RF diplexer

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9899986-B2
Application number	US-201414547502-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Nov 19, 2014
Priority date	Oct 24, 2013
Publication date	Feb 20, 2018
Grant date	Feb 20, 2018

Abstract

Embodiments of a tunable radio frequency (RF) diplexer and methods of operating the same are disclosed. In one embodiment, the RF diplexer includes a first hybrid coupler, a second hybrid coupler, an RF filter circuit, and a phase inversion component. Both the RF filter circuit and the phase inversion component are connected between the first hybrid coupler and the second hybrid coupler. The phase inversion component is configured to provide approximately a differential phase. The RF filter circuit is configured to provide a passband and a notch. The RF filter circuit is tunable to provide the notch on both a high-frequency side of the passband and a low frequency side of the passband. Accordingly, the tunable RF diplexer provides lower insertion losses and higher isolation regardless of whether the one of the diplexed frequency bands is set at higher frequencies or lower frequencies than the other diplexed frequency band.

First claim

What is claimed is:

1. A radio frequency (RF) diplexer comprising:
a first hybrid coupler;
a second hybrid coupler; and
a RF filter circuit connected between the first hybrid coupler and the second hybrid coupler, wherein the RF filter circuit defines a passband and a notch, the RF filter circuit is tunable to provide the notch on both a high-frequency side of the passband and a low-frequency side of the passband; and the RF filter circuit comprises a first inductor and a second inductor coupled between the first hybrid coupler and the second hybrid coupler, such that the first inductor and the second inductor have inverting mutually magnetic coupling
and are configured to provide approximately a differential phase shift.

2. The RF diplexer of claim 1 wherein:
the RF filter circuit comprises a first RF filter and a second RF filter;
the first RF filter is connected between the first hybrid coupler and the second hybrid coupler; and
the second RF filter comprises is connected between the first hybrid coupler and the second hybrid coupler.

3. The RF diplexer of claim 2 wherein the first RF filter defines a tunable RF filter path, the tunable RF filter path comprises:
at least a pair of weakly coupled resonators that are weakly coupled by having an energy transfer factor of less than 10%;
a first cross-coupling capacitive structure having a first variable capacitance and connected from the first hybrid coupler to one of the pair of weakly coupled resonators; and
a second cross-coupling capacitive structure having a second variable capacitance and connected from the second hybrid coupler to an other one of the pair of weakly coupled resonators.

4. The RF diplexer of claim 3 wherein the tunable RF filter path further comprises a notch filter.

5. The RF diplexer of claim 2 wherein the second RF filter defines a tunable RF filter path, the tunable RF filter path comprises:
at least a pair of weakly coupled resonators that are weakly coupled by having an energy transfer factor of less than 10%;
a first cross-coupling capacitive structure having a first variable capacitance and connected from the first hybrid coupler to one of the pair of weakly coupled resonators; and
a second cross-coupling capacitive structure having a second variable capacitance and connected from the second hybrid coupler to an other one of the pair of weakly coupled resonators.

6. The RF diplexer of claim 5 wherein the tunable RF filter path further comprises a notch filter.

7. The RF diplexer of claim 2 wherein:
the first RF filter defines a first tunable RF filter path, the first tunable RF filter path comprises:
at least a first pair of weakly coupled resonators that are weakly coupled by having an energy transfer factor of less than 10%;
a first cross-coupling capacitive structure having a first variable capacitance and connected from the first hybrid coupler to one of the first pair of weakly coupled resonators;
a second cross-coupling capacitive structure having a second variable capacitance and connected from the second hybrid coupler to an other one of the first pair of weakly coupled resonators;

the second RF filter defines a second tunable RF filter path, the second tunable RF filter path comprises:
at least a second pair of weakly coupled resonators that are weakly coupled by having an energy transfer factor of less than 10%;
a third cross-coupling capacitive structure having a third variable capacitance and connected from the first hybrid coupler to one of the second pair of weakly coupled resonators; and
a fourth cross-coupling capacitive structure having a fourth variable capacitance and connected from the second hybrid coupler to an other one of the second pair of weakly coupled resonators.

