Microstrip circulator, radio frequency module and communication device

Abstract

The present application relates to the technical field of electronics. Provided are a microstrip circulator, a radio frequency module and a communication device. The microstrip circulator comprises a shielding assembly, and a gyromagnetic assembly and a permanent magnet which are located in the shielding assembly, wherein a magnetic field generated by the permanent magnet can be confined in a shielding cap by means of the shielding assembly, thus achieving magnetic shielding of the microstrip circulator itself. Moreover, a bottom plate is used for grounding, and the shielding assembly is indirectly grounded, thus achieving electrical shielding of the microstrip circulator itself. The gyromagnetic assembly comprises a gyromagnetic substrate, a microstrip circuit and a plurality of pins, the gyromagnetic substrate and the bottom plate being stacked, and the gyromagnetic substrate being used for arranging the microstrip circuit. The bottom plate is provided with a plurality of first through holes, the plurality of pins extending in a stacking direction, and in the stacking direction, the plurality of pins and the plurality of first through holes directly facing each other. As the plurality of pins all extend in the stacking direction and directly face the plurality of first through holes, the requirements of the microstrip circulator for an assembly environment can be effectively reduced, thus reducing occupied space, and improving practicability.

Description

Microstrip circulators, radio frequency modules and communication equipment

[0001] This application claims priority to Chinese Patent Application No. 202510113484.9, filed on January 23, 2025, entitled "Microstrip Circulator, Radio Frequency Module and Communication Device", and Chinese Patent Application No. 202510551439.1, filed on April 28, 2025, entitled "Microstrip Circulator, Radio Frequency Module and Communication Device", the entire contents of which are incorporated herein by reference. Technical Field

[0002] This application relates to the field of electronic technology, and in particular to a microstrip circulator, a radio frequency module, and a communication device. Background Technology

[0003] In related technologies, radio frequency (RF) modules, including circulators and other non-semiconductor devices containing permanent magnets, require microstrip circulators to achieve electro- and magnetic shielding in order to achieve miniaturized integrated RF modules. However, achieving electro- and magnetic shielding for microstrip circulators would lead to complex and unreasonable structural designs, resulting in high requirements for the assembly environment, large size after assembly, and poor practicality. Summary of the Invention

[0004] The embodiments of this application provide a microstrip circulator, a radio frequency module, and a communication device to solve the problems of high requirements for the assembly environment, large size, and poor practicality of microstrip circulators.

[0005] In a first aspect, embodiments of this application provide a microstrip circulator, which includes a shielding assembly, a gyromagnetic assembly, and a permanent magnet. The shielding assembly includes a bottom plate and a top plate that are opposite to and spaced apart, and multiple side plates connected between the bottom plate and the top plate. The top plate, bottom plate, and multiple side plates enclose a receiving cavity, and the gyromagnetic assembly and the permanent magnet are disposed within the receiving cavity. The gyromagnetic assembly is disposed on the bottom plate, and the permanent magnet is connected to the top plate or multiple side plates. The shielding cap formed by the top plate and multiple side plates can confine the magnetic field generated by the permanent magnet within the shielding cap, thereby achieving magnetic shielding of the microstrip circulator itself. The bottom plate is used for grounding, and the shielding cap covers the bottom plate, thereby allowing the shielding cap to be indirectly grounded. This effectively confines the electromagnetic field through the shielding cap and the bottom plate, thereby achieving electrical shielding of the microstrip circulator itself. The gyromagnetic assembly includes a gyromagnetic substrate, a microstrip circuit, and multiple pins. The gyromagnetic substrate is stacked with a base plate. The gyromagnetic substrate is used to house the microstrip circuit. The base plate has multiple first vias. One end of each pin is connected to a different input / output terminal of the microstrip circuit. The pins extend along the stacking direction, and in this direction, the pins and the first vias are directly opposite each other. Because the pins extend along the stacking direction, the space occupied in the direction perpendicular to the stacking direction is effectively reduced after connecting the microstrip circulator to the wiring on the dielectric substrate. Furthermore, after assembly, the pins do not occupy space outside the shielding components in the direction perpendicular to the stacking direction, thus facilitating the miniaturization of the RF module. Additionally, the design of multiple first vias avoids contact between the pins and the shielding components, preventing indirect grounding through the shielding components and thus preventing significant signal loss due to bypass. Moreover, the method of connecting the pins to the wiring on the dielectric substrate, while using a larger pin size compared to bonding wires, facilitates easier connection, such as easy electrical connection to solder joints on the dielectric substrate. This effectively reduces the difficulty of connecting the microstrip circulator to the dielectric substrate and lowers the requirements for the assembly environment. Furthermore, compared to connections via bonding wires, the microstrip circuit in this embodiment is connected to the wiring on the dielectric substrate via multiple pins. The pin structure is simple, and the connection position is also simple. Therefore, even if two pins are provided on the same side of the gyromagnetic substrate, the distance between them can be avoided. This makes the design positions of the multiple input / output terminals of the microstrip circulator in this embodiment more flexible and diverse. For example, multiple input / output terminals can be designed asymmetrically, and the microstrip circulator can have a larger number of input / output terminals in a small volume.

[0006] In some embodiments, the pins and the inner wall of the first via are spaced apart, and both the pins and the microstrip circuit are spaced apart from the shielding component. By leaving gaps between the microstrip circuit and the multiple pins and the shielding component, indirect grounding of the microstrip circuit through the shielding component can be avoided. This effectively prevents signal bypass and significant loss while achieving electrical shielding through the shielding component. This allows the microstrip circulator to be miniaturized and integrated into an RF module for integrated design, while still maintaining stable and effective performance.

[0007] In some embodiments, the microstrip circuit is disposed on the side of the gyromagnetic substrate facing the top plate. Multiple second through-holes are formed along the circumferential edge of the gyromagnetic substrate, penetrating the substrate in the stacking direction. In this direction, the second through-holes and first through-holes are directly opposite each other. Multiple pins are disposed within the second through-holes, with one end extending out of the second through-hole to connect to an input / output terminal, and the other end extending from the second through-hole to the first through-hole. By placing multiple pins within the second through-holes, multiple pins can be accommodated, effectively protecting them from accidental bending. Furthermore, the direct alignment of the first and second through-holes facilitates the extension of the pins in the stacking direction, thereby facilitating connection between the pins and wiring on the dielectric substrate via the second and first through-holes.

[0008] In some embodiments, multiple second through holes are formed on the outer peripheral surface of the gyromagnetic substrate facing multiple side plates. Multiple notches are formed on the side plates, each corresponding to a different second through hole. Since the pins are located within the second through holes, they can be effectively fixed and protected. Furthermore, because the second through holes are semi-circular, they can fix the pins while minimizing the area of ​​the gyromagnetic substrate, thus reducing the impact on its performance. Additionally, by setting the second through holes and placing the pins within them, the pins can effectively avoid contact with the side plates, preventing multiple pins from being too close to the side plates and indirectly grounding, thereby effectively preventing signal bypass and significant loss.

