PATENT DOCUMENT

Publication Number: US-11335992-B2
Application Number: US-202016990879-A
Country: US
Kind Code: B2

Title: Integrated millimeter wave antenna modules

Abstract:
An electronic device may be provided with an antenna module and a phased antenna array on the module. The module may include a logic board, an antenna board surface-mounted to the logic board, and a radio-frequency integrated circuit (RFIC) mounted surface-mounted to the logic board. The phased antenna array may include antennas embedded in the antenna board. The antennas may radiate at centimeter and/or millimeter wave frequencies. The logic board may form a radio-frequency interface between the RFIC and the antennas. Transmission lines in the logic board and the antenna board may include impedance matching segments that help to match the impedance of the RFIC to the impedance of the antennas. The module may efficiently utilize space within the device without sacrificing radio-frequency performance.

Claims:
What is claimed is: 
     
       1. Apparatus comprising:
 a logic board; 
 an antenna board surface-mounted to the logic board; 
 antennas on the antenna board and configured to radiate at a frequency greater than 10 GHz; and 
 a radio-frequency integrated circuit surface-mounted to the logic board and comprising radio-frequency front end circuitry for the antennas. 
 
     
     
       2. The apparatus defined in  claim 1 , further comprising:
 first solder balls that couple the antenna board to the logic board; and 
 second solder balls that couple the radio-frequency integrated circuit to the logic board. 
 
     
     
       3. The apparatus defined in  claim 2 , wherein the logic board has opposing first and second surfaces, the antenna board is surface-mounted to the first surface using the first solder balls, and the radio-frequency integrated circuit is surface-mounted to the first surface using the second solder balls. 
     
     
       4. The apparatus defined in  claim 3 , further comprising:
 transmission line structures in the logic board that couple the first solder balls to the second solder balls. 
 
     
     
       5. The apparatus defined in  claim 4 , wherein the transmission line structures comprise a first impedance matching segment at the first solder balls and a second impedance matching segment at the second solder balls. 
     
     
       6. The apparatus defined in  claim 2 , wherein the logic board has opposing first and second surfaces, the antenna board is surface-mounted to the first surface using the first solder balls, and the radio-frequency integrated circuit is surface-mounted to the second surface using the second solder balls. 
     
     
       7. The apparatus defined in  claim 6 , further comprising:
 transmission line structures in the logic board that couple the first solder balls to the second solder balls. 
 
     
     
       8. The apparatus defined in  claim 7 , wherein the transmission line structures comprise a first impedance matching segment at the first solder balls and a second impedance matching segment at the second solder balls. 
     
     
       9. The apparatus defined in  claim 6 , further comprising:
 a vertical passthrough that extends through the logic board to couple the first solder balls to the second solder balls. 
 
     
     
       10. The apparatus defined in  claim 2 , wherein the antenna board comprises:
 transmission line structures that couple the first solder balls to antenna resonating elements of the antennas. 
 
     
     
       11. The apparatus defined in  claim 10 , wherein the transmission line structures comprise an impedance matching segment at the first solder balls that is configured to match an impedance of the first solder balls to an impedance of the antennas. 
     
     
       12. The apparatus defined in  claim 11 , wherein the logic board further comprises additional transmission line structures that couple the first solder balls to the second solder balls and that comprise a first additional impedance matching segment at the first solder balls and a second additional impedance matching segment at the second solder balls. 
     
     
       13. The apparatus defined in  claim 1 , wherein the antennas are arranged in a phased antenna array. 
     
     
       14. The apparatus defined in  claim 13 , wherein the radio-frequency front end circuitry comprises phase and magnitude controllers for the phased antenna array that are configured to steer radio-frequency signals conveyed by the antennas at the frequency. 
     
     
       15. The apparatus defined in  claim 1 , wherein the apparatus is an electronic device, the electronic device having opposing first and second faces, and the electronic device comprising:
 a display at the first face; and 
 a dielectric cover layer at the second face, wherein the antennas are configured to radiate through the dielectric cover layer. 
 
     
     
       16. The apparatus defined in  claim 15 , wherein the logic board comprises a main logic board for the electronic device. 
     
     
       17. The apparatus defined in  claim 1 , wherein the radio-frequency integrated circuit comprises a system in package (SIP) surface-mounted to the logic board. 
     
     
       18. A logic-board-integrated antenna module comprising:
 a logic board; 
 a printed circuit board mounted to the logic board; 
 an array of antenna resonating elements patterned on the printed circuit board and configured to radiate at a frequency between 10 GHz and 300 GHz; 
 a package mounted to the logic board, the package comprising radio-frequency front end circuitry for the array of antenna resonating elements; and 
 transmission line structures on the logic board, wherein the transmission line structures couple the radio-frequency front end circuitry to the array of antenna resonating elements patterned on the printed circuit board. 
 
     
     
       19. The logic-board-integrated antenna module defined in  claim 18 , wherein the transmission line structures comprise an impedance matching segment configured to match an impedance of the radio-frequency front end circuitry to an impedance of the array of antenna resonating elements. 
     
     
       20. Apparatus comprising:
 a logic board; 
 a package mounted to the logic board and having radio-frequency front end circuitry; and 
 an antenna board mounted to the logic board and having antennas configured to radiate at a frequency between 10 GHz and 300 GHz, wherein the logic board is configured to form a radio-frequency interface between the radio-frequency front end circuitry in the package and the antennas in the antenna board.

Description:
This application claims the benefit of provisional patent application No. 62/896,140, filed Sep. 5, 2019, which is hereby incorporated by reference herein in its entirety. 
    
    
     BACKGROUND 
     This relates generally to electronic devices and, more particularly, to electronic devices with wireless circuitry. 
     Electronic devices often include wireless circuitry. For example, cellular telephones, computers, and other devices often contain antennas and wireless transceivers for supporting wireless communications. 
     It may be desirable to support wireless communications in millimeter wave and centimeter wave communications bands. Millimeter wave communications, which are sometimes referred to as extremely high frequency (EHF) communications, and centimeter wave communications involve communications at frequencies of about 10-300 GHz. Operation at these frequencies may support high bandwidths but may raise significant challenges. For example, radio-frequency communications in millimeter and centimeter wave communications bands can be characterized by substantial attenuation and/or distortion during signal propagation through various mediums. 
     It would therefore be desirable to be able to provide electronic devices with improved wireless circuitry such as wireless circuitry that supports millimeter and centimeter wave communications. 
     SUMMARY 
     An electronic device may be provided with wireless circuitry. The wireless circuitry may include a logic-board-integrated antenna module and a phased antenna array on the module. The module may include a logic board, an antenna board surface-mounted to the logic board, and a radio-frequency integrated circuit (RFIC) mounted surface-mounted to the logic board. The phased antenna array may include antennas embedded in the antenna board. The antennas may radiate at centimeter and/or millimeter wave frequencies. 
     The logic board may form a radio-frequency interface between the RFIC and the antennas. For example, transmission lines in the logic board may couple the RFIC to the antenna board. The transmission lines may include impedance matching segments that help to match the impedance of the RFIC to the impedance of the antennas. The antenna board may also include transmission lines with impedance matching segments. The module may efficiently utilize space within the device without sacrificing radio-frequency performance. 
    
    
     
       BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS 
         FIG. 1  is a perspective view of an illustrative electronic device in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 2  is a schematic diagram of illustrative circuitry in an electronic device in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 3  is a schematic diagram of illustrative wireless circuitry in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 4  is a diagram of an illustrative phased antenna array that may be adjusted using control circuitry to direct a beam of signals in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 5  is a cross-sectional side view of an illustrative electronic device having phased antenna arrays for radiating through different sides of the device in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 6  is a perspective view of a standalone antenna module in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 7  is a cross-sectional side view of an illustrative logic-board-integrated antenna module formed from a radio-frequency integrated circuit and an antenna board mounted to a logic board in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 8  is a perspective view of an illustrative logic-board-integrated antenna module in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 9  is a cross-sectional side view showing how a radio-frequency integrated circuit may be laterally offset with respect to an antenna board in a logic-board-integrated antenna module in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 10  is a cross-sectional side view showing how a radio-frequency integrated circuit may be formed on the same side of a logic-board-integrated antenna module as an antenna board in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 11  is a cross-sectional side view showing how a vertical passthrough may be used to couple a radio-frequency integrated circuit to an antenna board in a logic-board-integrated antenna module in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 12  is a top-down view of an illustrative antenna board in a logic-board-integrated antenna module in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 13  is a top-down view of illustrative impedance-controlled transmission lines in an antenna board of a logic-board-integrated antenna module in accordance with some embodiments. 
         FIG. 14  is a top-down view of illustrative antennas in an antenna board of a logic-board-integrated antenna module in accordance with some embodiments. 
     
