I. Technical Positioning and Core Functions

　　In IoT sensor networks, microwave power dividers are key passive devices for achieving multi-node signal coordination. They primarily undertake two core tasks: first, uniformly distributing the microwave RF signal to multiple sensor nodes (power distribution mode); and second, aggregating the microwave signals collected by multiple sensors to the receiving end (power combining mode). Their operating frequency band must match the commonly used microwave frequency bands for IoT sensors (typically 2.4GHz, 5.8GHz, and 10-30GHz) to ensure signal consistency and stability during transmission among distributed nodes.

　　II. Key Requirements for Adapting to IoT Sensor Networks

　　Low Insertion Loss Characteristics

　　IoT sensor nodes are generally battery-powered and highly sensitive to energy consumption. Microwave power dividers must control the insertion loss below 0.5dB (ideally) to avoid signal attenuation leading to increased sensor transmit power, thereby extending node battery life. For example, in wireless temperature and humidity sensor networks, low-loss power dividers can reduce sensor transmit power by more than 30%.

　　Miniaturization and Integration Design

　　IoT sensor nodes (such as smart wearables and industrial micro-sensors) are typically smaller than 10cm³, requiring microwave power dividers to employ microstrip line structures or LTCC (Low Temperature Co-fired Ceramic) technology to keep their size below 5mm × 5mm. In some scenarios, the power divider also needs to be integrated with antennas and filters to form a unified RF module, reducing the internal space occupied by the node.

　　Wide Bandwidth and Interference Immunity

　　IoT networks often face the coexistence of multiple frequency band signals (such as Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, LoRa, and microwave sensor signals). Microwave power dividers need to have a relative bandwidth of over 10% (e.g., coverage of the 2.4-2.6GHz band), while optimizing impedance matching (target characteristic impedance 50Ω) to reduce adjacent channel interference, ensuring accurate transmission of sensor signals in complex electromagnetic environments.

　　III. Core Design Technologies and Optimization Directions

　　Topology Selection

　　Power divider topologies are categorized into bi-partition, quad-partition, and unequal-partition structures for different network scales:

　　* For small-scale networks (≤8 nodes), Wilkinson power dividers are commonly used, achieving port isolation (isolation ≥20dB) through resistive loads to avoid signal crosstalk between nodes.

　　* For large-scale networks (≥16 nodes), tree-cascaded power dividers are employed, combined with microstrip line branch structures to achieve uniform power distribution. Gradient line design further reduces the VSWR (≤1.2).

　　Materials and Process Optimization

　　* The substrate material uses Rogers substrate with high dielectric constant (εr=3.5-10) and low loss tangent (tanδ≤0.001) to reduce signal transmission loss.

　　* The metal layer employs copper foil sputtering, with a thickness controlled between 18-35μm to improve conductivity. Gold plating enhances oxidation resistance, adapting to harsh industrial environments such as high temperature and high humidity.

　　Low-Power Auxiliary Design

　　In power combining mode, a diode switch array is introduced to shut down the signal path of idle sensor nodes, reducing overall power consumption. For example, in a smart grid microwave sensor network, this design can reduce the static power consumption of the power divider to below 5mW.

　　IV. Typical Application Scenarios

　　Industrial IoT Equipment Monitoring

　　In a large factory's equipment vibration microwave sensor network, a four-way Wilkinson power divider is used to distribute the central RF source signal to 16 distributed sensors, enabling real-time monitoring of equipment operating status. The high isolation of the power divider ensures no crosstalk between signals from different equipment sensors, improving monitoring accuracy to ±0.1mm.

　　Environmental Monitoring Sensor Network

　　In an atmospheric pollutant microwave remote sensing sensor network, a wideband LTCC power divider (covering the 10-12GHz band) is used to combine remote sensing signals from multiple sensors and transmit them to the cloud. The miniaturized design of the power divider allows sensor nodes to be mounted on drones, enabling large-scale mobile monitoring.

　　Intelligent Transportation Vehicle-Road Cooperation

　　In road microwave radar sensor networking, unequal power dividers (power allocation ratio 1:2) are used to distinguish the signal priority of main road and auxiliary road sensors. Main road sensors receive higher power allocation, ensuring that the signal acquisition rate is increased to over 99.5% when vehicles are traveling at high speeds.

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