[0009] In some embodiments, the distance between the edge of the notch facing the top plate and the gyromagnetic substrate in the stacking direction is L1, where L1 ≥ 100 μm. For example, L1 can be 150 μm, 200 μm, 250 μm, 300 μm, etc. Within this range, the distance between the pin located in the second via and the edge of the notch facing the top plate can be effectively guaranteed, thereby preventing the pin from being indirectly grounded due to being too close to the upper edge of the notch, thus avoiding significant signal loss due to bypassing of the signals received or transmitted by the microstrip circuit. Furthermore, within this range, the distance between the input / output terminals connected to the same pin and the edge of the notch facing the top plate can be effectively guaranteed, thereby preventing the input / output terminals from being indirectly grounded due to being too close to the upper edge of the notch, thus avoiding significant signal loss due to bypassing of the signals received or transmitted by the microstrip circuit.

[0010] In some embodiments, the minimum distance between the microstrip circuit and the multiple side plates is L2, where L2 ≥ 100 μm. For example, L2 can be 150 μm, 200 μm, 250 μm, 300 μm, etc. Within this range, the microstrip circuit can be effectively prevented from being indirectly grounded due to being too close to the multiple side plates, thus avoiding significant signal loss due to bypassing of the signals received or transmitted by the microstrip circuit.

[0011] In some embodiments, the permanent magnet and the gyromagnetic substrate are positioned directly opposite each other in the stacking direction, with a gap between them. Because of this gap, compared to having a dielectric layer between them, signal loss during transmission through the dielectric layer can be effectively avoided or reduced, thus significantly reducing the signal transmission loss of the microstrip circulator. Furthermore, the absence of a dielectric layer allows for a reduction in the size of the microstrip circulator in the Z direction, and also reduces the number of components, thereby lowering the cost.

[0012] In some embodiments, the microstrip circulator also includes a support plate, which is fixed to a top plate or multiple side plates and stacked with the top plate. The support plate has mounting holes in which permanent magnets are disposed. By fixing the support plate to the top plate or multiple side plates and then fixing the permanent magnets through the mounting holes in the support plate, the distances between the permanent magnets and the top plate, as well as between the permanent magnets and the gyromagnetic substrate, can be flexibly designed, making the design of the microstrip circulator more diverse.

[0013] In some embodiments, the gyromagnetic substrate includes an intermediate substrate located in the middle portion and an outer ring substrate surrounding the outer periphery of the intermediate substrate. The dielectric constant of the material used to manufacture the outer ring substrate is greater than that of the material used to manufacture the intermediate substrate. Because the dielectric constant of the material used to manufacture the outer ring substrate is greater than that of the material used to manufacture the intermediate substrate, the size of the gyromagnetic substrate can be effectively reduced, which is beneficial for the miniaturization design of microstrip circulators.

[0014] In some embodiments, the top plate and bottom plate are circular plate structures with the same diameter, and multiple side plates are arc-shaped plate structures, with the side plates spaced circumferentially along the edge of the bottom plate. Because the top and bottom plates are circular plate structures with the same diameter, space can be saved at the corners of the directional bottom plate while maintaining the same microstrip circulator performance, thus adapting to more installation scenarios and improving assembly flexibility, even when the bottom plate diameter is the same as the side length of the square bottom plate.

[0015] In some embodiments, the base plate and multiple side plates are integrally formed, and the top plate is located at the end of the multiple side plates opposite to the base plate. By integrally forming the base plate and multiple side plates, the connection between the base plate and the multiple side plates is smoother and flatter. Using this structure, the magnetic field lines within the shielding assembly can be more concentrated.

[0016] In some embodiments, the shielding assembly further includes an annular shielding cover disposed at the edge of the top plate, the annular shielding cover extending toward the bottom plate and forming a groove with the top plate, and the permanent magnet being disposed within the groove. By placing the permanent magnet within the groove formed by the annular shielding cover and the top plate, the magnetic field generated by the permanent magnet can be effectively shielded to avoid affecting other functional devices near the microstrip circulator. Consequently, when integrated onto the dielectric substrate, the distance to other functional devices on the dielectric substrate can be shortened, thereby facilitating the miniaturization design of the RF module.

[0017] In some embodiments, the top plate and multiple side plates are integrally formed, and both the top plate and the side plates are made of magnetic material. Because the top plate and the multiple side plates are integrally formed, the connection between the top plate and the multiple side plates is smoother and flatter. Using this structure, the magnetic field passes through the gyromagnetic assembly more uniformly, thereby effectively reducing signal loss during transmission. Especially for small circulators such as microstrip circulators, the high signal transmission quality of microstrip circulators can facilitate their miniaturization design.

[0018] In some embodiments, the top plate and multiple side plates are made of non-magnetic material. The shielding assembly also includes a magnetic cap fixed to the top plate. The side of the magnetic cap facing away from the top plate has an accommodating cavity, within which a permanent magnet is disposed. The magnetic cap effectively limits the magnetic field of the permanent magnet, thus achieving magnetic shielding. Electrical shielding is achieved by connecting the top plate and multiple side plates to the bottom plate. Furthermore, since the top plate and multiple side plates are made of non-magnetic material, material costs are effectively reduced.

[0019] In some embodiments, the multiple side plates include a first side plate, a second side plate, a third side plate, and a fourth side plate connected sequentially. The first and second side plates are opposite to each other and spaced apart, and the third and fourth side plates are opposite to each other and spaced apart. The first, second, and top plates are integrally formed, and the third, fourth, and bottom plates are integrally formed. By integrally forming the first, second, and top plates, and the third, fourth, and bottom plates, the processing difficulty of the notch can be effectively reduced, thereby effectively improving the processing accuracy of the notch. The improved notch accuracy also makes the magnetic field pass through the gyromagnetic assembly more uniform, thereby effectively reducing the signal loss when the gyromagnetic assembly transmits signals, thus ensuring the overall signal transmission performance of the microstrip circulator.

[0020] Secondly, embodiments of this application provide a radio frequency (RF) module, including an active device, a dielectric substrate, and a microstrip circulator as described in any of the first aspects above. The other ends of multiple pins are connected to wiring on the dielectric substrate, and the active device is connected to the wiring on the dielectric substrate. Since the microstrip circulator itself is electrically and magnetically shielded, integrating the active device and the microstrip circulator onto the dielectric substrate effectively shortens the distance between them, thus facilitating the miniaturization design of the RF module. Furthermore, since the microstrip circulator is connected to the dielectric substrate via pins, it not only reduces the difficulty of integrating and assembling the microstrip circulator onto the dielectric substrate and the connection difficulty between the microstrip circulator and the dielectric substrate, but also results in a smaller area occupied by the assembled microstrip circulator on the dielectric substrate. In summary, this greatly improves the practicality of the electrically and magnetically shielded microstrip circulator.

[0021] In some embodiments, the RF module includes multiple microstrip circulators spaced apart on a dielectric substrate. Since the microstrip circulators themselves are electrically and magnetically shielded, the spacing between the multiple microstrip circulators can be effectively shortened, thus facilitating the miniaturization design of the RF module.

[0022] Thirdly, embodiments of this application provide a communication device, which includes a circuit board and a radio frequency module as described in any of the second aspects above, the radio frequency module being disposed on the circuit board. Attached Figure Description

[0023] To more clearly illustrate the technical solutions in the embodiments of this application or the prior art, the accompanying drawings used in the description of the embodiments or the prior art will be briefly introduced below.

