Antenna apparatus
AssigneeSofant Technologies Ltd
InventorsNakul Raghavanand Haridas, David Michael Wither, Victor Steel, Wei Zhou, Tonio Idda, Ahmed Osman El-Rayis
Life of this patent
Estimating the term…
Abstract
The invention relates to antenna apparatus comprising: an antenna, a signal conductor and one or more RF MEMS switches, the antenna being conductively connected to the signal conductor, the MEMS switches and at least a portion of the signal conductor being supported by a crystalline MEMS substrate; and a capping substrate comprising a capping portion, wherein an enclosed volume is formed around the said MEMS switches between the capping portion and at least a portion of the crystalline MEMS substrate, and wherein the capping substrate comprises the said antenna.
Claims26
Antenna apparatus comprising:
- an antenna, one or more radio frequency (RF) microelectromechanical (MEMS) switches, the MEMS switches being supported by a MEMS substrate;
- and a capping substrate comprising a capping portion, the capping substrate being a semiconductor substrate comprising one or more integrated circuits (ICs), the one or more ICs comprising:
- (i) a MEMS controller configured to control the one or more MEMS switches, and/or
- (ii) signal processing circuitry configured to process signals received and/or to be transmitted by the antenna.
A method of manufacturing an antenna apparatus, the antenna apparatus comprising an antenna, one or more radio frequency (RF) microelectromechanical (MEMS) switches, the method comprising providing a MEMS substrate, forming the MEMS switches on the MEMS substrate;
- providing a capping substrate comprising a capping portion, the capping substrate being a semiconductor substrate;
- and connecting the capping portion to the MEMS substrate;
- wherein one or more integrated circuits (ICs) are provided in or on the semiconductor substrate, the one or more ICs comprising:
- (i) a MEMS controller configured to control the one or more MEMS switches, and/or
- (ii) signal processing circuitry configured to process signals received and/or to be transmitted by the antenna.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.