Microwave Engineering

Introduction to Microwave
Engineering

Dr. Kumud Ranjan Jha

Reference Books on Microwave Engineering
 D.M. Pozar, Microwave Engineering, John Wiley & Sons,
2012.
 S.Y. Liao, Microwave Devices and Circuit, Pearson Prentice
Hall, 2003.
 S. Das, Microwave Engineering, Oxford University Press,
2015.
 A. Das and S. K. Das, Microwave Engineering, TMH, 2000.
 R.E. Collin, Foundation of Microwave Engineering, McGraw
Hill, 2001.
 K.C. Gupta, et. al., CAD of Microwave Circuits, Artech House,
1981. Software:
CST Microwave Studio (Student Version)
for Virtual Lab.
 Electromagnetic Spectrum

*uWave:1mm-1m wavelength (UHF, SHF,EHF)

 Electromagnetic (EM) Spectrum

Signal wavelength, λ=λ0/√(εrμr); λ0=c/f ; Phase velocity v=c /√(εrμr)

and Phase Constant β=ω/v

•In LF, mostly l<<λ, thus I(current) & V(Voltage) are constant on
line. (l=device length)
•In HF, mostly l>> λ, thus I & V are not constant on the line.
•Current distribution within the conductor [Skin Depth,
δs=√(2/ωμσ) and Surface resistance, Rs=1/(δσ)=√(ωμ/2σ)]
Electromagnetic Spectrum and Applications
Band name Abbreviation Frequency and Wavelength Example Uses
Tremendously low Natural and artificial
TLF Below 3 Hz
frequency electromagnetic noise 
Extremely Low 3–30 Hz& Communication with
ELF
Frequency 100,000–10,000 km submarines
30–300 Hz& Communication with
Supper Low Frequency SLF
10,000–1,000 km submarines
Submarine
300–3,000 Hz& communication,
Ultra Low Frequency ULF
1,000–100 km Communication within
mines  
Submarine
3–30 kHz& communication,
Very Low Frequency VLF
100–10 km wireless, Heart Rate
Monitors, Geophysics 

Navigation, AM  Broadca
30–300 kHz&
Low Frequency LF sting (Europe and parts
10–1 km
of Asia), RFID 