    
    
     DETAILED DESCRIPTION 
     An electronic device such as electronic device  10  of  FIG. 1  may contain wireless circuitry. The wireless circuitry may include one or more antennas. The antennas may include phased antenna arrays that are used for performing wireless communications using millimeter and centimeter wave signals. Millimeter wave signals, which are sometimes referred to as extremely high frequency (EHF) signals, propagate at frequencies above about 30 GHz (e.g., at 60 GHz or other frequencies between about 30 GHz and 300 GHz). Centimeter wave signals propagate at frequencies between about 10 GHz and 30 GHz. If desired, device  10  may also contain antennas for handling satellite navigation system signals, cellular telephone signals, local wireless area network signals, near-field communications, light-based wireless communications, or other wireless communications. 
     Electronic device  10  may be a portable electronic device or other suitable electronic device. For example, electronic device  10  may be a laptop computer, a tablet computer, a somewhat smaller device such as a wrist-watch device, pendant device, headphone device, earpiece device, or other wearable or miniature device, a handheld device such as a cellular telephone, a media player, or other small portable device. Device  10  may also be a set-top box, a desktop computer, a display into which a computer or other processing circuitry has been integrated, a display without an integrated computer, a wireless access point, a wireless base station, an electronic device incorporated into a kiosk, building, or vehicle, or other suitable electronic equipment. 
     Device  10  may include a housing such as housing  12 . Housing  12 , which may sometimes be referred to as a case, may be formed of plastic, glass, ceramics, fiber composites, metal (e.g., stainless steel, aluminum, etc.), other suitable materials, or a combination of these materials. In some situations, parts of housing  12  may be formed from dielectric or other low-conductivity material (e.g., glass, ceramic, plastic, sapphire, etc.). In other situations, housing  12  or at least some of the structures that make up housing  12  may be formed from metal elements. 
     Device  10  may, if desired, have a display such as display  14 . Display  14  may be mounted on the front face of device  10 . Display  14  may be a touch screen that incorporates capacitive touch electrodes or may be insensitive to touch. The rear face of housing  12  (i.e., the face of device  10  opposing the front face of device  10 ) may have a substantially planar housing wall such as rear housing wall  12 R (e.g., a planar housing wall). Rear housing wall  12 R may have slots that pass entirely through the rear housing wall and that therefore separate portions of housing  12  from each other. Rear housing wall  12 R may include conductive portions and/or dielectric portions. If desired, rear housing wall  12 R may include a planar metal layer covered by a thin layer or coating of dielectric such as glass, plastic, sapphire, or ceramic. Housing  12  may also have shallow grooves that do not pass entirely through housing  12 . The slots and grooves may be filled with plastic or other dielectrics. If desired, portions of housing  12  that have been separated from each other (e.g., by a through slot) may be joined by internal conductive structures (e.g., sheet metal or other metal members that bridge the slot). 
     Housing  12  may include peripheral housing structures such as peripheral structures  12 W. Conductive portions of peripheral structures  12 W and conductive portions of rear housing wall  12 R may sometimes be referred to herein collectively as conductive structures of housing  12 . Peripheral structures  12 W may run around the periphery of device  10  and display  14 . In configurations in which device  10  and display  14  have a rectangular shape with four edges, peripheral structures  12 W may be implemented using peripheral housing structures that have a rectangular ring shape with four corresponding edges and that extend from rear housing wall  12 R to the front face of device  10  (as an example). Peripheral structures  12 W or part of peripheral structures  12 W may serve as a bezel for display  14  (e.g., a cosmetic trim that surrounds all four sides of display  14  and/or that helps hold display  14  to device  10 ) if desired. Peripheral structures  12 W may, if desired, form sidewall structures for device  10  (e.g., by forming a metal band with vertical sidewalls, curved sidewalls, etc.). 
     Peripheral structures  12 W may be formed of a conductive material such as metal and may therefore sometimes be referred to as peripheral conductive housing structures, conductive housing structures, peripheral metal structures, peripheral conductive sidewalls, peripheral conductive sidewall structures, conductive housing sidewalls, peripheral conductive housing sidewalls, sidewalls, sidewall structures, or a peripheral conductive housing member (as examples). Peripheral conductive housing structures  12 W may be formed from a metal such as stainless steel, aluminum, or other suitable materials. One, two, or more than two separate structures may be used in forming peripheral conductive housing structures  12 W. 
     It is not necessary for peripheral conductive housing structures  12 W to have a uniform cross-section. For example, the top portion of peripheral conductive housing structures  12 W may, if desired, have an inwardly protruding ledge that helps hold display  14  in place. The bottom portion of peripheral conductive housing structures  12 W may also have an enlarged lip (e.g., in the plane of the rear surface of device  10 ). Peripheral conductive housing structures  12 W may have substantially straight vertical sidewalls, may have sidewalls that are curved, or may have other suitable shapes. In some configurations (e.g., when peripheral conductive housing structures  12 W serve as a bezel for display  14 ), peripheral conductive housing structures  12 W may run around the lip of housing  12  (i.e., peripheral conductive housing structures  12 W may cover only the edge of housing  12  that surrounds display  14  and not the rest of the sidewalls of housing  12 ). 
     Rear housing wall  12 R may lie in a plane that is parallel to display  14 . In configurations for device  10  in which some or all of rear housing wall  12 R is formed from metal, it may be desirable to form parts of peripheral conductive housing structures  12 W as integral portions of the housing structures forming rear housing wall  12 R. For example, rear housing wall  12 R of device  10  may include a planar metal structure and portions of peripheral conductive housing structures  12 W on the sides of housing  12  may be formed as flat or curved vertically extending integral metal portions of the planar metal structure (e.g., housing structures  12 R and  12 W may be formed from a continuous piece of metal in a unibody configuration). Housing structures such as these may, if desired, be machined from a block of metal and/or may include multiple metal pieces that are assembled together to form housing  12 . Rear housing wall  12 R may have one or more, two or more, or three or more portions. Peripheral conductive housing structures  12 W and/or conductive portions of rear housing wall  12 R may form one or more exterior surfaces of device  10  (e.g., surfaces that are visible to a user of device  10 ) and/or may be implemented using internal structures that do not form exterior surfaces of device  10  (e.g., conductive housing structures that are not visible to a user of device  10  such as conductive structures that are covered with layers such as thin cosmetic layers, protective coatings, and/or other coating layers that may include dielectric materials such as glass, ceramic, plastic, or other structures that form the exterior surfaces of device  10  and/or serve to hide peripheral conductive housing structures  12 W and/or conductive portions of rear housing wall  12 R from view of the user). 
     Display  14  may have an array of pixels that form an active area AA that displays images for a user of device  10 . For example, active area AA may include an array of display pixels. The array of pixels may be formed from liquid crystal display (LCD) components, an array of electrophoretic pixels, an array of plasma display pixels, an array of organic light-emitting diode display pixels or other light-emitting diode pixels, an array of electrowetting display pixels, or display pixels based on other display technologies. If desired, active area AA may include touch sensors such as touch sensor capacitive electrodes, force sensors, or other sensors for gathering a user input. 
     Display  14  may have an inactive border region that runs along one or more of the edges of active area AA. Inactive area IA of display  14  may be free of pixels for displaying images and may overlap circuitry and other internal device structures in housing  12 . To block these structures from view by a user of device  10 , the underside of the display cover layer or other layers in display  14  that overlap inactive area IA may be coated with an opaque masking layer in inactive area IA. The opaque masking layer may have any suitable color. Inactive area IA may include a recessed region such as notch  8  that extends into active area AA. Active area AA may, for example, be defined by the lateral area of a display module for display  14  (e.g., a display module that includes pixel circuitry, touch sensor circuitry, etc.). The display module may have a recess or notch in upper region  20  of device  10  that is free from active display circuitry (i.e., that forms notch  8  of inactive area IA). Notch  8  may be a substantially rectangular region that is surrounded (defined) on three sides by active area AA and on a fourth side by peripheral conductive housing structures  12 W. 
