Rat-race balun and associated method for reducing the footprint of a rat-race balun
AssigneeThales
InventorsAymeric Cailleux, Laure Hogommat-Chabrot
Life of this patent
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Abstract
A rat-race balun includes a transmission line loop and 4 input-output ports P1, P2, P3, P4 connected to the transmission line loop, the balun being designed to receive a first signal on the port P1, and to divide the first signal into a second signal that is delivered to the port P2 and a third signal that is delivered to the port P4, the second signal and the third signal being in phase opposition with one another, the balun wherein the balun is kidney-shaped and the ports P2, P4 each comprise at least a first section connected to the transmission line, the first section of the port P2 being parallel to the first section of the port P4.
Claims9
A rat-race balun, comprising:
- a transmission line loop;
- 4 input-output ports P1, P2, P3, P4 connected to said transmission line loop, said rat-race balun being designed to receive a first signal on the port P1, and to divide said first signal into a second signal that is delivered to the port P2 and a third signal that is delivered to the port P4, said second signal and said third signal being in phase opposition with one another;
- and
- an impedance transformer loaded by a capacitor between the port P1 and the transmission line loop, wherein:
- the rat-race balun is kidney-shaped and
- the ports P2, P4 each comprise at least a first section connected to the transmission line, the first section of the port P2 being parallel to the first section of the port P4.
A method for reducing the footprint of a rat-race balun comprising a transmission line loop, 4 input-output ports P1, P2, P3, P4 connected to said transmission line loop, and an impedance transformer loaded by a capacitor between the port P1 and the transmission line loop, said rat-race balun being designed to receive a first signal on the port P1, and to divide said first signal into a second signal that is delivered to the port P2 and a third signal that is delivered to the port P4, said second signal and said third signal being in phase opposition with one another, comprising the following steps implemented by an electronic device for determining rat-race balun characteristics:
- determination of a kidney shape for the rat-race balun;
- connection of a first section of each of the ports P2, P4 to the transmission line, the first section of the port P2 being parallel to the first section of the port P4.
Dependencies are inferred from the claim text.