[0024] Figure 1 is a schematic diagram of a base station provided in an embodiment of the application;

[0025] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of a radio frequency module provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0026] Figure 3 is an exploded view of a microstrip circulator provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0027] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of the assembled microstrip circulator in the embodiment of Figure 3;

[0028] Figure 5 is a top view of the gyromagnetic substrate in the embodiment of Figure 3;

[0029] Figure 6 is a top view of the base plate in the embodiment of Figure 3;

[0030] Figure 7 is a front view of the microstrip circulator in the embodiment of Figure 4;

[0031] Figure 8 is a top view of the microstrip circulator with the top plate and permanent magnet hidden in the embodiment of Figure 4;

[0032] Figure 9 shows a schematic diagram of another microstrip circulator provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0033] Figure 10 is a structural schematic diagram of another shielding component provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0034] Figure 11 is a schematic diagram of another structure for fixing a permanent magnet and a shielding cap according to an embodiment of this application;

[0035] Figure 12 is a structural schematic diagram of another microstrip circulator provided in an embodiment of this application;

[0036] Figure 13 is an exploded view of the microstrip circulator in the embodiment of Figure 12;

[0037] Figure 14 is a structural schematic diagram of the microstrip circulator in the embodiment of Figure 12 from another perspective.

[0038] Explanation of reference numerals in the attached drawings: 1. Base station; 2. Housing; 3. Circuit board; 4. RF module; 5. Dielectric substrate; 6. Active device; 7. Microstrip circulator; 10. Rotary magnet assembly; 11. Rotary magnet substrate; 110. Second through-hole; 111. Intermediate substrate; 112. Outer ring substrate; 12. Microstrip circuit; 121. Input / output terminal; 13. Pin; 20. Permanent magnet; 30. Shielding assembly; 301. Receiving cavity; 31. Base plate; 311. First through-hole; 312. Conductor; 32. Shielding cap; 320. Notch; 321. First side plate; 322. Second side plate; 323. Third side plate; 324. Fourth side plate; 325. Top plate; 326. Multiple side plates; 327. Magnetic cap; 3271. Receiving cavity; 33. Annular shield; 331. Groove; 40. Support plate; 41. Assembly hole. Detailed Implementation

[0039] The following section will first explain some of the terms used in the embodiments of this application.

[0040] The terms "first," "second," "third," "fourth," etc., used in the specification, claims, and accompanying drawings of this application are used to distinguish similar objects and are not necessarily used to describe a specific order or sequence. It should be understood that such data can be interchanged where appropriate so that the embodiments of this application described herein can be implemented, for example, in orders other than those illustrated or described herein. Furthermore, the terms "comprising" and "having," and any variations thereof, are intended to cover non-exclusive inclusion; for example, a process, method, system, product, or apparatus that comprises a series of steps or units is not necessarily limited to those steps or units explicitly listed, but may include other steps or units not explicitly listed or inherent to such processes, methods, products, or apparatus.

[0041] In this specification, terms such as "vertical" are explained.

[0042] Perpendicularity: The perpendicularity defined in this application is not limited to an absolute perpendicular intersection (with an included angle of 90 degrees). It is permissible for non-absolute perpendicular intersections caused by factors such as assembly tolerances, design tolerances, and structural flatness. It is permissible for errors within a small angular range, such as an assembly error range of 80 to 100 degrees, which can all be understood as a perpendicular relationship.

[0043] This application provides a communication device, which includes, but is not limited to, base stations, radars, switches, routers, gateways, servers, network interface cards, wireless access points, modems, optical transceivers, fiber optic transceivers, mobile phones, tablets, laptops, and wearable devices (such as smart glasses, smart bracelets, smartwatches, and wireless headphones). This communication device has a radio frequency module. The following description uses a base station as an example.

[0044] In related technologies, radio frequency (RF) modules, which include non-semiconductor devices containing permanent magnets such as circulators, face significant challenges in miniaturization and integration due to mutual attraction and repulsion and electromagnetic radiation phenomena.

[0045] Referring to Figure 1, which is a schematic diagram of a base station 1 provided in an embodiment of this application, the base station 1 provided in this embodiment includes a housing 2, a circuit board 3, and an RF module 4 assembled on the circuit board 3. Both the circuit board 3 and the RF module 4 are housed within the housing 2. The side of the RF module 4 with solder pads or a metal wiring layer is connected to the circuit board 3, and the side with the encapsulation frame is connected to the heat sink or the housing 2. The RF module 4 can be electrically connected to the circuit board 3 through solder pads or a metal wiring layer to realize signals. The dielectric substrate 5 side of the RF module 4 can be bonded to the heat sink and the housing 2 through thermally conductive adhesive, thermally conductive pads, etc., to form a heat dissipation channel, so that the heat generated by the RF module 4 can be conducted to the external environment through the encapsulation frame, heat sink, and housing 2, resulting in good heat dissipation.

[0046] The base station 1 provided in this embodiment has an RF module 4 that improves the microstrip circulator so that the microstrip circulator can achieve its own electrical and magnetic shielding. This can avoid the influence of the microstrip circulator's electrical and magnetic radiation on other components, and can reduce the distance between the microstrip circulator and other components, thus facilitating the miniaturization design of the base station 1.

[0047] In some implementations, base station 1 may also include necessary components such as an antenna assembled on circuit board 3.

[0048] Figure 2 is a schematic diagram of a radio frequency module 4 provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0049] Referring to Figure 2, in some embodiments, the RF module 4 includes a dielectric substrate 5, active devices 6 such as power amplifiers, and passive devices such as couplers and microstrip circulators 7. The active devices 6 are electronic components that require external power to drive and can perform functions such as signal amplification and conversion; the passive devices in the circuit can operate when a signal is present without an external power supply. Multiple discrete devices are connected by wiring on the dielectric substrate 5, which can be a PCB (Printed Circuit Board).

[0050] Active devices 6 include, but are not limited to, one or more of transistors, amplifiers, rectifiers, and integrated circuit devices. Amplifiers can further include power amplifiers (PAs), low-noise amplifiers (LNAs), etc. Power amplifiers can be used to amplify radio frequency signals to sufficient power to match the network.

[0051] It is understood that in some implementations, passive devices may also include one or more of resistors, capacitors, inductors, converters, inverters, matching networks, resonators, filters, mixers, and switches.

[0052] In some embodiments, active devices 6 and passive devices are disposed on the dielectric substrate 5. Specifically, a microstrip circulator 7 is disposed on the dielectric substrate 5, and the active devices 6 and the microstrip circulator 7 are electrically connected through wiring on the dielectric substrate 5. The microstrip circulator 7 is used to realize unidirectional transmission of electromagnetic wave signals. For example, a signal can be transmitted from a power amplifier through one port of the circulator to the microstrip circulator 7, and then transmitted out through the other port of the microstrip circulator 7, thereby realizing unidirectional transmission of electromagnetic wave signals.

[0053] The material of the dielectric substrate 5 can be the same material used for the substrate of the printed circuit board 3, such as glass, ceramic, resin, etc. The material of the dielectric substrate 5 can also be one or more of phenolic resin, epoxy resin, polyimide and polyester.

