase weighting device in Figure 29;

[0086] Figure 31 is another structural example of the phase weighting device provided in the embodiment of this application;

[0087] Figure 32 shows another example of the delay spectrum corresponding to dispersive devices of different lengths;

[0088] Figure 33 is an example of a beam azimuth diagram supported by the phase weighting device in Figure 31;

[0089] Figure 34 is an example diagram of a wave position supported by the phase weighting device provided in the embodiment of this application;

[0090] Figure 35 shows the antenna pattern corresponding to the wave position in Figure 34;

[0091] Figure 36 is another example diagram of the wave position supported by the phase weighting device provided in the embodiment of this application;

[0092] Figure 37 shows the antenna pattern corresponding to the wave position in Figure 36;

[0093] Figure 38 is another example diagram of the wave position supported by the phase weighting device provided in the embodiment of this application;

[0094] Figure 39 shows the antenna radiation pattern corresponding to the wave position in Figure 38;

[0095] Figure 40 is an example of the correspondence between the wavelength of an optical signal and the horizontal phase gradient;

[0096] Figure 41 is an example of a beam azimuth diagram supported by the phase weighting device provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0097] Figure 42 is another structural example of the phase weighting device provided in the embodiment of this application;

[0098] Figure 43 is an example of a beam azimuth map supported by the first-level phase weighting network in Figure 42;

[0099] Figure 44 is an example of a beam azimuth diagram supported by the phase weighting device in Figure 42;

[0100] Figure 45 shows another example of the correspondence between the wavelength of an optical signal and the horizontal phase gradient;

[0101] Figure 46 is a schematic diagram of the chip-based layout of the phase weighting device in Figure 42;

[0102] Figure 47 is another example of a beam azimuth diagram supported by the phase weighting device provided in the embodiments of this application;

[0103] Figure 48 shows another example of the delay spectrum corresponding to dispersive devices of different lengths;

[0104] Figure 49 shows another example of the correspondence between the wavelength of an optical signal and the horizontal phase gradient;

[0105] Figure 50 is a schematic diagram of the beamforming apparatus provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0106] Figure 51 is a schematic diagram of the beamforming system provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0107] Figure 52 is an example diagram of the initial phase of the radio frequency signal corresponding to vertical beam widening;

[0108] Figure 53 is a schematic diagram of the signal superposition effect in the vertical direction corresponding to the beam broadening in Figure 52;

[0109] Figure 54 shows the beam scanning effect corresponding to the beam broadening method in Figure 53;

[0110] Figure 55 is a schematic diagram of the effects of horizontal beamwidth and vertical beamwidth;

[0111] Figure 56 shows another example of the initial phase of the radio frequency signal corresponding to vertical beam widening;

[0112] Figure 57 shows the beam scanning effect corresponding to the beam broadening method in Figure 56;

[0113] Figure 58 is an example diagram of the initial phase of the radio frequency signal corresponding to horizontal beamwidth;

[0114] Figure 59 shows the beam scanning effect corresponding to the beam broadening method in Figure 58;

[0115] Figure 60 is a schematic diagram of another structure of the beamforming system provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0116] Figure 61 is a schematic diagram of another structure of the beamforming system provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0117] Figure 62 is a schematic diagram of another structure of the beamforming system provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0118] Figure 63 is a schematic diagram of another structure of the beamforming system provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0119] Figure 64 is a schematic flowchart of the beamforming method provided in the embodiments of this application. Detailed Implementation

[0120] The technical solutions in the embodiments of this application will now be described with reference to the accompanying drawings.

[0121] In the description of the embodiments of this application, unless otherwise stated, " / " indicates that the objects before and after are in an "or" relationship. For example, A / B can represent A or B. "And / or" in the embodiments of this application is merely a description of the relationship between related objects, indicating that three relationships can exist. For example, A and / or B can represent: A alone, A and B simultaneously, and B alone, where A and B can be singular or plural. Furthermore, in the description of the embodiments of this application, unless otherwise stated, "multiple" refers to two or more. "At least one of the following" or similar expressions refer to any combination of these items, including any combination of single or plural items. For example, at least one of a, b, or c can represent: a, b, c, ab, ac, bc, or abc, where a, b, and c can be single or multiple. Additionally, to facilitate a clear description of the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application, the terms "first" and "second" are used in the embodiments of this application to distinguish identical or similar items with essentially the same function and effect. Those skilled in the art will understand that the words "first" and "second" do not limit the quantity or the order of execution, and that the words "first" and "second" do not necessarily imply that they are different.

[0122] In the various method embodiments of this application, the order of the sequence numbers does not imply the order of execution. The execution order should be determined by its function and internal logic, and should not constitute any limitation on the implementation process of the embodiments of this application.

[0123] It is understood that in the embodiments of this application, descriptions such as "under the circumstances," "if," "when," and "if..." can be used interchangeably. Furthermore, these descriptions all refer to the corresponding processing that will be carried out under certain objective circumstances, and are not limited to a specific time, nor do they require any judgment action during implementation, nor do they imply any other limitations.

[0124] It is understood that some optional features in the embodiments of this application can be implemented independently in certain scenarios without relying on other features, such as the current solution on which they are based, to solve the corresponding technical problems and achieve the corresponding effects. Alternatively, they can be combined with other features as needed in certain scenarios. Correspondingly, the apparatus given in the embodiments of this application can also implement these features or functions, which will not be elaborated here.

[0125] In the embodiments of this application, unless otherwise specified, the same or similar parts between the various embodiments can be referred to each other. In the various embodiments of this application, and in the various implementation methods / methods / implementations within each embodiment, unless otherwise specified or logically conflicting, the terminology and / or descriptions between different embodiments and between the various implementation methods / methods / implementations within each embodiment are consistent and can be mutually referenced. The technical features in different embodiments and the various implementation methods / methods / implementations within each embodiment can be combined according to their inherent logical relationships to form new embodiments, implementation methods, methods, or implementation approaches. The embodiments of this application described below do not constitute a limitation on the scope of protection of this application.

[0126] This application can be applied to radio frequency transceiver systems such as phased array radar systems and wireless communication systems. For example, this application can be applied to: 5th generation (5G) systems or New Radio (NR), satellite communication systems, Long Term Evolution (LTE) systems, and future communication systems. Exemplarily, this application can also be applied to device-to-device (D2D) communication, vehicle-to-everything (V2X) communication, machine-to-machine (M2M) communication, machine-type communication (MTC), and Internet of Things (IoT) communication systems or other communication systems.

[0127] Figure 1 illustrates a communication system applicable to an embodiment of this application. The communication system 100 may include a network device 110 and a terminal device 120, which communicate via electromagnetic waves. Optionally, the wireless communication system may include multiple network devices, and each network device may have an additional number of terminal devices within its coverage area; this embodiment of the application does not limit this.

[0128] Network device 110, also known as a radio access network (RAN) node, is used to help terminals access the communication system wirelessly. In one possible scenario, the RAN node can be a base station, an evolved NodeB (eNodeB), an access point (AP), a transmission reception point (TRP), a next-generation NodeB (gNB), a base station in a future mobile communication system, or an access node in a WiFi system. The RAN node can be a macro base station (as shown in Figure 1, 110a), a micro base station or indoor station (as shown in Figure 1, 110b), a relay node or donor node, or a radio controller in a CRAN scenario. Optionally, the RAN node can also be a server, wearable device, vehicle, or in-vehicle equipment. For example, the access network device in vehicle-to-everything (V2X) technology can be a roadside unit (RSU).

[0129] In another possible scenario, multiple RAN nodes collaborate to assist the terminal in achieving wireless access, with different RAN nodes implementing some of the base station's functions. For example, RAN nodes can be central units (CUs), distributed units (DUs), or radio units (RUs). RUs can be used to transmit and receive radio signals. CUs and DUs can be two independent RAN nodes or integrated into the same RAN node, such as within a baseband unit (BBU). RUs can be included in radio frequency equipment or radio frequency units, such as in remote radio units (RRUs), active antenna units (AAUs), or remote radio heads (RRHs). CUs can be further divided into two types of RAN nodes: CU-control plane (CP) and CU-user plane (UP).

[0130] Terminal 120 is a device with wireless transceiver capabilities, capable of sending signals to or receiving signals from a base station. The terminal can also be referred to as user equipment (UE), terminal equipment, access terminal, user unit, user station, mobile station (MS), remote station, remote terminal, mobile terminal (MT), user terminal, wireless communication equipment, user agent, user device, and terminal device, etc. Terminal 120 can be a mobile phone, tablet computer, computer with wireless transceiver capabilities, wearable device, vehicle, drone, helicopter, airplane, ship, robot, robotic arm, smart home device, etc. The embodiments of this application do not limit the device form of the terminal.

[0131] For example, terminal 120 can be an Internet of Things (IoT) device (e.g., a sensor, electricity meter, water meter, etc.), a V2X device, a station (ST) in a wireless local area network (WLAN), a cellular phone, a cordless phone, a session initiation protocol (SIP) phone, a wireless local loop (WLL) station, a personal digital assistant (PDA) device, a handheld device with wireless communication capabilities, a computing device or other processing device connected to a wireless modem, an in-vehicle device, a wearable device (also known as a wearable smart device), a tablet computer or a computer with wireless transceiver capabilities, a virtual reality (VR) terminal, a wireless terminal in industrial control, a wireless terminal in self-driving, a wireless terminal in remote medical care, a wireless terminal in a smart grid, a wireless terminal in transportation safety, a wireless terminal in a smart city, or a wireless terminal in a smart home. Wireless terminals in the home, vehicle terminals, vehicles with vehicle-to-vehicle (V2V) communication capabilities, intelligent connected vehicles, drones with drone-to-drone (UAV-to-UAV, U2U) communication capabilities, etc.

[0132] The roles of base stations and terminals can be relative. Base stations and terminals can be fixed or mobile. Base stations and terminals can be deployed on land, including indoors or outdoors, handheld or vehicle-mounted; they can also be deployed on water; and they can also be deployed on aircraft, balloons, and artificial satellites. The embodiments of this application do not limit the application scenarios of base stations and terminals.

[0133] It should be understood that all or part of the functions of the communication device in this application can also be implemented by software functions running on hardware, or by virtualization functions instantiated on a platform (e.g., a cloud platform).

[0134] The above describes the applicable scenarios for the embodiments of this application. The following will introduce the relevant content of beamforming involved in this application.

[0135] Beamforming is a signal processing technique widely used in wireless communication systems, radar systems, sonar systems, and other fields. Beamforming adjusts the beam direction by controlling the time delay or phase difference of signals transmitted or received by multiple antenna elements in an antenna array. This causes constructive interference (enhancement) in a specific direction in space, while destructive interference (attenuation) occurs in other directions. This enhances signal strength in a specific direction while reducing interference and noise in other directions, improving system performance.

[0136] Beamforming can eliminate interference between data streams in multiple-input multiple-output (MIMO) communication systems, improving system capacity and speed. Radio frequency beamforming typically includes digital beamforming (DBF) and analog beamforming (ABF).

[0137] Digital beamforming schemes require a radio frequency (RF) link for each antenna. For massive MIMO systems, digital beamforming necessitates a large number of RF links, which are characterized by high power consumption and expensive hardware, limiting the scalability of digital beamforming schemes. Analog beamforming devices require numerous phase shifters, which increases the system's power consumption.

[0138] Hybrid beamforming (HBF) technology uses analog phase-shifting networks to achieve full or partial connectivity between a small number of RF links and antennas, achieving satisfactory spectral efficiency with reasonable hardware complexity and acceptable power consumption. In the HBF fully connected architecture, each RF link is connected to all antennas in the antenna array through a phase-shifting network, allowing each RF link to obtain the full array gain.

[0139] Faced with the demands for large-scale, multi-beam, and fully connected applications, radio frequency (RF) beamforming encounters technical challenges such as size and cost constraints, wiring difficulties, increased power consumption, and increased crosstalk. However, optical beamforming technology based on RF photonic beamforming has garnered widespread attention due to its advantages, including low loss, low power consumption, low cost, large bandwidth, ease of integration, and resistance to electromagnetic interference.

[0140] Radio frequency (RF) photonic beamforming technology can load RF signals onto optical waves and process them in the optical domain to achieve phase shifting of the RF signals. The following section, with reference to Figures 2 to 4, introduces RF photonic beamforming technology.

[0141] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of the radio frequency photonic beamforming system. The system shown in Figure 2 includes a digital processing module 210, a first radio frequency module 220, a radio over fiber (ROF) module 230, a radio frequency photonic fully connected module 240, and a second radio frequency module 250.

[0142] The digital processing module 210 encodes the user's data signal to form a baseband signal and feeds the baseband signal into the first radio frequency module 220. The first radio frequency module 220 performs mixing and filtering operations on the input baseband signal, loading the baseband signal onto a radio frequency carrier to form a radio frequency signal, and feeds the radio frequency signal into the ROF module 230. The ROF module 230 may include devices such as an optical wave generation unit, a modulation unit, and an amplification unit. The ROF module 230 can be used to generate an optical carrier and load the radio frequency carrier carrying user data onto the optical carrier. Further, the ROF module 230 can be used to feed the optical carrier into the radio frequency photonic fully connected module 240.

[0143] The RF photonic fully connected module 240 can be used to implement amplitude and phase weighting of optical carriers carrying RF signals in the optical domain and to achieve full connectivity. The full connectivity function mentioned here refers to the connection between the signal in each link of the RF photonic fully connected module 240 and all antennas in the antenna array to obtain full array gain. Furthermore, the RF photonic fully connected module 240 forms a specific phase gradient distribution at different output ports by applying different amplitude and phase weights to the optical carriers.

[0144] The second radio frequency (RF) module 250 may include an optical demodulation unit, an RF signal processing unit, and a transmitting unit. The second RF module 250 can demodulate and process the input optical carrier signal and feed it into different antenna elements, thereby transmitting the RF signal into space to form a directional beam. Since the phase difference (or phase gradient) of the RF signal fed into the antenna elements determines the beam direction, and the phase difference of the RF signal is determined based on the initial phase difference and the phase difference of the optical signal, the beam direction can be determined based on the phase weight of the optical signal in the RF photonic fully connected module 240. In other words, the beam direction is related to the phase gradient of the optical carrier at the output port of the RF photonic fully connected module 240.

[0145] The aforementioned radio frequency photonic beamforming system can be implemented based on fully free degree beamforming technology using adjustable delay devices (as shown in Figure 3), or based on passive network beamforming technology using Fourier transform devices such as matrices and Rowland circles (as shown in Figure 4).

[0146] Figure 3 is a schematic diagram of the architecture of a fully free-degree-of-freedom beamforming system. The system shown in Figure 3 may include a ROF module 230, a radio frequency photonic fully connected module 240, and a second radio frequency module 250.

[0147] Referring to Figure 3, the ROF module 230 may include a laser diode (LD) 231 and a modulator 232, wherein the laser diode is used to generate an optical carrier, and the modulator is used to modulate the input radio frequency signal onto the optical carrier. It should be understood that the ROF module may include multiple links for processing different radio frequency signals separately.

[0148] The radio frequency photonic fully connected module 240 may include an optical delay line (ODL) 241, a variable optical attenuator array 242, and an arrayed waveguide grating 243. The optical delay line 241 can be used to control the delay of the optical carrier signal to adjust its phase; the variable optical attenuator 242 can be used to adjust the intensity of the optical carrier; and the arrayed waveguide grating 243 can be used to control the delay of the optical carrier signal to adjust its phase. Optionally, the adjustable delay device in the radio frequency photonic fully connected module 240 may also be a micro-ring, a Mach-Zehnder interferometer (MZI) switch, etc.

[0149] The second radio frequency module 250 may include a photodiode (PD) 251 and a microwave chain (MC) 252. The photodiode 251 converts light energy into electrical energy to demodulate the radio frequency signal carried in the optical carrier. The MC 252 can be used to transmit the radio frequency signal to the antenna element (AE) 260, thereby forming a spatial beam 270.

[0150] It can be seen that full-degree-of-freedom beamforming supports independent phase modulation capability for multi-stream signals in each RF channel, enabling flexible beamforming. However, as the number of beams and RF channels increases, the number of adjustable delay devices and corresponding control points increase exponentially. The size of a large number of devices and complex peripheral control circuits limit the scalability expansion of full-degree-of-freedom beamforming technology.

[0151] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of a beamforming network based on a passive network. The passive network shown in Figure 4 is one implementation of the radio frequency photonic fully connected network mentioned earlier. Passive networks can be, for example, based on Fourier transform devices such as matrices or Rowland circles.

[0152] The network shown in Figure 4 includes a horizontal beamforming network 410 and a vertical beamforming network 420. The output port of the horizontal beamforming network 410 is connected to the input port of the vertical beamforming network 420. The horizontal beamforming network 410 performs horizontal phase weighting on the input optical carrier signal to form a horizontal phase gradient. The vertical beamforming network 420 performs vertical phase weighting on the optical carrier signal to form a vertical phase gradient. The horizontal beamforming network 410 and the vertical beamforming network 420 can be connected via an internal connection 440. The output port of the network shown in Figure 4, i.e., the output port of the vertical beamforming network 420, is connected to the antenna array 430 via optical fiber distribution.

[0153] In passive network-based beamforming networks, different transmission channels determine the phase weights that the network can achieve. Passive network-based beamforming networks require no electrical control and offer high scalability in terms of beam and RF channel number; however, they lack control dimensions, and the beam direction formed by a passive network is fixed, limiting flexibility. Furthermore, when the number of beams is fixed, increasing the number of RF channels is typically used to enhance beam directivity and gain, which leads to beam narrowing, coverage gaps between beams, and negatively impacts coverage performance.

