ANTENNA AND WAVE

PROPAGATION
By T.MARTHANDAN.M.E.,M.B.A.
 What is an Antenna?

• An antenna is a way of converting the guided waves

present in a waveguide, feeder cable or transmission
line into radiating waves travelling in free space, or
vice versa.
• An antenna is a passive structure that serves as
transition between a transmission line and air used to
transmit and/or receive electromagnetic waves.
• Converts Electrons to Photons of EM energy
• It is a transducer which interfaces a circuit and
freespace
 ANTENNA HISTORY
• Maxwell (1831-79) Fundamental equations. (Scottish)
• Hertz (1857-94) First aerial propagation (German)
• Marconi (1874-1937) Transatlantic transmission (Italian)
• Thomas Edison, 1885:patented a communication
system.
• DeForest (Triode tube 1920) Signal generators
(American)
• World War II (1939-45) Intense war-driven development
Marconis’ first transatlantic transmitting antenna (1901)
RADIATION CONCEPT
 The role of antennas
Antennas serve four primary functions:
• Spatial filter
directionally-dependent sensitivity
• Polarization filter
polarization-dependent sensitivity
• Impedance transformer (50 Ω to 377Ω)
transition between free space and transmission line
• Propagation mode adapter
from free-space fields to guided waves
(e.g., transmission line, waveguide)
 Antenna types

7
Helical antenna Horn antenna Parabolic reflector antenna
Antennas Radiation Patterns
Microwave Frequency Bands
 Spherical coordinates
q=0
z (zenith)

q
q=90
f=90

f y

f= azimuth x
q= elevation q=90
f=0
Isotropic Radiator:
A hypothetical lossless antenna having equal radiation in all directions.

Omnidirectional Radiator:
An antenna having an essentially non directional pattern in a given plane (e.g.,
in azimuth) and a directional pattern in any orthogonal plane.

Directional Radiator:
An antenna having the property of radiating or receiving more effectively in
some directions than in others. Usually the maximum directivity is significantly
greater than that of a half-wave dipole.

Directional
 Radiation
Radiation Mechanism

• Waves in a water pond

• Sound waves
• Radiation: “ a disturbance in the
electromagnetic fields that propagates away
from the source of the disturbance.”
• Disturbance is created by a time-varying
current source that has accelerated/decelerated
charge distributionassociated with it – Time-
harmonic signals
Near and far field region
• The space surrounding the antenna is divided into
three regions according to the predominant field
behavior. The boundaries between the regions are
not distinct and the field behavior changes gradually
as these boundaries are crossed. we are mostly
concerned with the far-field characteristics of the
antennas
• Reactive near-field region: This is the region
immediately surrounding the antenna, where the
reactive field dominates. For most antennas, it is
assumed that this region is a sphere with the
antenna at its centre
• Reactive near-field region: This is the region
immediately surrounding the antenna, where
the reactive field dominates. For most
antennas, it is assumed that this region is a
sphere with the antenna at its centre
• Radiating near-field (Fresnel) region :This is
an intermediate region between the reactive
near-field region and the far-field region,
where the radiation field is more significant
but the angular field distribution is still
dependent on the distance from the antenna.
• Far-field (Fraunhofer) region :Here r >> D and
r >> λ 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.