A Small Package With 46-dB Isolation Between Tx and Rx Antennas Suitable for 60-GHz WPAN Module

Abstract

A small package suitable for the mobile terminals of the 60-GHz wireless personal area network is proposed. Two antennas for Tx and Rx are integrated in the package. The antenna provides the end-fire radiation from the side face of the substrate. The package is mounted on the edge of a printed circuit board by using the ball grid array assembly. The antenna is composed of a post-wall waveguide and a slab waveguide with metal sidewalls. The gain and beamwidth are determined by the size of the slab waveguide. The sidewalls are for the design of the beamwidth in the -plane and for realizing the high isolation between Tx and Rx antennas. The beamwidths of the fabricated antenna were measured to be 47° and 46° in the - and -plane at 60 GHz, respectively. The gain more than 7.8 dBi was measured in the frequency range from 59 to 66 GHz. The package was fabricated for the evaluation of the isolation. The measured average isolation level between Tx and Rx antenna was 46.0 dB in the frequency range above. The antenna characteristics and isolation level are sufficient for the 60-GHz WPAN system.