[0154] To address one or more of the aforementioned problems, embodiments of this application provide a phase weighting device comprising a primary phase weighting network and a secondary phase weighting network. The secondary phase weighting network is a wavelength-sensitive network used to further phase-weight the signal output from the primary phase weighting network according to the wavelength. In this way, optical signals of different wavelengths can be input into the phase weighting device provided in this application through the same port to obtain different phase weights, thereby supporting the formation of beams in multiple directions, helping to expand the number of beams and improve the flexibility of beam direction.

[0155] The phase weighting device 500 provided in this application embodiment will be described below with reference to FIG5. The phase weighting device 500 can be used to realize phase shifting (or phase weighting) of radio frequency signals in the optical domain. In some embodiments, the phase weighting device 500 can be used for beamforming, by performing different phase weights on the input optical wave signal, outputting optical wave signals with different phase gradients to support the formation of beams in different directions.

[0156] For example, the phase weighting device 500 can be used in a variety of applications such as radar detection and tracking, real-time monitoring and control of multiple IoT devices, and remote sensing.

[0157] The phase weighting device shown in Figure 5 may include a first-level phase weighting network 510 and a second-level phase weighting network 520.

[0158] The first-level phase-weighted network 510 can be used to receive a first optical wave signal. The first optical wave signal carries a first radio frequency (RF) signal; in other words, the first optical wave signal can be obtained by modulating the first RF signal with an optical wave as the carrier. By modulating the first RF signal into a first optical wave signal, phase weighting of the first RF signal in the optical domain is provided. The first RF signal can carry signals related to the data to be transmitted. Taking the application of the first-level phase-weighted network 510 in a communication system as an example, the first RF signal can carry a baseband signal, and the baseband signal can carry user data. Since the first optical wave signal uses an optical wave as the carrier, it can also be called a first optical carrier signal. It should be understood that the optical wave signal and optical carrier signal mentioned in the embodiments of this application can be used interchangeably.

[0159] A first-level phase-weighted network 510 can be used to phase-weight the first optical signal to obtain multiple second optical signals. In some embodiments, the first-level phase-weighted network 510 can distribute an optical signal input from one input port to all output ports, with different phase weights for the optical signals distributed to different output ports. Based on this, the first-level phase-weighted network 510 can distribute the first optical signal input from one port to all output ports to obtain multiple second optical signals. That is, multiple second optical signals can correspond one-to-one with multiple output ports, and the phase weights of the multiple second optical signals are all different.

[0160] If the first optical signal includes multiple optical signals, the first-stage phase-weighted network 510 can distribute the multiple optical signals to all output ports respectively. Taking the first optical signal as including optical signal A and optical signal B as an example, the first-stage phase-weighted network 510 can distribute optical signal A to all output ports, and also distribute optical signal B to all output ports. That is to say, the multiple second optical signals can include the multiple optical signals corresponding to optical signal A and the multiple optical signals corresponding to optical signal B.

[0161] The first-level phase-weighted network 510 may include multiple input ports and multiple output ports. The number of input ports and output ports of the first-level phase-weighted network can be set according to system requirements. For example, the number of output ports can be determined based on the number of array elements in the antenna array and / or the number of input ports of the second-level phase-weighted network. Alternatively, the number of input ports can be determined based on at least one of the number of target beam directions, the number of output ports, and the structure of the first-level phase-weighted network.

[0162] The first phase gradient can be obtained by weighting the first optical signal with the first phase. Alternatively, the first phase weight can be obtained by weighting the first optical signal with the first phase, and the first phase weight determines the value of the first phase gradient. The first phase gradient can refer to the phase difference between second optical signals at adjacent output ports. In some embodiments, the first phase gradient can be determined based on the input port of the first optical signal fed into the first-level phase weighting network. That is, the phase gradient obtained by optical signals fed into the first-level phase weighting network through different input ports is different. In this way, the phase gradient of the second optical signal can be adjusted by controlling the input port of the first optical signal into the first-level phase weighting network, thereby adjusting the direction of the formed beam.

[0163] Taking the first optical signal as including optical signal A and optical signal B as an example, optical signals A and B can be fed into a first-stage phase weighting network through the same input port, and optical signals A and B can obtain the same phase weight value through the first phase weighting. Alternatively, optical signals A and B can be fed into a first-stage phase weighting network through different input ports, then optical signals A and B will obtain different phase weight values ​​through the first phase weighting.

[0164] In some embodiments, the first-level phase weighting network is a non-wavelength-sensitive network, meaning that light signals of different wavelengths can obtain the same phase weights, or the same first phase gradient, when fed into the first-level phase weighting network through the same input port. For example, if a first light signal of a first wavelength and a first light signal of a second wavelength are fed into the first-level phase weighting network through the same port, the first phase gradients obtained by the first light signal of the first wavelength and the first light signal of the second wavelength through the first phase weighting are the same.

[0165] The primary phase-weighting network 510 can be connected to the secondary phase-weighting network 520. In some embodiments, the number of input ports of the secondary phase-weighting network 520 can be the same as or different from the number of output ports of the primary phase-weighting network 510. When the number of input ports of the secondary phase-weighting network 520 is the same as the number of output ports of the primary phase-weighting network 510, the input ports of the secondary phase-weighting network 520 can be connected one-to-one with the output ports of the primary phase-weighting network 510. If the number of input ports of the secondary phase-weighting network 520 is greater than the number of output ports of the primary phase-weighting network 510, multiple input ports of the secondary phase-weighting network 520 can be connected to the same output port of the primary phase-weighting network 510. For example, a power divider can be used to split the signal from one output port of the primary phase-weighting network 510 into multiple input ports of the secondary phase-weighting network. In this case, the phase-weighting device 500 may also include the power divider, which splits one optical signal into multiple paths. It should be understood that the power divider here can also be replaced by other devices that realize signal multiplexing or splitting, and this application does not limit this.

[0166] The two-stage phase-weighted network 520 can be used to perform second-stage weighting on multiple second optical wave signals to obtain multiple third optical wave signals. In some embodiments, the second phase gradient obtained by second-stage phase weighting of the second optical wave signals can be determined based on the wavelength of the second optical wave signals. For example, second optical wave signals of different wavelengths obtain different second-stage gradients through second-stage phase weighting. That is, the two-stage phase-weighted network can control the second phase gradient at the wavelength granularity. For example, second optical wave signals with wavelengths belonging to different bands obtain different second-stage gradients through second-stage phase weighting. Correspondingly, second optical wave signals belonging to the same band obtain the same second-stage gradient through second-stage phase weighting.

[0167] Phase weighting of the second optical signal at the wavelength level helps improve the control accuracy of the beam direction and supports continuous beam scanning, as the beam scanning range is related to the wavelength range. Conversely, phase weighting of the second optical signal at the band level helps reduce the complexity of implementation.

[0168] The aforementioned third optical wave signal can be used to generate a second radio frequency (RF) signal, which can then be fed into an antenna module (such as an antenna array) to form a beam. For ease of description, the beam generated by the optical wave signal will be referred to as the beam corresponding to that optical wave signal. In some embodiments, the third optical wave signal can be demodulated or otherwise processed to generate the second RF signal.

[0169] For example, the relationship between the phase gradient of the second radio frequency signal and the spatial angle is as follows: Where λ RF The second radio frequency carrier wavelength is d, and the antenna spacing is d. θ is the phase difference (i.e., phase gradient) between the second radio frequency signals radiated by adjacent antennas, and θ is the beamforming pointing angle in space (i.e., the direction of the beam).

[0170] The phase gradient of the second radio frequency signal is determined based on the phase gradient of the third optical wave signal. The phase gradient of the third optical wave signal can be, for example, the sum of the first and second phase gradients. In other words, by adjusting the phase gradient of the third optical wave signal, the phase gradient of the second radio frequency signal can be adjusted, thereby adjusting the beam direction. It can be understood that the number of phase gradient values ​​supported by the phase weighting device 500 corresponds to the number of beams supported by the device.

[0171] It should be understood that, given a different initial phase of the first radio frequency signal, the phase gradient of the second radio frequency signal is also related to the initial phase of the first radio frequency signal.

[0172] In this embodiment, by adding a second-level phase weighting network for phase gradient control to the first-level phase weighting network, the number of phase gradient values ​​for the third optical signal can be expanded, thereby increasing the number of beam directions supported by the phase weighting device. In some embodiments, optical signals of different wavelengths can be fed into the first-level phase weighting network from the same input port to obtain the same first phase gradient. In the second-level phase weighting network, different second phase gradients are obtained, thereby supporting the formation of beams in different directions. That is, on the one hand, optical signals of different wavelengths can obtain different phase weights in the second-level phase weighting network, thereby expanding the beam direction and helping to improve the flexibility of the beam direction; on the other hand, optical signals of different wavelengths can reuse one optical path (or optical path) of the first-level phase weighting network to achieve beam direction expansion without adding an optical path, which helps to reduce hardware cost and hardware size.

[0173] Furthermore, in this embodiment, multiple optical signals of different wavelengths can reuse the channels of the first-level phase weighting network to obtain different additional phase weights in the second-level phase weighting network. In this way, multiple beams can be formed at a spatial location corresponding to one input port of the first-level phase weighting network, thereby helping to reduce coverage gaps between beams and improve coverage performance.

[0174] In some embodiments, the first phase gradient and / or the second phase gradient includes a horizontal phase gradient and a vertical phase gradient. The beam direction includes a horizontal direction and a vertical direction, such as being identified by a horizontal phase angle and a vertical phase angle. The horizontal direction of the beam corresponding to the third optical signal can be determined based on the horizontal phase gradient of the third optical signal, and the vertical direction of the beam can be determined based on the vertical phase gradient of the third optical signal. By independently controlling the horizontal and vertical phase gradients of the third optical signal, independent control of the horizontal and vertical directions of the beam can be achieved, providing high flexibility.

[0175] The first-order phase-weighted network 510 can be a true time-delay network, such as the fully free-degree-of-freedom beamforming network mentioned above, or it can be a passive network-based beamforming network mentioned above. For example, a passive network based on a Butler matrix or a Blass matrix can be used. It should be understood that the first-order phase-weighted network 510 can also be a beamforming network proposed in the future, and this application does not limit it in this regard.

[0176] The following example uses a first-level phase-weighted network 510 as the Butler matrix to illustrate the implementation of a first-level phase-weighted network.

[0177] In some embodiments, the first-level phase-weighted network 510 can be a two-dimensional network. For example, the first-level phase-weighted network can be a 16×16 two-dimensional network (i.e., a two-dimensional network with 16 inputs and 16 outputs). The inputs of this two-dimensional network can be a 4×4 array, i.e., an array with 4 input ports in both the horizontal and vertical directions.

[0178] Optionally, in the phase weighting device shown in Figure 5, the positions of the first-level phase weighting network 510 and the second-level phase weighting network 520 can be interchanged. That is, the phase weighting network 520 can be used as the first-level phase weighting network, and the phase weighting network 510 can be used as the second-level phase weighting network.

[0179] For example, this two-dimensional network can be formed by cascading 4×4 Butler matrices. Figure 6 shows an example of a two-dimensional network in which a single-stage phase-weighted network is constructed. Referring to Figure 6, this two-dimensional network can be formed by cascading four 4×4 Butler matrices in both the horizontal and vertical directions. The horizontal Butler matrices are used to form the horizontal phase gradient, and the vertical Butler matrices are used to form the vertical phase gradient.

[0180] The phase weighting matrix between the input and output of the 4×4 Butler matrix is ​​shown in Equation 1.

[0181] Among them, IP i Indicates the input optical signal, OP i This represents the output optical signal, and 'i' represents the port number. It can be seen that the phase gradient obtained when the optical signal is fed into the Butler matrix from different input ports is different. For example, if the first optical signal is input into the Butler matrix from IP1, the first phase gradient is... The first optical signal is input into the Butler matrix via IP2, then the first phase gradient is:

[0182] If the first optical wave signal is input into the two-dimensional network shown in Figure 6 from the first port of the second row (i.e., port 1 in the horizontal direction and port 2 in the vertical direction), the 4×4 phase weights at the output end are as shown in Formula 2.

[0183] in The initial phases corresponding to port 1 and port 2 inputs of the 4×4 Butler matrix are respectively. Phase gradients corresponding to port 1 and port 2 inputs of the 4×4 Butler matrix, respectively. In other words, the first phase gradient includes a first horizontal phase gradient and a first vertical phase gradient, wherein the first horizontal phase gradient is: Right now The first vertical phase gradient is Right now

[0184] Based on the relationship between phase gradient and beam direction introduced earlier, it can be seen that when the antenna spacing d = λ RF At / 2, the first horizontal phase gradient and the first vertical phase gradient The corresponding beam directions are -14.5° and 48.6°, respectively. In other words, the horizontal angle of the beam is -14.5° and the vertical angle is 48.6°.

[0185] When the first optical wave signal is input into the two-dimensional network shown in Figure 6 from other input ports, the phase weights that can be obtained can be determined by referring to the above method. For the sake of simplicity, they will not be repeated here.

[0186] In some embodiments, a first-level phase weighting network may include k input ports and m×n output ports, where m represents the number of output ports in the horizontal direction and n represents the number of output ports in the vertical direction.

[0187] When the first optical wave signal is input into the first-level phase weighting network through the kth port, the phase weights of the m×n output ports satisfy the following matrix 3.

[0188] in, These represent the initial phases in the horizontal and vertical directions when the first optical wave signal is input from port k. These are the horizontal and vertical phase gradients of the first optical signal when it is input from port k. That is, the first phase gradient includes the horizontal phase gradient. and vertical phase gradient It should be understood that when the input port of the first optical wave signal changes, the aforementioned phase weights also change accordingly, or in other words, the first phase gradient obtained by the first optical wave signal changes accordingly.

[0189] In some embodiments, the first-level phase-weighted network 510 can be a one-dimensional network, such as a vertical one-dimensional network or a horizontal one-dimensional network. A vertical one-dimensional network can distribute the input first optical signal to multiple output ports in the vertical direction, and the first phase gradient of the first optical signal is the phase gradient in the vertical direction. Similarly, a horizontal one-dimensional network can distribute the input first optical signal to multiple output ports in the horizontal direction, and the first phase gradient of the first optical signal is the phase gradient in the horizontal direction.

[0190] Figure 7 shows an example of a first-order phase-weighted network as a one-dimensional network. Referring to Figure 7, a first-order phase-weighted network can be a one-dimensional network with m inputs and m' outputs in the vertical direction, and the phase weighting matrix between its input and output ports is shown in Equation 4.

[0191] Among them, IP m OP m′ These are the input optical wave signal at the m-th input port and the output optical wave signal at the m'-th output port. For the initial phase, This is the vertical phase gradient, i.e., the first phase gradient.

[0192] As discussed earlier, optical signals fed into a first-level phase-weighted network through different input ports can obtain different phase gradients, thus forming beams in different directions. In other words, a first-level phase-weighted network can map optical signals input from different input ports to multiple spatial locations, which can indicate the direction of the beam.

[0193] Taking the two-dimensional network shown in Figure 6 as an example, this two-dimensional network can map the optical signals input from 16 input ports to 16 spatial locations, as shown in spatial locations 1 to 16 in Figure 8. Referring to Figure 8, one input port of the two-dimensional network corresponds to the spatial location of one beam.

[0194] Taking the one-dimensional network shown in Figure 7 as an example, this one-dimensional network can map the optical signals input from m input ports to m spatial locations respectively. One input port of the one-dimensional network corresponds to the spatial location of one beam. Since the one-dimensional network shown in Figure 7 is a vertical one-dimensional network, it can map the optical signals input from m input ports to m spatial locations in the vertical direction respectively, or in other words, the horizontal phase angles corresponding to these m spatial locations are the same.

[0195] The first-level phase-weighted network has been introduced above. The second-level phase-weighted network will be introduced as an example below.

[0196] In some embodiments, the secondary phase-weighted network includes multiple optical paths connected to multiple output ports of the primary phase-weighted network. As described above, the number of input optical paths in the secondary phase-weighted network can be the same as or greater than the number of output ports of the primary phase-weighted network. For example, the input optical paths of the secondary phase-weighted network may include optical fibers, etc.

[0197] The second phase weighting can be achieved through phase shifting or time delay. As one possible implementation, the second phase weighting can be achieved by controlling the optical path length of the second optical signal in multiple optical paths. In other words, the second phase gradient can be determined based on the relative optical path difference of the second optical signal in multiple optical paths, which helps reduce the control and hardware costs of implementing the second phase gradient.

[0198] As mentioned earlier, the second phase gradient may include a horizontal phase gradient and / or a vertical phase gradient. The horizontal phase gradient can be determined based on the relative optical path difference of the second optical signal propagating along the horizontal optical path in multiple optical paths, and the vertical phase gradient can be determined based on the relative optical path difference of the second optical signal propagating along the vertical optical path in multiple optical paths.

[0199] The relative optical path difference of the second optical signal in multiple optical paths can be achieved through various methods. For example, this relative optical path difference can be achieved using filtering devices and / or dispersive devices. Both filtering devices and dispersive devices are passive devices; therefore, achieving the relative optical path difference of the second optical signal in multiple optical paths using filtering devices and / or dispersive devices does not require additional control points, thus helping to reduce complexity and the size of the second-order phase-weighted network. These two implementation methods will be described in detail below.

