Coupling Mitigation for Coextensive Signal Paths with Resonant Matching Networks

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-2024250709-A1
Application number	US-202318157772-A
Country	US
Kind code	A1
Filing date	Jan 20, 2023
Priority date	Jan 20, 2023
Publication date	Jul 25, 2024
Grant date	—

Abstract

An electronic device may be provided with wireless circuitry that includes a transceiver. The transceiver may include a first signal path and a second signal path extending parallel to the first signal path. The first signal path may include a first chain of gain stages and a first inductive matching network. The second signal path may include a second chain of gain stages and a second inductive matching network. The first inductive matching network may be magnetically coupled to the second inductive matching network. The first and/or second signal path may include one or more crossovers that invert a polarity of the signals on the signal paths. The crossovers may help to mitigate the effects of the magnetic coupling between the first and second signal paths while allowing for minimal spatial separation between the signal paths.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1 . An electronic device comprising:
a first signal path having a first gain stage and a first transformer; and a second signal path coextensive with the first signal path, the second signal path having a first signal line,
a second signal line parallel to the first signal line, the first and second signal lines being configured to convey a signal,
a second gain stage disposed on the first and second signal lines,
a second transformer disposed on the first and second signal lines, and
a crossover between the first signal line and the second signal line that is configured to invert a polarity of the signal.

2 . The electronic device of claim 1 , wherein the crossover is between the second transformer and the second gain stage.

3 . The electronic device of claim 2 , wherein the crossover is between an output of the second gain stage and an input of the second transformer.

4 . The electronic device of claim 2 , wherein the crossover is between an output of the second transformer and an input of the second gain stage.

5 . The electronic device of claim 1 , wherein the crossover is within the second gain stage.

6 . The electronic device of claim 1 , wherein the crossover is within the second transformer.

7 . The electronic device of claim 1 , wherein the second signal path further comprises:
a third gain stage disposed on the first and second signal lines, the second transformer being disposed between the second gain stage and the third gain stage.

8 . The electronic device of claim 7 , wherein the second signal path further comprises:
an additional crossover between the first signal line and the second signal line that is configured to invert the polarity of the signal.

9 . The electronic device of claim 8 , wherein the second signal path further comprises:
a fourth gain stage disposed on the first and second signal lines; a third transformer disposed on the first and second signal lines between the third and fourth gain stages; and a fourth transformer disposed on the first and second signal lines, the fourth gain stage being disposed between the third transformer and the fourth transformer, and the additional crossover being disposed between the fourth gain stage and the fourth transformer.

10 . The electronic device of claim 1 , wherein the second gain stage comprises a variable gain amplifier or a programmable attenuator.

11 . The electronic device of claim 1 , further comprising:
a radio-frequency transceiver that includes the first signal path and the second signal path.

12 . The electronic device of claim 11 , further comprising:
a first antenna coupled to the first signal path and configured to receive a first radio-frequency signal from the first signal path; and a second antenna coupled to the second signal path and configured to receive a second radio-frequency signal from the second signal path.

13 . The electronic device of claim 11 , further comprising:
a phased antenna array having at least a first antenna element and a second antenna element, wherein the first antenna element is configured to receive a first radio-frequency signal from the first signal path and the second antenna element is configured to receive a second radio-frequency signal from the second antenna element.

14 . The electronic device of claim 11 , wherein the first signal path is configured to convey radio-frequency signals having a first linear polarization and the second signal path is configured to convey radio-frequency signals having a second linear polarization orthogonal to the first linear polarization.

15 . The electronic device of claim 11 , wherein the first signal path is configured to convey a first local oscillator (LO) signal to a first mixer in the radio-frequency transceiver and the second signal path is configured to convey a second LO signal to a second mixer in the radio-frequency transceiver.

16 . An electronic device comprising:
a first signal path configured to convey a first signal; a first chain of gain stages disposed on the first signal path; a first inductive matching network disposed on the first signal path; a second signal path extending alongside the first signal path and configured to convey a second signal; a second chain of gain stages disposed on the second signal path; a second inductive matching network disposed on the second signal path; and
a crossover on the second signal path that is configured to invert a polarity of the second signal.

17 . The electronic device of claim 16 , further comprising:
an additional crossover on the second signal path that is configured to invert the polarity of the second signal, wherein at least one of the gain stages in the second chain of gain stages is coupled between the crossover and the additional crossover.

18 . The electronic device of claim 16 , further comprising:
an additional crossover on the first signal path that is configured to invert the polarity of the first signal.

19 . An electronic device comprising:
one or more antennas; a radio-frequency transceiver coupled to the one or more antennas; a first signal path in the radio-frequency transceiver; a first gain stage disposed on the first signal path; a first inductor disposed on the first signal path and coupled to the first gain stage; a second signal path in the radio-frequency transceiver, the second signal path having a differential pair of signal lines with a crossover point; a second gain stage disposed on the second signal path; and a second inductor disposed on the second signal path and coupled to the second gain stage, the second inductor being magnetically coupled to the first inductor.

20 . The electronic device of claim 19 , wherein the crossover point is between the second gain stage and the second inductor.

Assignees

• Apple Inc

Inventors

• Abdelatty Omar A
• Wu Kefei
• Shin Woorim
• Zhao Yi

Classifications

• H04B1/40 Primary

  Circuits · CPC title