Antennas - Introduction

RADIATION FROM INFINITESIMAL DIPOLE
Infinitesimal dipole: very short current element
Constant current distribution:

Top-hat antenna
2009-10
CRL 715 Radiating Systems for RF Communications
Magnetic vector potential of a current element
approximation valid for the infinitesimal dipole
The field radiated by any complex antenna in a linear

medium can be represented as a superposition of the fields
due to the current elements on the antenna surface.
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In spherical coordinates
cylindrical symmetry;
angular () dependence is
separable from dependence
on r
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Field vectors of a current element
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features of the field vectors of a current element

Longitudinal (r-components) components decrease with
distance as 1/r2 or faster. Neglected in the far zone.
Transverse component have a 1/r term dominant at
large distances
Transverse E and H field components are orthogonal to
each other (E and H)
In the far zone |E| = |H|
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Power density of a current element
Total power of a current element calculated over a sphere:
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Radiated power of a current element
Radiation resistance of a current element (ideal dipole)
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DUALITY IN ELECTROMAGNETICS
Substituting the quantities from one set of EM equations with the respective
quantities from the dual set produces a valid equation
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Dual quantities
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RADIATION PATTERN
Representation of the radiation properties of the antenna
as a function of angular position.
Power pattern: the trace of the angular variation of
the received/radiated power at a constant radius from
the antenna
Amplitude field pattern: the trace of the spatial

variation of the magnitude of electric (magnetic) field
at a constant radius from the antenna,
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Normalized patterns
3-D and 2-D patterns
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Normalized Patterns:
Distance from origin represents magnitude
Angular position with respect to origin represents position with
respect to antenna.
elevation plane
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Pattern terminology
Isotropic pattern
Directional antenna
Omnidirectional antenna
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Principle patterns
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Lobes
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Beamwidth
2009-10
Beamwidth
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RADIATION INTENSITY
Power per unit solid angle radiated in a given direction
Solid angle:
Elementary solid angle:
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Power per unit solid angle radiated in a given direction
Far-zone Poynting vector (radiation power density P) and the

radiation intensity are related as:
Radiation intensity does not depend on distance

The power pattern is |U(,)|
The normalized power pattern is
2009-10
In the far-field zone, the radial field components vanish, and

the remaining transverse components of the electric and the
magnetic far fields are in phase and have magnitudes related
by
That is why the far-field Poynting vector has only a radial

component and it is a real number corresponding to the
radiation density:
Then, for the radiation intensity, we obtain in terms of the

electric field
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This leads to a useful relation between the power pattern and the
amplitude field pattern:
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DIRECTIVITY
The ratio of the radiation intensity in a given direction and the
radiation intensity averaged over all directions
Maximum directivity
Partial directivity: Directivity for a specific polarization of the
field
Total and partial directivities
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DIRECTIVITY AND RADIATION INTENSITY

Let the radiation intensity be of the form:
U Bo F ,
U max Bo F , |max Bo Fmax ,
The total radiated power:
Prad
U , d B0 F , sin d d
0 0
The maximum directivity:
D0 4
F , |max
F , sin d d
0 0
F , sin d d
0
F , |max
4
D0
A
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A is the beam solid angle

1
A
F , |max
F , sin d d
0 0
Fn , sin d d
0 0
Fn ,
F ,
F , |max
The beam solid angle is defined as the solid angle through

which all the power of the antenna would flow if its radiation
intensity is constant (and equal to maximum value of U) for all
angles within A
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APPROXIMATE EXPRESSIONS FOR

DIRECTIVITY
Kraus formula for highly directive antennas
formula of Tai and Pereira
2009-10
ANTENNA GAIN
The ratio of the radiation intensity U in a given direction
and the radiation intensity that would be obtained, if the
power fed to the antenna were radiated isotropically.
The gain does not include losses due to impedance mismatch