[0200] Example 1: Phase Weighting Device Based on Filtering Devices

[0201] In some embodiments, multiple filter devices are disposed on some or all of the multiple optical paths, and the relative optical path difference of the second optical signals whose wavelengths belong to the reflection bands of different filter devices is different in the multiple optical paths. That is, phase gradient control at the band level can be achieved by setting the filter devices. For example, the filter devices can be Bragg gratings or bandpass filters. For example, each of the multiple optical paths is provided with a filter device, or one of the multiple optical paths is not provided with a filter device, while the other optical paths are provided with filter devices.

[0202] The filtering device can allow optical signals with wavelengths belonging to its filtering band to pass through, and prevent optical signals with wavelengths outside its filtering band from passing through, such as reflecting optical signals with wavelengths belonging to its reflection band. Optionally, an optical circulator can be included between the input port of the two-stage phase-weighted network and the filtering device, providing a path for the optical signals reflected by the filtering device. It should be understood that the optical circulator can also be implemented in other ways, and this application does not limit it.

[0203] Therefore, the position of the filtering device in the optical path can affect the optical path length of the second optical signal in the second-order phase-weighted network. Taking an optical path composed of optical fiber as an example, if the relative displacement of the filtering device in the optical path is d, then the optical path length change of the second optical signal in the second-order phase-weighted network is s = d × n, where n is the refractive index of the optical fiber, and the optical path length change s can achieve additional phase. Where s and additional phase The relationship between them satisfies the following formula (5).

[0204] Where c is the speed of light, f RF The frequency of the second radio frequency signal.

[0205] The relative optical path difference of the second optical signal is the difference between the optical paths of the second optical signals input to the second-level phase-weighted network through different optical paths. For example, the relative optical path difference of the second optical signal can be determined based on the relative spacing of the filter devices corresponding to the wavelength of the second optical signal in multiple optical paths. Therefore, if the relative spacing of the multiple filter devices in multiple optical paths is d, then the second phase gradient obtainable by the optical signal with a wavelength belonging to the reflection band of that filter device is...

[0206] For example, multiple filter devices can be arranged in one of the multiple optical paths, and the reflection bands of the multiple filter devices can be different. Taking a first filter device and a second filter device arranged in one optical path as an example, the first wavelength belongs to the reflection band of the first filter device, and the second wavelength belongs to the reflection band of the second filter device. If the relative spacing of the first filter device in the multiple optical paths is different from the relative spacing of the second filter device in the multiple optical paths, then the second phase gradient obtained by second phase weighting of the second optical wave signal of the first wavelength and the second optical wave signal of the second wavelength is different. The second phase gradient of the second optical wave signal of the first wavelength is related to the relative spacing of the first filter device in the multiple optical paths, and the second phase gradient of the second optical wave signal of the second wavelength is related to the relative spacing of the second filter device in the multiple optical paths. In this way, by setting the relative spacing of multiple filter devices in multiple optical paths, optical wave signals of different bands can achieve different second phase gradients.

[0207] As an example, a set of filter elements in multiple optical paths, such as the first filter element, can have a relative spacing of 0, which helps reduce implementation complexity. The set of filter elements mentioned here can refer to multiple filter elements with the same reflection band, placed in different optical paths.

[0208] Taking a first-wavelength optical signal and a second-wavelength optical signal fed into a first-stage phase-weighted network from a first port as an example, the first-stage phase-weighted network can map both the first-wavelength and second-wavelength optical signals to spatial position 1 as shown in Figure 8. If the relative spacing of the first filter device in multiple optical paths is 0, and the relative spacing of the second filter device in multiple optical paths is d, then the second-stage phase-weighted network does not change the phase gradient of the second-wavelength optical signal, while the second phase gradient of the second-wavelength optical signal is... In other words, through the two-stage phase weighting network, the second light wave signal of the first wavelength is still mapped to spatial position 1 as shown in Figure 8, while the second light wave signal of the second wavelength is mapped to spatial position 17, which is different from spatial position 1.

[0209] The difference (or angular offset) between spatial position 17 and spatial position 1 is based on... Confirmed. If If the phase gradient is horizontal, then spatial position 1 can be obtained as spatial position 17 by horizontal offset. If... If the phase gradient is vertical, then spatial position 17 can be obtained from spatial position 1 by vertical offset. Including the horizontal phase gradient and the vertical phase gradient, spatial position 1 can be obtained from spatial position 17 by horizontal and vertical offset.

[0210] The horizontal phase gradient can be determined based on the relative spacing between filters arranged on the horizontal optical paths in the multiple optical paths, and the vertical phase gradient can be determined based on the relative spacing between filters arranged on the vertical optical paths in the multiple optical paths. For example, the position of the second filter satisfies one of the following: the relative spacing between the second filters arranged on the horizontal optical paths in the multiple optical paths is 0, and the relative spacing between the second filters arranged on the vertical optical paths in the multiple optical paths is d. V The relative spacing between the second filters set on the horizontal optical paths in multiple optical paths is d. H The relative spacing between the second filters set on the vertical optical path in multiple optical paths is 0; or the relative spacing between the second filters set on the horizontal optical path in multiple optical paths is d. H The relative spacing between the second filters set on the vertical optical paths in multiple optical paths is d. V In other words, the second filters set in multiple optical paths can have relative spacing only in the horizontal direction to form a horizontal phase gradient; relative spacing only in the vertical direction to form a vertical phase gradient; or relative spacing in both the horizontal and vertical directions to form both a horizontal and a vertical phase gradient.

[0211] The above content will be illustrated below with reference to Figures 9A to 10. Figure 9A shows an example of the vertical relative spacing of the filter components, and Figure 9B shows an example of the horizontal relative spacing of the filter components.

[0212] Each optical path shown in Figures 9A and 9B includes filter device a, filter device b, filter device c, and filter device d. The reflection band of filter device a is band a, the reflection band of filter device b is band b, the reflection band of filter device c is band c, and the reflection band of filter device d is band d.

[0213] The first phase gradient obtained by the light wave signal with wavelength belonging to band a, band b, band c, and band d in the first-level phase weighting network is the same, that is, the light wave signals of these four wavelengths are all mapped to spatial location a through the phase weighting network.

[0214] The relative spacing between filter element a in both the horizontal and vertical directions is 0; the relative spacing between filter element b in the horizontal direction is d. H The relative spacing between filter components c in the vertical direction is 0; the relative spacing between filter components c in the horizontal direction is 0, and the relative spacing between filter components c in the vertical direction is d. V The relative spacing of the filter components d in the horizontal direction is d. H The relative distance in the vertical direction is d. V .

[0215] Taking an optical path composed of optical fibers as an example, the horizontal relative spacing d of the filtering devices H The achievable horizontal phase gradient is Vertical relative spacing d of the filter devices v The achievable vertical phase gradient is Where, n SMF denoted as the group refractive index of the optical fiber.

[0216] Based on this, through a two-stage phase weighting network, the light signals of the above four wavelengths can be mapped to four spatial locations a, b, c, and d, as shown in Figure 10.

[0217] Referring to Figure 10, the second phase gradient of the light wave signal with wavelength belonging to band a is 0. That is to say, the light wave signal with wavelength belonging to band a is still mapped to spatial position a, and the second-level phase weighting network has not changed its mapped spatial position.

[0218] The second phase gradient obtained by the second phase weighting of the light wave signal with wavelength belonging to band b is the horizontal phase gradient. That is, through the two-level phase weighting network, the mapping position of the light wave signal with wavelength belonging to band b can be horizontally shifted from spatial position a to spatial position b.

[0219] The second phase gradient obtained by the second phase weighting of the light wave signal with wavelength belonging to band c is the vertical phase gradient. That is, through the two-level phase weighting network, the mapping position of the light wave signal with wavelength belonging to band c can be vertically shifted from spatial position a to spatial position c.

[0220] The second phase gradient obtained by the second phase weighting of a light wave signal with wavelength belonging to band d includes both horizontal and vertical phase gradients. That is, through the two-level phase weighting network, the mapping position of the light wave signal with wavelength belonging to band d can be shifted from spatial position a to spatial position d. Among them, spatial position d has both horizontal and vertical offsets compared to spatial position a.

[0221] Based on the degree of spatial offset, such as the offset angle, the second phase gradient that achieves that offset angle can be determined, thereby determining the relative spacing of the filter devices that form that second phase gradient. The following uses an optical signal with a wavelength belonging to band c as an example to introduce the method for determining the relative spacing of the filter devices.

[0222] The vertical offset angle between spatial position c and spatial position a is θ. Taking the phase gradient corresponding to θ as an example, if the first phase gradient corresponding to the optical signal in band c is... The second phase gradient is Taking the four ports in the vertical direction as an example, the phase of the optical wave signal with wavelength belonging to band c is shown in Table 1.

[0223] Table 1

[0224] It should be understood that, since the phase period is 2π, phase x + 2π is equivalent to phase x, as follows: Equivalent to Equivalent to

[0225] Figure 11A shows the antenna pattern corresponding to the first phase gradient in Table 1, and Figure 11B shows the antenna pattern corresponding to the superposition of the first and second phase gradients in Table 1. It can be seen that through the second phase gradient... The beam direction can be adjusted from the direction shown in Figure 11A to the direction shown in Figure 11B.

[0226] Furthermore, the second phase gradient Substituting into the formula (5) mentioned above, the vertical relative spacing d of the filter device c can be determined.V It equals d in formula (5).

[0227] It should be understood that Figures 9A and 9B only illustrate a portion of the two-dimensional network. The relationship between the relative spacing and phase gradient of other portions can be referred to the above description, and will not be repeated here for the sake of brevity.

[0228] From a spatial perspective, the spatial locations mapped to the four wavelengths of optical signals can be discretized by setting the relative spacing of the filtering devices in the two-stage phase weighting network, such as discretizing from spatial location a to the four spatial locations shown in Figure 10. Alternatively, the four wavelengths of optical signals can be fed into the phase weighting device provided in this embodiment through the same input port, forming beams at the four spatial locations shown in Figure 10. This allows for beam direction adjustment and expansion, thereby improving the flexibility of the beam direction and reducing the cost of beam direction expansion.

[0229] Furthermore, achieving different second phase gradients through filtering devices helps reduce the size and cost of phase weighting devices. As the number of beam directions supported by the phase weighting device increases, filtering devices can be added in multiple optical paths, which helps reduce the size and hardware cost associated with expanding beam directions.

[0230] The positions of multiple filter elements can be determined based on their initial positions and relative spacing. In some embodiments, the initial positions of the filter elements are close to the output ports of the first-stage phase-weighted network, which helps to reduce the size of the second-stage phase-weighted network, thereby facilitating chip-level miniaturization.

[0231] In some embodiments, the number of beam directions supported by the phase weighting device is related to the number of filter devices disposed on one of the multiple optical paths. Taking the aforementioned filter devices (a-c) as an example, the phase weighting device can support four beam directions in spatial positions (a-c). For instance, if the number of filter devices disposed on one of the multiple optical paths is six, then the phase weighting device can support six beam directions. In other words, the more filter devices disposed on one of the multiple optical paths, the more beams can be formed in space corresponding to one input port of the first-level phase weighting network (beams with different directions can be referred to as different beams). This helps to reduce coverage gaps between beams, thereby improving coverage performance.

[0232] Figure 12 shows an example of a beam formed by a phase weighting device. Figure 13 shows the antenna pattern corresponding to the beam in Figure 12. The beam pattern shown in Figure 12 corresponds to four filtering devices, meaning the phase weighting device supports the formation of four beams (identified by different line shapes) in space corresponding to one input port. Referring to Figure 13, there are certain coverage gaps between adjacent beams (gap 1 shown in Figure 12), and the antenna gain at the coverage gap is less than 16 dB.

[0233] Figure 14 shows another example of a beam formed by a phase weighting device. Figure 15 shows the antenna pattern corresponding to the beam in Figure 14. The beam pattern shown in Figure 14 corresponds to six filtering devices, meaning the phase weighting device supports the formation of six beams (identified by different line shapes) in space corresponding to one input port. Referring to Figure 15, compared to Figure 13, the antenna gain at the coverage gap between adjacent beams (gap 2 shown in Figure 15) is significantly improved, with a gain of approximately 19 dB.

[0234] Typically, the beam arrangement can affect beam coverage performance. In some embodiments, the beam arrangement supported by the phase weighting device may include columnar arrangement, staggered arrangement, and overlapping arrangement. It should be understood that the beam arrangement supported by the phase weighting device may also include other types, and this application does not limit this.

[0235] A column-like arrangement, also known as a rectangular arrangement, refers to the beams being arranged in a straight line along a certain direction, such as horizontally and / or vertically. Figure 8 above shows an example of a column-like arrangement. This arrangement is simple to implement and requires fewer beam numbers.

[0236] The staggered arrangement refers to a beam jump that is approximately equal to the radius of the beam coverage area. Figure 16 shows another example of a beam formed with the support of a phase weighting device. Figure 16 illustrates a beam formed with a staggered arrangement supported by the phase weighting device provided in this embodiment, using four filtering devices arranged along an optical path as an example. Referring to Figure 16, since three adjacent beams can form a triangle, the staggered arrangement can also be called a triangular arrangement. It can be seen that the gap 3 shown in Figure 16 is significantly smaller than the gap 1 shown in Figure 13. Figure 17 shows the antenna pattern corresponding to the beam in Figure 16. The antenna gain at the beam gap in Figure 17 is approximately 17dB-19dB, which is an improvement compared to Figure 13. Therefore, this arrangement helps to reduce the coverage gap between beams and improves the beam coverage performance.

[0237] Overlapping beam configuration refers to the overlapping coverage areas of different beams. By overlapping beam coverage areas, coverage gaps between beams can be eliminated. Using this configuration, beam coverage can reach up to 100%, offering excellent coverage performance. However, this configuration requires a large number of beam positions, resulting in higher resource consumption. Therefore, this configuration is suitable for scenarios with high mission reliability requirements and ample resources.

[0238] In some embodiments, the relative positions of the filtering devices in the second-order phase-weighted network can be determined based on the arrangement of the beams formed by the phase-weighting device. For example, according to λ in Figure 16 a11 , λ b11 , λ c11 and λ d11 The relative positions of the corresponding beams can determine the relative spacing of the filter devices (a~d) in multiple optical paths, where λ a11 The reflection band of filter device a, λ b11 The reflection band of filter device b, λ c11 Belongs to the reflection band of filter device c, λ d11 It belongs to the reflection band of filter device d.

[0239] As an example, according to λ c11 The corresponding beam and λ a11 The positional relationship between the corresponding beams can determine the relative spacing of the filter device c in multiple optical paths. See Figure 16, with λ... a11 Compared to the corresponding beam, λ c11 The corresponding beam exhibits angular offsets in both the horizontal and vertical directions. Therefore, the filter device c has relative spacing in both the horizontal and vertical optical paths. The value of the relative spacing of filter device c in the horizontal optical path is based on λ. c11 The corresponding beam and λ a11 The difference in the horizontal phase angle of the corresponding beam is determined, and the relative spacing of the filter device c in the vertical optical path is based on λ. c11 The corresponding beam and λ a11 The difference in the vertical phase angle of the corresponding beam is determined.

[0240] The above-described beam arrangement method is based on the example of implementing a second-level phase-weighted network using filtering devices. It should be understood that the beam arrangement method described above, and the parameters for determining the second-level phase-weighted network based on the beam arrangement method (such as the relative spacing of the filtering devices mentioned earlier), are also applicable to schemes that implement second-level phase-weighted networks using other devices, such as the scheme based on dispersive devices, which will be discussed below.

[0241] The phase weighting device provided in this application embodiment will be described below with reference to two specific examples, wherein the phase weighting device includes a two-level phase weighting network based on filtering devices.

[0242] Example 1

[0243] Figure 18 is another structural example of the phase weighting device provided in the embodiments of this application. The first-stage phase weighting network in the phase weighting device shown in Figure 18 includes the 16×16 Butler matrix mentioned earlier. The multiple optical paths of the second-stage phase weighting network include filter devices for four reflection bands (Figure 18 only shows one set of horizontal filter devices and one set of vertical filter devices), as mentioned earlier as filter devices (a~d). The reflection bands of filter devices (a~d) are bands (a~d).

[0244] Each input port of the first-order phase-weighted network receives four different wavelengths of optical signal. The optical signal input to each input port can be represented by λ. xij The expression represents the wavelength of the optical signal, where x takes values ​​from a to d, indicating the wavelength band of the optical signal. i and j take values ​​from 1 to 4, representing the vertical and horizontal input port numbers, respectively. It should be understood that the four wavelengths of the optical signal can be input to one input port of the first-stage phase-weighted network via a multiplexer (mux). Optionally, the optical signal can be amplified by an OPA before being input to the first-stage phase-weighted network.

[0245] In other words, the 16 input ports of the first-level phase-weighted network receive a total of 64 optical signals λ. a11 ~λ d44 (Figure 18 only shows the optical wave signals input to a portion of the ports). Figure 19 is a schematic diagram of the wavelength distribution of the input optical wave signals in Figure 18. See Figure 19, λ a11 ~λ d44 The light waves are distributed across reflection bands a to d. Each filter device corresponds to 16 wavelengths of optical signal, and these 16 wavelengths correspond to different input ports.

[0246] A single-stage phase-weighted network can map the optical signals input from the 16 input ports to spatial locations as shown in Figure 20. Referring to Figure 20, different spatial locations are identified by their corresponding optical signals.

