Power combiners and dividers based on composite right and left handed metamaterial structures
View Patent ↗Techniques, apparatus and systems that use composite left and right handed (CRLH) metamaterial structures to combine and divide electromagnetic signals at multiple frequencies. The metamaterial properties permit significant size reduction over a conventional N-way radial power combiner or divider. Dual-band serial power combiners and dividers and single-band and dual-band radial power combiners and dividers are described.
1. A power transforming device, comprising:
a plurality of transmission lines, wherein at least one of the plurality of transmission lines is a composite right and left handed (CRLH)-based structure; and
a port coupled to the plurality of transmission lines,
wherein each of the plurality of transmission lines has an electrical length corresponding to a phase of 0 degrees at an operating signal frequency.
2. The power transforming device as in claim 1 , wherein the device forms a radial power combiner divider circuit.
3. The power transforming device as in claim 2 , wherein the radial power combiner divider circuit combines an input power level at each of the plurality of transmission lines to produce a single output power level at the port.
4. The power transforming device as in claim 2 , wherein the radial power combiner divider circuit divides a single input power level at the port into a plurality of output power levels at each of the plurality of transmission lines.
5. The power transforming device as in claim 4 , wherein the radial power combiner divider circuit supports a single frequency band.
6. The power transforming device as in claim 1 , wherein a physical dimension of the device is a function of the phase.
7. The power transforming device as in claim 6 , wherein the (CRLH)-based structure is formed using lumped elements or distributed lines.
8. The power transforming device as in claim 6 , wherein the (CRLH)-based structure is formed in a vertical configuration.
9. The power transforming device as in claim 1 , wherein the port includes a feed line structure.
10. The power transforming device as in claim 9 , wherein the port is formed using a conventional right-handed transmission line.
11. The power transforming device as in claim 9 , wherein the port is formed using the (CRLH)-based structure.
12. The power transforming device as in claim 9 , wherein the port has an electrical length corresponding to a phase of 90 degrees or an odd multiple of 90 degrees at the operating signal frequency.
13. The power transforming device as in claim 12 , wherein the port has an impedance defined by the plurality of transmission lines.
14. The power transforming device as in claim 1 , wherein the electrical length of each of the plurality of transmission lines determines a phase value at a given frequency.
15. The power transforming device as in claim 1 , wherein the (CRLH)-based structure is comprised of a right-handed series inductance, a right-handed shunt capacitance, a left-handed series capacitance, and a left-handed shunt inductance.
16. The power transforming device as in claim 15 , wherein the right-handed series inductance, the right-handed shunt capacitance, the left-handed series capacitance, and the left-handed shunt inductance are spatially distributed.
17. A power transforming device, comprising:
a plurality of transmission lines, wherein at least one of the plurality of transmission lines is a composite right and left handed (CRLH)-based structure; and
a port coupled to the plurality of transmission lines,
wherein each of the plurality of transmission lines has an electrical length corresponding to a phase of ±180*N degrees at a first frequency range and a phase of ±180*M degrees at a second frequency range, wherein M=N−1 and N is any integer including zero.
18. The power transforming device as in claim 17 , wherein the device forms a radial power combiner divider circuit.
19. The power transforming device as in claim 18 , wherein the radial power combiner divider circuit supports multi-band frequencies.
20. The power transforming device as in claim 19 , wherein the (CRLH)-based structure is comprised of a right-handed series inductance, a right-handed shunt capacitance, a left-handed series capacitance, and a left-handed shunt inductance.
21. The power transforming device as in claim 20 , wherein the multi-band frequencies are comprised of at least two selectable frequencies corresponding with at least two phases.
22. The power transforming device as in claim 21 , wherein a configuration of the right-handed series inductance, the right-handed shunt capacitance, the left-handed series capacitance, and the left-handed shunt inductance is a function of the at least two selectable frequencies.
23. The power transforming device as in claim 17 , wherein the first frequency range is non-harmonically related to the second frequency range.
24. A method for a power combiner, comprising:
receiving a plurality of power levels from a plurality of transmission lines, wherein at least one of the plurality of transmission lines is a composite right and left handed (CRLH)-based structure; and
combining the plurality of power levels to a single power level at a port coupled to the plurality of transmission lines,
wherein the each of the plurality of transmission lines has an electrical length corresponding to a phase of
0 degrees.
25. A method for a power divider, comprising:
receiving a single power level at a port; and
distributing the single power level from the port to a plurality of transmission lines, wherein each of the plurality of transmission lines is coupled to the port and at least one transmission line is a composite right and left handed (CRLH)-based structure,
wherein the each of the plurality of transmission lines has an electrical length corresponding to a phase of 0 degrees.
26. A method for a power combiner, comprising:
receiving a plurality of power levels from a plurality of transmission lines, wherein at least one of the plurality of transmission lines is a composite right and left handed (CRLH)-based structure; and
combining the plurality of power levels to a single power level at a port coupled to the plurality of transmission lines,
wherein each of the plurality of transmission lines has an electrical length corresponding to a phase of ±180*N degrees at first frequency range and a phase of ±180*M degrees at a second frequency range, wherein M=N−1 and N is an integer including zero.
27. A method for a power divider, comprising:
receiving a single power level at a port; and
distributing the single power level from the port to a plurality of transmission lines, wherein each transmission line is coupled to the port and at least one transmission line is a composite right and left handed (CRLH)-based structure,
wherein each transmission line has an electrical length corresponding to a phase of ±180*N degrees at first frequency range and a phase of ±180*M degrees at a second frequency range, wherein M=N−1 and N is an integer including zero.