Gain takes into account the efficiency of the antenna as well
as its directional capabilities.
Gain vs. Directivity: antenna efficiency
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ANTENNA EFFICIENCY
Total efficiency
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BEAM EFFICIENCY
Defined for each beam of the pattern: usually, the main beam
is considered the ratio of the power radiated in a cone of angle
1 and the total radiated power (1 is the first-null beam
width)
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FREQUENCY BANDWIDTH
The range of frequencies, within which the antenna
characteristics (input impedance, pattern) conform to
specifications
Broadband
Narrowband
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INPUT IMPEDANCE
The impedance presented by an antenna at its terminals
The ratio of the voltage to current at a pair of terminals
The ratio of the appropriate components of the electric to
magnetic field at a point.
Antenna in Transmitting mode

2009-10
Thevenin equivalent
The ratio of the voltage to current at a pair of terminals,

with no load attached defines the impedance of the
antennas as:
Z A RA jX A
RA Rr RL
The internal impedance of the generator:
Z g Rg jX g
The current developed within the loop is:
Ig
Vg
Zt
ZA Zg
Vg
Rr RL Rg j X A X g
Vg
Ig
R R R
r
L
g
2009-10
Vg
j XA Xg
2 1 2
Rr RL Rg
Under conjugate matching
X A X g
The maximum power delivered to the antenna:

2
Vg
2
Rr
1
Pr I g Rr
2
2
8 Rr RL
The power dissipated as heat:
Vg
2
RL
1
PL I g RL
2
2
8 R R
L
r
The power dissipated as heat on the internal resistance of

the generator:
2
Vg
Vg
Vg
Rg
2
1
1

Pg I g Rg

2
2
8 Rr RL
8 Rr RL
8 Rg
Pg Pr PL
2009-10
Power supplied by the generator during conjugate matching:
Ps
4 Rr RL
Vg
Of the total power supplied by the generator, half is

dissipated as heat in the internal resistance of the generator
and the other half is delivered to the antenna.
Of the power delivered to the antenna, part is radiated
through the mechanism provided by the radiation resistance
and the rest is dissipated as heat which influences overall
efficiency of the antenna.
For a lossless antenna: All the power delivered to the
antenna is radiated.
The input impedance is a function of frequency and

depends on factors like geometry, method of excitation
and proximity to surrounding objects.
2009-10
ANTENNA EQUIVALENT AREAS

Effective Area (Effective Aperture)
The ratio of the available power at the terminals of a
receiving antenna to the power flux density of a plane wave
incident on the antenna (assuming wave polarization being
matched to the antenna).
Power delivered
to the load (W)
Effective area
(m2)
Power density of the

incident wave (W/m2)
2009-10
IT RT 2
PT
Ae
Wi
Wi
VT
RT
2Wi Rr RL RT X A X T
Under conjugate matching conditions, the effective aperture

reduces to maximum effective aperture given by:
Aem
8Wi Rr RL
VT
The ratio of maximum effective area to the physical area of an

antenna is known as Aperture Efficiency:
ap
For aperture antennas:
For wire antennas:
2009-10
Aem
Ap
Aem Ap
Aem Ap
Scattering Area
The equivalent area when multiplied by the incident power
density is equal to the scattered or reradiated power.
Under conjugate matching:
As
VT
Rr
8Wi Rr RL
Loss Area
density leads to the power dissipated as heat through RL.
As
2009-10
VT
RL
8Wi Rr RL
Capture Area
density leads to the total power captured, collected or
intercepted by the antenna.
R R R
T
L
r
As
8Wi Rr RL 2
VT
Capture area = Effective area + Scattering area + Loss Area
2009-10
MAXIMUM DIRECTIVITY &