[0247] As mentioned earlier, optical signals fed into a first-stage phase-weighted network from the same input port obtain the same phase weights, meaning they obtain the same first phase gradient. In other words, first optical signals of multiple wavelengths input to the first-stage phase-weighted network at the same port can be mapped to the same spatial location, as shown in Figure 20. It should be understood that Figure 20 only shows one first optical signal corresponding to one input port, such as λ. a11 The spatial location of the sign and λ a11 , λ b11 , λ c11 and λ d11 All correspond, or in other words, the first light wave signal λ a11 , λ b11 , λ c11 and λ d11 All are mapped to λ a11 The spatial location of the sign.

[0248] In a two-stage phase-weighted network, the relative positional differences of the filter components (a-d) can introduce different time delays, thus forming a second phase gradient. By designing the relative spacing (or relative displacement) of the filter components (a-d) in different optical paths, the optical signals with wavelengths belonging to the band (a-d) can obtain a second phase gradient, thereby dispersing the optical signals of different wavelengths from the spatial positions shown in Figure 20.

[0249] Figure 21 shows an example of a beam azimuth map supported by the phase weighting device shown in Figure 18. Compared to Figure 20, optical signals with wavelengths belonging to bands (a-d) input to the first-level phase weighting network at the same port can be mapped to the four spatial locations shown in Figure 21. For example, through the second-level phase weighting network, the first optical signal λ a11 , λ b11 , λ c11 and λ d11 The mapping position can be obtained from λ a11 The spatial location of the markers is dispersed to λ a11 , λ b11 , λ c11 and λ d11 The spatial location of the sign.

[0250] It can be seen that by setting four types of filtering devices in the two-stage phase weighting network, four types of beams can be formed according to the wavelength of the input optical signal, which helps to improve the flexibility of beam direction.

[0251] Example 2

[0252] Figure 22 is another structural example of the phase weighting device provided in the embodiments of this application. Referring to Figure 22, the first-level phase weighting network may include k input ports and m×n output ports, and each optical path of the second-level phase weighting network includes filter devices (a~l), whose reflection bands are bands (a~l).

[0253] Each input port of the first-order phase-weighted network receives l different wavelength optical signals. The optical signal input to each input port can be represented by λ. xi The expression indicates that x can take values ​​from a to l, representing the wavelength band of the optical signal, and i can take values ​​from 1 to k, used to identify the input port number.

[0254] Figure 23 is a schematic diagram of the wavelength distribution of the input optical signal in Figure 22. Referring to Figure 23, λ a(1～k) ~λ l(1～k) They are distributed in reflection bands a to l.

[0255] As described above, a first-order phase-weighted network can map k input optical signals to k spatial locations. Referring to Figure 24, the k spatial locations correspond to the k subspaces shown in Figure 24, and the k input optical signals can be mapped to λ in each of the k subspaces. a The spatial location of the identifier. A two-stage phase-weighted network can map onto λ. a Multiple beams at the identified spatial locations are discretized to different spatial locations according to their wavelengths, as shown by λ in Figure 24. a , λ b …λ l The spatial location of the sign.

[0256] Below, we use λ l Taking the spatial location of the marker as an example, the positional design of the filter device is introduced. Specifically, the relative spacing of filter device 'a' in multiple optical paths is 0.

[0257] λ l The spatial location of the sign and λ a The relative positional relationship and horizontal phase shift between the spatial locations of the markers and vertical phase shift related.

[0258] The horizontal relative spacing d of the filter element l H and vertical relative spacing d V It satisfies the following formula (6).

[0259] The positional distribution of the filter device l in the m×n optical paths can be shown in Table 2.

[0260] Table 2

[0261] Taking the optical path in the two-level phase weighting network as being composed of single-mode fiber as an example, the optical wave signal with wavelength belonging to band l can obtain the phase value as shown in matrix (7) through the phase weighting device provided in the embodiment of this application.

[0262] in, These are the horizontal and vertical phase weights obtained by passing a light wave signal with wavelength belonging to band l through a first-level phase weighting network; n SMF is the transmission group refractive index in a single-mode fiber.

[0263] In some embodiments, the relative spacing of the filter components can be determined based on the relative spatial positions of adjacent input ports of the first-order phase-weighted network. Optionally, various parameters mentioned above, such as beam arrangement and beam coverage performance requirements, can also be considered when determining the relative spacing of the filter components.

[0264] Referring again to Figure 24, exemplarily, λ in the subspace a The spatial location of the sign and λ l The difference in horizontal phase angle between the spatial locations of the markers is π / 2. As one possible implementation, λ could be made... a ~λ l It is uniformly distributed in the horizontal direction and covers the angular range corresponding to the horizontal phase π / 2. For example, λ a ~λ l If the signs are arranged in a horizontal line, then λ a ~λ l The horizontal phase angle offset between two adjacent spatial locations is π / 2l. The phase angle offset between adjacent spatial locations in the vertical direction can also be determined in a similar way, which will not be elaborated here for the sake of simplicity.

[0265] For example, it can be based on λ a ~λ l The distribution of the spatial positions of the identifier in the subspace determines the number of spatial positions included in the horizontal direction and the number of spatial positions included in the vertical direction in a subspace. Then, based on the phase angle offset in the horizontal direction in the subspace, the phase angle offset between two adjacent spatial positions in the horizontal direction is determined, and based on the phase angle offset in the vertical direction in the subspace, the phase angle offset between two adjacent spatial positions in the vertical direction is determined.

[0266] It should be noted that the first embodiment is described with the relative spacing of filter device a being 0. It should be understood that the relative spacing of multiple filter devices may also be non-zero.

[0267] The above describes the scheme of achieving second phase weighting through filtering devices (i.e., Example 1). The following describes the scheme of achieving second phase weighting through dispersive devices (i.e., Example 2).

[0268] Example 2: Phase Weighting Device Based on Dispersive Devices

[0269] In some embodiments, dispersive devices are included in some or all of the multiple optical paths, and the relative optical path differences of second optical signals of different wavelengths are different in the multiple optical paths. That is, phase gradient control at the wavelength granularity can be achieved by setting dispersive devices. Exemplarily, the filtering device can be a dispersive fiber or a dispersive waveguide. Exemplarily, each of the multiple optical paths is provided with a dispersive device, or one of the multiple optical paths is not provided with a dispersive device, while the other optical paths are provided with dispersive devices.

[0270] Light signals of different wavelengths propagate at different speeds in a dispersive device; that is, light signals of different wavelengths have different time delays when passing through the same dispersive device. The time delay of a light signal passing through a dispersive device is related to the length of the device, the wavelength of the light signal, and the dispersion coefficient of the device. Taking a dispersive device with a dispersion coefficient of D as an example, Figure 25 shows the time delay spectra corresponding to dispersive devices of different lengths. The values ​​λ1 to λ2 in Figure 25 are... k Let L be the wavelength of the light wave signal that increases sequentially, and L be the length of the dispersive device.

[0271] It can be seen that, when the length and dispersion coefficient of the dispersive device are constant, the wavelength of the optical signal is proportional to the time delay of the optical signal passing through the dispersive device. When the wavelength and dispersion coefficient of the optical signal are constant, the time delay of the optical signal passing through the dispersive device is proportional to the length of the dispersive device. When the wavelength and length of the optical signal are constant, the larger the dispersion coefficient, the greater the time delay of the optical signal passing through the dispersive device.

[0272] The time delay difference of light signals of different wavelengths passing through the same dispersive device is related to the wavelength of the light signal and the dispersion coefficient. Using λ1 and λ... k Indicates wavelengths λ1 and λ k The second optical wave signal, λ1 and λ k The relationship between the delay difference ΔT of the same dispersive device and the wavelength and dispersion coefficient of the optical signal satisfies the following formula (8). ΔT=DL (λ k -λ1) (8)

[0273] The phase of the second optical signal obtained through a two-stage phase weighting network can be determined based on the time delay of the optical signal in the optical path. λ1 and λ2, transmitted in the same optical path (i.e., transmitted through the same dispersive device), kPhase difference obtained through a two-stage phase weighting network It satisfies the following formula (9).

[0274] The time delay difference of a light signal of the same wavelength passing through different dispersive devices is related to the wavelength of the light signal, the dispersion coefficient, and the length difference of the dispersive devices. If the time delay difference of λ1 passing through multiple dispersive devices with a length difference of ΔL is DΔLλ1, then the second phase gradient obtained by λ1 through a two-stage phase weighting network can be determined based on DΔLλ1; k The delay difference between multiple dispersive devices with a length difference of ΔL is DΔLλ. k , then λ k The second phase gradient obtained through the two-stage phase weighting network can be based on DΔLλ. k Sure.

[0275] As mentioned earlier, different phase gradients correspond to different beam directions. The spatial differences between multiple beams corresponding to different wavelengths of light signals can be determined based on the difference between the second phase gradients obtained from second wavelengths of light signals through a two-stage phase weighting network. If the multiple optical paths in the two-stage phase weighting network include dispersive devices with a length difference of ΔL, then λ1 and λ k The difference between the corresponding second phase gradients can be based on DΔL(λ) k -λ1) is determined. For example, λ1 and λ k The difference between the corresponding second phase gradients can be

[0276] As can be seen from the above analysis, by designing the length difference of the dispersive device, the second phase weighting of the second light wave signal of different wavelengths can be realized, so that the second light wave signal of different wavelengths can obtain different second phase gradients.

[0277] In some embodiments, the dispersive devices arranged in the horizontal optical path of the multiple optical paths of the secondary phase weighting network have length differences to perform horizontal phase weighting on the second optical signal; the dispersive devices arranged in the vertical optical path of the multiple optical paths have length differences to perform vertical phase weighting on the second optical signal; the dispersive devices arranged in both the vertical and horizontal optical paths of the multiple optical paths have length differences to perform both horizontal and vertical phase weighting on the second optical signal.

[0278] For example, the length difference between the dispersive devices arranged in the horizontal optical path among the multiple optical paths is 0, and the length difference between the dispersive devices arranged in the vertical optical path among the multiple optical paths is ΔL. yThe length difference of the dispersive devices placed on the horizontal optical paths in multiple optical paths is ΔL. x The length difference between the dispersive devices arranged in the vertical direction of the multiple optical paths is 0; or the length difference between the dispersive devices arranged in the horizontal direction of the multiple optical paths is ΔL. x The length difference between the dispersive devices placed on the vertical optical paths in multiple optical paths is ΔL. y Among them, the difference in horizontal phase gradient corresponding to the second light wave signals of different wavelengths. Difference between vertical phase gradients Δλ represents the wavelength difference between second light wave signals of different wavelengths.

[0279] In some embodiments, the number of beam directions supported by the phase weighting device is related to the number of wavelengths of the second optical signal. λ1~λ k It can represent k different wavelengths of the second light wave signal, λ1~λ k Different second phase gradients can be obtained using a two-stage phase weighting network. In other words, the two-stage phase weighting network can convert λ1 to λ... k The corresponding beam is discretized from one spatial location to k spatial locations, thus forming k beams. Therefore, the number of beam directions supported by the phase weighting device is related to the number of wavelengths of the second optical signal. By controlling the wavelength of the optical signal input to the phase weighting device, the direction of the beam corresponding to the optical signal can be adjusted, which helps to achieve flexible control of the beam direction.

[0280] In some embodiments, single-mode fiber is included in multiple optical paths of the second-level phase-weighted network for delay compensation. Exemplarily, the length of the dispersive device in each optical path of the second-level phase-weighted network is the same as the sum of the lengths of the single-mode fiber. In this way, the optical signals transmitted in each optical path of the second-level phase-weighted network can arrive at the output port substantially simultaneously, facilitating the next stage of signal processing.

[0281] The following two examples illustrate a scheme for implementing second phase weighting using dispersive devices. In Example 1, the two-stage phase weighting network is used to perform horizontal phase weighting on the second optical signal, meaning the second phase gradient includes the horizontal phase gradient. In Example 2, the two-stage phase weighting network is used to perform both horizontal and vertical phase weighting on the second optical signal, meaning the second phase gradient includes both the horizontal and vertical phase gradients.

[0282] Example 1

[0283] Figure 26 is another structural example of the phase weighting device provided in the embodiments of this application. The phase weighting device shown in Figure 26 may include a first-level phase weighting network with k inputs and an m×n output Butler matrix.

[0284] For example, each input port of a first-order phase-weighted network can accept wavelengths from λ1 to λ2. k There are k optical signals with a total wavelength. A single-stage phase-weighted network can map the optical signals input from the k input ports to the spatial locations shown in Figure 27. The optical signals input to each input port are λ1 to λ2. k All are mapped to the same spatial location, that is, the spatial location marked by λ1 in Figure 27 corresponds to the optical wave signal λ1~λ k correspond.

[0285] Referring to Figure 26, the lengths of the n dispersive devices in the horizontal direction are 0, ΔL, ..., (n-1)ΔL, meaning the length difference of the dispersive devices included in the horizontal optical path is ΔL. The distribution of the dispersive devices in the vertical direction is uniform. The lengths of the multiple optical paths are supplemented by single-mode fiber, resulting in a total length of (n-1)ΔL for both the dispersive devices and the single-mode fiber. Therefore, the delay generated by the optical signal through the two-stage phase-weighted network can be represented by matrix 10.

[0286] In matrix 10 above, n DCF n SMF denoted by , respectively, the group refractive index of the dispersive device and the single-mode fiber; m is the number of horizontal optical paths in the second-order phase-weighted network; and n is the number of vertical optical paths in the second-order phase-weighted network, where n DCF =n eff -λ(dn eff It can be seen that the second phase gradient is / dλ).

[0287] For an optical signal λ input through a single port to a first-level phase-weighted network k The second phase gradient satisfies the following formula 11.

[0288] For optical signals λ1 and λ2 input through a single-stage phase-weighted network via one port, k Having the same optical path and the same output port, the second phase gradient of λ1 and λ k second phase gradient The difference satisfies the following formula 12.

[0289] Based on formulas 8 and 9 mentioned above, we can obtain the formula: ΔL=ΔT / D(λ) k Substituting -λ1) into formula 12 yields...

[0290] The phase weights formed by the first-level phase weighting network and the second-level phase weighting network together determine the direction of the beam supported by the phase weighting device. Alternatively, the first phase gradient and the second phase gradient together determine the direction of the beam supported by the phase weighting device. (Optical signal λ) k When the phase weighting device shown in Figure 25 is input through the k-th port, the optical signal λ at the output port of the phase weighting device... k The corresponding phase weight matrix is ​​shown in matrix 13.

[0291] In this context, "·*" represents element-wise multiplication of the matrix.

[0292] When the light wave signal λ1~λ k After being fed into a first-stage phase-weighted network from the same port, the signals can be dispersed at the spatial location corresponding to that port through a second-stage phase weighting. For example, optical signals λ1 to λ2... k After being fed into the first-stage phase-weighted network through port 1, the spatial location corresponding to port 1 shown in Figure 27 can be discretized into λ1 to λ2 in Figure 28 through the second phase weighting. k The spatial location of the sign.

[0293] It should be understood that light waves will experience a delay when passing through dispersive devices. Therefore, the spatial position of the empty λ1 marker in Figure 28 is different from the spatial position corresponding to one port in Figure 27.

[0294] Example 2

[0295] Figure 29 is another structural example of the phase weighting device provided in the embodiments of this application. The phase weighting device shown in Figure 29 may include a first-level phase weighting network with a Butler matrix of k inputs and m×n outputs.

[0296] For example, each input port of a first-order phase-weighted network can accept wavelengths from λ1 to λ2. k There are k optical signals with a total wavelength. A single-stage phase-weighted network can map the optical signals input from the k input ports to the spatial locations shown in Figure 27. The optical signals input to each input port are λ1 to λ2. k All are mapped to the same spatial location, that is, the spatial location marked by λ1 in Figure 27 corresponds to the optical wave signal λ1~λ k correspond.

[0297] Referring to Figure 29, the lengths of the n dispersive devices in the horizontal direction are 0 and ΔL respectively. x , …(n-1)ΔL x That is, the length difference of the dispersive devices included in the horizontal optical path is ΔL. x Wavelength spacing Δλ xThe difference between the horizontal phase gradients obtained by the optical wave signal through a two-level phase weighting network The lengths of the m dispersive devices in the vertical direction are 0 and ΔL respectively. y , …(m-1)ΔL y That is, the length difference of the dispersive devices included in the vertical optical path is ΔL. y Wavelength spacing Δλ y The difference between the vertical phase gradients of the two optical signals obtained by passing them through a two-level phase weighting network

[0298] When the light wave signal λ1~λ k After being fed into a first-stage phase-weighted network from the same port, the signals can be dispersed at the spatial location corresponding to that port through a second-stage phase weighting. For example, optical signals λ1 to λ2... k After being fed into the first-stage phase-weighted network through port 1, the spatial position corresponding to port 1 shown in Figure 27 can be discretized to λ1~λ1 shown in Figure 30 through the second phase weighting. k The spatial location of the sign.

[0299] In some embodiments, the two implementation methods of the two-level phase-weighted network described above can be used individually or in combination, and this application does not limit this. The following describes a scheme combining the two implementation methods with reference to Embodiment 3.

[0300] Example 3: Phase Weighting Device Based on Filtering Devices and Dispersive Devices

[0301] Figure 31 is another structural example of the phase weighting device provided in the embodiments of this application. The first-stage phase weighting network in the phase weighting device shown in Figure 31 can be a matrix-based Fourier transform structure or a true delay structure; the second-stage phase weighting network can include a group delay selection network and a precision control network. The group delay selection network can include the filtering devices mentioned above (such as Bragg gratings), and the precision control network can include the dispersive devices mentioned above. The first-stage phase weighting network can map the optical signals fed into different input ports to different spatial locations, while the group delay selection network and the precision control network can discretize the optical signals of different wavelengths input from each port from the same spatial location, forming multiple tunable beams.