[0054] In this embodiment, the microstrip circulator 7 not only achieves its own magnetic shielding but also its own electrical shielding. Therefore, the microstrip circulator 7, positioned on the dielectric substrate 5, will not affect other microstrip circulators 7 or other active or passive devices through electric or magnetic fields. This reduces the distance between the microstrip circulator 7 and other components, thus facilitating the integration of functional devices on the RF module 4. For example, in some embodiments, the RF module 4 includes multiple microstrip circulators 7, spaced apart on the dielectric substrate 5. Because the microstrip circulator 7 in this embodiment achieves both magnetic and electrical shielding, the distance between multiple microstrip circulators 7 can be effectively reduced, further facilitating the miniaturization design of the RF module 4.

[0055] Some microstrip circulators 7 in related technologies typically use bonding wires to achieve electrical connection with the dielectric substrate 5. However, this method not only occupies a large space on the dielectric substrate 5 after assembly, but also has high requirements for the assembly environment. Especially when the microstrip circulator 7 can achieve its own electrical and magnetic shielding as in the embodiment of FIG2 of this application, the assembly of the microstrip circulator 7 with the dielectric substrate 5 becomes more complex and difficult, resulting in low practicality of the microstrip circulator 7 and hindering the healthy development of microstrip circulators 7 that can achieve their own electrical and magnetic shielding.

[0056] Based on the above, referring to Figure 3, which is an exploded view of a microstrip circulator 7 provided in an embodiment of this application, the microstrip circulator 7 in this embodiment can not only achieve its own electrical and magnetic shielding, but also is convenient to assemble with the dielectric substrate 5 (as shown in Figure 2), and occupies little space after assembly, which effectively improves the practicality of the microstrip circulator 7 in this embodiment.

[0057] Referring to Figure 3, in some embodiments, the microstrip circulator 7 includes a gyromagnetic assembly 10 and a permanent magnet 20.

[0058] The gyromagnetic assembly 10 includes a gyromagnetic substrate 11 and a microstrip circuit 12, wherein the gyromagnetic substrate 11 is used to mount the microstrip circuit 12.

[0059] The gyromagnetic substrate 11 is a structure with gyromagnetic properties. Gyromagnetism refers to the phenomenon that, under the influence of two mutually perpendicular DC magnetic fields and an electromagnetic wave magnetic field, the polarization plane of a plane-polarized electromagnetic wave will continuously rotate around the propagation direction during the propagation process within the material.

[0060] In some embodiments, the gyromagnetic substrate 11 can be a ferrite. The gyromagnetic substrate 11 includes, but is not limited to, magnesium-manganese ferrite (Mg-MnFe2O4), nickel-copper ferrite (Ni-CuFe2O4), nickel-zinc ferrite (Ni-ZnFe2O4), and yttrium garnet ferrite (3Me2O3·5Fe2O3, where Me is a trivalent rare earth metal ion, such as Y3+, Sm3+, Gd3+, Dy3+, etc.). In this embodiment, the gyromagnetic substrate 11, in conjunction with the permanent magnet 20, can achieve the basic functions of the circulator, which is beneficial for reducing the size of the RF module 4 and facilitating signal interconnection. Furthermore, the gyromagnetic substrate 11 has good thermal stability, which can improve the reliability of the RF module 4 at high temperatures. The size of the gyromagnetic substrate 11 can be determined according to the performance requirements of the circulator structure (such as isolation requirements). This application does not limit the shape of the gyromagnetic substrate 11; for example, the gyromagnetic substrate 11 can specifically be a disc-shaped structure.

[0061] As shown in Figure 3, in some embodiments, the gyromagnetic substrate 11 can be a combination of ferrite and a material with a higher dielectric constant. For example, the gyromagnetic substrate 11 may include an intermediate substrate 111 and an outer ring substrate 112 surrounding the intermediate substrate 111. The intermediate substrate 111 can be ferrite, while the material used to manufacture the outer ring substrate 112 has a higher dielectric constant than the intermediate substrate 111, for example, a dielectric constant greater than 13. This effectively reduces the size of the gyromagnetic substrate 11, which is beneficial for the miniaturization design of the microstrip circulator 7. It is understood that the shape of the intermediate substrate 111 can be varied, such as a circular substrate, a square substrate, or other shapes. Similarly, the shape of the outer ring substrate 112 is not limited, such as a circular ring substrate or other ring-shaped substrate.

[0062] The permanent magnet 20 refers to a magnet whose magnetism is permanent and does not require an external power source or current. The permanent magnet 20 can provide an external magnetic field for the gyromagnetic substrate 11. The embodiments of this application do not limit the shape of the permanent magnet 20; for example, the permanent magnet 20 can specifically be a disc-shaped structure.

[0063] In this embodiment, the permanent magnet 20 and the gyromagnetic substrate 11 are arranged correspondingly in their stacking direction. For example, in some embodiments, the orthographic projections of the permanent magnet 20 and the gyromagnetic substrate 11 on the dielectric substrate 5 at least partially overlap. In other embodiments, the permanent magnet and the gyromagnetic substrate 11 are coaxially arranged. The dimensions of the gyromagnetic substrate 11 and the permanent magnet 20 depend on the properties of the materials themselves and the design, and can be set according to specific circumstances.

[0064] The microstrip circuit 12 is used for impedance matching. The microstrip circuit 12 is a patterned metal layer, i.e., a circuit topology composed of metal layers. The specific circuit pattern can be determined according to actual production needs. The material of the microstrip circuit 12 includes, but is not limited to, one or more of gold, silver, and copper. The number of ports on the circulator structure is achieved by the pattern setting of the microstrip circuit 12. The microstrip circuit 12 is used to connect with the active device 6 (as shown in Figure 2) to achieve signal interconnection.

[0065] As shown in Figure 3, the microstrip circuit 12 includes multiple input / output terminals 121. It can be understood that each input / output terminal 121 can refer to either an input port or an output port, but one input / output terminal 121 can only refer to one input port or one output port. The number of input / output terminals 121 determines the number of ports in the microstrip circulator 7.

[0066] In some embodiments, the gyromagnetic substrate 11 and the microstrip circuit 12 are stacked. For example, the microstrip circuit 12 can be disposed on the side of the gyromagnetic substrate 11 facing the permanent magnet 20, or the microstrip circuit 12 can be disposed on the side of the gyromagnetic substrate 11 away from the permanent magnet 20.

[0067] To achieve magnetic and electrical shielding for the microstrip circulator 7, referring to Figure 3, in some embodiments, the microstrip circulator 7 further includes a shielding component 30. The gyromagnetic component 10 and the permanent magnet 20 are both housed within the shielding component 30. The shielding component 30 confines the magnetic and electromagnetic fields generated by the permanent magnet 20 and the microstrip circuit 12 within itself, preventing interference with other functional devices near the microstrip circulator 7. This, in turn, shortens the distance to other functional devices on the dielectric substrate 5 (as shown in Figure 2) when integrated, thus facilitating the miniaturization design of the RF module 4 (as shown in Figure 2). Specifically, since the shielding component 30 can be grounded, for example, indirectly grounded through contact with the dielectric substrate 5, the shielding component 30 effectively achieves electrical shielding for the microstrip circulator 7 itself.

[0068] Figure 4 is a schematic diagram of the assembled structure of the microstrip circulator 7 in the embodiment of Figure 3.

