Inductor structure and method for forming the same

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-10867745-B2
Application number	US-201715653805-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Jul 19, 2017
Priority date	Jul 19, 2017
Publication date	Dec 15, 2020
Grant date	Dec 15, 2020

Abstract

A device comprises a magnetic core comprising a first leg and a second leg formed by a first magnetic component and a second magnetic component, wherein a first gap and a second gap are placed between the first magnetic component and the second magnetic component and are in the first leg and the second leg, respectively, a first winding wound around the first leg in a counter-clockwise direction and a second winding wound around the second leg in a clockwise direction.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus comprising:
a magnetic core comprising a first leg and a second leg formed by a first magnetic component and a second magnetic component, wherein a first gap is in the first leg and placed between the first magnetic component and the second magnetic component and wherein the first magnetic component is a first U-core, and the second magnetic component is a second U-core;
a first winding wound around the first leg; and
a second winding wound around the second leg, and wherein:
the first winding and the second winding are connected in series and form an inductor;
the first winding and the second winding are configured to flow a current and generate a first magnetic flux in the first leg and a second magnetic flux in the second leg; and
the first magnetic flux generated by the first winding and the second magnetic flux generated by the second winding are in opposite directions, and a first leakage flux generated by the first winding and a second leakage flux generated by the second winding cancel out each other, and wherein the first winding and the second winding are formed by a first trace and a second trace, and wherein the first trace starts from a first terminal on a first layer of a printed circuit board and splits into a first printed circuit board trace wound around the first leg of the magnetic core in a counter-clockwise direction and a second printed circuit board trace wound around the second leg of the magnetic core in a clockwise direction, and the second trace on a second layer of the printed circuit board starts from a first pad connected to the first layer, and the second trace splits into a third printed circuit board trace wound around the first leg of the magnetic core in the counter-clockwise direction and a fourth printed circuit board trace wound around the second leg of the magnetic core in the clockwise direction.

2. The apparatus of claim 1 , further comprising:
a second gap in the second leg and placed between the first magnetic component and the second magnetic component.

3. The apparatus of claim 2 , wherein:
a height of the first gap is approximately equal to a height of the second gap.

4. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein:
the number of turns of the first winding is equal to the number of turns of the second winding.

5. The apparatus of claim 1 , wherein:
the magnetic core is formed of ferrite.

6. A device comprising:
a magnetic core comprising a first leg and a second leg, wherein the magnetic core is formed by two U-cores;
a first gap in the first leg;
a second gap in the second leg;
a first winding wound around the first leg of the magnetic core in a counter-clockwise direction; and
a second winding wound around the second leg of the magnetic core in a clockwise direction, wherein the first winding and the second winding form an inductor, and a first leakage flux generated by the first winding and a second leakage flux generated by the second winding cancel out each other, and wherein the first winding and second winding are formed by a first trace and a second trace, and wherein the first trace starts from a first terminal on a first layer of a printed circuit board and splits into a first printed circuit board trace wound around the first leg of the magnetic core in the counter-clockwise direction and a second printed circuit board trace wound around the second leg of the magnetic core in the clockwise direction, and the second trace on a second layer of the printed circuit board starts from a first pad connected to the first layer, and the second trace splits into a third printed circuit board trace wound around the first leg of the magnetic core in the counter-clockwise direction and a fourth printed circuit board trace wound around the second leg of the magnetic core in the clockwise direction.

7. The device of claim 6 , wherein:
the first leg and the second leg is formed by a first magnetic component and a second magnetic component, wherein the first gap is placed between the first magnetic component and the second magnetic component.

8. The device of claim 6 , wherein:
the first winding and the second winding are configured to flow a current and generate a first magnetic flux in the first leg and a second magnetic flux in the second leg; and
the first magnetic flux generated by the first winding and the second magnetic flux generated by the second winding are in opposite directions.

9. The device of claim 6 , wherein:
the first printed circuit board trace ends at a first via and the second printed circuit board trace ends at a second via; and
the third printed circuit board trace ends at a third via and the fourth printed circuit board trace ends at a fourth via.

10. The device of claim 9 , wherein:
the second via and the fourth via are located immediately adjacent to each other; and
the first via and the third via are located immediately adjacent to each other, and wherein the first via, the second via, the third via and the fourth via are horizontally aligned to each other.

Assignees

• Futurewei Technologies Inc
• Univ Florida

Inventors

• Zhang Huan
• Dai Heping
• Wang Shuo

Classifications

• H01F3/14 Primary

  Constrictions; Gaps, e.g. air-gaps (in magnetic shunt paths H01F3/12) · CPC title

• H01F27/2804

  Printed windings · CPC title

• H01F27/38 Primary

  Auxiliary core members; Auxiliary coils or windings · CPC title

• H01F41/0206

  Manufacturing of magnetic cores by mechanical means (magnetic cores per se H01F27/24) · CPC title