Longitudinally coupled resonator-type surface acoustic wave filter

1. A surface acoustic wave filter comprising:

two or more interdigital transducers, provided on a piezoelectric substrate, and arranged in a propagation direction of a surface acoustic wave,

wherein said two or more interdigital transducers include at least one pair of interdigital transducers arranged adjacent to each other in order to be acoustically coupled to each other, and have different numbers of paired electrode fingers, and

a pitch between each neighboring two of almost all of the electrode fingers included in both of the pair of interdigital transducers are made different from one to another in order that the interdigital transducers should include no primary pitch area.

2. The surface acoustic wave filter according to claim 1 ,

wherein, in a case where the pitch between each neighboring two of almost all of the electrode fingers included in both of the pair of interdigital transducers are made different from one to another in order that the interdigital transducers should include no primary pitch area, at least one of the interdigital transducer transducers includes at least one pitch-decreasing area in which the pitch between the electrode fingers is progressively decreased, and at least one pitch-increasing area in which the pitch between the electrode fingers is progressively increased.

3. The surface acoustic wave filter according to claim 1 ,

wherein the surface acoustic wave filter is a longitudinally coupled resonator multi-mode type surface acoustic wave filter,

said two or more interdigital transducers arranged in the propagation direction of the surface acoustic wave include three or more interdigital transducers,

reflectors are arranged respectively at the two sides of a group consisting of the three or more interdigital transducers, and

a plurality of resonant modes are used in the three or more interdigital transducers.

4. The surface acoustic wave filter according to claim 3 ,

wherein at least one surface acoustic wave resonator is connected in series to the surface acoustic wave filter.

5. The surface acoustic wave filter according to claim 3 ,

wherein at least one surface acoustic wave resonator is connected in parallel to the surface acoustic wave filter.

6. A surface acoustic wave filter comprising:

an input terminal which is an unbalanced terminal,

output terminals which are balanced terminals,

a pair of surface acoustic wave filters which are made different from each other in the phase of an output signal by substantially 180 degrees and are electrically connected in parallel between the input terminal and the output terminals,

wherein the surface acoustic wave filter according to claim 1 is used for each of the pair of surface acoustic wave filters.

7. The surface acoustic wave filter according to claim 6 ,

wherein at least one surface acoustic wave resonator is connected in series to the surface acoustic wave filter.

8. The surface acoustic wave filter according to claim 6 ,

wherein at least one surface acoustic wave resonator is connected in parallel to the surface acoustic wave filter.

9. A surface acoustic wave filter comprising:

two or more interdigital transducers, provided on a piezoelectric substrate, and arranged in a propagation direction of a surface acoustic wave,

wherein said two or more interdigital transducers include at least one pair of interdigital transducers arranged adjacent to each other in order to be acoustically coupled to each other, and have different numbers of paired electrode fingers,

a pitch between each neighboring two of almost all of the electrode fingers included in one of the pair of interdigital transducers which has the smaller number of paired electrode fingers is made different from one to another in order that the interdigital transducer should include no primary pitch area, the one of the pair of interdigital transducers includes at least one pitch-decreasing area in which the pitch between the electrode fingers is progressively decreased, and at least one pitch-increasing area in which the pitch between the electrode fingers is progressively increased, and

in each of endmost ones of the two or more interdigital transducers arranged in the propagation direction of the surface acoustic wave, the pitch between the electrode fingers is progressively decreased from its outside to its inside, thereafter is reversely increased and subsequently is decreased again, in its inner end portion.

10. A boundary acoustic wave filter comprising:

a piezoelectric substrate;

a non-piezoelectric material arranged in contact with the piezoelectric substrate; and

two or more interdigital transducers, provided on an interface between the piezoelectric substrate and the non-piezoelectric material, and arranged in a propagation direction of boundary acoustic waves,

wherein said two or more interdigital transducers include at least one pair of interdigital transducers arranged adjacent to each other in order to be acoustically coupled to each other, and have different numbers of paired electrode fingers,

a pitch between each neighboring two of almost all of the electrode fingers included in one of the pair of interdigital transducers which has the smaller number of paired electrode fingers is made different from one to another in order that the interdigital transducer should include no primary pitch area, the one of the pair of interdigital transducers includes at least one pitch-decreasing area in which the pitch between the electrode fingers is progressively decreased, and at least one pitch-increasing area in which the pitch between the electrode fingers is progressively increased, and

in each of endmost ones of the two or more interdigital transducers arranged in the propagation direction of the surface acoustic wave, the pitch between the electrode fingers is progressively decreased from its outside to its inside, thereafter is reversely increased and subsequently is decreased again, in its inner end portion.

11. A surface acoustic wave filter comprising:

three or more interdigital transducers, provided on a piezoelectric substrate, and arranged in a propagation direction of a surface acoustic wave,

wherein said three or more interdigital transducers include at least one pair of interdigital transducers arranged adjacent to each other in order to be acoustically coupled to each other, and have different numbers of paired electrode fingers,

a pitch between each neighboring two of almost all of the electrode fingers included in one of the pair of interdigital transducers which has the smaller number of paired electrode fingers is made different from one to another in order that the interdigital transducer should include no primary pitch area, the one of the pair of interdigital transducers transducer includes at least one pitch-decreasing area in which the pitch between the electrode fingers is progressively decreased, and at least one pitch-increasing area in which the pitch between the electrode fingers is progressively increased, and

among said three or more interdigital transducers arranged in the propagation direction of the surface acoustic wave, an interdigital transducer interposed between its two neighboring interdigital transducers has a pitch change as a whole in which the pitch between the electrode fingers is larger in its central portion and is decreased gradually toward its two ends, and has an area in which the pitch between the electrode fingers is decreased in a part of its central portion.