[0302] A first-order phase-weighted network consists of k inputs and an m×n Butler matrix as the output, which can map optical signals input from k input ports to k spatial regions. For example, the horizontal direction includes k... H A spatial beam, including k in the vertical direction. V There are 1 space beam, and the total number of space beams is k = k H ×k VAccording to beamforming theory, the horizontal phase angle of a beam can vary from -π to π, and the vertical phase angle can vary from -π to π. This means that beam scanning in both the horizontal and vertical directions (from -π to π) can be achieved. Based on this, the phase gradient difference between the k beams uniformly distributed in the horizontal direction in the first-order phase-weighted network is Δφ. H =2π / k H The phase gradient Δφ between beams that are uniformly distributed in the vertical direction V =2π / k V When the first optical wave signal is input to the k-th port of the first-order phase-weighted network, the phase weight relationship of the m×n output ports satisfies the following matrix 14.

[0303] in Let be the initial phase in the horizontal and vertical directions corresponding to the k-th port. Let represent the phase gradients in the horizontal and vertical directions corresponding to the k-th port. It should be understood that changing the input port of the first optical signal will alter the phase weights formed by the first-stage phase weighting network.

[0304] The group delay selection network includes filtering devices (a, b…l), whose reflection bands are bands (a, b…l). The relative spacing between filtering devices a in the group delay selection network is 0, while the filtering devices (b…l) have relative spacing in both the horizontal and vertical directions. In other words, the group delay selection network is used for horizontal and vertical phase weighting of the optical signal. The dispersive devices in the precision control network have a length difference in the horizontal direction; that is, the precision control network is used for horizontal phase weighting of the optical signal. The dispersive devices do not have a length difference in the vertical direction.

[0305] The first optical signal fed into the first-level phase-weighted network includes λ1 to λ2. g λ1~λ g Including λ a1 ~λ aa′ , λ b1 ~λ bb′ 、…、λ l1 ~λ ll′ Where g = a′ + b′ + ... + l′, the filtering device a can reflect λ. a1 ~λ aa′ Filter device b can reflect λ b1 ~λ bb′ The filter device l can reflect λ la1 ~λ ll′ λ1~λ g The distribution relationship with wavebands (a, b…l) and λ1~λ gThe delay spectrum after passing through the dispersive device is shown in Figure 32.

[0306] The following sections describe the solutions of this application for optical wave signals with wavelengths belonging to different bands.

[0307] Since the relative spacing of the filter device 'a' is zero, the a' optical signals with wavelengths belonging to band 'a' do not generate new phase gradients when passed through the group delay selection network. That is, the group delay selection network maps the a' optical signals to the same spatial location. The precision control network can discretize the a' optical signals with wavelengths belonging to band 'a' from the same spatial location.

[0308] Based on the phase gradient difference Δφ between beams mentioned earlier H The length difference ΔL = Δφ of the dispersive device can be obtained. H / 2πf RF D(λ aa′ -λ a1 Correspondingly, the lengths of the n dispersive devices in the horizontal direction are 0, ΔL, 2ΔL…(n-1)ΔL. For example, the optical path in the second-order phase-weighted network is length-completed by single-mode fiber; that is, the total length of the dispersive devices and single-mode fiber is (n-1)ΔL. Therefore, the time delay generated by the optical signal passing through this precisely controlled network can satisfy matrix 10 mentioned earlier.

[0309] For an optical signal λ input through a single port to a first-level phase-weighted network aa′ The second phase gradient satisfies the following formula 15.

[0310] For an optical signal λ input through a single port to a first-level phase-weighted network a1 and λ aa′ via the same optical path and from the same output port, λ a1 second phase gradient and λ aa′ second phase gradient The difference satisfies the following formula 16.

[0311] Based on the preceding introduction, λ a1 ~λ aa′ The phase gradient difference of the beam in the horizontal direction is Δφ aH , λ a1 ~λ aa′ Spatial angle θ can be achieved by inputting through the same port. a1 to θ aa′ Beam scanning within, as shown in Figure 33 λ a1 The spatial location of the marker to λ aa′Horizontal scan between the spatial locations of the markers. Wherein, θ a1 =asin(λ) RF φ / 2πd), θ aa′ =asin(λ) RF (φ+Δφ aH ) / 2πd).

[0312] For b′ optical signals with wavelengths belonging to band b, a horizontal phase gradient difference Δφ can be achieved by passing them through a dispersive device. bH =2πf RF DΔL(λ bb′ -λ aa′ Correspondingly, λ can be precisely controlled through a network. b1 ~λ bb′ Mapped to λ in Figure 33 b1 ~λ bb′ The spatial location of the marker is b1.

[0313] For example, λ b1 ~λ bb′ Mapped to λ in Figure 33 b1 ~λ bb′ The spatial location b2 of the marker helps reduce coverage gaps between beams and improve beam coverage performance. As one implementation method, this can be achieved by designing the relative spacing of the filtering components b to reduce λ. b1 ~λ bb′ Mapped to spatial position b2 as shown in Figure 33. Spatial position b2 has a horizontal offset relative to spatial position b1 (corresponding to phase gradient difference). ) and vertical offset (corresponding to vertical phase gradient difference) Therefore, filter device b has both horizontal and vertical relative spacing in multiple optical paths. The horizontal relative spacing d of filter device b... bH and vertical relative spacing d bV Based on and Sure.

[0314] As mentioned earlier, in, For example, the vertical direction can be uniformly filled with beams corresponding to light wave signals whose wavelengths belong to bands (a, b...l), that is,

[0315] Based on this, the relative spacing of the m×n filter devices satisfies the following formula. The relative spacing between the n horizontal grating positions can be 0, d bH , 2d bH,…(n-1)d bH The relative spacing between the m grating positions in the vertical direction is 0, and d bV , 2d bV ,…(m-1)d bV .

[0316] For λ c1 ~λ cc′ 、…、λ l1 ~λ ll′ Optical signals can be based on λ b1 ~λ bb′ A similar method, through the relative spacing design of the filtering devices, maps it to a spatial position with the same horizontal phase angle as spatial position b2, and λ c1 ~λ cc′ 、…、λ l1 ~λ ll′ The spatial locations of the mappings do not overlap in the vertical direction, such as being arranged sequentially.

[0317] For optical signals with wavelengths belonging to l′ in band l, a horizontal phase gradient difference Δφ can be achieved by passing through a dispersive device. lH =2πf RF DΔL(λ ll′ -λ aa′ Correspondingly, λ can be precisely controlled through a network. l1 ~λ ll′ Mapped to λ in Figure 33 l1 ~λ ll′ The spatial location of the identifier is l1. As one implementation method, λ can be determined by designing the relative spacing of the filtering components l. l1 ~λ ll′ This is mapped to spatial position l2 shown in Figure 33. Spatial position l2 has a horizontal offset relative to spatial position l1 (corresponding to phase gradient difference). ) and vertical offset (corresponding to vertical phase gradient difference) Therefore, the filter device l has both horizontal and vertical relative spacing in multiple optical paths. The horizontal relative spacing d of the filter device l... lH and vertical relative spacing d lV Based on and Sure.

[0318] in, Since the vertical direction can be uniformly filled by beams corresponding to light wave signals with wavelengths belonging to bands (a, b…l), that is to say, Based on this For example, the relative spacing of n filtering devices l in the horizontal direction is 0, d lH, 2d lH ,…(n-1)d lH The relative spacing between the m grating positions in the vertical direction is 0, and d lV , 2d lV ,…(m-1)d lV As shown in Table 3.

[0319] Table 3

[0320] The following phase weight matrix 17 can be introduced by using the filter device l.

[0321] The phase weighting summation of the first-level phase weighting network, the group delay selection network, and the precision control network can jointly achieve beamforming. The total phase weight of the optical signal with wavelength belonging to band l input at port k satisfies the following matrix 18 at the output port of the phase weighting device m×n.

[0322] As mentioned earlier, when a second-level phase-weighted network is composed of filtering devices, the number of beams (also known as the number of wavelengths) supported by the phase-weighting device provided in this application embodiment is related to the number of filtering devices in an optical path. When a second-level phase-weighted network is composed of dispersive devices, the number of beams supported by the phase-weighting device provided in this application embodiment is related to the number of wavelengths of the first optical signal. Therefore, for a second-level phase-weighted network composed of filtering devices and dispersive devices, i.e., a second-level phase-weighted network composed of a group delay selection device and a precision control network, the number of beams supported by the phase-weighting device provided in this application embodiment is related to the number of filtering devices in an optical path and the number of wavelengths of the first optical signal. This will be explained below with specific examples.

[0323] If a single-stage phase-weighted network includes 32 input ports, it can map the input optical signal to 32 spatial locations, thus supporting the formation of 32 beams, such as 8 beams in the horizontal direction and 4 beams in the vertical direction.

[0324] For example, the second-level phase-weighted network includes a dispersive device but no filtering device (i.e., the number of filtering devices is 0). In this case, when optical signals of 32 wavelengths are input into the first-level phase-weighted network, the phase-weighting device supports the formation of 32 (number of wavelengths) × 8 = 256 positions in the horizontal direction, as shown in Figure 34. Referring to Figure 34, each small rectangle includes 32 positions. It can be seen that the number of positions in the horizontal direction can be expanded by using a dispersive device, which helps to improve the flexibility of beam direction.

[0325] Figure 35 shows the antenna pattern corresponding to the beam position in Figure 34. Referring to Figure 35, there are coverage gaps between the beams in the vertical direction, and the antenna gain at the coverage gaps is approximately 17.5 dB.

[0326] For example, the second-level phase-weighted network includes a dispersive device, and one optical path of the second-level phase-weighted network includes two filtering devices. Specifically, 16 of the 32 wavelengths of optical signals correspond to the reflection band of one filtering device. In this case, when the aforementioned 32 wavelengths of optical signals are input into the first-level phase-weighted network, the phase-weighting device supports the formation of 16 × 8 = 128 wave positions in the horizontal direction and 4 × 2 = 8 wave positions in the vertical direction, as shown in Figure 36. It can be seen that, based on expanding the number of wave positions in the horizontal direction through the dispersive device, the number of wave positions in the vertical direction is further expanded through the two filtering devices, which helps to improve the flexibility of the beam direction.

[0327] Figure 37 shows the antenna radiation pattern corresponding to the wave positions in Figure 36. Referring to Figure 37, compared with Figure 35, the coverage gap between beams in the vertical direction is significantly reduced.

[0328] For example, the second-level phase-weighted network includes a dispersive device, and one optical path of the second-level phase-weighted network includes three filtering devices. The reflection band of each filtering device corresponds to 10, 12, and 10 wavelengths of optical signals out of 32 wavelengths, respectively. In this case, when the aforementioned 32 wavelengths of optical signals are input into the first-level phase-weighted network, the phase-weighting device supports the formation of 80 (10×8), 96 (12×8), and 80 (10×8) wave positions in the horizontal direction, respectively, and 4×3 = 12 wave positions in the vertical direction, as shown in Figure 38. It can be seen that, based on expanding the number of wave positions in the horizontal direction through the dispersive device, the number of wave positions in the vertical direction is further expanded through the three filtering devices, which helps to improve the flexibility of the beam direction.

[0329] Figure 39 shows the antenna pattern corresponding to the beam position in Figure 38. Referring to Figure 39, compared with Figures 35 and 37, there are almost no coverage gaps between beams in the vertical direction. The antenna gain in the beam scanning space shown in Figure 39 reaches more than 20dB, indicating good coverage performance.

[0330] Example 4: Phase Folding

[0331] As mentioned earlier, the phase period is 2π, and phase x + 2π is equivalent to phase x. Based on this, given the same first phase gradient, if the difference in the second phase gradient corresponding to light signals of different wavelengths is an integer multiple of 2π, then these light signals of different wavelengths can be mapped to the same spatial location through a phase weighting device. This phenomenon can be called phase folding.

[0332] In some embodiments, phase folding can be divided into horizontal phase folding and vertical phase folding. For example, if the difference between the horizontal phase gradient of the third optical wave signal of the first wavelength and the horizontal phase gradient of the third optical wave signal of the second wavelength is 2π, then the horizontal phase angle of the beam formed based on the third optical wave signal of the first wavelength is the same as the horizontal phase angle of the beam formed based on the third optical wave signal of the second wavelength; or, if the difference between the vertical phase gradient of the third optical wave signal of the first wavelength and the vertical phase gradient of the third optical wave signal of the second wavelength is 2π, then the vertical phase angle of the beam formed based on the third optical wave signal of the first wavelength is the same as the vertical phase angle of the beam formed based on the third optical wave signal of the second wavelength.

[0333] In this way, based on the principle of phase folding, beam scanning in the horizontal or vertical range can be achieved by adjusting the wavelength of the optical signal, which improves beam flexibility and helps reduce hardware costs.

[0334] The phase folding scheme will be introduced below using Examples 1 and 2. The two-stage phase weighting networks in the phase weighting devices used in Examples 1 and 2 are both composed of dispersive devices.

[0335] Example 1

[0336] Example 1 uses the phase weighting device in Figure 29 mentioned earlier as an example. By designing the wavelength of the input optical signal, beam direction control is achieved through phase folding. Each input port of the first-stage phase weighting network receives the first optical signal λ1 to λ2 respectively. 2s .

[0337] λ1~λ 2s The horizontal phase gradient generated at the output of the phase weighting device, fed from the same port of the first-level phase weighting network, is shown in Figure 40. Referring to Figure 40, λ s+i With λ i The corresponding difference in horizontal phase gradient is 2π, where i takes values ​​from 1 to s. Therefore, λ s+i With λ i The corresponding beams have the same horizontal phase angle.

[0338] That is to say, λ1~λ s The phase gradient forms the beam coverage subspace's vertical horizontal angular scanning range, λ. s+1 ~λ 2s The beam formed by the phase gradient covers the lower horizontal angular scanning range of the subspace in the vertical direction. For example, λ s+1 Horizontal phase gradient of the corresponding beam in, Let λ1 be the phase gradient of the beam in the horizontal direction. Therefore, λ s+1 The beam formed by λ1 has the same angle in the horizontal direction.

[0339] λ s+1 The beam corresponding to λ1 is discretized at different positions in the vertical direction by the length difference in the vertical direction of the dispersive device. λ s+1 The difference between the phase gradients in the vertical direction corresponding to λ1 satisfies the following formula 19.

[0340] Based on the preceding introduction, ΔL y =ΔT / D (λ s+1 Substituting -λ1) into formula 19 yields...

[0341] The phase weights formed by the first-level phase weighting network and the second-level phase weighting network together determine the direction of the beam supported by the phase weighting device. Alternatively, the first phase gradient and the second phase gradient together determine the direction of the beam supported by the phase weighting device. (Optical signal λ) k When the phase weighting device shown in Figure 29 is input through the k-th port, the optical signal λ at the output port of the phase weighting device... k The corresponding phase weight matrix is ​​shown in Formula 20.

[0342] Among them, matrix A in formula 20 above m×n The elements in the first row are as follows: The elements in the second row are as follows: The elements in the m-th row are as follows: Matrix elements not shown can be deduced similarly.

[0343] When λ1~λ 2s When input from different ports of a one-dimensional phase-weighted network, the inputs will be discretized in a small range at the spatial locations corresponding to the different ports. For example, λ1 to λ2. 2s When the input is taken from the first port of the one-dimensional phase weighted network, the beam position distribution corresponding to the 2s optical wave signals is shown in Figure 41.

[0344] Example 2

[0345] In some embodiments, the wavelengths of the optical signals input to different input ports of the primary phase weighting network are different, which helps to improve the recognition and detection performance of different optical signals at the output of the phase weighting device.

[0346] Figure 42 is another structural example of the phase weighting device provided in this application embodiment. Referring to Figure 42, the first-level phase weighting network can be composed of a one-dimensional Butler matrix in the vertical direction as shown in Figure 7, and the second-level phase weighting network can be composed of a dispersive device. The number of output ports of the first-level phase weighting network is less than the number of input ports of the second-level phase weighting network, and multiple input ports of the second-level phase weighting network can be connected to one output port of the first-level phase weighting network. Multiple optical paths connected to the same output port of the first-level phase weighting network are connected to multiple horizontal output ports of the second-level phase weighting network to form a horizontal phase gradient.

[0347] A first-level phase-weighted network can map the input optical signal to m spatial locations in the vertical direction, as shown in Figure 43. A second-level phase-weighted network can discretize multiple optical signals input to the first-level phase-weighted network through the same port from the m spatial locations, as shown by the thick circles in Figure 44.

[0348] For example, the second optical wave signal includes multiple optical wave signals with different wavelengths. The second phase gradient difference of at least a portion of the second optical wave signals is greater than or equal to 2π, meaning that the beam corresponding to at least a portion of the second optical wave signals exhibits phase folding. See Figure 44, λ (k / m+1) The second phase gradient difference with λ1 is 2π, λ (k / m+2 The second phase gradient difference between λ1 and λ2 is greater than 2π.

[0349] For example, at least some phase gradients in the second optical signals corresponding to different input ports are greater than or equal to integer multiples of 2π. Referring again to Figure 44, the second phase gradient difference between adjacent spatial positions in the vertical direction is 2π, and the second phase gradient difference between non-adjacent spatial positions in the vertical direction is an integer multiple of 2π. For example, λ (2k / m+1) The second phase gradient difference with λ1 is 4π.