MAXIMUM EFFECTIVE AREA
A1 transmits
A2 receives
Radiated power density at a distance R

would be:
Power received by the antenna and transferred

to the load would be:
A2 transmits
2009-10
A1 receives
Reciprocity in antenna theory states that if antenna #1 is a

transmitting antenna and antenna #2 is a receiving antenna,
Ptra /Prec will not change if antenna roles are reversed
If antenna 1 is isotropic: D1=1 and its maximum effective area

can be expressed as:
A
Ae1
e2
D2
In general for any antenna:
2009-10
Aem
D0
4
General expression with losses:
Aem
2
2
et
D0 w . a
ecd 1
2009-10
2
2
D0 w . a
POLARIZATION
The polarization of the EM field describes the time
variations of the time harmonic field vectors at a given
point. In other words, it describes the way the
ur direction
and magnitude of the field vectors (usually E ) change in
time. Polarization is a time-harmonic field characteristic.
The polarization is the figure traced by the extremity of

the time-varying field vector at a given observation point.
2009-10
(a) linear
(b) circular
(c) elliptical
Any type of polarization can be represented by two orthogonal

linear polarizations, (Ex, Ey) or (EH, EV), whose fields are out of
phase by an angle of L
2009-10
The polarization of any field can be represented by a set of

two orthogonal linearly polarized fields.
Assume that locally a far field wave propagates along the zaxis. The far-zone field vectors have only transverse
components. Then, the set of two orthogonal linearly
polarized fields along the x-axis and along the y-axis, is
sufficient to represent any TEMz field.
The instantaneous field of a plane wave traveling in z
direction:
r
e z; t a x ex z; t a y e y z; t
ex z; t E x 0 cos t kz x
e y z; t E y 0 cos t kz y
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Case 1 - Linear polarization:
y x n ,
n 0,1, 2,3,....
Case 2 - Circular polarization:
ex e y E x 0 E y 0
y x
2n ,
2
n 0,1, 2...
CW
y x 2n ,
2
n 0,1, 2...
CCW
If the direction of wave propagation is reversed (i.e. +z

direction), the phases for CW and CCW must be reversed
2009-10
Case 3 - Elliptical polarization:
ex e y E x 0 E y 0
1
2n ,
2
y x
y x 2n ,
2
OR
n
y x
2
n
y x
2
2009-10
n 0,1, 2...
CW
n 0,1, 2...
CCW
CW
CCW
Polarization in terms of two linearly polarized components.

The set of two orthogonal linearly polarized fields along the xaxis and along the y-axis, is sufficient to represent any TEMz
field.
The field (time-dependent or phasor vector) is decomposed
into two orthogonal components:
r r r
ur ur
ur
e ex e y
E Ex Ey
r
e x E x cos t z x
r
e y E y cos t z L y
At a fixed position (assume z =0 ):
r
e t E x cos t x E y cos t L y
ur
E x E x y E y e j L
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Linear polarization
L n , n 0,1, 2,...
r
e t E x cos t x E y cos t n y
ur
E x E x y E y
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Circular polarization
L n
n 0,1, 2,...
2
r
ur
e t E x cos t x E y cos t 2 n y E Em x y j
E x E y Em ;
If (-z) is the direction of propagation
clockwise (CW) or
right-hand polarization
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Counter clockwise (CCW) or

Left-hand polarization
Elliptic polarization
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Polarization in terms of two circularly polarized components

The total field phasor is represented as the superposition of two
circularly polarized waves, one left-handed and the other right-handed.
Assuming a relative phase difference of
where eR and eL are real numbers.

The relation between the linear-component and the circularcomponent representations of the field polarization is easily found as
2009-10
The polarization vector is the normalized phasor of the electric

field vector. It is a complex-number vector of unit magnitude,
i.e., g * 1
L
The polarization vector takes the following specific forms:

Linear polarization
Circular polarization
2009-10
ANTENNA POLARIZATION
The polarization of a radiated wave (polarization of a
radiating antenna) at a specific point in the far zone is the
polarization of the locally plane wave.
The polarization of a received wave (polarization of a
receiving antenna) is the polarization of a plane wave,
incident from a given direction, and having given power flux
density, which results in maximum available power at the
antenna terminals.
The antenna polarization is defined by the polarization vector
of the radiated (transmitted) wave.
2009-10
In the coordinate system of the transmitting antenna, the

polarization vector of the transmitted wave is the complex
conjugate of the polarization vector of the received wave in the
coordinate system of the receiving antenna.
wr
t *
w
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Polarization loss factor and polarization efficiency