12. A boundary acoustic wave filter comprising:

a piezoelectric substrate;

a non-piezoelectric material arranged in contact with the piezoelectric substrate; and

three or more interdigital transducers, provided on an interface between the piezoelectric substrate and the non-piezoelectric material, and arranged in a propagation direction of boundary acoustic waves,

wherein said three or more interdigital transducers include at least one pair of interdigital transducers arranged adjacent to each other in order to be acoustically coupled to each other, and have different numbers of paired electrode fingers,

a pitch between each neighboring two of almost all of the electrode fingers included in one of the pair of interdigital transducers which has the smaller number of paired electrode fingers is made different from one to another in order that the interdigital transducer should include no primary pitch area, the one of the pair of interdigital transducers includes at least one pitch-decreasing area in which the pitch between the electrode fingers is progressively decreased, and at least one pitch-increasing area in which the pitch between the electrode fingers is progressively increased, and

among said three or more interdigital transducers arranged in the propagation direction of the surface acoustic wave, an interdigital transducer interposed between its two neighboring interdigital transducers has a pitch change as a whole in which the pitch between the electrode fingers is larger in its central portion and is decreased gradually toward its two ends, and has an area in which the pitch between the electrode fingers is decreased in a part of its central portion.

13. A boundary acoustic wave filter comprising:

a piezoelectric substrate;

a non-piezoelectric material arranged in contact with the piezoelectric substrate; and

two or more interdigital transducers, provided on an interface between the piezoelectric substrate and the non-piezoelectric material, and arranged in a propagation direction of boundary acoustic waves,

wherein said two or more interdigital transducers include at least one pair of interdigital transducers arranged adjacent to each other in order to be acoustically coupled to each other, and have different numbers of paired electrode fingers, and

a pitch between each neighboring two of almost all of the electrode fingers included in both of the pair of interdigital transducers are made different from one to another in order that the interdigital transducers should include no primary pitch area.

14. The boundary acoustic wave filter according to claim 13 ,

wherein the boundary acoustic wave filter is a longitudinally coupled resonator multi-mode type boundary acoustic wave filter,

said two or more interdigital transducers arranged in the propagation direction of the surface acoustic wave include three or more interdigital transducers,

reflectors are arranged respectively at the two sides of a group consisting of the three or more interdigital transducers, and

a plurality of resonant modes are used in the three or more interdigital transducers.

15. The boundary acoustic wave filter according to claim 13 ,

wherein, in a case where the pitch between each neighboring two of almost all of the electrode fingers included in both of the pair of interdigital transducers are made different from one to another in order that the interdigital transducers should include no primary pitch area, at least one of the interdigital transducers includes at least one pitch-decreasing area in which the pitch between the electrode fingers is progressively decreased, and at least one pitch-increasing area in which the pitch between the electrode fingers is progressively increased.

16. A surface acoustic wave filter comprising:

two or more interdigital transducers, provided on a piezoelectric substrate, and arranged in a propagation direction of a surface acoustic wave,

wherein said two or more interdigital transducers include at least one pair of interdigital transducers arranged adjacent to each other in order to be acoustically coupled to each other, and have different numbers of paired electrode fingers,

a pitch between each neighboring two of almost all of the electrode fingers included in one of the pair of interdigital transducers which has the smaller number of paired electrode fingers is made different from one to another in order that the interdigital transducer should include no primary pitch area,

the largest pitch between the electrode fingers in a first one of the pair of interdigital transducers which has the smaller number of paired electrode fingers is smaller than the largest pitch between the electrode fingers in a second one of the pair of interdigital transducers which has the larger number of paired electrode fingers, and

the smallest pitch between the electrode fingers in the first one of the pair of interdigital transducers which has the smaller number of paired electrode fingers is larger than the smallest pitch between the electrode fingers in the second one of the pair of interdigital transducers which has the larger number of paired electrode fingers.

17. A boundary acoustic wave filter comprising:

a piezoelectric substrate;

a non-piezoelectric material arranged in contact with the piezoelectric substrate; and

two or more interdigital transducers, provided on an interface between the piezoelectric substrate and the non-piezoelectric material, and arranged in a propagation direction of boundary acoustic waves,

wherein said two or more interdigital transducers include at least one pair of interdigital transducers arranged adjacent to each other in order to be acoustically coupled to each other, and have different numbers of paired electrode fingers,

a pitch between each neighboring two of almost all of the electrode fingers included in one of the pair of interdigital transducers which has the smaller number of paired electrode fingers is made different from one to another in order that the interdigital transducer should include no primary pitch area,

the largest pitch between the electrode fingers in a first one of the pair of interdigital transducers which has the smaller number of paired electrode fingers is smaller than the largest pitch between the electrode fingers in a second one of the pair of interdigital transducers which has the larger number of paired electrode fingers, and

the smallest pitch between the electrode fingers in the first one of the pair of interdigital transducers which has the smaller number of paired electrode fingers is larger than the smallest pitch between the electrode fingers in the second one of the pair of interdigital transducers which has the larger number of paired electrode fingers.