     Display  14  may be protected using a display cover layer such as a layer of transparent glass, clear plastic, transparent ceramic, sapphire, or other transparent crystalline material, or other transparent layer(s). The display cover layer may have a planar shape, a convex curved profile, a shape with planar and curved portions, a layout that includes a planar main area surrounded on one or more edges with a portion that is bent out of the plane of the planar main area, or other suitable shapes. The display cover layer may cover the entire front face of device  10 . In another suitable arrangement, the display cover layer may cover substantially all of the front face of device  10  or only a portion of the front face of device  10 . Openings may be formed in the display cover layer. For example, an opening may be formed in the display cover layer to accommodate a button. An opening may also be formed in the display cover layer to accommodate ports such as speaker port  16  in notch  8  or a microphone port. Openings may be formed in housing  12  to form communications ports (e.g., an audio jack port, a digital data port, etc.) and/or audio ports for audio components such as a speaker and/or a microphone if desired. 
     Display  14  may include conductive structures such as an array of capacitive electrodes for a touch sensor, conductive lines for addressing pixels, driver circuits, etc. Housing  12  may include internal conductive structures such as metal frame members and a planar conductive housing member (sometimes referred to as a backplate) that spans the walls of housing  12  (i.e., a substantially rectangular sheet formed from one or more metal parts that is welded or otherwise connected between opposing sides of peripheral conductive structures  12 W). The backplate may form an exterior rear surface of device  10  or may be covered by layers such as thin cosmetic layers, protective coatings, and/or other coatings that may include dielectric materials such as glass, ceramic, plastic, or other structures that form the exterior surfaces of device  10  and/or serve to hide the backplate from view of the user. Device  10  may also include conductive structures such as printed circuit boards, components mounted on printed circuit boards, and other internal conductive structures. These conductive structures, which may be used in forming a ground plane in device  10 , may extend under active area AA of display  14 , for example. 
     In regions  22  and  20 , openings may be formed within the conductive structures of device  10  (e.g., between peripheral conductive housing structures  12 W and opposing conductive ground structures such as conductive portions of rear housing wall  12 R, conductive traces on a printed circuit board, conductive electrical components in display  14 , etc.). These openings, which may sometimes be referred to as gaps, may be filled with air, plastic, and/or other dielectrics and may be used in forming slot antenna resonating elements for one or more antennas in device  10 , if desired. 
     Conductive housing structures and other conductive structures in device  10  may serve as a ground plane for the antennas in device  10 . The openings in regions  22  and  20  may serve as slots in open or closed slot antennas, may serve as a central dielectric region that is surrounded by a conductive path of materials in a loop antenna, may serve as a space that separates an antenna resonating element such as a strip antenna resonating element or an inverted-F antenna resonating element from the ground plane, may contribute to the performance of a parasitic antenna resonating element, or may otherwise serve as part of antenna structures formed in regions  22  and  20 . If desired, the ground plane that is under active area AA of display  14  and/or other metal structures in device  10  may have portions that extend into parts of the ends of device  10  (e.g., the ground may extend towards the dielectric-filled openings in regions  22  and  20 ), thereby narrowing the slots in regions  22  and  20 . 
     In general, device  10  may include any suitable number of antennas (e.g., one or more, two or more, three or more, four or more, etc.). The antennas in device  10  may be located at opposing first and second ends of an elongated device housing (e.g., ends at regions  22  and  20  of device  10  of  FIG. 1 ), along one or more edges of a device housing, in the center of a device housing, in other suitable locations, or in one or more of these locations. The arrangement of  FIG. 1  is merely illustrative. 
     Portions of peripheral conductive housing structures  12 W may be provided with peripheral gap structures. For example, peripheral conductive housing structures  12 W may be provided with one or more gaps such as gaps  18 , as shown in  FIG. 1 . The gaps in peripheral conductive housing structures  12 W may be filled with dielectric such as polymer, ceramic, glass, air, other dielectric materials, or combinations of these materials. Gaps  18  may divide peripheral conductive housing structures  12 W into one or more peripheral conductive segments. The conductive segments that are formed in this way may form parts of antennas in device  10  if desired. Other dielectric openings may be formed in peripheral conductive housing structures  12 W (e.g., dielectric openings other than gaps  18 ) and may serve as dielectric antenna windows for antennas mounted within the interior of device  10 . Antennas within device  10  may be aligned with the dielectric antenna windows for conveying radio-frequency signals through peripheral conductive housing structures  12 W. Antennas within device  10  may also be aligned with inactive area IA of display  14  for conveying radio-frequency signals through display  14 . 
     In order to provide an end user of device  10  with as large of a display as possible (e.g., to maximize an area of the device used for displaying media, running applications, etc.), it may be desirable to increase the amount of area at the front face of device  10  that is covered by active area AA of display  14 . Increasing the size of active area AA may reduce the size of inactive area IA within device  10 . This may reduce the area behind display  14  that is available for antennas within device  10 . For example, active area AA of display  14  may include conductive structures that serve to block radio-frequency signals handled by antennas mounted behind active area AA from radiating through the front face of device  10 . It would therefore be desirable to be able to provide antennas that occupy a small amount of space within device  10  (e.g., to allow for as large of a display active area AA as possible) while still allowing the antennas to communicate with wireless equipment external to device  10  with satisfactory efficiency bandwidth. 
     In a typical scenario, device  10  may have one or more upper antennas and one or more lower antennas (as an example). An upper antenna may, for example, be formed at the upper end of device  10  in region  20 . A lower antenna may, for example, be formed at the lower end of device  10  in region  22 . Additional antennas may be formed along the edges of housing  12  extending between regions  20  and  22  if desired. The antennas may be used separately to cover identical communications bands, overlapping communications bands, or separate communications bands. The antennas may be used to implement an antenna diversity scheme or a multiple-input-multiple-output (MIMO) antenna scheme. Other antennas for covering any other desired frequencies may also be mounted at any desired locations within the interior of device  10 . The example of  FIG. 1  is merely illustrative. If desired, housing  12  may have other shapes (e.g., a square shape, cylindrical shape, spherical shape, combinations of these and/or different shapes, etc.). 
     A schematic diagram of illustrative components that may be used in device  10  is shown in  FIG. 2 . As shown in  FIG. 2 , device  10  may include control circuitry  28 . Control circuitry  28  may include storage such as storage circuitry  30 . Storage circuitry  30  may include hard disk drive storage, nonvolatile memory (e.g., flash memory or other electrically-programmable-read-only memory configured to form a solid-state drive), volatile memory (e.g., static or dynamic random-access-memory), etc. Control circuitry  28  may include processing circuitry such as processing circuitry  32 . Processing circuitry  32  may be used to control the operation of device  10 . Processing circuitry  32  may include on one or more microprocessors, microcontrollers, digital signal processors, host processors, baseband processor integrated circuits, application specific integrated circuits, central processing units (CPUs), etc. Control circuitry  28  may be configured to perform operations in device  10  using hardware (e.g., dedicated hardware or circuitry), firmware, and/or software. Software code for performing operations in device  10  may be stored on storage circuitry  30  (e.g., storage circuitry  30  may include non-transitory (tangible) computer readable storage media that stores the software code). The software code may sometimes be referred to as program instructions, software, data, instructions, or code. Software code stored on storage circuitry  30  may be executed by processing circuitry  32 . 
     Control circuitry  28  may be used to run software on device  10  such as internet browsing applications, voice-over-internet-protocol (VOIP) telephone call applications, email applications, media playback applications, operating system functions, etc. To support interactions with external equipment, control circuitry  28  may be used in implementing communications protocols. Communications protocols that may be implemented using control circuitry  28  include internet protocols, wireless local area network protocols (e.g., IEEE 802.11 protocols—sometimes referred to as WiFi®), protocols for other short-range wireless communications links such as the Bluetooth® protocol or other WPAN protocols, IEEE 802.11ad protocols, cellular telephone protocols, MIMO protocols, antenna diversity protocols, satellite navigation system protocols, antenna-based spatial ranging protocols (e.g., radio detection and ranging (RADAR) protocols or other desired range detection protocols for signals conveyed at millimeter and centimeter wave frequencies), etc. Each communication protocol may be associated with a corresponding radio access technology (RAT) that specifies the physical connection methodology used in implementing the protocol. 