Generally, the polarization of the receiving antenna is not the
same as the polarization of the incident wave. This is called
polarization mismatch.
The polarization loss factor (PLF) characterizes the loss of EM
power because of polarization mismatch:
PLF i g a
2009-10
If the antenna is polarization matched, then PLF = 1, and

there is no polarization power loss.
If PLF = 0, then the antenna is incapable of receiving the
signal.
0 PLF 1
The polarization efficiency has the same physical meaning
as the PLF.
2009-10
FRIIS EQUATION
Relates the transmitted and the received power for a wireless
link through obstacle-free space.
The transmitting and receiving antennas are in each others
far zone
Far-zone transmitted power:
2009-10
Received power:
2009-10
MAXIMUM RANGE OF WIRELESS LINK
2009-10
RADAR CROSS-SECTION (RCS)

Equivalent area intercepting that amount of power which,
when scattered isotropically, produces at the receiver power
density Ws equal to that scattered by the target itself
2009-10
RADAR RANGE EQUATION

Gives the ratio of the transmitted power (fed to the
transmitting antenna) to the received power after it has
been scattered (re-radiated) by a target of cross-section
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Power density of the transmitted wave at the target:
Captured power:
Re-radiated (scattered) power at the receiving antenna:
Power transferred to the receiver:
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Radar range equation:
Maximum radar range:
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Radiation zones
The space surrounding the antenna is divided into three

regions according to the predominant field behavior. The field
behavior changes very gradually as these boundaries are
crossed.
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Reactive near-field region: r = 1

The region immediately surrounding the antenna, where
the reactive field predominates
Features of fields:
E and H are in phase quadrature
field is reactive. No time average
power flow.
H is the magnetostatic field of a
current element
Er and E represent the electrostatic
field of a dipole
2009-10
Radiating near-field (Fresnel) region:
r 1
The radial component Er is not

negligible, but the transverse
components (E and H ) are dominant
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Far-field (Fraunhofer) region:
r ? 1
The angular field distribution does not

depend on the distance from the source
any more, i.e., the far-field pattern is
already well established. The field is a
transverse EM wave.
Features of fields:
no radial components; the angular field distribution is independent
of r;
The Fields:
2009-10
RADIATION REGION SEPARATION

A closed form solution of the radiation integral (vector potential) is
impossible and standard approximations are applied, from which the
boundaries of these regions are derived.
Consider the vector potential for a linear current source:
r
A
4
R
e j R r
I l ' R dl '
L'
x x ' y y ' z z '

2
Neglect the antenna dimensions along the x- and y-axes

(infinitesimally thin wire). Then,
x x ' 2 y y ' 2 z z ' 2
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x 2 y 2 z z ' 2
x 2 y 2 z 2 2 zz ' z '2 r 2 2rz 'cos z '2

Using the binomial expansion
a b
a na
n 1
r 2rz 'cos z '
2 12
n n 1
12
2!
2rz 'cos z '
1
r2
2
1 2
n2 2
n n 1 n 2
3!
1 1

2 2

r2
2
a n 3b3 ....
2rz 'cos z '