[0350] The phase folding scheme shown in Figure 44 will be described in detail below.

[0351] For example, the first optical signal includes k optical signals of different wavelengths, wherein the k optical signals are a group of optical signals with a wavelength interval of Δλ. The k optical signals can be divided into m groups of optical signals according to their wavelengths, and each group of optical signals includes k / m optical carriers, such as... In this network, m groups of optical signals are fed into the first-level phase-weighted network from m input ports. The horizontal scanning range of each group of optical signals is -π to π, therefore, one period ΔT = 1 / f RF The scanning interval of k / m optical carrier wavelengths is ΔΛ=kΔλ / m. Therefore, the length difference of the dispersive device in the horizontal direction... The lengths of the n dispersive fibers in the horizontal direction are 0, ΔL, ..., (n-1)ΔL. When the output fiber of the second-order phase-weighted network is supplemented by single-mode fiber, the total length of the dispersive and single-mode fibers is (n-1)ΔL. Therefore, the delay of the optical signal generated by the second-order phase-weighted network can be represented by the following matrix 21.

[0352] Among them, the phase gradient of adjacent radio frequency ports

[0353] For the optical signal λ input at the second port (k / m+1) The second phase gradient satisfies the following formula 22.

[0354] λ (k / m+1) The wavelength interval between λ1 and λ2 is kΔλ / m, they have the same output port via the same optical path, and the second phase gradient of λ1 is... and λ (k / m+1) second phase gradient The difference satisfies the following formula 23.

[0355] Will Substituting into formula 23, we get the corresponding spatial phase gradient difference as 2π, which means λ (k / m+1) The corresponding horizontal phase gradient underwent phase folding, λ (k / m+1) The corresponding spatial position is flipped back to the spatial position with the same horizontal phase gradient as λ1. The phase gradient distribution of the above k optical signals in the horizontal direction is shown in Figure 45.

[0356] optical signal λ k When the phase weighting device shown in Figure 42 is input through the m port of the first-level phase weighting network, the output delay obtained satisfies the following matrix 24.

[0357] In some embodiments, the phase weighting device can be integrated into a chip, or in other words, the product form of the phase weighting device can be a chip. Figure 46 is a schematic diagram of the chip layout of the phase weighting device in Figure 42. Referring to Figure 46, the first optical signal includes 64 optical signals, which can be divided into 8 groups. Each group of 8 optical signals is input through one input port of a first-level phase weighting network. For example, each group of 8 optical signals can be phase-weighted by multiplexing one input port of the first-level phase weighting network through an arrayed waveguide grating. The m′=8 output port of the first-level phase weighting network outputs an optical signal with a phase gradient relationship. At the same time, each output port of the first-level phase weighting network can be divided into 16 horizontal outputs by a power divider (such as a multimode interferometer tree (MMI tree)). The optical paths corresponding to these 16 outputs include dispersive devices and / or filtering devices to support the horizontal discretization of beams corresponding to different optical signals, as shown in Figure 44.

[0358] For example, the phase weighting device provided in the embodiments of this application can be composed of a Butler matrix and dispersive devices (and / or filtering devices), i.e., a passive network, which does not require additional control, and helps to achieve integration, chip-based operation, and reduces size and hardware cost.

[0359] Example 3

[0360] Referring again to Figure 33, in Embodiment 3, the λ can be selected through a group delay selection network. b1 ~λ bb′ Offset from spatial position b1 to spatial position b2, λ l1 ~λ ll′ Offset from spatial position l1 to spatial position l2, etc.

[0361] In some embodiments, the horizontal offset from spatial position b1 to spatial position b2 can be achieved through phase folding, the vertical offset from spatial position b1 to spatial position b2 can be achieved through a grouped delay selection network, the horizontal offset from spatial position l1 to spatial position l2 can be achieved through phase folding, and the vertical offset from spatial position l1 to spatial position l2 can be achieved through a grouped delay selection network, etc. This scheme helps to reduce the complexity of the grouped delay selection network. For example, λ b1 The corresponding horizontal phase gradient and λ a1 The difference between the corresponding horizontal phase gradients is 2π; λ l1 The corresponding horizontal phase gradient and λ a1 The difference between the corresponding horizontal phase gradients is 2(l-1)π.

[0362] In some embodiments, the first optical signal may include multiple optical signals with linearly arranged wavelengths. However, if the periods of the same signal emitted by different antenna elements differ significantly, it may result in the signals failing to coherently superimpose in space, thus preventing the formation of a beam in the target direction. If the periods of the same signal differ significantly, the time difference between the arrival of the same signal at the antenna element will be large. For example, before the signal transmitted by one antenna element arrives at that antenna element, the signal transmitted by another antenna element may have already been emitted, thus affecting the coherent superposition of the signals in space.

[0363] This application provides a design method for nonlinear wavelength arrangement, which helps to avoid the aforementioned problem of incoherent superposition. The following detailed description of this scheme is provided in conjunction with Embodiment 5.

[0364] Example 5: Solution for excessively large period spans

[0365] Taking the phase weighting device shown in Figure 42 as an example, the nonlinear scheduling of the input optical signal wavelength helps to avoid the problem of large differences in the period of the same signal in multiple antenna elements. Nonlinear scheduling can be understood as multiple optical signals not being input to multiple ports in order of wavelength magnitude.

[0366] In some embodiments, reducing the phase gradient difference between optical signals of different wavelengths at different output ports helps to reduce the period span of the optical signals. Exemplarily, some or all of the optical paths in a plurality of optical paths include dispersive devices, and the second optical signal includes multiple optical signals of different wavelengths, with the second phase gradient of the second optical signal ranging from -π to π. For example, the second optical signal includes an optical signal of a first wavelength and an optical signal of a second wavelength, the second phase gradient of the first wavelength optical signal being smaller, such as less than or equal to π / 4, and the difference between the second phase gradient of the second wavelength optical signal and the second phase gradient of the first wavelength optical signal being less than or equal to 2π.

[0367] As discussed earlier, and as shown in Formula 12, the phase gradient difference of light signals of different wavelengths at different output ports is related to the length difference, dispersion coefficient, and wavelength difference of the dispersive devices. This phase gradient difference determines the relative position of the beams corresponding to different wavelengths. Therefore, while keeping the phase gradient difference constant, the second phase gradient of different light signals can be adjusted by varying the length difference, dispersion coefficient, and wavelength difference of the dispersive devices.

[0368] For example, increasing the wavelength spacing between adjacent optical signals among multiple optical signals input to a single port, while simultaneously shortening the length difference of the dispersive fiber, helps reduce the number of cycles the optical signal traverses. On the other hand, shortening the length difference of the dispersive fiber helps reduce the size of the phase weighting device and lowers hardware costs. The adjacent optical signals mentioned here refer to optical signals that are expected to be mapped to adjacent spatial locations.

[0369] Taking a first-order phase-weighted network with four optical signals input at each port as an example, each input port can receive optical signals λ1, λ5, λ9, and λ1. 13 Wherein, λ i+1 -λ i The wavelength difference between any two adjacent optical signals at an input port increases to 4Δλ, as mentioned earlier. The period span of the optical signals input to all input ports is within 2π, which helps avoid the problem of incoherent superposition.

[0370] As another implementation, the wavelengths of the optical signals input to different input ports can be different. This helps prevent the output from failing to recognize signals of the same wavelength input from different ports when optical signals of the same wavelength are simultaneously input to the first-stage phase weighting network from different ports. Therefore, taking a first-stage phase weighting network with four input ports, each inputting four optical signals, as an example, the optical signals input to the first port are λ1, λ5, λ9, and λ... 13 The optical signals input to the second port are λ2, λ6, and λ7. 10 , λ 14 The optical signals input to the third port are λ3, λ7, and λ8. 11 , λ 15 The optical signals input to the fourth input port are λ4, λ8, and λ 12 , λ 16 The phase weighting device can map the input optical wave signal to the spatial position shown in Figure 47.

[0371] Taking the correspondence between the optical wave signal and the input port shown in Figure 43 as an example, in this embodiment of the application, by adjusting λ1 to λ2... k The wavelength selection helps to reduce the period span of the optical signal. Figure 48 shows another example of the delay spectrum of the optical signal after passing through the dispersive device according to an embodiment of this application. λ1~λ k The size relationships are shown in Figure 48, λ1~λ k The corresponding horizontal coordinate position. The relationship between the wavelength of the light wave signal and the horizontal phase gradient in Figure 48 is shown in Figure 49. It can be seen that λ1~λ k The value of the second phase gradient is between -π and π.

[0372] Example 6: Wavelength Scheduling

[0373] The phase weighting device provided in this application embodiment can determine a first phase gradient based on the port of the first-level phase weighting network input to the optical signal, and can determine a second phase gradient based on the wavelength of the optical signal. It should be noted that the input port of the first-level phase weighting network is the input port of the phase weighting device, and the output port of the second-level phase weighting network is the output port of the phase weighting device.

[0374] The beam scanning methods supported by the embodiments of this application are described below from two aspects: the input port and the wavelength scheduling of the optical signal.

[0375] In some embodiments, the first optical signal includes multiple sets of optical signals, each set of optical signals corresponding to an input port of the phase weighting device. That is, a set of optical signals is fed in from an input port of a first-stage phase weighting network.

[0376] For example, a single-level phase-weighted network can support one input port feeding an optical signal at the same time, or it can support multiple input ports feeding optical signals at the same time. The optical signal fed into one input port at the same time can include a group of optical signals corresponding to that input port, or it can include one optical signal from that group of optical signals.

[0377] Alternatively, the phase weighting device supports the simultaneous feeding of at least two of the multiple sets of optical signals, or the phase weighting device supports the simultaneous feeding of at least two of the multiple sets of optical signals.

[0378] One implementation method involves sequentially feeding multiple sets of optical signals into each of the multiple input ports of the phase weighting device. This method allows for beam scanning by simultaneously scanning one subspace corresponding to the first-level phase weighting network, and then sequentially scanning multiple subspaces.

[0379] As another implementation, each of the multiple sets of optical signals is sequentially fed into each of the multiple input ports of the phase weighting device. This method can achieve beam scanning by simultaneously scanning the beam corresponding to one wavelength of optical signal, and sequentially scanning the beams corresponding to multiple wavelengths of optical signal.

[0380] If optical signals of the same wavelength are simultaneously fed into different input ports, each output of the first-stage phase-weighted network may include multiple optical signals with the same wavelength but different phases. In this case, the output of the first-stage phase-weighted network may not be able to directly detect and identify these two types of optical signals, thus affecting subsequent optical signal processing.

[0381] As one possible implementation, a processing module can be added to the phase weighting device. This processing module can be used to process multiple signals with the same wavelength output from the same port of the first-level phase weighting network, such as decoherent processing, thereby identifying multiple signals output from the same port.

[0382] As another possible implementation, multiple optical signals simultaneously input to the phase weighting device from different ports have different wavelengths. For example, h light sources generate h optical carriers of different wavelengths. Any one of these h optical carriers can reach any one of the k input ports. Each port produces a different phase gradient for each optical carrier, forming different beams in space. The h optical carriers and k input ports can generate h×k spatial beams. In other words, by wavelength scheduling, the wavelengths of multiple optical signals simultaneously input to multiple ports are controlled to be different, thus avoiding the problem of multiple signals with the same wavelength existing at the same output port in a single-stage phase weighting network.

[0383] Taking Figure 18 as an example, the optical wave signal input to each input port includes multiple optical wave signals with wavelengths belonging to bands (a to d), but the wavelengths of the optical wave signals of the same band input to different ports are different. Specifically, each input port includes an optical wave signal of band a, but the wavelength of the optical wave signal of band a input to each input port is different. For example, the wavelength of the optical wave signal of band a input to each of the 16 input ports can be λ. a11 ~λ a44 one of the.

[0384] Taking Figure 42 as an example, the wavelength of the optical signal input to each input port is different. For example, the wavelength of the optical signal input to the first port is λ1 to λ2. k / m The wavelength of the optical signal input at the m-th port is

[0385] When a two-stage phase weighting network is used to apply different phase weights to optical signals of different bands, for the same band, the wavelengths of optical signals simultaneously input into the first-stage phase weighting network from different ports can be different wavelengths within that band, making implementation simple.

[0386] When a two-stage phase-weighted network is used to apply different phase weights to optical signals of different wavelengths, the wavelengths of the optical signals simultaneously input into the first-stage phase-weighted network from different ports can all be different. Considering the problem mentioned earlier that the period span of the same signal is large and coherence cannot be achieved, the nonlinear wavelength scheduling method mentioned earlier can be used. This method helps to improve the detection performance of the output signal of the first-stage phase-weighted network and avoids the problem of incoherence.

[0387] As mentioned earlier, the first optical signal includes optical signals of different wavelengths. When the two-stage phase-weighting network applies different phase weights to these signals, the wavelength interval between them is greater than or equal to a preset value. This preset value can be determined, for example, based on the carrier bandwidth to avoid interference between channels; the preset value could be the carrier bandwidth, and the wavelength interval could be greater than this preset value. Alternatively, the preset value can be determined based on the wavelength control precision of the light source; for example, the preset value could be the minimum wavelength that the light source can control. As an example, this preset value could be the minimum wavelength interval that the phase-weighting device can recognize. In other words, the phase-weighting device cannot recognize multiple optical signals with wavelengths smaller than this preset value.

[0388] In some embodiments, the first optical signal may be provided by a multi-wavelength array light source or multiple tunable light sources.

[0389] A multi-wavelength array light source can be used to generate optical signals of various fixed wavelengths. The multi-wavelength array light source can include multiple array elements, each element used to generate an optical signal of a fixed wavelength. For example, the multiple array elements in the multi-wavelength array light source are used to sequentially or simultaneously input to one or more input ports of a phase weighting device. In this case, optical signals of any two wavelengths can be input to the phase weighting device simultaneously.

[0390] A tunable light source can be used to generate light signals of multiple wavelengths near its center frequency; in other words, the wavelength of the light signal generated by the tunable light source can be adjusted. For example, multiple tunable light sources may be sequentially input to one or more input ports of a phase-weighting device, or multiple tunable light sources may be simultaneously input to multiple input ports of a phase-weighting device.

[0391] For example, a tunable light source can be used to generate a light wave signal λ1, or in other words, the center frequency of the tunable light source is λ1. By controlling the light wave signal to vary near the wavelength λ1 using the tunable light source, fine-tuning of the beam direction can be achieved, which helps to improve the flexibility of the beam direction. Taking the phase weighting device in Figure 42, where the light source is provided by a tunable light source, as an example, when the wavelength of the light wave signal provided by the tunable light source varies near the center frequency, the direction of the beam can be controlled to shift from the spatial position indicated by the thick circle in Figure 44 to the spatial position indicated by the thin circle.

[0392] For example, a tunable light source can be used to generate multiple optical signals corresponding to a single input port, helping to reduce the number of light sources in the system and thus reduce its size. As an example, referring to Figure 44, the tunable light source can provide λ1 to λ2. k / mThe optical wave signal. In this case, a single laser can achieve horizontal beam coverage, but a single laser can only output one wavelength at a time, that is, it can only input optical wave signals λ1 to λ2 into the phase weighting device at the same time. k / m One of the light wave signals.

[0393] For example, multiple tunable light sources can be used to generate multiple optical signals corresponding to one input port, where each tunable light source can generate one optical signal. As an example, referring to Figure 44, multiple tunable light sources can be used to provide optical signals λ1 to λ2. k / m In this case, λ1 to λ2 can be input to the phase weighting device at the same time. k / m Any two light wave signals in the diagram can be used to simultaneously form λ1 to λ2 in Figure 44. k / m The beam at any two locations within the identified spatial position.

[0394] For example, a tunable light source can be used to generate optical wave signals corresponding to multiple input ports, where a tunable light source can be used to generate multiple optical wave signals.

[0395] In the process of optical wave scheduling, multiple optical signals or multiple sets of optical signals can be sequentially fed into one or more input ports of a first-level phase-weighted network. This can be understood as feeding multiple optical signals or multiple sets of optical signals into one or more input ports of a first-level phase-weighted network in a certain arrangement. The arrangement mentioned here can include the correspondence between multiple optical signals of different wavelengths and input ports, as well as the input timing sequence when multiple optical signals of different wavelengths are input into the first-level phase-weighted network.

[0396] Based on the positions of the multiple beams to be formed, the correspondence between multiple optical signals or groups of optical signals and the input ports can be determined. Based on the scanning method of the multiple beams to be formed, the timing of the input of the multiple optical signals to the first-level phase-weighted network can be determined.

[0397] When at least a portion of the optical signals of different wavelengths are provided by the same tunable light source, the arrangement determines the scheduling sequence of the tunable light source, and the wavelength of the optical signal output by the tunable light source corresponding to different timing sequences.

[0398] In some embodiments, the above arrangement can be adjusted according to system requirements to improve system flexibility.

[0399] As mentioned earlier, the first optical wave signal can be weighted by the first phase to obtain the second optical wave signal, and the second optical wave signal can be weighted by the second phase to obtain the third optical wave signal. Here, the first, second, and third optical wave signals can be a group of optical wave signals with the same wavelength and carrying the same radio frequency signal. Therefore, in this embodiment, when λ represents the optical wave signal, λ can refer to one of the first, second, or third optical wave signals with wavelength λ. Specifically, it can be determined which of the three optical wave signals it is based on the output or input position of the optical wave signal.