     Device  10  may include input-output circuitry  24 . Input-output circuitry  24  may include input-output devices  26 . Input-output devices  26  may be used to allow data to be supplied to device  10  and to allow data to be provided from device  10  to external devices. Input-output devices  26  may include user interface devices, data port devices, sensors, and other input-output components. For example, input-output devices may include touch screens, displays without touch sensor capabilities, buttons, joysticks, scrolling wheels, touch pads, key pads, keyboards, microphones, cameras, speakers, status indicators, light sources, audio jacks and other audio port components, digital data port devices, light sensors, gyroscopes, accelerometers or other components that can detect motion and device orientation relative to the Earth, capacitance sensors, proximity sensors (e.g., a capacitive proximity sensor and/or an infrared proximity sensor), magnetic sensors, and other sensors and input-output components. 
     Input-output circuitry  24  may include wireless circuitry such as wireless circuitry  34  for wirelessly conveying radio-frequency signals. While control circuitry  28  is shown separately from wireless circuitry  34  in the example of  FIG. 2  for the sake of clarity, wireless circuitry  34  may include processing circuitry that forms a part of processing circuitry  32  and/or storage circuitry that forms a part of storage circuitry  30  of control circuitry  28  (e.g., portions of control circuitry  28  may be implemented on wireless circuitry  34 ). As an example, control circuitry  28  may include baseband processor circuitry or other control components that form a part of wireless circuitry  34 . 
     Wireless circuitry  34  may include millimeter and centimeter wave transceiver circuitry such as millimeter/centimeter wave transceiver circuitry  38 . Millimeter/centimeter wave transceiver circuitry  38  may support communications at frequencies between about 10 GHz and 300 GHz. For example, millimeter/centimeter wave transceiver circuitry  38  may support communications in Extremely High Frequency (EHF) or millimeter wave communications bands between about 30 GHz and 300 GHz and/or in centimeter wave communications bands between about 10 GHz and 30 GHz (sometimes referred to as Super High Frequency (SHF) bands). As examples, millimeter/centimeter wave transceiver circuitry  38  may support communications in an IEEE K communications band between about 18 GHz and 27 GHz, a K a  communications band between about 26.5 GHz and 40 GHz, a K u  communications band between about 12 GHz and 18 GHz, a V communications band between about 40 GHz and 75 GHz, a W communications band between about 75 GHz and 110 GHz, or any other desired frequency band between approximately 10 GHz and 300 GHz. If desired, millimeter/centimeter wave transceiver circuitry  38  may support IEEE 802.11ad communications at 60 GHz and/or 5 th  generation mobile networks or 5 th  generation wireless systems (5G) communications bands between 27 GHz and 90 GHz. Millimeter/centimeter wave transceiver circuitry  38  may be formed from one or more integrated circuits (e.g., multiple integrated circuits mounted on a common printed circuit in a system-in-package device, one or more integrated circuits mounted on different substrates, etc.). 
     If desired, millimeter/centimeter wave transceiver circuitry  38  (sometimes referred to herein simply as transceiver circuitry  38  or millimeter/centimeter wave circuitry  38 ) may perform spatial ranging operations using radio-frequency signals at millimeter and/or centimeter wave signals that are transmitted and received by millimeter/centimeter wave transceiver circuitry  38 . The received signals may be a version of the transmitted signals that have been reflected off of external objects and back towards device  10 . Control circuitry  28  may process the transmitted and received signals to detect or estimate a range between device  10  and one or more external objects in the surroundings of device  10  (e.g., objects external to device  10  such as the body of a user or other persons, other devices, animals, furniture, walls, or other objects or obstacles in the vicinity of device  10 ). If desired, control circuitry  28  may also process the transmitted and received signals to identify a two or three-dimensional spatial location of the external objects relative to device  10 . 
     Spatial ranging operations performed by millimeter/centimeter wave transceiver circuitry  38  are unidirectional. Millimeter/centimeter wave transceiver circuitry  38  may perform bidirectional communications with external wireless equipment. Bidirectional communications involve both the transmission of wireless data by millimeter/centimeter wave transceiver circuitry  38  and the reception of wireless data that has been transmitted by external wireless equipment. The wireless data may, for example, include data that has been encoded into corresponding data packets such as wireless data associated with a telephone call, streaming media content, internet browsing, wireless data associated with software applications running on device  10 , email messages, etc. 
     If desired, wireless circuitry  34  may include transceiver circuitry for handling communications at frequencies below 10 GHz such as non-millimeter/centimeter wave transceiver circuitry  36 . Non-millimeter/centimeter wave transceiver circuitry  36  may include wireless local area network (WLAN) transceiver circuitry that handles 2.4 GHz and 5 GHz bands for Wi-Fi® (IEEE 802.11) communications, wireless personal area network (WPAN) transceiver circuitry that handles the 2.4 GHz Bluetooth® communications band, cellular telephone transceiver circuitry that handles cellular telephone communications bands from 700 to 960 MHz, 1710 to 2170 MHz, 2300 to 2700 MHz, and/or or any other desired cellular telephone communications bands between 600 MHz and 4000 MHz, GPS receiver circuitry that receives GPS signals at 1575 MHz or signals for handling other satellite positioning data (e.g., GLONASS signals at 1609 MHz), television receiver circuitry, AM/FM radio receiver circuitry, paging system transceiver circuitry, near field communications (NFC) circuitry, etc. Non-millimeter/centimeter wave transceiver circuitry  36  and millimeter/centimeter wave transceiver circuitry  38  may each include one or more integrated circuits, power amplifier circuitry, low-noise input amplifiers, passive radio-frequency components, switching circuitry, transmission line structures, and other circuitry for handling radio-frequency signals. 
     Wireless circuitry  34  may include antennas  40 . Non-millimeter/centimeter wave transceiver circuitry  36  may transmit and receive radio-frequency signals below 10 GHz using one or more antennas  40 . Millimeter/centimeter wave transceiver circuitry  38  may transmit and receive radio-frequency signals above 10 GHz (e.g., at millimeter wave and/or centimeter wave frequencies) using antennas  40 . In general, transceiver circuitry  36  and  38  may be configured to cover (handle) any suitable communications (frequency) bands of interest. The transceiver circuitry may convey radio-frequency signals using antennas  40  (e.g., antennas  40  may convey the radio-frequency signals for the transceiver circuitry). The term “convey radio-frequency signals” as used herein means the transmission and/or reception of the radio-frequency signals (e.g., for performing unidirectional and/or bidirectional wireless communications with external wireless communications equipment). Antennas  40  may transmit the radio-frequency signals by radiating the radio-frequency signals into free space (or to freespace through intervening device structures such as a dielectric cover layer). Antennas  40  may additionally or alternatively receive the radio-frequency signals from free space (e.g., through intervening devices structures such as a dielectric cover layer). The transmission and reception of radio-frequency signals by antennas  40  each involve the excitation or resonance of antenna currents on an antenna resonating element in the antenna by the radio-frequency signals within the frequency band(s) of operation of the antenna. 
     In satellite navigation system links, cellular telephone links, and other long-range links, radio-frequency signals are typically used to convey data over thousands of feet or miles. In Wi-Fi® and Bluetooth® links at 2.4 and 5 GHz and other short-range wireless links, radio-frequency signals are typically used to convey data over tens or hundreds of feet. Millimeter/centimeter wave transceiver circuitry  38  may convey radio-frequency signals over short distances that travel over a line-of-sight path. To enhance signal reception for millimeter and centimeter wave communications, phased antenna arrays and beam steering techniques may be used (e.g., schemes in which antenna signal phase and/or magnitude for each antenna in an array are adjusted to perform beam steering). Antenna diversity schemes may also be used to ensure that the antennas that have become blocked or that are otherwise degraded due to the operating environment of device  10  can be switched out of use and higher-performing antennas used in their place. 
     Antennas  40  in wireless circuitry  34  may be formed using any suitable antenna types. For example, antennas  40  may include antennas with resonating elements that are formed from stacked patch antenna structures, loop antenna structures, patch antenna structures, inverted-F antenna structures, slot antenna structures, planar inverted-F antenna structures, monopole antenna structures, dipole antenna structures, helical antenna structures, Yagi (Yagi-Uda) antenna structures, hybrids of these designs, etc. In another suitable arrangement, antennas  40  may include antennas with dielectric resonating elements such as dielectric resonator antennas. If desired, one or more of antennas  40  may be cavity-backed antennas. Different types of antennas may be used for different bands and combinations of bands. For example, one type of antenna may be used in forming a non-millimeter/centimeter wave wireless link for non-millimeter/centimeter wave transceiver circuitry  36  and another type of antenna may be used in conveying radio-frequency signals at millimeter and/or centimeter wave frequencies for millimeter/centimeter wave transceiver circuitry  38 . Antennas  40  that are used to convey radio-frequency signals at millimeter and centimeter wave frequencies may be arranged in one or more phased antenna arrays. 
