Mixer having phase shift function and communications device including the same

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-11770108-B2
Application number	US-202117522346-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 9, 2021
Priority date	Oct 14, 2019
Publication date	Sep 26, 2023
Grant date	Sep 26, 2023

Abstract

A mixer includes a load portion connected between an input terminal of a first power voltage and an output terminal of the radio frequency transmit signal and configured to adjust a magnitude of the radio frequency transmit signal, a first switching unit connected to an output terminal of the radio frequency transmit signal, and configured to perform a first switching operation in response to a plurality of local oscillation signals, and a second switching unit connected between the first switching unit and an input terminal of a second power voltage, lower than the first power voltage, and configured to perform a second switching operation in response to a plurality of baseband signals, the plurality of local oscillation signals include an I+ baseband signal, an I− baseband signal, a Q+ baseband signal, and a Q− baseband signal, and the second switching unit includes a first branch performing a switching operation under control of the I+ baseband signal and the Q+ baseband signal, a second branch performing a switching operation under control of the I− baseband signal and the Q− baseband signal, a third branch performing a switching operation under control of the Q+ baseband signal and the I− baseband signal, and a fourth branch performing a switching operation under control of the Q− baseband signal and the I+ baseband signal.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A communications device, comprising:
a modulator configured to generate a plurality of quadrature baseband signals as a baseband signal;
a local oscillation signal generator configured to generate a plurality of first quadrature local oscillation signals as a first local oscillation signal;
a multiplexer or a buffer configured to receive the plurality of first quadrature local oscillation signals and phase-shift the plurality of first quadrature local oscillation signals to generate a plurality of second quadrature local oscillation signals as a second local oscillation signal, wherein the second local oscillation signal is phase-shifted with respect to the first local oscillation signal;
a mixer configured to receive the plurality of second quadrature local oscillation signals and the plurality of quadrature baseband signals, further configured to adjust a magnitude of an I-phase quadrature baseband signal or a magnitude of a Q-phase quadrature baseband signal, further configured to combine the I-phase quadrature baseband signal and the Q-phase quadrature baseband signal, and further configured to perform a mixing operation with respect to the combined quadrature baseband signal and at least one of the plurality of second quadrature local oscillation signals.

2. The communications device of claim 1 , further comprising a receive mixer configured to generate a plurality of baseband receive signals by down-conversion of a plurality of radio frequency receive signals based on the plurality of second quadrature local oscillation signals.

3. The communications device of claim 1 , further comprising:
an array antenna for performing beamforming.

4. The communications device of claim 1 , wherein the mixer is further configured to generate a radio frequency transmit signal as a result of the mixing operation.

5. The communications device of claim 1 , further comprising:
a plurality of loads connected to an output terminal of the mixer.

6. The communications device of claim 5 , wherein each of the plurality of loads includes at least one microstrip line when the communications device performs wireless communications using a wavelength of substantially terahertz band.

7. The communications device of claim 1 ,
wherein the plurality of first quadrature local oscillation signals includes an I+ transmit local oscillation signal, an I− transmit local oscillation signal, a Q+ transmit local oscillation signal, and a Q− transmit local oscillation signal, and
wherein the multiplexer is configured to select one of the I+ transmit local oscillation signal, the I− transmit local oscillation signal, the Q+ transmit local oscillation signal, or the Q− transmit local oscillation signal, and to output the selected transmit local oscillation signal as one of the plurality of second quadrature local oscillation signals.

8. The communications device of claim 1 ,
wherein the plurality of first quadrature local oscillation signals includes an I+ transmit local oscillation signal, an I− transmit local oscillation signal, a Q+ transmit local oscillation signal, and a Q− transmit local oscillation signal, and
wherein the buffer includes first to fourth buffer paths each including a plurality of buffers, and is configured to generate the plurality of second quadrature local oscillation signals based on a combination of the plurality of first quadrature local oscillation signals input to the first to fourth buffer paths and an activation status of the first to fourth buffer paths.