[0400] Figure 50 is a schematic diagram of the beamforming apparatus provided in an embodiment of this application. The beamforming apparatus 5000 shown in Figure 50 may include an optoelectronic modulation module 5010 and the phase weighting device 500 described above.

[0401] The photoelectric modulation module 5010 can be used to modulate a first radio frequency signal carrying a baseband signal using a light wave as a carrier to generate a first light wave signal. In some embodiments, the photoelectric modulation module may include a light source, a modulation module, and an amplification module, wherein the light source is used to generate the light wave signal, the modulation module is used to modulate the first radio frequency signal onto the light wave signal, and the amplification module can be used to amplify the power of the light wave signal. Exemplarily, the photoelectric modulation module may include a multi-wavelength array light source or multiple tunable light sources.

[0402] The phase weighting device 500 can be connected to the photoelectric modulation module. The phase weighting device is used to receive the first optical wave signal and perform phase weighting on the first optical wave signal to obtain multiple third optical wave signals.

[0403] The phase weighting mentioned here includes the first phase weighting and the second phase weighting mentioned earlier. The first phase gradient obtained by the optical signal through the first phase weighting is related to the input port of the first-level phase weighting network into which the first optical signal is fed. The second phase gradient obtained by the optical signal through the second phase weighting is related to the wavelength of the optical signal. For example, the second phase gradient of second optical signals with different wavelengths is different, and / or, the second phase gradient of second optical signals with wavelengths belonging to different bands is different.

[0404] The third optical wave signal can be used to generate a second radio frequency (RF) signal, which is then fed into the antenna module to form a beam. The direction of this beam is related to the phase gradient of the second RF signal, which in turn is related to the phase gradient of the third optical wave signal. Therefore, the direction of the beam can be controlled by adjusting the first phase gradient and / or the second phase gradient.

[0405] The phase weighting device 500 can be referred to in the previous description, and will not be repeated here for the sake of brevity.

[0406] In some embodiments, the first optical signal may include multiple sets of optical signals, each set of optical signals corresponding to an input port of the phase weighting device; the photoelectric modulation module is used for one of the following: sequentially feeding multiple sets of optical signals into each of the multiple input ports of the phase weighting device; sequentially feeding each of the multiple sets of optical signals into each of the multiple input ports of the phase weighting device; simultaneously feeding at least two sets of optical signals from multiple sets of optical signals into the phase weighting device; or simultaneously feeding at least two optical signals included in multiple sets of optical signals into the phase weighting device.

[0407] For details regarding wavelength scheduling, please refer to the relevant introduction in Example 6 above. For the sake of brevity, it will not be repeated here.

[0408] Figure 51 is a schematic diagram of the beamforming system provided in an embodiment of this application. The beamforming system 5100 shown in Figure 51 may include a first radio frequency module 5110, the beamforming device 5000 described above, a second radio frequency module 5120, and an antenna array 5130.

[0409] The first radio frequency module 5110 can be used to modulate the baseband signal to generate a first radio frequency signal. The first radio frequency module 5110 is also used to feed the first radio frequency signal into the beamforming apparatus 5000.

[0410] The beamforming apparatus 5000 can be connected to the first radio frequency module 5110. The beamforming apparatus receives a first radio frequency signal generated by the first radio frequency module 5110 and generates multiple third optical wave signals based on the first radio frequency signal. For example, the beamforming apparatus 5000 can modulate the first radio frequency signal onto the optical wave signal, and then perform first phase weighting and second phase weighting on the optical wave signal to generate multiple third optical wave signals. Details not described in detail can be found in the preceding description of the beamforming apparatus 5000; for brevity, they will not be repeated here.

[0411] The second radio frequency (RF) module 5120 can be connected to the beamforming apparatus 5000. The second RF module can be used to demodulate multiple third optical wave signals to obtain a second RF signal. The second RF module 5120 can also be used to feed the second RF signal into an antenna array. Exemplarily, the phase gradient of the second RF signal is determined based on the phase gradients of the multiple third optical wave signals. Optionally, the phase gradient of the second RF signal can also be determined based on the initial phase of the first RF signal.

[0412] Antenna array 5130 includes multiple antenna elements, which can be connected to multiple output ports of beamforming device 5000. Antenna array 5130 can be used to transmit a second radio frequency signal to form a beam. The direction of the beam is determined based on the phase gradient of the second radio frequency signal. The phase gradient of the second radio frequency signal is determined based on the phase gradients of multiple third optical wave signals. Therefore, the direction of the beam can be controlled by adjusting the phase gradients of the third optical wave signals, such as the first phase gradient and / or the second phase gradient.

[0413] One possible implementation is to broaden the beam to send the same information, such as broadcast information, to users over a large area. For example, beam broadening can be applied to the entire cell or to a portion of the cell. For example, beam broadening can be applied to multiple beams in the horizontal direction, multiple beams in the vertical direction, or both horizontal and vertical beams.

[0414] In some embodiments, an initial phase difference of π or -π can be added to the first radio frequency (RF) signal carried in the optical wave signals corresponding to two adjacent beams in space, thereby achieving beam broadening of the two adjacent beams. Exemplarily, the first RF signal includes a third RF signal and a fourth RF signal. The first RF module can be used to modulate the same baseband signal to obtain the third RF signal and the fourth RF signal, with a phase difference of π or -π between the third RF signal and the fourth RF signal. Alternatively, the first RF module is used to add an initial phase difference to the third RF signal and the fourth RF signal, such as an initial phase of 0 for the third RF signal and an initial phase of π or -π for the fourth RF signal.

[0415] Furthermore, the beamforming device is used to process the third radio frequency signal to obtain a third optical wave signal of the first wavelength, and the third optical wave signal of the first wavelength is used to form a first beam; the beamforming device is used to process the fourth radio frequency signal to obtain a third optical wave signal of the second wavelength, and the third optical wave signal of the second wavelength is used to form a second beam; wherein, the beamforming device is used to form multiple beams, and the first beam and the second beam are two beams that are vertically adjacent or two beams that are horizontally adjacent among the multiple beams.

[0416] When different phase weighting devices are used, the optical signals corresponding to two adjacent beams in multiple beams are different. Therefore, the optical signals corresponding to two adjacent beams can be determined based on the beam arrangement supported by the phase weighting device, and the radio frequency signal that needs to be added with the initial phase can be determined based on the optical signal.

[0417] The phase weighting device shown in Figure 18 supports the formation of multiple beams as shown in Figure 21. Figure 21 shows the optical signals corresponding to horizontally adjacent beams and the optical signals corresponding to vertically adjacent beams. Figure 52 is a schematic diagram of vertical beam broadening of the beams in Figure 21.

[0418] For ease of understanding, -λ is used to represent that the first radio frequency signal corresponding to this optical wave signal has an initial phase π. See Figure 52, λ c11 , λ c21 , λ c31 , λ c41 The corresponding first radio frequency signal has an initial phase π. Figure 52 only shows the initial phase corresponding to a portion of the optical wave signals. It should be understood that the adjacent phase relationships in other columns of vertical wide beams are similar to those in the first column.

[0419] Figure 53 is a schematic diagram of the signal superposition effect in the vertical direction corresponding to the beam widening in Figure 52. For example, the beam widened in the vertical direction in Figure 52 can be used to achieve beam scanning in the horizontal direction, as shown in Figure 54. If the beam shown in Figure 21 is widened both vertically and horizontally, a super-wide beam with omnidirectional coverage can be obtained, as shown in Figure 55.

[0420] Taking the phase weighting device (two filter devices a and b) in Embodiment 3 mentioned earlier as an example, g = 16, meaning a total of 16 optical signals are input to the phase weighting device. Among them, the wavelengths of 8 optical signals belong to the reflection band of filter device a, and the wavelengths of 8 optical signals belong to the reflection band of filter device b. The first-stage phase weighting network input port 1 (denoted by S1) receives optical signals λ1 and λ2. 10 Input port 5 (represented by S5) receives optical signals λ3 and λ4. 12 Input port 9 (represented by S9) receives optical signals λ5 and λ6. 14 Input port 13 (represented by S13) receives optical signals λ7 and λ8. 16 The beam broadening in the vertical direction is shown in Figure 56.

[0421] See Figure 56, λ 10 , λ 12 , λ 14 , λ 16 The corresponding first radio frequency signal carries the initial phase π. It should be understood that Figure 56 only shows the initial phase of the first radio frequency signal corresponding to the first column of optical wave signals in the vertical direction; the adjacent phase relationships in other columns of vertical wide beams are similar to those in the first column. Figure 57 is a beam scanning effect diagram corresponding to the beam broadening method in Figure 56.

[0422] Taking the phase weighting device (two filter devices a and b) in Embodiment 3 mentioned earlier as an example, g = 16, meaning a total of 16 optical signals are input to the phase weighting device. Among them, the wavelengths of 8 optical signals belong to the reflection band of filter device a, and the wavelengths of 8 optical signals belong to the reflection band of filter device b. The first-stage phase weighting network input port 1 (represented by S1) receives optical signals λ1, λ5, λ9, and λ1. 13 Input port 2 (represented by S2) receives optical signals λ2, λ6, and λ7. 10 , λ 14 Input port 3 (represented by S3) receives optical signals λ3, λ7, and λ8. 11 , λ 15 Input port 4 (represented by S4) receives optical signals λ4, λ8, and λ9. 12 , λ 16 The horizontal beamwidth is shown in Figure 58.

[0423] Referring to Figure 58, in the first row horizontally, the first radio frequency signals corresponding to λ5, λ6, λ7, and λ8 carry the initial phase π. In the second row horizontally, λ9, λ6, λ7, and λ8 carry the initial phase π. 10 , λ 11 , λ 12 The corresponding first radio frequency signal carries an initial phase π. For example, λ5 and λ9 are adjacent in the vertical direction, and the initial phase difference between the first radio frequency signals corresponding to λ5 and λ9 is π, which helps to improve the beam widening effect. Figure 59 is a beam scanning effect diagram corresponding to the beam widening method in Figure 58.

[0424] As mentioned earlier, when different phase weighting devices are used, the optical signals corresponding to two adjacent beams in multiple beams are different. In order to achieve coordinated control of the modules in the beamforming system, as one implementation method, the beamforming system shown in Figure 51 can also include a control module. The control module can be used to obtain the type of phase weighting device, thereby determining two adjacent beams in multiple beams.

[0425] For example, the control module can also be used to input first control information to the first radio frequency module based on two adjacent beams among a plurality of beams. The first control information can be used to control the first radio frequency module to determine the initial phase of the first radio frequency signal. For example, the first control information can be used to indicate whether to perform beam widening, horizontal beam widening, vertical beam widening, or partial beam widening. When the first control information indicates partial beam widening, the first control information can also be used to indicate the beam that needs to be widened. As another example, the first control information can be used to indicate two adjacent beams among a plurality of beams, and the first radio frequency module can determine the radio frequency signal for which an initial phase needs to be added based on this information.

[0426] It should be understood that the control module can be a standalone module or integrated with any module in the beamforming system, such as the control module being integrated with the first radio frequency module.

[0427] Figure 60 is a schematic diagram of another structure of the beamforming system provided in an embodiment of this application. Referring to Figure 60, the beamforming system may include a digital processing unit 6010, a first radio frequency unit 6020, a ROF unit 6030, a phase weighting device 6040, and a second radio frequency unit 6050.

[0428] The digital processing unit 6010 can be used to encode the user's data signal to form a baseband signal, and feed the baseband signal into the first radio frequency unit 6020. Wherein, S1~S K It carries user data. The digital-to-analog converter (DAC) module is used to convert digital signals into analog signals.

[0429] The first radio frequency unit 6020 can be switched via a switch matrix to any one of the electro-optical (E / O) converters as a radio frequency input. The E / O is used to modulate the radio frequency signal onto the optical signal.

[0430] Multiple different optical signals can be simultaneously input to one input port of the phase weighting device 6040 via a multiplexer (mux). The first-level phase weighting network is used to achieve fully connected network distribution, and its output port contains multiple optical signals with different phase weights. An optical circulator is installed between the first-level and second-level phase weighting networks. The multiple optical paths of the second-level phase weighting network are composed of optical fibers, and each optical path includes Bragg gratings (a-d). Different phase weights can be achieved by designing the relative spacing of the Bragg gratings (a-d).

[0431] The output of the phase weighting device 6040 is connected to the second radio frequency unit 6050. Optionally, an optical power amplifier (OPA) is provided between the output of the phase weighting device 6040 and the input of the second radio frequency unit 6050.

[0432] The second radio frequency unit 6050 is used to demodulate the optical wave signal output by the phase weighting device 6040 to obtain the second radio frequency signal, and feed the second radio frequency signal into the antenna array.

[0433] Figure 61 is a schematic diagram of another structure of the beamforming system provided in an embodiment of this application. Referring to Figure 61, the beamforming system may include a digital processing unit 6010, a first radio frequency unit 6120, a ROF unit 6130, a phase weighting device 6140, and a second radio frequency unit 6050.

[0434] The first radio frequency unit 6120 can be used to modulate the baseband signal into the radio frequency signal. One radio frequency signal can be fed into one E / O of the ROF unit 6130, and multiple E / Os can be fed into the phase weighting device 6140 through the switch matrix.

[0435] The first-stage phase weighting network in the phase weighting device 6140 can be composed of a two-dimensional Butler matrix, and the second-stage phase weighting network can be composed of dispersive optical fibers. The phase weight of the output optical signal can be controlled by the length difference of the dispersive optical fibers in each optical path, thereby improving the flexibility of the beam.

[0436] For parts not described in detail, such as the digital processing unit 6010 and the second radio frequency unit 6050, please refer to the previous descriptions, and they will not be repeated here.

[0437] Figure 62 is a schematic diagram of another structure of the beamforming system provided in an embodiment of this application. Referring to Figure 62, the beamforming system may include a digital processing unit 6010, a first radio frequency unit 6120, a ROF unit 6230, a phase weighting device 6240, and a second radio frequency unit 6050.

[0438] The first radio frequency unit 6120 can be used to modulate the baseband signal into the radio frequency signal, and one radio frequency signal can be fed into one E / O of the ROF unit 6230.

[0439] The ROF unit 6230 may include a tunable light source for generating optical signals of different wavelengths at different times and modulating a first radio frequency signal onto the optical signals. Exemplarily, a tunable laser may be used to feed an optical signal into an input port of a phase-weighted device.

[0440] The first-stage phase weighting network in the phase weighting device 6240 can be composed of a two-dimensional Butler matrix, and the second-stage phase weighting network can be composed of dispersive fiber and Bragg reflection gratings (a-l). The phase weight of the output optical signal can be controlled by the length difference of the dispersive fiber in each optical path and the phase position difference of the Bragg reflection grating, thereby improving the flexibility of the beam.

[0441] For parts not described in detail, such as the digital processing unit 6010, the first radio frequency unit 6120 and the second radio frequency unit 6050, please refer to the above description and they will not be repeated here.

[0442] Figure 63 is a schematic diagram of another beamforming system provided in an embodiment of this application. Referring to Figure 63, the beamforming system may include a digital processing unit 6010, a first radio frequency unit 6120, a ROF unit 6330, a phase weighting device 6340, and a second radio frequency unit 6050.

[0443] The ROF unit 6330 may include tunable lasers, wavelength division multiplexing (WDM), and semiconductor optical amplifiers (SOA). Multiple tunable lasers can be used to feed optical signals of different wavelengths to one input port of the phase weighting device. Multiple optical signals are transmitted in the same optical fiber via WDM, which helps increase the number of concurrent beams.

[0444] The first-stage phase weighting network in the phase weighting device 6340 can be composed of a one-dimensional Butler matrix in the vertical direction, and the second-stage phase weighting network can be composed of dispersive optical fibers. One output port of the first-stage phase weighting network can be connected to multiple input ports of the second-stage phase weighting network. The phase weight of the output optical signal can be controlled by the length difference of the dispersive optical fibers in the horizontal direction in each optical path, improving beam flexibility.

[0445] It should be noted that the embodiments of this application are described using a circular beam coverage area as an example. The method provided in the embodiments of this application can also be applied to scenarios where the beam coverage area is of other shapes, and this application does not limit it in this regard.

[0446] The apparatus embodiments provided in this application have been described above. The method embodiments provided in this application will be described below. It should be understood that the descriptions of the apparatus embodiments correspond to the descriptions of the method embodiments. Therefore, any content not described in detail can be referred to the method embodiments above, and for the sake of brevity, will not be repeated here.

[0447] Figure 64 is a schematic flowchart of a beamforming method provided in an embodiment of this application. The beamforming method shown in Figure 64 may include steps S6410 to S6450.

[0448] S6410 uses light waves as carrier waves to modulate a first radio frequency signal carrying a baseband signal to generate a first light wave signal.

[0449] S6420: Based on the transmission path of the first optical wave signal, the first optical wave signal is subjected to a first phase weighting to obtain multiple second optical wave signals. The first optical wave signal obtains a first phase gradient through the first phase weighting.

[0450] S6430 performs a second phase weighting on multiple second optical wave signals based on their wavelengths to obtain multiple third optical wave signals. The second phase gradient is obtained from the multiple second optical wave signals through the second phase weighting.

[0451] The S6440 demodulates multiple third optical wave signals to obtain a second radio frequency signal.

[0452] S6450 transmits a second radio frequency signal to form a beam. The direction of the beam is determined based on the phase gradient of the second radio frequency signal, which is determined based on both a first and a second phase gradient.