AM(medium-wave)
300–3,000 kHz& broadcasts, amateur
Medium Frequency MF
1,000–100 m radio, Avalanche
Beacons  
 Abbre Frequency
Band name viatio and Example Uses
n Wavelength
Shortwave broadcasts, citizens band radio, amateur radio
and over-the-horizon aviation
3–30 MHz communications, RFID, over-the-horizon radar, automatic
High Frequency HF
100–10 m link establishment (ALE) / near-vertical incidence
skywave (NVIS) radio communications, marine and mobile
radio telephony
FM, television broadcasts, line-of-sight ground-to-aircraft
30–300 MHz and aircraft-to-aircraft communications, land mobile and
Very High Frequency VHF
10–1 m maritime mobile communications, amateur radio, weather
radio
Television broadcasts, microwave
oven, microwave devices/communications, radio
300–
astronomy, mobile phones, wireless
Ultra High Frequency UHF 3,000 MHz
LAN, Bluetooth, ZigBee, GPS and two-way radios such as
1–0.1 m
land mobile,  amateur radio, satellite radio, Remote control
Systems
Radio astronomy, microwave devices/communications,
wireless LAN, DSRC, most
3–30 GHz
Super High Frequency SHF modern radars, communications satellites, cable and
100–10 mm
satellite television broadcasting, DBS, amateur
radio, satellite radio
Radio astronomy, high-frequency microwave radio relay,
Extremely High 30–300 GHz microwave remote sensing, amateur radio, directed-
EHF
Frequency 10–1 mm energy weapon, millimeter wave scanner, wireless LAN
(802.11ad)
Experimental medical imaging to replace X-rays, ultrafast
Terahertz or 300–
THz or molecular dynamics, condensed-matter physics, terahertz
Tremendously High 3,000 GHz
THF time-domain spectroscopy, terahertz
Frequency 1–0.1 mm
 Microwave Frequency Bands (Radio Society of
Great Britain)*
*Popular after World War II
• L band 1 to 2 GHz : GSM, Marine, GPS, Military Applications
• S band 2 to 4 GHz: Wi-Fi, Bluetooth, Cordless Phone,
Navigation Becons, etc.
• C band 4 to 8 GHz :Satellite Communication, Mobile
Communication, long distance radio communications.
• X band 8 to 12 GHz: Satellite communications, broadband
communications, radars, space communication, amateur radio
signals
• Ku band 12 to 18 GHz: VSAT (Very Small Aperture Terminals),
Fixed Satellite
• K band 18 to 26.5 (27) GHz : Satellite, Astronomical
Observations (Weather Forecasting) Radar Applications
• Ka band 26.5 (27) to 40 GHz: Wide Band Applications,
Satellite, Astronomical observations Radar Applications
 Microwave Frequency Bands
• Q band 30 to 50 GHz : Satellite Communication, Terrestrial
Microwave Communications, Radio Astronomy,
• U band 40 to 60 GHz: Communication Systems
• V band 50 to 75 GHz : Wider Bandwidth, Point to point
communications, Line of Sight Communication
• E band 60 to 90 GHz : High density fixed wireless services,
SpaceX applied Starlink Gen2 Satellite with 71-79GHz,81-
86GHz bands.
• W band 75 to 110 GHz : Automotive Radar, Satellite
Communication, Security Applications, Defense, Astronomy
• F band 90 to 140 GHz and : Radio astronomy, communication,
experimental
• D band 110 to 170 GHz : Radio astronomy, communication,
Experimental
 Communication System Frequency Bands
• FM Radio – Frequency: 88 to 108 MHz
• CDMA – 824 to 890 MHz
• GSM900 - 890 to 915 and 935 to 960 MHz
• GPS – 1575 + 10 MHz
• GSM1800 – 1710 to 1780 and 1810 to 1880 MHz
• 3G - 1920 to 1980 and 2110 to 2170 MHz
• 4G – 2300 to 2400 MHz
• 5G-Sub-6GHz and 28 GHz mm Wave
• Wi-Fi – 2400 to 2483 MHz and 5.2/5.8 GHz Band
• Satellite and Defense Communications
• WiFi-6 (Next)?????
 Conclusion

• Microwave frequency ranges from 1mm to 1m ( a course

boundary )

• Microwave spectrum is divided into various bands

• It has a number of applications in the communication systems

Microwave Applications: Overview
Civil Military
Wireless Communication Aircraft Safety and
Vehicle Collision Navigation RADAR
Avoidance Remote Missile Guidance and
Sensing Control
Medical Industrial
Cancer/Tumor Detection Industrial Heating
Medical Diagnostics and
Therapy
 APPLICATIONS OF MICROWAVE
ENGINEERING
• Various molecular, atomic, and nuclear resonances occur at
microwave frequencies, creating a variety of unique applications in
the areas of basic science, remote sensing, medical diagnostics
and treatment, and heating methods.

• Today, the majority of applications of microwaves are related to

radar and communication systems. Radar systems are used for
detecting and locating targets and for air traffic control systems,
missile tracking radars, automobile collision avoidance systems,
weather prediction, motion detectors, and a wide variety of remote
sensing systems.