9. The communications device of claim 1 ,
wherein the mixer includes:
a first switching unit configured to perform a switching operation in response to the plurality of second quadrature local oscillation signals; and
a second switching unit configured to perform a switching operation in response to the plurality of quadrature baseband signals,
wherein the mixer is configured to phase-shift the plurality of quadrature baseband signals through a switching operation of the second switching unit.

10. A communications device, comprising:
a modulator configured to generate a plurality of baseband signals;
a local oscillation signal generator configured to generate a plurality of local oscillation signals;
a multiplexer or a buffer configured to receive the plurality of the local oscillation signals and phase-shift the plurality of the local oscillation signals to generate a plurality of source terminal input signals wherein a phase difference between the plurality of the local oscillation signals and the plurality of the source terminal input signals is 90 degrees;
a mixer configured to receive the plurality of the source terminal input signals and the plurality of baseband signals, further configured to phase-shift the plurality of the baseband signals by a value equal to or lower than 45 degrees.

11. The communications device of claim 10 , wherein the mixer is further configured to perform a mixing operation with respect the plurality of source terminal input signals and the plurality of phase-shifted baseband signals.

12. The communications device of claim 11 , wherein the mixer is further configured to generate a radio frequency transmit signal as a result of the mixing operation.

13. The communications device of claim 10 , further comprising a receive mixer configured to generate a plurality of baseband receive signals by down-conversion of a plurality of radio frequency receive signals based on the plurality of source terminal input signals.

14. The communications device of claim 10 , further comprising:
an array antenna for performing beamforming.

15. The communications device of claim 10 , further comprising:
a plurality of loads connected to an output terminal of the mixer.

16. The communications device of claim 15 , wherein each of the plurality of loads includes at least one microstrip line when the communications device performs wireless communications using a wavelength of substantially terahertz band.

17. The communications device of claim 10 ,
wherein the plurality of local oscillation signals includes an I+ transmit local oscillation signal, an I− transmit local oscillation signal, a Q+ transmit local oscillation signal, and a Q− transmit local oscillation signal, and
wherein the multiplexer is configured to select one of the I+ transmit local oscillation signal, the I− transmit local oscillation signal, the Q+ transmit local oscillation signal, or the Q− transmit local oscillation signal, and to output the selected transmit local oscillation signal as one of the plurality of source terminal input signals.

18. The communications device of claim 10 ,
wherein the plurality of local oscillation signals includes an I+ transmit local oscillation signal, an I− transmit local oscillation signal, a Q+ transmit local oscillation signal, and a Q− transmit local oscillation signal, and
wherein the buffer includes first to fourth buffer paths each including a plurality of buffers, and is configured to generate the plurality of source terminal input signals based on a combination of the plurality of local oscillation signals input to the first to fourth buffer paths and an activation status of the first to fourth buffer paths.

19. The communications device of claim 10 ,
wherein the mixer includes:
a first switching unit configured to perform a switching operation in response to the plurality of source terminal input signals; and
a second switching unit configured to perform a switching operation in response to the plurality of baseband sig

Assignees

• Samsung Electronics Co Ltd

Inventors

• Yim Jounghyun
• Kim Taewan

Classifications

• H03F3/24 Primary

  of transmitter output stages · CPC title

• H03D7/1458

  Double balanced arrangements, i.e. where both input signals are differential · CPC title

• H03D7/165 Primary

  at least two frequency changers being located in different paths, e.g. in two paths with carriers in quadrature (combined with amplitude demodulation H03D1/2245, combined with angle demodulation H03D3/007; N-path filters H03H19/002) · CPC title

• H03F3/211

  using a combination of several amplifiers (H03F3/60 takes precedence) · CPC title

• H04B1/30

  for homodyne or synchrodyne receivers (demodulator circuits H03D1/22) · CPC title