[0453] In some embodiments, the second phase gradient of the second optical wave signal with different wavelengths is different, and / or the second phase gradient of the second optical wave signal with wavelengths belonging to different bands is different.

[0454] In some embodiments, the second phase gradient is determined based on the relative optical path difference of the second optical signal in multiple optical paths, wherein: multiple filter devices are provided on some or all of the multiple optical paths, and the relative optical path difference of the second optical signal with wavelengths belonging to the reflection bands of different filter devices is different in the multiple optical paths; and / or dispersive devices are included on some or all of the multiple optical paths, and the relative optical path difference of the second optical signal with different wavelengths is different in the multiple optical paths.

[0455] In some embodiments, a plurality of the filter devices are disposed on some or all of the plurality of optical paths, and the relative optical path difference is determined based on the relative spacing of the filter devices corresponding to the wavelength of the second optical signal in the plurality of optical paths.

[0456] In some embodiments, the number of beam directions supported by the phase weighting device is related to the number of filter devices disposed on one of the plurality of optical paths.

[0457] In some embodiments, some or all of the plurality of optical paths include dispersive devices, and the relative optical path difference is determined based on the wavelength of the second optical signal, the dispersion coefficient, and the length difference of the dispersive devices.

[0458] In some embodiments, the number of beam directions supported by the phase weighting device is related to the number of wavelengths of the second optical signal.

[0459] In some embodiments, the dispersive device is included in some or all of the multiple optical paths, the second optical signal includes multiple optical signals with different wavelengths, and the value of the second phase gradient of the second optical signal is between -π and π.

[0460] In some embodiments, if the difference between the horizontal phase gradient of the third optical signal at the first wavelength and the horizontal phase gradient of the third optical signal at the second wavelength is 2π, then the horizontal phase angle of the beam formed based on the third optical signal at the first wavelength is the same as the horizontal phase angle of the beam formed based on the third optical signal at the second wavelength; or, if the difference between the vertical phase gradient of the third optical signal at the first wavelength and the vertical phase gradient of the third optical signal at the second wavelength is 2π, then the vertical phase angle of the beam formed based on the third optical signal at the first wavelength is the same as the vertical phase angle of the beam formed based on the third optical signal at the second wavelength.

[0461] In some embodiments, the dispersive device is included in some or all of the multiple optical paths, the second optical signal includes multiple optical signals with different wavelengths, and the second phase gradient difference of at least some of the second optical signals is greater than or equal to 2π.

[0462] In some embodiments, the second phase gradient includes a horizontal phase gradient and / or a vertical phase gradient, wherein the horizontal phase gradient is determined based on the relative optical path difference of the second optical signal propagating in the horizontal direction of the plurality of optical paths, and the vertical phase gradient is determined based on the relative optical path difference of the second optical signal propagating in the vertical direction of the plurality of optical paths.

[0463] In some embodiments, the filtering device is a Bragg grating or a bandpass filter, and the dispersive device is a dispersive fiber or a dispersive waveguide.

[0464] In some embodiments, the first optical wave signal of the first wavelength and the first optical wave signal of the second wavelength are fed into the first-level phase weighting network through the same port, and the first phase gradient obtained by the first phase weighting of the first optical wave signal of the first wavelength and the first optical wave signal of the second wavelength is the same.

[0465] In some embodiments, the first optical signal includes multiple sets of optical signals, each set of optical signals corresponding to an input port of the phase weighting device; the method further includes: sequentially feeding the multiple sets of optical signals into each of the multiple input ports of the phase weighting device; sequentially feeding each of the multiple sets of optical signals into each of the multiple input ports of the phase weighting device; simultaneously feeding at least two sets of optical signals from the multiple sets of optical signals into the phase weighting device; or simultaneously feeding at least two optical signals from the multiple sets of optical signals into the phase weighting device.

[0466] In the above embodiments, the descriptions of each embodiment have different focuses. For parts that are not described in detail or recorded in a certain embodiment, please refer to the relevant descriptions of other embodiments.

[0467] This application also provides a computer program product, which includes computer program code. When the computer program code is run on a computer, it causes the computer to execute the various steps or processes performed by the phase weighting device or beamforming system in any of the above method embodiments.

[0468] This application also provides a computer-readable storage medium storing program code that, when run on a computer, causes the computer to execute the various steps or processes performed by the phase weighting device or beamforming system in any of the above method embodiments.

[0469] The above-described device and method embodiments are completely corresponding, with corresponding modules or units performing corresponding steps. For example, a communication unit or communication interface performs the receiving or sending steps in the method embodiment, while other steps besides sending and receiving can be performed by a processing unit or processor.

[0470] In the embodiments of this application, the terms and English abbreviations are exemplary examples given for ease of description and should not be construed as limiting the application in any way. The embodiments of this application do not preclude the possibility of defining other terms that can achieve the same or similar functions in existing or future agreements.

[0471] As used in this specification, the terms "component," "module," "system," etc., are used to refer to computer-related entities, hardware, firmware, combinations of hardware and software, software, or software in execution. For example, a component can be, but is not limited to, a process running on a processor, a processor, an object, an executable file, an execution thread, a program, and / or a computer. As illustrated, applications running on computing devices and computing devices can both be components. One or more components may reside in a process and / or an execution thread, and components may be located on a single computer and / or distributed among two or more computers. Furthermore, these components can be executed from various computer-readable storage media on which various data structures are stored. Components can communicate, for example, via local and / or remote processes based on signals having one or more data packets (e.g., data from two components interacting with another component between a local system, a distributed system, and / or a network, such as the Internet interacting with other systems via signals).

[0472] Those skilled in the art will recognize that the various illustrative logical blocks and steps described in conjunction with the embodiments disclosed herein can be implemented in electronic hardware, or a combination of computer software and electronic hardware. Whether these functions are implemented in hardware or software depends on the specific application and design constraints of the technical solution. Those skilled in the art can use different methods to implement the described functions for each specific application, but such implementations should not be considered beyond the scope of this application.

[0473] Those skilled in the art will clearly understand that, for the sake of convenience and brevity, the specific working processes of the systems, devices, and units described above can be based on the corresponding processes in the foregoing method embodiments, and will not be repeated here.

[0474] In the several embodiments provided in this application, it should be understood that the disclosed systems, apparatuses, and methods can be implemented in other ways. For example, the apparatus embodiments described above are merely illustrative; for instance, the division of units is only a logical functional division, and in actual implementation, there may be other division methods. For example, multiple units or components may be combined or integrated into another system, or some features may be ignored or not executed. Furthermore, the coupling or direct coupling or communication connection shown or discussed may be through some interfaces; the indirect coupling or communication connection between apparatuses or units may be electrical, mechanical, or other forms.

[0475] The units described as separate components may or may not be physically separate. The components shown as units may or may not be physical units; that is, they may be located in one place or distributed across multiple network units. Some or all of the units can be selected to achieve the purpose of this embodiment according to actual needs.

[0476] In addition, the functional units in the various embodiments of this application can be integrated into one processing unit, or each unit can exist physically separately, or two or more units can be integrated into one unit.

[0477] In the above embodiments, the functions of each functional unit can be implemented entirely or partially through software, hardware, firmware, or any combination thereof. When implemented using software, it can be implemented entirely or partially in the form of a computer program product. The computer program product includes one or more computer instructions (programs). When the computer program instructions (programs) are loaded and executed on a computer, all or part of the processes or functions described in the embodiments of this application are generated. The computer can be a general-purpose computer, a special-purpose computer, a computer network, or other programmable device. The computer instructions can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium or transmitted from one computer-readable storage medium to another. For example, the computer instructions can be transmitted from one website, computer, server, or data center to another website, computer, server, or data center via wired (e.g., coaxial cable, fiber optic, digital subscriber line (DSL)) or wireless (e.g., infrared, wireless, microwave, etc.) means. The computer-readable storage medium can be any available medium that a computer can access or a data storage device such as a server or data center that integrates one or more available media. The available media may be magnetic media (e.g., floppy disks, hard disks, magnetic tapes), optical media (e.g., DVDs), or semiconductor media (e.g., solid-state disks, SSDs), etc.

[0478] If the aforementioned functions are implemented as software functional units and sold or used as independent products, they can be stored in a computer-readable storage medium. Based on this understanding, the technical solutions of the embodiments of this application, essentially or in other words, the parts that contribute to the prior art, or parts of the technical solutions, can be embodied in the form of a software product. This computer software product is stored in a storage medium and includes several instructions to cause a computer device (which may be a personal computer, a server, or a network device, etc.) to execute all or part of the steps of the methods described in the various embodiments of this application. The aforementioned storage medium includes various media capable of storing program code, such as USB flash drives, portable hard drives, read-only memory (ROM), random access memory (RAM), magnetic disks, or optical disks.

[0479] The above description is merely a specific embodiment of this application, but the scope of protection of this application is not limited thereto. Any variations or substitutions that can be easily conceived by those skilled in the art within the scope of the technology disclosed in this application should be included within the scope of protection of this application. Therefore, the scope of protection of this application should be determined by the scope of the claims.

Claims

A phase weighting device, characterized in that, include: A first-level phase weighting network is used to receive a first optical wave signal, which carries a first radio frequency signal. The first-level phase weighting network is used to perform a first phase weighting on the first optical wave signal to obtain multiple second optical wave signals. The first phase gradient of the first optical wave signal obtained by the first phase weighting is determined based on the input port of the first-level phase weighting network fed into the first-level phase weighting network. A second-level phase weighting network is connected to the first-level phase weighting network. The second-level phase weighting network is used to perform second phase weighting on multiple second optical wave signals to obtain multiple third optical wave signals. The second phase gradient obtained by the multiple second optical wave signals through the second phase weighting is determined based on the wavelength of the second optical wave signal. The third optical wave signal is used to generate a second radio frequency signal, which is fed into the antenna module to form a beam. The direction of the beam is determined based on the phase gradient of the second radio frequency signal, which is determined based on the first phase gradient and the second phase gradient. The apparatus according to claim 1, characterized in that, The second phase gradient of the second optical wave signal with different wavelengths is different, and / or the second phase gradient of the second optical wave signal with wavelengths belonging to different bands is different. The apparatus according to claim 2, characterized in that, The second-level phase-weighted network includes multiple optical paths connected to multiple output ports of the first-level phase-weighted network. The second phase gradient is determined based on the relative optical path difference of the second optical signal in the multiple optical paths, wherein: Multiple filters are disposed on some or all of the multiple optical paths, and the relative optical path difference of the second optical wave signal whose wavelength belongs to the reflection band of different filters is different in the multiple optical paths; and / or Some or all of the multiple optical paths include dispersive devices, and the relative optical path difference of the second optical wave signals of different wavelengths is different in the multiple optical paths. The device according to claim 3 is characterized in that, Multiple filter devices are provided on some or all of the multiple optical paths, and the relative optical path difference is determined based on the relative spacing of the filter devices corresponding to the wavelength of the second optical signal in the multiple optical paths. The apparatus according to claim 3 or 4 is characterized in that, The number of beam directions supported by the phase weighting device is related to the number of filter devices disposed on one of the plurality of optical paths. The apparatus according to any one of claims 3-5 is characterized in that, Some or all of the optical paths include dispersive devices, and the relative optical path difference is determined based on the wavelength of the second optical signal, the dispersion coefficient, and the length difference of the dispersive devices. The apparatus according to claim 6, characterized in that, The number of beam directions supported by the phase weighting device is related to the number of wavelengths of the second optical signal. The apparatus according to any one of claims 3-7 is characterized in that, The dispersive device is included in some or all of the multiple optical paths, the second optical signal includes multiple optical signals with different wavelengths, and the value of the second phase gradient of the second optical signal is between -π and π. The apparatus according to any one of claims 3-7 is characterized in that, If the difference between the horizontal phase gradient of the third optical signal at the first wavelength and the horizontal phase gradient of the third optical signal at the second wavelength is 2π, then the horizontal phase angle of the beam formed based on the third optical signal at the first wavelength is the same as the horizontal phase angle of the beam formed based on the third optical signal at the second wavelength; or, If the difference between the vertical phase gradient of the third optical wave signal at the first wavelength and the vertical phase gradient of the third optical wave signal at the second wavelength is 2π, then the vertical phase angle of the beam formed based on the third optical wave signal at the first wavelength is the same as the vertical phase angle of the beam formed based on the third optical wave signal at the second wavelength. The apparatus according to claim 9 is characterized in that, The dispersive device is included in some or all of the multiple optical paths, the second optical signal includes multiple optical signals with different wavelengths, and the second phase gradient difference of at least some of the second optical signals is greater than or equal to 2π. The apparatus according to any one of claims 3-10 is characterized in that, The second phase gradient includes a horizontal phase gradient and / or a vertical phase gradient. The horizontal phase gradient is determined based on the relative optical path difference of the second optical signal propagating in the horizontal direction of the plurality of optical paths, and the vertical phase gradient is determined based on the relative optical path difference of the second optical signal propagating in the vertical direction of the plurality of optical paths. The apparatus according to any one of claims 3-11 is characterized in that, The filtering device is a Bragg grating or a bandpass filter, and the dispersive device is a dispersive fiber or a dispersive waveguide. The apparatus according to any one of claims 1-12 is characterized in that, The first optical wave signal of the first wavelength and the first optical wave signal of the second wavelength are fed into the first-level phase weighting network through the same port, and the first phase gradient obtained by the first phase weighting of the first optical wave signal of the first wavelength and the first optical wave signal of the second wavelength is the same. A beamforming device, characterized in that, include: An optoelectronic modulation module is used to modulate a first radio frequency signal carrying a baseband signal by using an optical wave as a carrier to generate a first optical wave signal. The phase weighting device as described in claims 1-13 is connected to the photoelectric modulation module, and is used to receive the first optical wave signal and perform phase weighting on the first optical wave signal to obtain multiple third optical wave signals; The third optical wave signal is used to generate a second radio frequency signal, which is then fed into the antenna module to form a beam. The apparatus according to claim 14 is characterized in that, The first optical wave signal includes multiple sets of optical wave signals, and each set of optical wave signals corresponds to an input port of the phase weighting device; The photoelectric modulation module is used in one of the following: The multiple sets of optical wave signals are sequentially fed into each of the multiple input ports of the phase weighting device; Each of the multiple sets of optical wave signals is sequentially fed into each of the multiple input ports of the phase weighting device; At least two sets of optical signals from the plurality of optical signals are simultaneously fed into the phase weighting device; or At least two optical signals from the multiple sets of optical signals are simultaneously fed into the phase weighting device. The apparatus according to claim 15 is characterized in that, The photoelectric modulation module includes a multi-wavelength array light source or multiple tunable light sources. Multiple array elements in the multi-wavelength array light source are used to sequentially or simultaneously input to one or more input ports of the phase weighting device. The multiple tunable light sources are used to sequentially input to one or more input ports of the phase weighting device, or the multiple tunable light sources are used to simultaneously input to multiple input ports of the phase weighting device. A beamforming system, characterized in that, include: The first radio frequency module is used to modulate the baseband signal to generate a first radio frequency signal; The beamforming apparatus as described in claims 14-16, wherein the beamforming apparatus is connected to the first radio frequency module, and the beamforming apparatus is used to generate a plurality of third optical wave signals; The second radio frequency module is connected to the beamforming device and is used to demodulate the plurality of third optical wave signals to obtain a second radio frequency signal. An antenna array, wherein the antenna elements in the antenna array are connected to the output port of the beamforming device, the antenna array being used to transmit the second radio frequency signal to form a beam, the direction of the beam being determined based on the phase gradient of the second radio frequency signal. The system according to claim 17 is characterized in that, The first radio frequency signal includes a third radio frequency signal and a fourth radio frequency signal. The first radio frequency module is used to modulate the same baseband signal to obtain the third radio frequency signal and the fourth radio frequency signal, wherein the phase difference between the third radio frequency signal and the fourth radio frequency signal is π or -π. The beamforming device is used to process the third radio frequency signal to obtain a third optical wave signal of a first wavelength, and the third optical wave signal of the first wavelength is used to form a first beam. The beamforming device is used to process the fourth radio frequency signal to obtain a third optical wave signal of the second wavelength, and the third optical wave signal of the second wavelength is used to form a second beam. The beamforming device is used to form multiple beams, wherein the first beam and the second beam are two beams that are vertically adjacent or two beams that are horizontally adjacent among the multiple beams. A beamforming method, characterized in that, include: Using light waves as carrier waves, the first radio frequency signal carrying the baseband signal is modulated to generate the first light wave signal; Based on the transmission path of the first optical wave signal, the first optical wave signal is subjected to a first phase weighting to obtain multiple second optical wave signals, and the first optical wave signal obtains a first phase gradient through the first phase weighting; Based on the wavelength of the plurality of second optical wave signals, a second phase weighting is performed on the plurality of second optical wave signals to obtain a plurality of third optical wave signals, and the plurality of second optical wave signals obtain a second phase gradient through the second phase weighting; Demodulate the plurality of third optical wave signals to obtain a second radio frequency signal; The second radio frequency signal is transmitted to form a beam, wherein the direction of the beam is determined based on the phase gradient of the second radio frequency signal, and the phase gradient of the second radio frequency signal is determined based on the first phase gradient and the second phase gradient. A readable storage medium having a computer program or instructions stored thereon, characterized in that, When the computer program or instructions are executed, the computer performs the method as described in claim 19. A computer program product, characterized in that, It includes computer program instructions that cause the computer to perform the method as described in claim 19.

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