Switchable inductor network for wideband circuits

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10447204-B2
Application number	US-201715705855-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Sep 15, 2017
Priority date	Sep 15, 2017
Publication date	Oct 15, 2019
Grant date	Oct 15, 2019

Abstract

The present disclosure describes aspects of a switchable inductor network for wideband circuits. In some aspects, the switchable inductor network provides selectable inductance. The switchable inductor network includes a first coil and a second coil that includes a first inductive segment and a second inductive segment. Connection points of the second coil connect the second coil across a portion of the first coil. The switchable inductor network also includes a switch connected between the first inductive segment and the second inductive segment of the second coil. The switch is configured to change the selectable inductance of the switchable inductor network by selectively coupling the first inductive segment to the second inductive segment of the second coil in response to a control signal.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus comprising:
a switchable inductor network comprising:
a first coil including an inner coil and an outer coil, the first coil including a first connection point and a second connection point, the first coil disposed along at least one axis at a first position;
a second coil including a first inductive segment and a second inductive segment, the first inductive segment connected to the first connection point of the first coil, and the second inductive segment connected to the second connection point of the first coil; the second coil disposed along the at least one axis at a second position, the second position different from the first position; and
a switch connected between the first inductive segment of the second coil and the second inductive segment of the second coil, the switch configured to change, in response to a control signal, an inductance of the switchable inductor network by selectively coupling the first inductive segment of the second coil to the second inductive segment of the second coil to thereby connect the second coil across a portion of the first coil.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the second position is different from the first position such that the second coil and the first coil are not concentric with respect to each other.

3. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the inner coil and the outer coil of the first coil are concentric.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the inner coil and the outer coil of the first coil are formed on a single metal layer excepting a region of overlap.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the apparatus comprises a computing device, the computing device includes at least one wireless transceiver, and the at least one wireless transceiver comprises the switchable inductor network.

6. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein at least one of the inner coil or the outer coil overlaps the other without direct electrical contact in a region of overlap.

7. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the inner coil of the first coil is nested within the outer coil of the first coil.

8. The apparatus of claim 7 , wherein an inductance of the second coil is greater than or equal to a mutual inductance between the inner coil of the first coil and the outer coil of the first coil.

9. The apparatus of claim 7 , wherein the second coil and the outer coil of the first coil have substantially similar dimensions.

10. The apparatus of claim 7 , wherein the first connection point and the second connection point are positioned on the outer coil of the first coil, an overlap of the inner coil and the outer coil being disposed between the first connection point and the second connection point.

11. The apparatus of claim 10 , wherein the connection of the second coil across the portion of the outer coil of the first coil is configured to couple the inner coil of the first coil and the second coil in parallel if the switch is in a closed-state, and the switch is configured to couple the first inductive segment of the second coil to the second inductive segment of the second coil in the closed-state.

12. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the second coil has multiple turns.

13. The apparatus of claim 12 , wherein the multiple turns of the second coil comprise an outer turn and an inner turn, the inner turn being nested within the outer turn.

14. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the switch is configured to change, in response to the control signal, the inductance of the switchable inductor network by selectively decoupling the first inductive segment of the second coil from the second inductive segment of the second coil to thereby disconnect the second coil from being across the portion of the first coil.

15. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the switch comprises a transistor having a drain and a source, and the drain and the source switchably couple the first inductive segment of the second coil to the second inductive segment of the second coil.

16. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the first inductive segment of the second coil and the second inductive segment of the second coil are substantially equal in length.

17. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the switch is disposed at ends of the first inductive segment and the second inductive segment that are opposite from other ends of the first inductive segment and the second inductive segment that respectively connect to the first connection point of the first coil and the second connection point of the first coil.

18. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein:
the second coil is positioned adjacent to the first coil;
the first coil and the second coil are symmetric about the at least one axis;
terminals of the first coil are positioned symmetrically about the at least one axis; and
the first connection point of the first coil and the second connection point of the first coil are symmetric about the at least one axis.

19. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein the first coil and the second coil are symmetric about the at least one axis, and the switch is positioned along the at least one axis.

20. A switchable inductor network, the switchable inductor network comprising:
a first coil including an inner coil and an outer coil, the first coil including a first connection point and a second connection point, the first coil disposed along at least one axis at a first position;
a second coil including a first inductive segment and a second inductive segment, the first inductive segment connected to the first connection point of the first coil, and the second inductive segment connected to the second connection point of the first coil; the second coil disposed along the at least one axis at a second position, the second position different from the first position; and
means for selecting an inductance of the switchable inductor network in response to a control signal by selectively coupling the first inductive segment of the second coil to the second inductive segment of the second coil to thereby connect the second coil across a portion of the first coil.

21. The switchable inductor network of claim 20 , wherein the means for selecting the inductance of the switchable inductor network in response to the control signal comprises means for selecting the inductance of the switchable inductor network in response to the control signal by selectively decoupling the first inductive segment of the second coil from the second inductive segment of the second coil to thereby disconnect the second coil from being across the portion of the first coil.

22. The switchable inductor network of claim 20 , wherein the means for selecting the inductance comprises a switch that is connected between the first inductive segment of the second coil and the second inductive segment of the second coil.

23. The switchable inductor network of claim 20 , wherein the first coil and the second coil are symmetric about the at least one axis, and the means for selecting the inductance is positioned along the at least one axis.

24. The switchable inductor network of claim 23 , wherein of claim 20 , wherein at least one of the inner coil or the outer coil overlaps the other without direct electrical contact in a region of overlap.

25. The switchable inductor network of claim 20 , wherein an inductance of the second coil is greater than or equal to a mutual inductance between the inner coil of the first coil and the outer coil of the first coil.

Assignees

• Qualcomm Inc

Inventors

• Moslehi Bajestan Masoud
• Mohammadi Izad Mehran
• Farazian Mohammad

Classifications

• H03B2200/0086

  relating to the Q factor or damping of the resonant circuit · CPC title

• H03B5/1268 Primary

  switched inductors · CPC title

• H03B2201/0266

  the means comprising a transistor · CPC title

• H01F21/12

  discontinuously variable, e.g. tapped · CPC title

• H03B5/1228

  the amplifier comprising one or more field effect transistors · CPC title