     A schematic diagram of an antenna  40  that may be formed in a phased antenna array for conveying radio-frequency signals at millimeter and centimeter wave frequencies is shown in  FIG. 3 . As shown in  FIG. 3 , antenna  40  may be coupled to millimeter/centimeter (MM/CM) wave transceiver circuitry  38 . Millimeter/centimeter wave transceiver circuitry  38  may be coupled to antenna feed  44  of antenna  40  using a transmission line path that includes radio-frequency transmission line  42 . Radio-frequency transmission line  42  may include a positive signal conductor such as signal conductor  46  and may include a ground conductor such as ground conductor  48 . Ground conductor  48  may be coupled to the antenna ground for antenna  40  (e.g., over a ground antenna feed terminal of antenna feed  44  located on the antenna ground). Signal conductor  46  may be coupled to the antenna resonating element for antenna  40 . For example, signal conductor  46  may be coupled to a positive antenna feed terminal of antenna feed  44  located on the antenna resonating element. In another suitable arrangement, antenna  40  may be a probe-fed antenna that is fed using a feed probe. In this arrangement, antenna feed  44  may be implemented as a feed probe. Signal conductor  46  may be coupled to the feed probe. Radio-frequency transmission line  42  may convey radio-frequency signals to and from the feed probe. When radio-frequency signals are being conveyed over the feed probe, the feed probe may excite the resonating element for the antenna (e.g., a dielectric antenna resonating element for antenna  40 ). The resonating element may radiate the radio-frequency signals in response to excitation by the feed probe. 
     Radio-frequency transmission line  42  may include a stripline transmission line (sometimes referred to herein simply as a stripline), a coaxial cable, a coaxial probe realized by metalized vias, a microstrip transmission line, an edge-coupled microstrip transmission line, an edge-coupled stripline transmission lines, a waveguide structure, combinations of these, etc. Multiple types of transmission lines may be used to form the transmission line path that couples millimeter/centimeter wave transceiver circuitry  38  to antenna feed  44 . Filter circuitry, switching circuitry, impedance matching circuitry, phase shifter circuitry, amplifier circuitry, and/or other circuitry may be interposed on radio-frequency transmission line  42 , if desired. 
     Radio-frequency transmission lines in device  10  may be integrated into ceramic substrates, rigid printed circuit boards, and/or flexible printed circuits. In one suitable arrangement, radio-frequency transmission lines in device  10  may be integrated within multilayer laminated structures (e.g., layers of a conductive material such as copper and a dielectric material such as a resin that are laminated together without intervening adhesive) that may be folded or bent in multiple dimensions (e.g., two or three dimensions) and that maintain a bent or folded shape after bending (e.g., the multilayer laminated structures may be folded into a particular three-dimensional shape to route around other device components and may be rigid enough to hold its shape after folding without being held in place by stiffeners or other structures). All of the multiple layers of the laminated structures may be batch laminated together (e.g., in a single pressing process) without adhesive (e.g., as opposed to performing multiple pressing processes to laminate multiple layers together with adhesive). 
       FIG. 4  shows how antennas  40  for handling radio-frequency signals at millimeter and centimeter wave frequencies may be formed in a phased antenna array. As shown in  FIG. 4 , phased antenna array  54  (sometimes referred to herein as array  54 , antenna array  54 , or array  54  of antennas  40 ) may be coupled to radio-frequency transmission lines  42 . For example, a first antenna  40 - 1  in phased antenna array  54  may be coupled to a first radio-frequency transmission line  42 - 1 , a second antenna  40 - 2  in phased antenna array  54  may be coupled to a second radio-frequency transmission line  42 - 2 , an Nth antenna  40 -N in phased antenna array  54  may be coupled to an Nth radio-frequency transmission line  42 -N, etc. While antennas  40  are described herein as forming a phased antenna array, the antennas  40  in phased antenna array  54  may sometimes also be referred to as collectively forming a single phased array antenna. 
     Antennas  40  in phased antenna array  54  may be arranged in any desired number of rows and columns or in any other desired pattern (e.g., the antennas need not be arranged in a grid pattern having rows and columns). During signal transmission operations, radio-frequency transmission lines  42  may be used to supply signals (e.g., radio-frequency signals such as millimeter wave and/or centimeter wave signals) from millimeter/centimeter wave transceiver circuitry  38  ( FIG. 3 ) to phased antenna array  54  for wireless transmission. During signal reception operations, radio-frequency transmission lines  42  may be used to convey signals received at phased antenna array  54  (e.g., from external wireless equipment or transmitted signals that have been reflected off of external objects) to millimeter/centimeter wave transceiver circuitry  38  ( FIG. 3 ). 
     The use of multiple antennas  40  in phased antenna array  54  allows beam steering arrangements to be implemented by controlling the relative phases and magnitudes (amplitudes) of the radio-frequency signals conveyed by the antennas. In the example of  FIG. 4 , antennas  40  each have a corresponding radio-frequency phase and magnitude controller  50  (e.g., a first phase and magnitude controller  50 - 1  interposed on radio-frequency transmission line  42 - 1  may control phase and magnitude for radio-frequency signals handled by antenna  40 - 1 , a second phase and magnitude controller  50 - 2  interposed on radio-frequency transmission line  42 - 2  may control phase and magnitude for radio-frequency signals handled by antenna  40 - 2 , an Nth phase and magnitude controller  50 -N interposed on radio-frequency transmission line  42 -N may control phase and magnitude for radio-frequency signals handled by antenna  40 -N, etc.). 
     Phase and magnitude controllers  50  may each include circuitry for adjusting the phase of the radio-frequency signals on radio-frequency transmission lines  42  (e.g., phase shifter circuits) and/or circuitry for adjusting the magnitude of the radio-frequency signals on radio-frequency transmission lines  42  (e.g., power amplifier and/or low noise amplifier circuits). Phase and magnitude controllers  50  may sometimes be referred to collectively herein as beam steering circuitry (e.g., beam steering circuitry that steers the beam of radio-frequency signals transmitted and/or received by phased antenna array  54 ). 
     Phase and magnitude controllers  50  may adjust the relative phases and/or magnitudes of the transmitted signals that are provided to each of the antennas in phased antenna array  54  and may adjust the relative phases and/or magnitudes of the received signals that are received by phased antenna array  54 . Phase and magnitude controllers  50  may, if desired, include phase detection circuitry for detecting the phases of the received signals that are received by phased antenna array  54 . The term “beam” or “signal beam” may be used herein to collectively refer to wireless signals that are transmitted and received by phased antenna array  54  in a particular direction. The signal beam may exhibit a peak gain that is oriented in a particular pointing direction at a corresponding pointing angle (e.g., based on constructive and destructive interference from the combination of signals from each antenna in the phased antenna array). The term “transmit beam” may sometimes be used herein to refer to radio-frequency signals that are transmitted in a particular direction whereas the term “receive beam” may sometimes be used herein to refer to radio-frequency signals that are received from a particular direction. 
     If, for example, phase and magnitude controllers  50  are adjusted to produce a first set of phases and/or magnitudes for transmitted radio-frequency signals, the transmitted signals will form a transmit beam as shown by beam B 1  of  FIG. 4  that is oriented in the direction of point A. If, however, phase and magnitude controllers  50  are adjusted to produce a second set of phases and/or magnitudes for the transmitted signals, the transmitted signals will form a transmit beam as shown by beam B 2  that is oriented in the direction of point B. Similarly, if phase and magnitude controllers  50  are adjusted to produce the first set of phases and/or magnitudes, radio-frequency signals (e.g., radio-frequency signals in a receive beam) may be received from the direction of point A, as shown by beam B 1 . If phase and magnitude controllers  50  are adjusted to produce the second set of phases and/or magnitudes, radio-frequency signals may be received from the direction of point B, as shown by beam B 2 . 
     Each phase and magnitude controller  50  may be controlled to produce a desired phase and/or magnitude based on a corresponding control signal  52  received from control circuitry  28  of  FIG. 2  (e.g., the phase and/or magnitude provided by phase and magnitude controller  50 - 1  may be controlled using control signal  52 - 1 , the phase and/or magnitude provided by phase and magnitude controller  50 - 2  may be controlled using control signal  52 - 2 , etc.). If desired, the control circuitry may actively adjust control signals  52  in real time to steer the transmit or receive beam in different desired directions over time. Phase and magnitude controllers  50  may provide information identifying the phase of received signals to control circuitry  28  if desired. 