8. The RF diplexer of claim 7 wherein the first cross-coupling capacitive structure, the second cross-coupling capacitive structure, the third cross-coupling capacitive structure, and the fourth cross-coupling capacitive structure are coupled such that the RF filter circuit is tunable to provide the notch on both the high-frequency side of the passband and the low-frequency side of the passband by adjusting the first variable capacitance, the second variable capacitance, the third variable capacitance and the fourth variable capacitance.

9. The RF diplexer of claim 8 wherein the first tunable RF filter path further comprises a first notch filter and the second tunable RF filter path further comprises a second notch filter.

10. The RF diplexer of claim 8 wherein:
the first hybrid coupler comprises:
a first port configured to be coupled to an antenna;
a second port configured to be coupled to external circuitry;
a third port coupled to the first RF filter, wherein the first cross-coupling capacitive structure is connected from the third port to the one of the first pair of weakly coupled resonators;
a fourth port coupled to the second RF filter, the third cross-coupling capacitive structure is connected from the fourth port to the one of the second pair of weakly coupled resonators;

the second hybrid coupler comprises:
a fifth port coupled to the first RF filter, wherein the second cross-coupling capacitive structure is connected from the fifth port to the other one of the first pair of weakly coupled resonators;
a sixth port coupled to the second RF filter, wherein the fourth cross-coupling capacitive structure is connected from the sixth port to the other one of the second pair of weakly coupled resonators;
a seventh port coupled to other external circuitry; and
an eighth port configured to be coupled to an impedance termination.

11. A radio frequency (RF) diplexer comprising:
a first hybrid coupler;
a second hybrid coupler;
a first tunable RF filter path comprising a first inductor, a second inductor, and at least a first pair of weakly coupled resonators that are weakly coupled by having an energy transfer factor of less than 10%, where the first tunable RF filter path is connected between the first hybrid coupler and the second hybrid coupler and the first tunable RF filter path defines a first passband and a first notch, the first tunable RF filter path is tunable to provide the first notch on both a high-frequency side of the first passband and a low-frequency side of the first passband;

and the first inductor and the second inductor are coupled between the first hybrid coupler and the second hybrid coupler, such that the first inductor and the second inductor have inverting mutually magnetic coupling
and are configured to provide approximately a differential phase shift.

12. The RF diplexer of claim 11 further comprising a second tunable RF filter path comprising at least a second pair of weakly coupled resonators that are weakly coupled by having an energy transfer factor of less than 10%, where the second tunable RF filter path is connected between the first hybrid coupler and the second hybrid coupler and the second tunable RF filter path defines a second passband and a second notch, the second tunable RF filter path is tunable to provide the second notch on both a high-frequency side of the second passband and a low-frequency side of the second passband.

13. The RF diplexer of claim 12 wherein the first tunable RF filter path further comprises:
the first hybrid coupler comprises:
a first port configured to be coupled to an antenna;
a second port configured to be coupled to external circuitry;
a third port coupled to the first tunable RF filter path;
a fourth port coupled to the second tunable RF filter path;

the second hybrid coupler comprises:
a fifth port coupled to the first tunable RF filter path;

Assignees

• Rf Micro Devices Inc
• Qoro Us Inc

Inventors

• Khlat Nadim
• Granger Jones Marcus

Classifications

• H03H7/463 Primary

  Duplexers · CPC title

• H04B10/556

  Digital modulation, e.g. differential phase shift keying [DPSK] or frequency shift keying [FSK] · CPC title

• H04B1/0057

  using diplexing or multiplexing filters for selecting the desired band · CPC title

• H04B1/40

  Circuits · CPC title

• H04L27/2085

  with more than one phase shift per symbol period · CPC title