3 2
2 2
....
z '2 z '2 cos 2

1
r z 'cos
2 z '3 cos sin 2 O3

2r
2r
2r
R r z 'cos
1 2 2
1
z ' sin 2 z '3 cos sin 2
2r
2r
This expansion is used to mathematically define the separation of

the space surrounding an antenna viz. reactive near-field, the
radiating near-field and the far-field region.
2009-10
Far-field approximation:
Only the first two terms in the expansion are taken into account
R r z 'cos
The most significant error term in R is
1 2 2
z ' sin
2r
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Maximum value
1
2
z
'
max
2r
It has been shown by many researchers through examples

that for most practical antennas, with overall lengths
greater than a wavelength, a maximum total phase error of
/8 rad (22.5) is acceptable.
Using this criteria, the maximum phase error should always
be:
z '
2r
8
2
D2
r2
with
r ? D;
r?
Far-field approximations:
R ; r z 'cos
R; r
2009-10
for phase terms

for amplitude terms
Radiating near-field (Fresnel) region approximation:
If the observation point is chosen to be smaller than the far-field

limit, then to limit the maximum phase error to /8, the third
term in the binomial expansion of R must be retained.
R r z 'cos
1 2 2
z ' sin
2r
Maximum phase error introduced by omission of the fourth term:
1 z '3
z '3
2
cos sin 2 sin sin 2 2 cos 2 0
2
2r

r 2
Maximum phase error occurs when:
sin 2 2 cos 2
2009-10
1 tan 1 2
1 z '3
2
2
cos sin
r 2

z ' D 2
tan 1 2
r 0.62 l 3
Reactive near-field approximation:
0.62 l 3 r 0
2009-10

Antennas - Introduction

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RADIATION FROM INFINITESIMAL DIPOLE

Infinitesimal dipole: very short current element

Constant current distribution:

CRL 715 Radiating Systems for RF Communications

Magnetic vector potential of a current element

approximation valid for the infinitesimal dipole

The field radiated by any complex antenna in a linear

CRL 715 Radiating Systems for RF Communications

CRL 715 Radiating Systems for RF Communications

Field vectors of a current element

CRL 715 Radiating Systems for RF Communications

features of the field vectors of a current element

CRL 715 Radiating Systems for RF Communications

Power density of a current element

Total power of a current element calculated over a sphere:

CRL 715 Radiating Systems for RF Communications

Radiated power of a current element

Radiation resistance of a current element (ideal dipole)

CRL 715 Radiating Systems for RF Communications

CRL 715 Radiating Systems for RF Communications

CRL 715 Radiating Systems for RF Communications

Amplitude field pattern: the trace of the spatial

CRL 715 Radiating Systems for RF Communications

3-D and 2-D patterns

CRL 715 Radiating Systems for RF Communications

CRL 715 Radiating Systems for RF Communications

CRL 715 Radiating Systems for RF Communications

CRL 715 Radiating Systems for RF Communications

CRL 715 Radiating Systems for RF Communications

CRL 715 Radiating Systems for RF Communications

CRL 715 Radiating Systems for RF Communications

Elementary solid angle:

CRL 715 Radiating Systems for RF Communications

Power per unit solid angle radiated in a given direction

Far-zone Poynting vector (radiation power density P) and the

Radiation intensity does not depend on distance

CRL 715 Radiating Systems for RF Communications

In the far-field zone, the radial field components vanish, and

That is why the far-field Poynting vector has only a radial

Then, for the radiation intensity, we obtain in terms of the

CRL 715 Radiating Systems for RF Communications

CRL 715 Radiating Systems for RF Communications

CRL 715 Radiating Systems for RF Communications

DIRECTIVITY AND RADIATION INTENSITY

U max Bo F , |max Bo Fmax ,

The total radiated power:

The maximum directivity:

CRL 715 Radiating Systems for RF Communications

A is the beam solid angle

The beam solid angle is defined as the solid angle through

CRL 715 Radiating Systems for RF Communications

APPROXIMATE EXPRESSIONS FOR

formula of Tai and Pereira

CRL 715 Radiating Systems for RF Communications

The gain does not include losses due to impedance mismatch

CRL 715 Radiating Systems for RF Communications

CRL 715 Radiating Systems for RF Communications

CRL 715 Radiating Systems for RF Communications

CRL 715 Radiating Systems for RF Communications

Antenna in Transmitting mode

CRL 715 Radiating Systems for RF Communications

The ratio of the voltage to current at a pair of terminals,

The internal impedance of the generator: