Benemerito, Rachell Ann T.

Berganio, Eunice Nova C.

Cañete, Maechille A.

TOPIC 1: INTRODUCTION TO TRANSMISSION LINES

Review of Coordinate Systems

 Rectangular Coordinate System

a point P is specified by x, y, and z, where these values are all measured

from the origin.

 Cylindrical Coordinate System

a point P is specified by r, φ, and z, where these values are all measured

from the origin.

 Spherical Coordinate System

a point P is specified by r, θ, and φ, where these values are all measured

from the origin.

VALUES OF COMMONLY USED CONSTANTS IN COMMUNICATION

FREE SPACE VALUE (Permittivity of Free Space) – a physical constant equal to approximately
8.85 𝑥 10 −12 farad per meter (F/m). It is a symbolized as 𝜀0 . It is a constant proportionality that
exists between electric displacement and electric field intensity in a given medium.

PERMEABILITY – measure of the ability of a material to support the formation of a magnetic field
within itself, otherwise known as distributed inductance in transmission line theory. It is the degree
of magnetization that a material obtains in response to an applied magnetic field.

Relative permittivity is the ratio of the capacitance of a capacitor using that material as a dielectric,
compared with a similar capacitor that has a vacuum as its dielectric. It is also known as dielectric
constant.

Dielectric Constant (k) – an important parameter in characterizing capacitors.

Transverse Electromagnetic Waves

A mode of propagation where the electric and magnetic field lines are all restricted to directions
normal (transverse) to the direction of propagation.

Benefits of TEM is that the media is non-dispersive, that is, the phase velocity and characteristic
impedance are constant over a wide band. It is the preferred mode in coax. Under proper
conditions, all E-field lines run radially, while magnetic field lines run in circles around the center
conductor.

LOSS TANGENT

A measure of a signal loss as the signal propagates down the transmission line. It is usually
referred as the dissipation factor. It is the result of electromagnetic wave absorption by the
dielectric material and depends on the material’s structure and glass-resin composition.

THE CONCEPT OF ELECTROMAGNETIC WAVES

These are waves that are created as a result of vibrations between an electric field and a magnetic
field.

A changing magnetic field will induce a changing electric field and vice-versa—the two are linked.
These changing fields form electromagnetic waves.

TRANSVERSE ELECTRO-MAGNETIC

Transverse electromagnetic (TEM) is a mode of propagation where the electric and magnetic field
lines are all restricted to directions normal (transverse) to the direction of propagation.

Plane waves are TEM, we are more interested in what types of transmission lines can support
TEM.

VELOCITY FACTOR

Also called wave propagation speed or velocity of propagation of a transmission medium is the
ratio of the speed at which a wavefront (of an electromagnetic signal, a radio signal, a light pulse
in an optical fibre or a change of the electrical voltage on a copper wire) passes through the
medium, to the speed of light in a vacuum. For optical signals, the velocity factor is the reciprocal
of the refractive index.

The velocity of the wave in the transmission line divided by the velocity of light in a vacuum

The speed of radio signals in a vacuum, is the speed of light, and so the velocity factor of a radio
wave in a vacuum is unity, or 100%. In electrical cables, the velocity factor mainly depends on
the insulating material
CONCEPT AND RELATIONSHIP OF FREQUENCY AND WAVELENGTH

FREQUENCY

 It is describe as the number of waves that pass a fixed place in a given amount of time.

 The SI derived unit of frequency is the hertz (Hz)

WAVELENGTH

 It is the measure of distance between two identical peaks “Crest” (high points) or
“Troughs” (low points) in a wave.

They are all related by one important equation:

Any electromagnetic wave's frequency multiplied by its wavelength equals the speed of light

 Frequency (f) × Wavelength (λ)= Speed of light(c)

DECIBELS

 Decibel (dB), unit for expressing the ratio between two physical quantities, usually
amounts of acoustic or electric power, or for measuring the relative loudness of sounds.