[0069] Referring to Figure 4, in some embodiments, the shielding assembly 30 includes a base plate 31 and a shielding cap 32. The shielding cap 32 covers the base plate 31 and together with the base plate 31, forms a receiving cavity 301 for accommodating the gyromagnetic assembly 10 and the permanent magnet 20. For example, in some embodiments, the gyromagnetic substrate 11 is stacked with the base plate 31, the microstrip circuit 12 is stacked on the gyromagnetic substrate 11 and located on the side of the gyromagnetic substrate 11 opposite to the base plate 31, and the permanent magnet 20 is connected to the shielding cap 32 and is encased within the shielding cap 32. The shielding cap 32 is made of a magnetic material, such as a soft magnetic material, such as pure iron, silicon steel, iron-nickel alloy, ferrite, amorphous alloy, nanocrystalline alloy, iron-cobalt alloy, and soft magnetic composite material. The shielding cap 32 can shield the magnetic field generated by the permanent magnet 20 within the receiving cavity 301, thereby achieving magnetic shielding of the microstrip circulator 7 itself. The base plate 31 is used for grounding, and the shielding cap 32 is placed on the base plate 31, so that the shielding cap 32 can be indirectly grounded. Thus, the electromagnetic field can be effectively constrained through the shielding cap 32 and the base plate 31, thereby achieving the electrical shielding of the microstrip circulator 7 itself.

[0070] Referring to Figure 4, in some embodiments, the shielding cap 32 is integrally formed. In this embodiment, because the shielding cap 32 is integrally formed, the connections between the various surfaces of the shielding cap 32 are smoother and flatter, making the magnetic field pass through the gyromagnetic assembly 10 more uniform. This effectively reduces the signal loss when the gyromagnetic assembly 10 transmits signals, thereby ensuring the overall signal transmission performance of the microstrip circulator 7. Especially for a small circulator like the microstrip circulator 7, the high signal transmission quality of the microstrip circulator 7 can facilitate its miniaturization design.

[0071] It is understood that the shape of the shielding component 30 in this embodiment is not limited. For example, in some embodiments, as shown in Figure 4, the shielding component 30 is approximately rectangular. The shielding cap 32 includes a top plate 325 opposite to the bottom plate 31 and a plurality of side plates 326 connected between the bottom plate 31 and the top plate 325, with the plurality of side plates 326 connected in sequence.

[0072] For ease of description, the stacking direction of the base plate 31 and the gyromagnetic substrate 11 is set as the Z direction in the figure. Then the relative direction of the base plate 31 and the top plate 325 is also the Z direction, and the stacking direction of the gyromagnetic substrate 11 and the microstrip circuit 12 is also the Z direction.

[0073] The multiple side panels include a first side panel 321, a second side panel 322, a third side panel 323, and a fourth side panel 324. The first side panel 321 and the second side panel 322 are opposite to each other and spaced apart, and the third side panel 323 and the fourth side panel 324 are opposite to each other and spaced apart. For ease of description, the direction in which the first side panel 321 and the second side panel 322 are opposite to each other is defined as the X direction, and the direction in which the third side panel 323 and the fourth side panel 324 are opposite to each other is defined as the Y direction.

[0074] If the base plate 31 is made of a magnetic material, improper design of its shape or size may lead to uneven magnetic field distribution, affecting the transmission characteristics of radio frequency signals. Uneven magnetic field distribution can also cause signal distortion or crosstalk. Therefore, the manufacturing precision requirements for the base plate 31 are extremely high. Based on this, in some embodiments, the base plate 31 is made of a non-magnetic material, such as non-magnetic metals or non-magnetic non-metallic materials. This effectively reduces the manufacturing precision and difficulty of the base plate 31, and lowers its manufacturing cost.

[0075] Of course, in some other embodiments, the base plate 31 may also be made of a magnetic material.

[0076] It is understandable that the base plate 31 can be made of both non-metallic and metallic materials. For example, some metallic components are provided on the non-metallic substrate, as shown in Figure 3. The base plate 31 can be a PCB board, and multiple conductors 312 can be provided on the PCB board. For example, the conductors 312 can be copper plating on the PCB board. The grounding of the PCB board is achieved through the conductors 312, so that the shielding assembly 30 composed of the shielding cap 32 and the base plate 31 can achieve electrical shielding.

[0077] To facilitate assembly with the dielectric substrate 5 (as shown in Figure 2) and reduce the space occupied after assembly, referring to Figures 3 and 4, in some embodiments, the gyromagnetic assembly 10 further includes multiple pins 13, and the microstrip circuit 12 includes multiple input / output terminals 121, wherein the number of pins 13 is the same as the number of input / output terminals 121 of the microstrip circuit 12, and the microstrip circuit 12 extends through the pins 13 to form a shield cap 32 and connects to the wiring on the dielectric substrate 5.

[0078] One end of each of the multiple pins 13 is connected to a multiple input / output terminal 121, specifically one pin 13 is connected to one input / output terminal 121, and the other end of the multiple pins 13 is used to connect to wiring on the dielectric substrate 5.

[0079] To facilitate the connection of multiple pins 13 to the wiring on the dielectric substrate 5, multiple first through-holes 311 are provided on the base plate 31. All pins 13 extend along the Z-direction, and in the Z-direction, the pins 13 and the first through-holes 311 are directly opposite each other, thus allowing for easy connection of the pins 13 to the wiring on the dielectric substrate 5 through the first through-holes 311. Since the pins 13 extend along the Z-direction, the size in the X or Y direction can be effectively reduced. After the microstrip circulator 7 is connected to the wiring on the dielectric substrate 5 through the pins 13, the space occupied by the microstrip circulator 7 in the X or Y direction is effectively reduced, which is beneficial for the miniaturization design of the RF module 4. Furthermore, the design of the multiple first through-holes 311 prevents the pins 13 from contacting the shielding component 30, thereby preventing the pins 13 from being indirectly grounded through the shielding component 30 and preventing significant signal loss due to bypass. Furthermore, the connection between the microstrip circulator 7 and the dielectric substrate 5 is achieved by connecting multiple pins 13 to wiring on the dielectric substrate 5, such as by plugging the pins 13 into the sockets on the dielectric substrate 5. This effectively reduces the difficulty of connecting and assembling the microstrip circulator 7 to the dielectric substrate 5, as well as the requirements for the assembly environment. In addition, since the microstrip circuit 12 is connected to the dielectric substrate 5 via multiple pins 13, and the pins 13 are small, even if two pins 13 are located on the same side of the gyromagnetic substrate 11, they can be kept away from being too close together. This allows for more flexible and diverse design positions of the multiple input / output terminals 121 of the microstrip circulator 7 in this embodiment. For example, the multiple input / output terminals 121 can be designed asymmetrically; for instance, when there are three input / output terminals 121, they do not necessarily have to be spaced 120° apart. Moreover, the microstrip circulator 7 can have a larger number of input / output terminals 121 within a smaller size.

[0080] It is understood that the multiple pins 13 can be connected to the wiring on the dielectric substrate 5 by extending the shielding component 30 through multiple first through holes 311, or the dielectric substrate 5 can be provided with a connector adapted to the pins 13, the connector is provided with a socket, and the connector extends from the multiple first through holes 311 into the shielding component 30 to connect with the multiple pins 13.