•Microwave communication systems handle a large fraction of the

world’s international and other long haul telephone, data and
television transmissions.
 APPLICATIONS OF MICROWAVE
ENGINEERING

•Most of the currently developing wireless telecommunications

systems, such as direct broadcast satellite (DBS) television,
personal communication systems (PCSs), wireless local area
networks (WLANS), cellular video (CV) systems, and global
positioning satellite (GPS) systems rely heavily on microwave
technology.
 A SHORT HISTORY OF MICROWAVE
ENGINEERING
• Modern electromagnetic theory was formulated in 1873 by
James Clerk Maxwell solely from mathematical considerations.
• Maxwell’s formulation was cast in its modern form by Oliver
Heaviside, during the period 1885 to 1887.
• Heinrich Hertz, a German professor of physics understood the
theory published by Maxwell, carried out a set of experiments
during 1887-1891 that completely validated Maxwell’s theory of
electromagnetic waves.
• It was only in the 1940’s (World War II) that microwave theory
received substantial interest that led to radar development.
• Communication systems using microwave technology begin to
develop soon after the birth of radar.
• The advantages offered by microwave systems, wide
bandwidths and line of sight propagation, provides an impetus
for the continuing development of low cost miniaturized
microwave components.
 History of Electromagnetic Waves
Excellent Coverage on History of
Electromagnetic Waves
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/History_of_electrom
agnetic_theory

1860’s James Clerk

Maxwell

1891 Heinrich
Original apparatus
Hertz
used by Hertz for
Validated his
Maxwell’s electromagnetics
Image sources: Theory experiments
Wikipedia

Image source: D.M. Pozar,

Microwave Engineering, John
Wiley & Sons, 2012
 History of Microwave Engineering
1895 Jagadish Chandra Bose
•First public demonstration of electromagnetic
waves.
•Using to ring a bell remotely
and to explode some gunpowder
1896 Alexander Stepanovich Popov in Russia was doing
similar experiments in 1895 and wrote a paper to the
Journal of the Russian Physical-Chemical Society in
January 1896
Guglielmo Marconi
1901 First transatlantic radio communication over a distance
of 2000 miles
from Poldhu, UK to Newfoundland, St. Johns in
December 1901.
sources: Wikipedia, https://www.cv.nrao.edu/~demerson/bose/bose.html,
http://web.mit.edu/varun_ag/www/bose.html
 History of Microwave Engineering
1897 Lord Rayleigh
•Showed that waves could propagate within a hollow
conducting cylinder
•First presented the idea of critical/cut-off frequencies in
waveguides

1930s Systematic Development of waveguide theory (hollow

metallic waveguides) simultaneously by two groups, one at
Bell Labs and other at MIT labs

1950 Robert M. Barrett Invented Stripline

Source: History of Wireless, By T. K. Sarkar, Robert

Mailloux, Arthur A. Oliner,
M. Salazar-Palma, Dipak L. Sengupt

1952 Federal Telecommunications Laboratories (ITT) Invented

Microstrip Lines
 History of Microwave Engineering
1942 MIT Radiation Laboratory
•First X-band Radar was
developed in 1942 (This did not contain
any solid state devices)
John Bardeen, William Shockley and
1947
Walter Brattain at Bell Labs invented Source: Wikipedia
the transistor.
1954 Morris Tanenbaum et al. at Bell
Laboratories were the first to develop a
working silicon transistor
C.A. Mead, Cal
1965 Tech Invention
of GaAs 1970 Texas Instruments invented
MESFET
Solid-State Radar at X-band
http://ieeexplore.ieee.org/stamp/stamp.jsp?tp=&arnumber=869524
Some Advantages and Disadvantages of
Microwave Communication

• Wireless Communication
• Multiple Channels are available
• Wide Bandwidth

• Line of sight communication is obstructed by obstacle

• Atmospheric attenuation
• Expensive Towers
 Biological Effect of Microwave
• It is non-ionizing electromagnetic radiation
• Ionizing radiation messes up molecules but non-ionizing
radiation heats them
• In general, due to the lack of the sufficient energy, it does not
produce charged particle in a body to cause biological damage
• Only the known harmful effect from the exposure to microwave
is thermal
• However, the prolonged use of It can heat body organs
• SAR: Specific Absorption Rate W/kg : Rate at which radiation
is absorbed by human body