     When performing wireless communications using radio-frequency signals at millimeter and centimeter wave frequencies, the radio-frequency signals are conveyed over a line of sight path between phased antenna array  54  and external communications equipment. If the external object is located at point A of  FIG. 4 , phase and magnitude controllers  50  may be adjusted to steer the signal beam towards point A (e.g., to steer the pointing direction of the signal beam towards point A). Phased antenna array  54  may transmit and receive radio-frequency signals in the direction of point A. Similarly, if the external communications equipment is located at point B, phase and magnitude controllers  50  may be adjusted to steer the signal beam towards point B (e.g., to steer the pointing direction of the signal beam towards point B). Phased antenna array  54  may transmit and receive radio-frequency signals in the direction of point B. In the example of  FIG. 4 , beam steering is shown as being performed over a single degree of freedom for the sake of simplicity (e.g., towards the left and right on the page of  FIG. 4 ). However, in practice, the beam may be steered over two or more degrees of freedom (e.g., in three dimensions, into and out of the page and to the left and right on the page of  FIG. 4 ). Phased antenna array  54  may have a corresponding field of view over which beam steering can be performed (e.g., in a hemisphere or a segment of a hemisphere over the phased antenna array). If desired, device  10  may include multiple phased antenna arrays that each face a different direction to provide coverage from multiple sides of the device. 
       FIG. 5  is a cross-sectional side view of device  10  in an example where device  10  has multiple phased antenna arrays. As shown in  FIG. 5 , peripheral conductive housing structures  12 W may extend around the (lateral) periphery of device  10  and may extend from rear housing wall  12 R to display  14 . Display  14  may have a display module such as display module  68  (sometimes referred to as a display panel). Display module  68  may include pixel circuitry, touch sensor circuitry, force sensor circuitry, and/or any other desired circuitry for forming active area AA of display  14 . Display  14  may include a dielectric cover layer such as display cover layer  56  that overlaps display module  68 . Display module  68  may emit image light and may receive sensor input through display cover layer  56 . Display cover layer  56  and display  14  may be mounted to peripheral conductive housing structures  12 W. The lateral area of display  14  that does not overlap display module  68  may form inactive area IA of display  14 . 
     Device  10  may include multiple phased antenna arrays  54  such as a rear-facing phased antenna array  54 . As shown in  FIG. 5 , phased antenna array  54  may transmit and receive radio-frequency signals  60  at millimeter and centimeter wave frequencies through rear housing wall  12 R. In scenarios where rear housing wall  12 R includes metal portions, radio-frequency signals  60  may be conveyed through an aperture or opening in the metal portions of rear housing wall  12 R or may be conveyed through other dielectric portions of rear housing wall  12 R. The aperture may be overlapped by a dielectric cover layer or dielectric coating that extends across the lateral area of rear housing wall  12 R (e.g., between peripheral conductive housing structures  12 W). Phased antenna array  54  may perform beam steering for radio-frequency signals  60  across the hemisphere below device  10 , as shown by arrow  62 . 
     Phased antenna array  54  may be mounted to support structures such as support structures  64 . Phased antenna array  54  may be adhered to rear housing wall  12 R using adhesive, may be pressed against (e.g., in contact with) rear housing wall  12 R, or may be spaced apart from rear housing wall  12 R. 
     The field of view of phased antenna array  54  is limited to the hemisphere under the rear face of device  10 . Display module  68  and other components  58  (e.g., portions of input-output circuitry  24  or control circuitry  28  of  FIG. 2 , a battery for device  10 , etc.) in device  10  include conductive structures. If care is not taken, these conductive structures may block radio-frequency signals from being conveyed by a phased antenna array within device  10  across the hemisphere over the front face of device  10 . While an additional phased antenna array for covering the hemisphere over the front face of device  10  may be mounted against display cover layer  56  within inactive area IA, there may be insufficient space between the lateral periphery of display module  68  and peripheral conductive housing structures  12 W to form all of the circuitry and radio-frequency transmission lines necessary to fully support the phased antenna array. In order to mitigate these issues and provide coverage through the front face of device  10 , a front-facing phased antenna array may be mounted within peripheral region  66  of device  10 . The antennas in the front-facing phased antenna array may include dielectric resonator antennas in one suitable arrangement. Dielectric resonator antennas may occupy less area in the X-Y plane of  FIG. 5  than other types of antennas such as patch antennas and slot antennas. Implementing the antennas as dielectric resonator antennas may allow the radiating elements of the front-facing phased antenna array to fit within inactive area IA between display module  68  and peripheral conductive housing structures  12 W. At the same time, the radio-frequency transmission lines and other components for the phased antenna array may be located behind (under) display module  68 . 
     In practice, it can be difficult to form phased antenna array  54  on support structures  64  without occupying excessive space within device  10  and while still exhibiting satisfactory performance. In some scenarios, the front end circuitry for phased antenna array  54  and the antennas in phased antenna array  54  may be integrated into a standalone antenna module (e.g., support structures  64  of  FIG. 5  may be a standalone antenna module). 
       FIG. 6  is a perspective view of a standalone antenna module that may be used for implementing phased antenna array  54  (e.g., for radiating through rear housing wall  12 R, for radiating through display cover layer  56 , or for radiating through other portions of device  10 ). As shown in  FIG. 6 , phased antenna array  54  may be integrated into a standalone antenna module  78 . 
     Standalone antenna module  78  may include multi-layered printed circuit board  72  (e.g., multiple stacked layers of dielectric printed circuit board material, ceramic, etc.). The antennas  40  in phased antenna array  54  may be patterned on multi-layered printed circuit board  72 , which also includes the transmission lines used to feed the antennas  40  (e.g., radio-frequency transmission lines  42  of  FIG. 4 ). Connector  76  may be mounted to multi-layered printed circuit board  72 . External flexible printed circuit  70  may be connected to connector  76 . External flexible printed circuit  70  may convey intermediate frequency signals (e.g., signals at frequencies greater than baseband but lower than the signals of the radio-frequency signals radiated by phased antenna array  54 ), control signals, and power signals for phased antenna array  54  (e.g., signals that are conveyed to standalone antenna module  78  through connector  76 ). 
     Standalone antenna module  78  may also include shielded components  74 . Shielded components  74  may include a radio-frequency integrated circuit, phase and magnitude controllers  50  of  FIG. 4 , passive circuitry (e.g., tuning circuitry, impedance matching circuitry etc.), amplifiers, switches, and/or any other desired radio-frequency front end circuitry for supporting radio-frequency communications using phased antenna array  54 . 
     Integrating radio-frequency front end circuitry for phased antenna array  54  and the antennas of phased antenna array  54  into the same standalone antenna module such as standalone antenna module  78  of  FIG. 6  can consume an excessive amount of space within device  10 . In order to more efficiently utilize space in implementing phased antenna array  54 , phased antenna array  54  may be formed in a logic-board-integrated antenna module. 
       FIG. 7  is a cross-sectional side view showing how phased antenna array  54  may be formed in a logic-board-integrated antenna module. As shown in  FIG. 7 , the antennas  40  in phased antenna array  54  may be formed on a substrate such as antenna board  100 . Only a single antenna  40  is shown in  FIG. 7  for the sake of clarity but, in general, phased antenna array  54  may include any desired number of antennas  40 . 
     Antenna board  100  may be a multi-layered printed circuit board (e.g., a printed circuit board having multiple stacked layers of dielectric substrate such as multiple stacked layers of printed circuit board material or ceramic). The ground plane and antenna resonating elements (e.g., patch antenna resonating elements in scenarios where antennas  40  are patch antennas) for the antennas  40  in phased antenna array  54  may be patterned on different layers of antenna board  100 . In scenarios where antennas  40  are patch antennas, antennas  40  may be stacked patch antennas having multiple vertically stacked patch elements on antenna board  100  (e.g., overlapping directly fed patches and/or parasitic patches). 
     Impedance-controlled transmission line paths  102  (e.g., transmission line paths including radio-frequency transmission lines  42  of  FIG. 4 ) may be patterned on the layers of antenna board  100 . Impedance-controlled transmission line paths  102  may include microstrip transmission lines, stripline transmission lines, conductive vias, etc. Impedance-controlled transmission line paths  102  may have segments with different widths, transmission line stubs, or other structures to help perform impedance matching for phased antenna array  54 . 