[0081] Referring to Figure 4, in some embodiments, the permanent magnet 20 and the gyromagnetic substrate 11 are positioned directly opposite each other in the stacking direction, with a gap between them. Because of this gap, compared to having a dielectric layer between them, signal loss during transmission through the dielectric layer can be effectively avoided or reduced, thus significantly reducing signal transmission loss in the microstrip circulator 7. Furthermore, the absence of a dielectric layer allows for a reduction in the size of the microstrip circulator 7 in the Z direction, and also reduces the number of components, thereby lowering its cost.

[0082] It is understood that in some other embodiments, a dielectric layer may also be provided between the permanent magnet 20 and the gyromagnetic substrate 11.

[0083] In some embodiments, the permanent magnet 20 is bonded to the top plate 325. Alternatively, the permanent magnet 20 can be fixed to the top plate 325 or side plate of the shielding cap 32 using other fasteners.

[0084] To prevent significant signal loss due to bypassing the grounded shielding component 30, in some embodiments, the microstrip circuit 12 and its multiple pins 13 are isolated from the shielding component 30, meaning a gap is left between the microstrip circuit 12, its multiple pins 13, and the shielding component 30. This prevents the microstrip circuit 12 from being indirectly grounded through the shielding component 30, thus effectively preventing signal bypass and significant loss while achieving electrical shielding through the shielding component 30. This allows the microstrip circulator 7 to maintain its performance even with a miniaturized design.

[0085] Referring to Figures 3 and 4, in some embodiments, a plurality of second through holes 110 are formed on the circumferential edge of the gyromagnetic substrate 11. The plurality of second through holes 110 penetrate the gyromagnetic substrate 11 in the stacking direction. In the Z direction, the plurality of second through holes 110 and the plurality of first through holes 311 are directly opposite each other, and a plurality of pins 13 are respectively disposed in the plurality of second through holes 110. The fact that the second through holes 110 and the first through holes 311 are directly opposite each other in the Z direction allows the plurality of pins 13 to be disposed in the plurality of second through holes 110. Firstly, the plurality of pins 13 can be accommodated by the plurality of second through holes 110, which can effectively protect the pins 13 and prevent them from being accidentally bent. Moreover, since the first through holes 311 and the second through holes 110 are directly opposite each other, it is convenient for the pins 13 to extend in the Z direction, thereby facilitating the connection of the pins 13 to the wiring on the dielectric substrate 5 (as shown in Figure 2) through the second through holes 110 and the first through holes 311.

[0086] Referring to Figure 4, in some embodiments, the spin magnet substrate 11 of pin 13 passes sequentially through the second through-hole 110 and the first through-hole 311 toward the upper surface of the permanent magnet 20, and is connected to the dielectric substrate 5 (as shown in Figure 2). That is, one end of pin 13 is connected to the microstrip circuit 12 on the upper surface of the spin magnet substrate 11, and the other end of pin 13 extends from the second through-hole 110 into the first through-hole 311 and is electrically connected to the dielectric substrate 5. In other words, pin 13 extends in the Z direction, which makes the pin 13 used to connect the microstrip circuit 12 and the dielectric substrate 5 as short as possible, which can facilitate the miniaturization of the microstrip circulator 7 and the dielectric substrate 5 after assembly.

[0087] Referring to Figure 4, in some embodiments, multiple second through holes 110 are formed on the outer peripheral surface of the gyromagnetic substrate 11 facing the multiple side plates 326. That is, the side of the second through hole 110 facing the multiple side plates 326 is open, and no gyromagnetic substrate 11 is provided between the pin 13 and the multiple side plates 326, meaning that the side of the pin 13 facing the multiple side plates 326 is not surrounded by the gyromagnetic substrate 11. For example, the second through hole 110 is designed as a semi-circular through hole. Since the pin 13 is located in the second through hole 110, the pin 13 can be effectively fixed and protected through the second through hole 110. Moreover, since the second through hole 110 is a semi-circular through hole, it can fix the pin 13 while minimizing the drilling area of ​​the gyromagnetic substrate 11, thus reducing the impact on the performance of the gyromagnetic substrate 11 itself. In addition, by setting the second through hole 110 and placing the pin 13 inside the second through hole 110, the pin 13 can also be effectively kept away from multiple side plates 326, avoiding multiple pins 13 being too close to multiple side plates 326 and indirectly grounded, thereby effectively avoiding signal bypass and significant loss.

[0088] To achieve miniaturization of the microstrip circulator 7, referring to Figure 4, in some embodiments, the outer peripheral surface of the gyromagnetic substrate 11 facing the multiple side plates 326 is attached to or as close as possible to the multiple side plates 326. This effectively reduces the distance between the gyromagnetic substrate 11 and the multiple side plates 326 in the circumferential direction, thereby reducing the size of the multiple side plates 326. For example, the size of the multiple side plates 326 can be effectively reduced in the X or Y direction, thus reducing the overall size of the microstrip circulator 7. Multiple notches 320 are provided on the multiple side plates 326, and the multiple notches 320 correspond to the positions of the multiple second through holes 110. While miniaturizing the microstrip circulator 7, the multiple side plates 326 are provided with notches 320 at the positions corresponding to the second through hole 110. The notches 320 can prevent the multiple side plates 326 from contacting or being too close to the pin 13, and prevent the multiple pins 13 from being too close to the multiple side plates 326 and indirectly grounded, so as to avoid the signal received or emitted by the microstrip circuit 12 being bypassed and greatly lost.

[0089] It is understood that in some other embodiments, the second through hole 110 may also be located on the inner side of the outer peripheral surface of the gyromagnetic substrate 11 facing the plurality of side plates 326, that is, there is a gyromagnetic substrate 11 between the pin 13 and the plurality of side plates 326, that is, the gyromagnetic substrate 11 surrounds the pin 13 axially. Even in some embodiments, the second through hole 110 may not be provided in this embodiment, as long as the gap between the pin 13 and the plurality of side plates 326 is large enough.

[0090] Figure 5 is a top view of the gyromagnetic substrate 11 in the embodiment of Figure 3, and Figure 6 is a top view of the base plate 31 in the embodiment of Figure 3.

[0091] Referring to Figures 5 and 6, in some embodiments, the edge of the gyromagnetic substrate 11 has three second through holes 110, and the edge of the base plate 31 has three first through holes 311. Referring to Figures 4-6, in some embodiments, the positions of the multiple side plates 326 corresponding to the three second through holes 110 have three notches 320, so as to ensure that the pins 13 in the three second through holes 110 can be reasonably avoided from the multiple side plates 326, so as to avoid the signal received or transmitted by the microstrip circuit 12 being bypassed and greatly lost.

[0092] Figure 7 is a front view of the microstrip circulator 7 in the embodiment of Figure 4.

[0093] Referring to Figure 7, in some embodiments, there is a gap between the pin 13 and the inner wall of the first through hole 311. Because there is a gap between the pin 13 and the first through hole 311, the pin 13 can be prevented from contacting the base plate 31. In addition, the gap between the pin 13 and the inner wall of the first through hole 311 should be kept large enough to prevent the pin 13 from being indirectly grounded, so as to prevent the signal received or transmitted by the microstrip circuit 12 from being bypassed and significantly lost.