Radio power, radar, energy, and field strength

dBc

• relative to carrier—in telecommunications, this indicates the relative levels of noise or

sideband peak power, compared with the carrier power. Compare dBC, used in acoustics.

dB(J)

• energy relative to 1 joule. 1 joule = 1 watt per hertz, so power spectral density

can be expressed in dBJ.

dB(mW the radio)

• power relative to 1 milliwatt. When used in field, the dB is usually referenced to a 50 ohm
load, with the resultant voltage being 0.224 volts. There are times when spec sheets may
show the voltage & power level e.g. −120 dBm = 0.224 microvolts.

dB(μV/m)

• electric field strength relative to1 microvolt per meter. Often used to specify the signal
strength from a television broadcast at a receiving site (the signal measured at the antenna
output will be in dBμV)

dB(fW)

• power relative to 1 femtowatt.

dB(W)
 • power relative to 1 watt.

dB(kW)

• power relative to 1 kilowatt.

dB(Z)

• energy of reflectivity (weather radar), related to the amount of transmitted power returned
to the radar receiver; the reference level for Z is 1 mm6 m−3. Values above 15–20 dBZ
usually indicate falling precipitation.

dBsm

• decibel measure of the radar cross section (RCS) of a target relative one square meter.
The power reflected by the target is proportional to its RCS. "Stealth" aircraft and insects
have negative RCS measured in dBsm, large flat plates or non-stealthy aircraft have
positive values.

Antenna measurements

dB(isotropic)

• the forward gain of an antenna compared with the hypothetical isotropic antenna, which
uniformly distributes energy in all directions. Linear polarization of the EM field is assumed
unless noted otherwise.

dB(dipole)

• the forward gain of antenna compared with a half-wave dipole antenna. 0 dBd = 2.15 dBi

dB(isotropic Circular)

• the forward gain of an antenna compared to a circularly

• polarized isotropic antenna. There is no fixed conversion rule between dBiC and dBi, as it
depends on the receiving antenna and the field polarization.

dB(quarterwave)

• the forward gain of an antenna compared to a quarter wavelength whip. Rarely used,
except in some marketing material. 0 dBq =−0.85 dBi

Acoustics

• Probably the most common usage of "decibels" in reference to sound level is

dB SPL, sound pressure level referenced to the nominal threshold of human hearing he
measures of pressure (a field quantity) use the factor of 20, and the measures of power
(dB SIL and dB SWL) use the factor of 10.

• dB SPL
 • dB SPL (sound pressure level)– for sound in air and other gases, relative to
20 micropascals (μPa), or 2×10−5 Pa, approximately the quietest sound a human can
hear. For sound in water and other liquids, a reference pressure of 1 μPa is used. An
RMS sound pressure of one pascal corresponds to a level of 94 dB SPL.

• dB SIL

• dB sound intensity level – relative to 10−12 W/m², which is roughly the threshold of human
hearing in air.

• dB SWL

• dB sound power level – relative to 10−12 W.

• dB HLdB

• hearing level is used in audiograms as a measure of hearing loss. The reference level
varies with frequency according to a minimum audibility curve as defined in ANSI and
other standards, such that the resulting audiogram shows deviation from what is
regarded as 'normal' hearing.

• dB Q

• sometimes used to denote weighted noise level, commonly using the ITU-R 468 noise
weighting

• dBrn

• Db above reference noise

Other measurements

dB-HzdB(Hz)

• bandwidth relative to one hertz. E.g., 20 dB-Hz corresponds to a bandwidth of 100 Hz.
Commonly used in link budget calculations. Also used in carrier-to-noise-density
ratio (not to be confused with carrier-to-noise ratio, in dB).

dBov or dBOdB(overload)

• the amplitude of a signal (usually audio) compared with the maximum which a device
can handle before clipping occurs. Similar to dBFS, but also applicable to analog
systems.

dBrdB(relative)

• simply a relative difference from something else, which is made apparent in context.
The difference of a filter's response to nominal levels, for instance.