     The radio-frequency front end circuitry for phased antenna array  54  (e.g., phase and magnitude controllers  50  of  FIG. 4 , amplifier circuitry, passive components, etc.) may be offloaded onto radio-frequency integrated circuit (RFIC)  88  (e.g., rather than being formed on the same board as antennas  40  as in standalone antenna module  78  of  FIG. 6 ). RFIC  88  may be an integrated circuit (chip), an integrated circuit package, a system in package (SIP), or any other desired substrate that includes the radio-frequency front end circuitry for phased antenna array  54 . 
     As shown in  FIG. 7 , antenna board  100  may be mounted to bottom surface  106  of logic board  86  (e.g., a rigid or flexible printed circuit board or other substrate). Logic board  86  may, for example, be the main logic board of device  10 . Logic board  86  may therefore also be used to mount additional components  90  for device  10  (e.g., at top surface  104  and/or bottom surface  106 ). Additional components  90  may include any desired components from control circuitry  28  and input-output circuitry  24  of  FIG. 2 , a battery for device  10 , etc. In one suitable arrangement, antenna board  100  may be mounted to logic board  86  using a surface mount technology (SMT). For example, antenna board  100  may be soldered to contact pads on bottom surface  106  of logic board  86  (e.g., using conductive interconnect structures  98  which may be solder balls, a ball grid array, conductive pins, etc.). 
     RFIC  88  may be mounted to top surface  104  of logic board  86 . In one suitable arrangement, RFIC  88  may be mounted to logic board  86  using a surface mount technology (SMT). For example, RFIC  88  may be soldered to contact pads on top surface  104  of logic board  86  (e.g., using conductive interconnect structures  96  which may be solder balls, a ball grid array, conductive pins, etc.). 
     As shown in  FIG. 7 , logic board  86  may include impedance-controlled transmission line paths  94 . Impedance-controlled transmission line paths  94  may include microstrip transmission lines, stripline transmission lines, conductive vias, etc. Impedance-controlled transmission line paths  94  may have segments with different widths, transmission line stubs, or other structures to help perform impedance matching for phased antenna array  54 . Impedance-controlled transmission line paths  94  may couple the radio-frequency front end circuitry (e.g., phase and magnitude controllers  50  of  FIG. 4 ) in RFIC  88  to the antennas  40  in phased antenna array  54  (e.g., via conductive interconnect structures  96  and  98  and impedance-controlled transmission line paths  102  in antenna board  100 ). In this way, logic board  86  may serve as an interface between RFIC  88  and antenna board  100  to allow the components of phased antenna array  54  to be distributed between RFIC  88  and antenna board  100  on opposing sides of logic board  86  (e.g., where the phase and magnitude controllers for phased antenna array  54  are formed on RFIC  88  and the antennas  40  for phased antenna array  54  are formed on antenna board  100 ). RFIC  88 , logic board  86 , and antenna board  100  may therefore sometimes be referred to collectively herein as logic-board-integrated antenna module  84 . The example of  FIG. 7  is merely illustrative and, if desired, RFIC  88  may be mounted at other locations on top surface  104 , on bottom surface  106 , etc. 
     As shown in  FIG. 7 , device  10  may have a dielectric cover layer  80 . Phased antenna array  54  may radiate through dielectric cover layer  80 . Dielectric cover layer  80  may form part of display cover layer  56  or rear housing wall  12 R of  FIG. 5  or other portions of device  10 . If desired, device  10  may include a conductive support plate  82  layered over dielectric cover layer  80  (e.g., dielectric cover layer  80  and conductive support plate  82  may collectively form rear housing wall  12 R of  FIG. 5 ). Conductive support plate  82  may provide structural support for device  10  and may form part of an antenna ground, for example. Conductive support plate  82  may have an opening  108  (sometimes referred to herein as slot  108 , gap  108 , or aperture  108 ). Antenna board  100  may be aligned with opening  108  to allow phased antenna array  54  to radiate through opening  108  and dielectric cover layer  80 . Dielectric cover layer  80  may include glass, plastic, sapphire, or other materials. Conductive support plate  82  may be omitted if desired. 
     By integrating phased antenna array  54  into logic-board-integrated antenna module  84 , phased antenna array  54  may be implemented on device  10  while occupying less space than in scenarios where standalone antenna module  78  of  FIG. 6  is used. Phased antenna array  54  may also convey radio-frequency signals without requiring bulky external connectors or interconnects (e.g., connector  76  and external flexible printed circuit  70  of  FIG. 6 ). In addition, forming phased antenna array  54  in logic-board-integrated antenna module  84  may also improve thermal performance relative to standalone module  78  of  FIG. 6  (e.g., heat may be more easily dissipated). 
       FIG. 8  is a perspective view of logic-board-integrated antenna module  84  in one suitable example. As shown in  FIG. 8 , RFIC  88  may be mounted to top surface  104  of logic board  86 . Antenna board  100  may be mounted to bottom surface  106  of logic board  86  (logic board  86  is illustrated in transparency in  FIG. 8  to show antenna board  100  coupled to bottom surface  106 ). In general, RFIC  88  may be located in the vicinity of antenna board  100  to minimize routing complexity and inductive losses for impedance-controlled transmission line paths  94  of  FIG. 7 . RFIC  88  may, for example, partially or completely overlap the lateral outline of antenna board  100  (e.g., in the X-Y plane) or may be non-overlapping with antenna board  100 . Logic board  86 , RFIC  88 , and antenna board  100  of  FIG. 8  may have other shapes. The intermediate frequency signals, power signals, and control signals that were otherwise routed by external flexible printed circuit  70  and connector  76  of  FIG. 6  may be routed by logic board  86  of  FIG. 7  in interfacing between RFIC  88  and antenna board  100 . 
       FIG. 9  is a cross-sectional side view showing how RFIC  88  may be laterally offset with respect to antenna board  100  in logic-board-integrated antenna module  84 . As shown in  FIG. 9 , RFIC  88  may be laterally offset (e.g., in the Y-dimension) with respect to antenna board  100 . This may allow further optimization of space within device  10  (e.g., RFIC  88  may be laterally offset to accommodate the presence of other components in the vicinity of antenna board  100 , antenna board  100  may be laterally offset to allow for more flexible placement of the phased antenna array at a location that can radiate through dielectric cover layer  80  of  FIG. 7 , etc.). Impedance-controlled transmission line paths  94  in logic board  86  may include one or more optional impedance matching segments  110 . Matching segments  110  may be interposed on impedance-controlled transmission line paths  94  at or after each external interface of logic board  86  (e.g., at conductive vias coupled to interconnect structures  96  and  98 ) to help ensure that impedance is sufficiently matched along the entire transmission line path from the radio-frequency front end components on RFIC  88  to antennas  40 . In other words, matching segments  110  may include a first matching segment at conductive interconnect structures  96  (e.g., at the conductive via coupling impedance-controlled transmission line path  94  to a given solder ball in conductive interconnect structures  96 ) and a second matching segment at conductive interconnect structures  98  (e.g., at the conductive via coupling impedance-controlled transmission line path  94  to a given solder ball in conductive interconnect structures  98 ). Similarly, impedance-controlled transmission line paths  102  on antenna board  100  may include impedance matching segments  112  at conductive vias coupled to interconnect structures  98  to help ensure that antennas  40  are impedance matched to the transmission lines in logic board  86  and RFIC  88  despite the presence of interconnect structures  98  and  96 . This may, for example, minimize losses associated with any potential impedance discontinuities due to the presence of conductive interconnect structures  96  and  98  in implementing logic-board-integrated antenna module  84 . This may also configure phased antenna array  54  to operate with optimized bandwidth. 
       FIG. 10  is a cross-sectional side view showing how RFIC  88  and antenna board  100  may both be mounted to the same side of logic board  86 . As shown in  FIG. 10 , RFIC  88  and antenna board  100  may both be mounted (e.g., soldered using respective conductive interconnect structures  96  and  98 ) to bottom surface  106  of logic board  86 . Matching segments  110  and  112  may still be used to ensure that impedance is matched along the entire transmission line path from RFIC  88  to antenna  40 . 
       FIG. 11  is a cross-sectional side view showing how logic board  86  may include a vertical passthrough for coupling RFIC  88  to antenna board  100 . As shown in  FIG. 11 , RFIC  88  may be mounted to top surface  104  and antenna board  100  may be mounted to bottom surface  106  of logic board  86 . RFIC  88  may at least partially overlap antenna board  100 . Rather than using impedance-controlled transmission line paths  94 , logic board  86  may include a vertical passthrough  114  (sometimes referred to herein as vertical path  114 ) that extends from conductive interconnect structures  96  to conductive interconnect structures  98 . Vertical passthrough  114  may include conductive vias  116  coupled to (e.g., in series with) conductive (landing) pads  118 , as the conductive vias  116  extend from conductive interconnect structures  96  to conductive interconnect structures  98 . When arranged in this way, logic board  86  (e.g., ground traces in logic board  86 ) may provide ground shielding for isolation and impedance control. Matching segment  112  antenna board  100  can be used to compensate for the impedance transition through the stack up (e.g., to ensure that impedance is matched from RFIC  88  to antenna  40  despite the absence of impedance-controlled transmission line paths  94  and matching segments  110  in logic board  86 ). Impedance matching segments  110  and  112  of  FIGS. 9-11  may, for example, be single-stage segments (e.g., quarter-wavelength transformers). If desired, impedance matching segments  110  and  112  may be multi-stage segments to allow for wider bandwidth or improved matching at their input and output. 