[0094] Referring to Figure 7, in some embodiments, the minimum spacing distance between pin 13 and the inner wall of the first through hole 311 is L, where L ≥ 100 μm, that is, the minimum spacing distance between pin 13 and the base plate 31 is ≥ 100 μm. Within this range, indirect grounding due to pin 13 being too close to the base plate 31 can be effectively avoided.

[0095] Referring to Figure 7, in some embodiments, the pin 13 and the second through-hole 110 are approximately the same size to effectively fix the pin 13. For example, the pin 13 may be cylindrical, the second through-hole 110 may be approximately semi-circular, and the diameters of the pin 13 and the second through-hole 110 may be approximately the same, thereby effectively fixing the pin 13. It is understood that in other embodiments, the size of the second through-hole 110 may also be larger than the size of the pin 13.

[0096] It is understandable that the shape of pin 13 is not restricted, as long as the extension direction of the middle part of both ends of pin 13 is approximately consistent with the Z direction. For example, the two ends of pin 13 can also extend in a direction perpendicular to the Z direction.

[0097] Referring to Figure 7, in some embodiments, the distance between the edge of the notch 320 facing the top plate 325 and the gyromagnetic substrate 11 in the stacking direction is L1, where L1 ≥ 100 μm. That is, the minimum spacing between the edge of the notch 320 facing the top plate 325 and the gyromagnetic substrate 11 is ≥ 100 μm. Within this range, the distance between the pin 13 located within the second via 110 and the edge of the notch 320 facing the top plate 325 can be effectively guaranteed, thereby preventing the pin 13 from being indirectly grounded due to being too close to the upper edge of the notch 320, thus avoiding significant signal loss due to bypassing of the signals received or transmitted by the microstrip circuit 12. Furthermore, within this range, the distance between the input / output terminal 121 connected to the pin 13 and the edge of the notch 320 facing the top plate 325 can be effectively guaranteed, thereby preventing the input / output terminal 121 from being indirectly grounded due to being too close to the upper edge of the notch 320, thus avoiding significant signal loss due to bypassing of the signals received or transmitted by the microstrip circuit 12.

[0098] Figure 8 is a top view of the microstrip circulator 7 in the embodiment of Figure 4 after the top plate 325 and permanent magnet 20 are hidden.

[0099] Referring to Figure 7, the minimum distance between the microstrip circuit 12 and the multiple side plates 326 is L2, where L2 ≥ 100 μm. That is, the distance from the closest point of the microstrip circuit 12 to the multiple side plates 326 is still greater than 100 μm. Within this range, indirect grounding due to the microstrip circuit 12 being too close to the multiple side plates 326 can be effectively avoided, thus preventing significant signal loss due to bypassing of the signals received or transmitted by the microstrip circuit 12.

[0100] It is understood that the shielding component 30 in this embodiment can not only provide physical electrical shielding but also achieve magnetic shielding. As shown in the shielding component 30 of embodiment 3, the shielding cap 32 is made of magnetic material to achieve magnetic shielding. It is then connected to the base plate 31 and grounded through the base plate 31, thereby achieving electrical shielding as a whole through the shielding component 30. In other embodiments, as shown in Figure 9, which is a schematic diagram of another microstrip circulator 7 provided in this application embodiment, the shielding cap 32 in the embodiment of Figure 9 can also be made of other metal materials to achieve electrical shielding after being connected to the base plate 31. In addition, the shielding component 30 also includes a magnetic cap 327, which has an accommodating cavity 3271. The permanent magnet 20 is disposed within the accommodating cavity 3271. The magnetic cap 327 is fixed to the shielding cap 32 and located within the accommodating cavity 301. The magnetic cap 327 effectively limits the magnetic field of the permanent magnet 20, thereby achieving magnetic shielding.

[0101] Figure 10 is a structural schematic diagram of another shielding component 30 provided in an embodiment of this application.

[0102] Referring to Figure 10, in some embodiments, the first side plate 321, the second side plate 322, and the top plate 325 of the shielding assembly 30 are integrally formed, while the third side plate 323, the fourth side plate 324, and the bottom plate 31 are integrally formed. Notches 320 are formed on the first side plate 321 and the second side plate 322. This design effectively reduces the processing difficulty of the notches 320, thereby effectively improving the processing accuracy of the notches 320, resulting in improved precision. Furthermore, it makes the magnetic field pass through the gyromagnetic assembly 10 more uniformly, thereby effectively reducing signal loss during transmission by the gyromagnetic assembly 10, ensuring the overall signal transmission performance of the microstrip circulator 7.

[0103] It is understood that in some other embodiments, the top plate 325, the bottom plate 31, the first side plate 321, the second side plate 322, the third side plate 323 and the fourth side plate 324 may also be connected by other welding or integral molding methods to form the shielding assembly 30.

[0104] Figure 11 is a schematic diagram of another structure for fixing a permanent magnet 20 and a shielding cap 32 according to an embodiment of this application.

[0105] Referring to Figure 11, in some embodiments, the microstrip circulator 7 further includes a support plate 40, which is fixed to multiple side plates 326 and stacked with a top plate 325. The support plate 40 has mounting holes 41, and the permanent magnet 20 is disposed within these mounting holes 41. By fixing the support plate 40 to the multiple side plates 326 and then fixing the permanent magnet 20 through the mounting holes 41 of the support plate 40, the distance between the permanent magnet 20 and the top plate 325, as well as the gyromagnetic substrate 11, can be flexibly designed, making the design of the microstrip circulator 7 more diverse.

[0106] It is understood that in some other embodiments, the support plate 40 may also be fixed to the top plate 325.

[0107] Figure 12 is a structural schematic diagram of another microstrip circulator 7 provided in the embodiment of this application; Figure 13 is an exploded schematic diagram of the microstrip circulator 7 in the embodiment of Figure 12; Figure 14 is a structural schematic diagram of the microstrip circulator 7 in the embodiment of Figure 12 from another perspective. The microstrip circulator 7 in the above embodiments is generally square in shape. Referring to the embodiments of Figures 12-14, the microstrip circulator 7 is generally cylindrical in shape to adapt to different installation environments and improve assembly flexibility. The microstrip circulator 7 in this embodiment has a basically the same structural composition as the microstrip circulator 7 in the embodiment of Figure 3, only changing in shape to improve the assembly flexibility of the microstrip circulator 7. The same parts will not be described again, and can be referred to the embodiment of Figure 3 for details.

[0108] Referring to the embodiments in Figures 12-14, the shielding assembly 30 is generally cylindrical. Specifically, the top plate 325 and the bottom plate 31 are circular plates with essentially the same diameter. Multiple side plates 326 are connected to the edges of the top plate 325 and the bottom plate 31 to fix them together. Since the bottom plate 31 and the top plate 325 are connected through the side plates, the shielding assembly 30 can be grounded through the bottom plate 31, thereby effectively achieving electrical shielding of the microstrip circulator 7 itself through the shielding assembly 30.

[0109] Understandably, the side plate 326 has an arc-shaped plate structure to facilitate the connection between the top plate 325 and the bottom plate 31, and to make the shielding assembly 30 have an overall cylindrical structure.