• USA: SAR limit of Cell Phone =1.6W/kg which is for 6 minutes

• A person should not use cell phone more than 18-24 minutes
per day
A General Microwave Communication
Systems
Modulating Transmitter
Signal
Impedance
Modulator Amplifier Matching
Network
Carrier
Signal

Receiver

IF Filter Display
RF device/
Mixer and Demodulator
Amplifier speaker
Amplifier
LO
 Microwave Components and Systems
Passive Microwave Microwave Systems
Components Mobile Phone
T-line Mobile Phone Jammer
Antenna Repeater / Signal
Power Divider / Combiner Enhancer
Coupler
Filter RFID
Attenuator RF Transceiver
GPS and GSM
Active Microwave Modules
Components Radar
Amplifier RF Energy Harvesting
Oscillator
Mixer Microwave Equipment
RF Switch High Power Microwave
Phase Shifter System
 Conclusion
• Microwave Engineering has enriched history

• The seminal work of James Clerk Maxwell is the foundation

stone of the wave propagation theory

• There are a number of applications of the microwave

engineering in the various filed of the science and technology

• There certain advantages and disadvantages of the high

frequency radiation

• It should be used judiciously

 Waveguide Two wire Transmission line
• A waveguide is a hollow metallic • Transmission on line is a
pipe design to carry microwave conductor or wire designed to
energy from one place to carry electrical energy below
another microwave range from one
place to another
• Used for Microwave frequency • Upto 18 GHz For short distance.
above 1GHz
• Power handling capacity is high • Power handling capacity is low
• Wave theory is considered in • Circuit theory considered in
waveguide analysis Transmission line
• The large surface area of • Two wire transmission line have
waveguide reduces copper large copper losses due to small
losses surface area
 Waveguide
• Dielectric losses are less in
waveguide
• It acts as a High Pass Filter
• TE and TM modes exist in WG.
• Wave impedance (characteristic
impedance) is a function of
frequency.
• It is one conductor transmission
system. The whole body of the
waveguide acts as ground. The
wave propagates through
multiple reflections from the
walls of waveguide (WG).
Two wire Transmission line
• Dielectric losses are more in
Two wire Transmission line
• All frequencies can pass through
• TEM mode exists in TL.
• Characteristic impedance in TL
depends on the physical
parameters of TL.
• It consists of two conductors.
One or both conductors are
used to carry the wave.
 Maxwell’s Equations
Maxwell’s Equations
For Static fields
Maxwell’s equations are:
∇•D = ρ;
∇•B = 0;
∇×E = 0;
∇×H = J; where,
D = εE and B = μH(ρ, J are the charge, and current densities)
For Time varying fields
Maxwell’s equations are:
∇•D = ρ;
∇•B = 0;
∇×E = -δB/δt;
∇×H = J+δD/δt;
 Maxwell’s Equations (Cont’d)

• Faradays Law (∇×E = -δB/δt) shows that time-varying magnetic

field (δB/δt) is a source of electric field (E)

• Ampere’s Law (∇×H=J+δD/δt) shows that both electric-current

(J) or time-varying E-field (δD/δt) are sources for the magnetic
field (H)

• Thus, in source-free region (ρ=0 and J=0 ), time varying electric

and magnetic fields can generate each other

• Consequently, EM fields are self sustaining, thus predicting the

phenomenon of EM wave propagation
 APPLICATIONS OF MICROWAVE
ENGINEERING

• Antenna gain is proportional to the electrical size. At higher

frequencies, there is more antenna gain possible for a given
physical antenna size, which has important consequences for
implementing miniaturized microwave systems.
• More bandwidth can be realized at higher frequencies.
Bandwidth is critically important because available frequency
bands in the electromagnetic spectrum are being rapidly depleted.
• Microwave signals travel by line of sight are not bent by the
ionosphere as are lower frequency signals and thus satellite and
terrestrial communication links with very high capacities are
possible.
• Effective reflection area (radar cross section) of a radar target is
proportional to the target’s electrical size. Thus, generally
microwave frequencies are preferred for radar systems.