       FIG. 12  is a top-down view of an illustrative layout for antenna board  100  in one suitable arrangement. As shown in  FIG. 12 , antenna board  100  may include a ground (GND) layer  120  on a top surface of the underlying dielectric layers (e.g., conductive traces held at a ground potential and sometimes referred to herein as ground traces  120 ). Conductive interconnect structures  98  for antenna board  100  ( FIGS. 7-11 ) may include ground interconnect structures  98 G (e.g., solder balls or bumps sometimes referred to herein as ground solder balls  98 G) and signal interconnect structures  98 S (e.g., solder balls or bumps sometimes referred to herein as signal solder balls  98 S). 
     Ground layer  120  may be coupled to ground traces on logic board  86  using ground interconnect structures  98 G. Ground layer  120  may have openings aligned with signal interconnect structures  98 S. Signal interconnect structures  98 S may be coupled to the impedance-controlled transmission line paths  102  in antenna board  100  ( FIGS. 7 and 9-11 ). When antenna board  100  is mounted to logic board  86 , signal interconnect structures  98 S may be coupled to the impedance-controlled transmission line paths  94  in logic board  86  (or vertical passthrough  114  in the arrangement of  FIG. 11 ). The ground interconnect structures  98 G within ring  122  may, for example, shield signal interconnect structures  98 S and/or provide impedance control. The example of  FIG. 12  is merely illustrative and, if desired, signal interconnect structures  98 S may be provided in other patterns. Antenna board  100  may have other shapes. 
       FIG. 13  is a top-down view of antenna board  100  of  FIG. 12 , but where ground layer  120  of  FIG. 12  has been removed to reveal the underlying impedance-controlled transmission line paths  102  in antenna board  100 . As shown in  FIG. 13 , antenna board  100  may include additional ground traces  126  (e.g., ground traces vertically interposed between ground layer  120  of  FIG. 12  and the antenna resonating elements of the antennas  40  in antenna board  100 ). Openings may be formed in ground traces  126  to accommodate impedance-controlled transmission line paths  102  (e.g., ground traces  126  may form the ground conductor of impedance-controlled transmission line paths  102  whereas impedance-controlled transmission line paths  102  include signal conductors formed from conductive traces in the openings). 
     Each impedance-controlled transmission line path  102  may extend from a respective signal interconnect structure  98 S (e.g., conductive vias may extend from signal interconnect structures  98 S to the conductive traces in the openings formed by ground traces  126 ) to a corresponding feed via F. Each feed via F may extend in the −Z direction to a corresponding antenna feed terminal on the antenna resonating element of a given antenna  40  in antenna board  100 . As shown by exploded view  124 , the signal conductors in impedance-controlled transmission lines  102  may have thicker portions that are used to form matching segments  112 . Any desired number of thicknesses may be used to form matching segments  112  (e.g., matching segments  112  of  FIG. 13  perform two step matching). There may be separate impedance-controlled transmission lines  102  for conveying low band millimeter/centimeter wave signals and for conveying high band millimeter/centimeter wave signals. This arrangement may also support dual/multi-band matching within the same solder bump/transmission line. 
     As shown in  FIG. 13 , conductive vias  128  may extend in the Z direction through antenna board  100  (e.g., to short ground traces in antenna board  100  together). Fences of conducive vias  128  may laterally surround impedance-controlled transmission lines  102 . Fences of conductive vias  128  may also laterally surround each antenna  40  in antenna module  84 . For example, each antenna  40  may be located within a respective cavity  130 , where the cavity has an upper edge defined by ground traces  126  and lateral edges defined by conductive vias  128 . The example of  FIG. 13  is merely illustrative and, in general, other transmission line routing schemes may be used. 
       FIG. 14  is a top-down view of antenna board  100  of  FIG. 13  but where ground traces  126  of  FIG. 13  have been removed to reveal the underlying antennas  40  in antenna board  100 . As shown in  FIG. 14 , antenna board  100  may include a set of antennas  40 L and a set of antennas  40 H that collectively form the antennas of phased antenna array  54 . In this example, antennas  40 L may cover a relatively low millimeter/centimeter wave frequency band (e.g., a 26.5-29.5 GHz band) whereas antennas  40 H cover a relatively high millimeter/centimeter wave frequency band (e.g., a 37-40 GHz band). This is merely illustrative and, in general, phased antenna array  54  may cover any desired number of frequency bands at any desired frequencies using any desired number of sets of antennas. 
     In the example of  FIG. 14 , antennas  40 L and  40 H are patch antennas having stacked patch antenna resonating elements (sometimes referred to herein as stacked patch antennas). Each of antennas  40 L and  40 H includes a corresponding patch antenna resonating element  132  (sometimes referred to herein as patch  132 , patch element  132 , or patch antenna radiating element  132 ). The dimensions of patch  132  may be selected to configure the antennas to radiate in a desired frequency band. Each patch  132  is fed using at least one positive antenna feed terminal. In the example of  FIG. 14 , each patch  132  is fed using two positive antenna feed terminals (e.g., for covering orthogonal linear polarizations, elliptical polarizations, and/or circular polarizations). For example, each patch  132  may be fed using a first positive antenna feed terminal  136  (e.g., for covering a first linear polarization) and a second positive antenna feed terminal  138  (e.g., for covering a second linear polarization orthogonal to the first linear polarization). This is merely illustrative and, in general, other feeding arrangements may be used. Positive antenna feed terminals  136  and  138  may each be coupled to a respective impedance-controlled transmission line  102  by a corresponding feed via F ( FIG. 13 ). 
     As shown in  FIG. 14 , each antenna  40 L and each antenna  40 H also includes a parasitic element  134  underlying the corresponding patch  132  (e.g., patch  132  may be interposed between a corresponding parasitic element  134  and ground traces  126  of  FIG. 13 ). Parasitic elements  132  may be formed from patches of conductive traces on antenna board  100  and may sometimes be referred to herein as parasitic antenna resonating elements  132 , parasitic patches  132 , or parasitics  132 . Parasitic elements  132  may serve to widen the bandwidth of antennas  40 L and  40 H (e.g., by contributing additional resonances to the antenna). In the example of  FIG. 14 , parasitic elements  134  are cross-shaped patches having arms overlapping positive antenna feed terminals  134  and  136  (e.g., for performing impedance matching). Each antenna  40 L and each antenna  40 H may be located within a corresponding cavity  130  in antenna board  100 . Cavities  130  (e.g., the conducive vias  128  defining the lateral edges of cavities  130 ) may help to isolate the antennas from other components and reduce sensitivity to system tolerances. Antennas  40 L and  40 H may radiate in the hemisphere below antenna board  100  (e.g., in the −Z direction of  FIG. 14 ). 
     The example of  FIG. 14  is merely illustrative. Patch elements  132  and parasitic elements  134  may have other shapes (e.g., any desired number of curved and/or straight sides). Phased antenna array  54  may include any desired number of antennas arranged in any desired pattern. Each antenna in phased antenna array  54  may be a multi-band antenna for covering multiple frequency bands if desired. The antennas in phased antenna array  54  need not be patch antennas and can be implemented using any desired antenna structures. 
     The foregoing is merely illustrative and various modifications can be made by those skilled in the art without departing from the scope and spirit of the described embodiments. The foregoing embodiments may be implemented individually or in any combination.

Metadata:
Filing Date: 20200811
Publication Date: 20220517
Grant Date: 20220517
Priority Date: 20190905
Inventors: EDWARDS, JENNIFER M.
YONG, Siwen
WU, JIANGFENG
RAJAGOPALAN, HARISH
AVSER, BILGEHAN
PAULOTTO, Simone
PASCOLINI, MATTIA
Assignee: APPLE INC
CPC Classifications: [{"code": "H01Q1/243", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q5/42", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q21/061", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q5/335", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q3/26", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H04B1/40", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q21/24", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q1/2283", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q1/2283", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q9/0414", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q1/243", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q5/392", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q1/38", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q23/00", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q5/392", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q1/2283", "inventive": true, "first": true, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q23/00", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q5/335", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}, {"code": "H01Q1/243", "inventive": true, "first": false, "tree": "[]"}]
Family ID: 74644862