[0110] As shown in the embodiments of Figures 12-14, multiple side plates 326 and a base plate 31 are integrally formed, and a top plate 325 is disposed on one end of the multiple side plates 326 opposite to the base plate 31. The top plate 325 and the side plates 326 are welded or bonded to connect them together. It is understood that in some other embodiments, the top plate 325 and the side plates 326 can also be connected together by other means, such as by a snap-fit ​​connection. It is understood that in some other embodiments, the multiple side plates 326 and the top plate 325 can also be integrally formed.

[0111] As shown in the embodiments of Figures 12-14, there are four side plates 326. These four side plates 326 are spaced apart circumferentially along the edge of the base plate 31. The four side plates 326 effectively support the top plate 325, improving the overall stability of the shielding assembly 30. It is understood that in other embodiments, the number of side plates 326 can be one, two, three, or other numbers. For example, when there is only one side plate 326, it can be cylindrical or semi-cylindrical and located at the edge of the base plate 31.

[0112] As shown in the embodiments of Figures 12-14, the edge of the top plate 325 is provided with an annular shield 33. The annular shield 33 is located at the edge of the top plate 325 and extends toward the bottom plate 31. The permanent magnet 20 is located in the groove 331 formed by the annular shield 33 and the top plate 325, so as to effectively shield the magnetic field generated by the permanent magnet 20. By realizing magnetic shielding, the influence on other functional devices near the microstrip circulator 7 is avoided. Therefore, when integrated on the dielectric substrate 5 (as shown in Figure 2), the distance to other functional devices on the dielectric substrate 5 can be shortened, which is beneficial to the miniaturization design of the RF module 4 (as shown in Figure 2).

[0113] It is understandable that the top plate 325 and the annular shield 33 can be integrally formed, or they can be fixedly connected by welding or other methods.

[0114] As shown in the embodiments of Figures 12-14, since the shielding component 30 is roughly cylindrical, in order to adapt to the shielding component 30, the rotating magnetic component 10 is also roughly cylindrical and is disposed on the base plate 31.

[0115] 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 technical scope 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

1. A microstrip circulator, characterized by, The microstrip circulator includes a shielding assembly, a gyromagnetic assembly, and a permanent magnet. The shielding assembly includes a bottom plate and a top plate that are opposite to and spaced apart, and a plurality of side plates connected between the bottom plate and the top plate. The top plate, the bottom plate, and the plurality of side plates enclose a receiving cavity. The gyromagnetic assembly and the permanent magnet are disposed in the receiving cavity. The gyromagnetic assembly is disposed on the bottom plate, and the permanent magnet is connected to the top plate or the plurality of side plates. The gyromagnetic assembly includes a gyromagnetic substrate, a microstrip circuit, and multiple pins. The gyromagnetic substrate is stacked with the base plate. The gyromagnetic substrate is used to house the microstrip circuit. The base plate has multiple first through holes. One end of each of the multiple pins is connected to multiple input / output terminals of the microstrip circuit. The multiple pins extend along the stacking direction, and in the stacking direction, the multiple pins and the multiple first through holes are directly opposite each other.

2. The microstrip circulator of claim 1, wherein, The pin and the inner wall of the first through hole are spaced apart, and the pin and the microstrip circuit are spaced apart from the shielding component.

3. The microstrip circulator of claim 1, wherein, The microstrip circuit is disposed on the side of the gyromagnetic substrate facing the top plate. The gyromagnetic substrate has a plurality of second through holes on its circumferential edge. The plurality of second through holes penetrate the gyromagnetic substrate in the stacking direction. In the stacking direction, the plurality of second through holes and the plurality of first through holes are directly opposite each other. The plurality of pins are respectively disposed in the plurality of second through holes. One end of the pin extends out of the second through hole and connects to the input / output terminal. The other end of the pin extends from the second through hole to the first through hole.

4. The microstrip circulator of claim 3, wherein, The plurality of second through holes are formed on the outer peripheral surface of the magnetic substrate facing the plurality of side plates, and the plurality of side plates are provided with a plurality of notches, the plurality of notches corresponding to the positions of the plurality of second through holes.

5. The microstrip circulator of claim 4, wherein, The distance between the edge of the notch facing the top plate and the magnetic substrate in the stacking direction is L1, where L1 ≥ 100 μm.

6. The microstrip circulator according to any one of claims 1-5, wherein, The minimum distance between the microstrip circuit and the plurality of side plates is L2, where L2 ≥ 100 μm.

7. The microstrip circulator according to any one of claims 1-6, wherein, In the stacking direction, the permanent magnet and the gyromagnetic substrate are positioned directly opposite each other, and there is a gap between the permanent magnet and the gyromagnetic substrate.

8. The microstrip circulator according to any one of claims 1-7, wherein, The microstrip circulator also includes a support plate, which is fixed to the plurality of side plates and stacked with the top plate. The support plate has assembly holes, and the permanent magnet is disposed in the assembly holes.

9. The microstrip circulator according to any one of claims 1-8, characterized in that The gyromagnetic substrate includes an intermediate substrate located in the middle portion and an outer ring substrate surrounding the outer periphery of the intermediate substrate, wherein the dielectric constant of the material used to manufacture the outer ring substrate is greater than that of the material used to manufacture the intermediate substrate.

10. The microstrip circulator according to any one of claims 1-9, wherein, The top plate and the bottom plate are circular plate structures with the same diameter, and the multiple side plates are arc plate structures. The multiple side plates are spaced apart along the circumference of the bottom plate at the edge of the bottom plate.

11. The microstrip circulator of claim 10, wherein, The base plate and the plurality of side plates are integrally formed, and the top plate is located at one end of the plurality of side plates opposite to the base plate.

12. The microstrip circulator according to claim 10 or 11, characterized in that The shielding assembly also includes an annular shielding cover disposed at the edge of the top plate, the annular shielding cover extending toward the bottom plate and forming a groove with the top plate, and the permanent magnet being disposed in the groove.

13. The microstrip circulator of any of claims 1-9, wherein, The top plate and the plurality of side plates are integrally formed, and the top plate and the plurality of side plates are made of magnetic material.

14. The microstrip circulator according to any one of claims 1-9, wherein, The top plate and the plurality of side plates are made of non-magnetic material. The shielding assembly also includes a magnetic cap, which is fixed to the top plate. The magnetic cap has an inner cavity on the side facing away from the top plate, and the permanent magnet is disposed in the inner cavity.

15. The microstrip circulator of any one of claims 1-9, wherein, The plurality of side panels include a first side panel, a second side panel, a third side panel, and a fourth side panel connected in sequence. The first side panel and the second side panel are opposite to each other and spaced apart. The third side panel and the fourth side panel are opposite to each other and spaced apart. The first side panel, the second side panel, and the top panel are integrally formed. The third side panel, the fourth side panel, and the bottom panel are integrally formed.

16. A radio frequency module, characterized by The device includes an active device disposed on a dielectric substrate and a microstrip circulator as described in any one of claims 1-15, wherein the other end of the plurality of pins is connected to wiring on the dielectric substrate, and the active device is connected to wiring on the dielectric substrate.

17. The radio module of claim 16, wherein, The radio frequency module includes a plurality of microstrip circulators, which are spaced apart on a dielectric substrate.

18. A communication device, characterized by The communication device includes a circuit board and a microstrip circulator as described in claim 16 or 17 above, wherein the microstrip circulator is disposed on the circuit board and electrically connected to the circuit board.

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