CHAPTER 2 FundamentalParametersofAntennas

2.1 INTRODUCTION ........................................................................................................................... 3

2.2 RADIATION PATTERN ................................................................................................................ 3
2.2.1RadiationPatternLobes........................................................................................................6
2.2.2Isotropic,Directional,andOmnidirectionalPatterns............................................................9
2.2.3PrincipalPatterns................................................................................................................10
2.2.4FieldRegions.......................................................................................................................12
2.2.5RadianandSteradian....................................................................16
2.3 RADIATION POWER DENSITY ................................................................................................ 18
2.4 RADIATION INTENSITY ........................................................................................................... 22
2.5 BEAMWIDTH .............................................................................................................................. 25
2.6 DIRECTIVITY .............................................................................................................................. 28
2.6.1DirectionalPatterns............................................................................................................38
2.7 ANTENNA EFFICIENCY ............................................................................................................ 43
2.8 GAIN ............................................................................................................................................. 45
2.9 BEAM EFFICIENCY ................................................................................................................... 53
2.10 BANDWIDTH ............................................................................................................................ 55

2.11 POLARIZATION ........................................................................................................................ 57

2.11.1Linear,Circular,andEllipticalPolarizations.......................................................................61
2.11.2PolarizationLossFactorandEfficiency..............................................................................68
2.12 INPUT IMPEDANCE ................................................................................................................. 75
2.14 ANTENNA RADIATION EFFICIENCY ................................................................................... 79
2.15 ANTENNA VECTOR EFFECTIVE LENGTH AND EQUIVALENT AREAS ........................ 82
2.15.1VectorEffectiveLength.....................................................................................................83
2.15.2AntennaEquivalentAreas..................................................................................................87
2.16 MAXIMUM DIRECTIVITY AND MAXIMUM EFFECTIVE AREA ..................................... 94
2.17 FRIIS TRANSMISSION EQUATION AND RADAR RANGE EQUATION .......................... 97
2.17.1FriisTransmissionEquation...............................................................................................97
2.17.2RadarRangeEquation.....................................................................................................101
2.17.3AntennaRadarCrossSection..........................................................................................108
Problems ............................................................................................................................................ 110

2.1
2 INT
TRODUC
CTION
N
Todeescribetheeperform
manceofaanantennaa,definitio
onsofvarriousparameters
arenecess
a
sary.

2.2
2 RAD
DIATIO
ON PAT
TTERN
Anan
ntennarad
diationpatternisdeefined
as
a a matthematical function
n or a graaphical
representa
r
ationofth
heradiatio
onproperttiesof
the
t
anteenna as a functtion of space
coordinate
c
es. In most
m
casess, the rad
diation
patternis
p
determineedintheffarfieldreegion.
pertiesincludepoweerflux
Radiaationprop
intensity, field streength,
density,
d
r
radiation
directivity
d
,phaseorrpolarization.
Amplitu
ude field pattern.
p

Amplitu
ude powerr pattern.

Often
n the field
d and pow
wer patteerns are normalized
n
d to the maximum
m
value,
yielding
y
normalized
d field and
d power p
patterns. The
T pattern is usuaally plotteed on a
logarithmiic scale (dB). This scale is desirablee becausee a logaritthmic scaale can
einmoredetailsthosepartsofthepattternofveerylowvalues.
accentuat
a

Field pattern typically represents a plot of the magnitude of the electric or

magneticfieldasafunctionoftheangularspace.
Powerpatterntypicallyrepresentsaplotofthesquareofthemagnitudeofthe
electricormagneticfieldasafunctionoftheangularspace.
Powerpattern(indB)representsthemagnitudeoftheelectricormagneticfield,
indecibels,asafunctionoftheangularspace.

2.2.1 Ra
2
adiation
n Pattern
n Lobes
Vario
ouspartsofaradiaationpatteernarereeferredto
oaslobesmajororrmain,
minor,sid
m
de,andbaacklobes.
Figurre2.3(a)d
demonstrratesasymmetricaalthreedimensionalpolarp
pattern
withanu
w
mberofrradiationllobes.

Someeareofggreaterrad
diationin
ntensityth
hanotherrs,butallareclassiifiedas
lobes.Figure2.3(b)illustrateesalineartwodim
mensionalpatternw
wheretheesame
patternch
p
haracterissticsarein
ndicated.

Amajorlobe(m
main beam
m)isdefined
dastheradiationlobeconttaining
thedirect
t
tionofmaaximumrradiation.InFigure2.3the majorlob
beispoin
ntingin
the=0
t
direction
n.Insomeeantennaas,suchassplitbeeamanten
nnas,therremay
existmore
e
ethanon
nemajorlobe.
Amino
orlobe(
)isanyylobeexcceptamaajorlobe.

A side lobe() is a radiation lobe in any direction other than the

intendedlobe.Usuallyasidelobeisadjacenttothemainlobe
Abacklobeisaradiationlobewhoseaxismakesanangleofapproximately
180owithrespecttothebeamofanantenna.
Minorlobesusuallyrepresentradiationinundesireddirectionsandshould
beminimized.Sidelobesarethelargestminorlobes.

2.2.2 Isotropic, Directional, and Omnidirectional Patterns

An isotropic radiator is defined as a hypothetical lossless antenna having
equal radiation in all directions. Although it is ideal and not physically
realizable,itisoftentakenasareferenceforexpressingthedirectiveproperties
ofactualantennas.
A directional antenna is one having the property of radiating or receiving
electromagneticwavesmoreeffectivelyinsomedirectionsthaninothers.
An omnidirectional antenna is defined as one having an essentially
nondirectional pattern in a given plane and a directional pattern in any
orthogonal plane. An omnidirectional pattern is then a special type of a
directionalpattern.

2.2.3 Pr
2
rincipal Pattern
ns
Foraalinearly polarized
dantennaa,perform
manceiso
oftendesscribedinterms
cipalEan
ofitsprin
o
ndHplan
nepattern
ns.

definedasstheplane
TheEplaneisd
contaiining the electric field
f
vecttor
and the
t
direcction of maximu
um
radiation.
The Hplane
H
is defineed as the
plane containin
ngthemaagneticfieeld
vectorr and the dirrection of
maxim
mumradiaation.

An illlustration
n is show
wn in Figgure 2.5. For this example, the xz plane
(elevation
(
n plane;
= 0) is the princcipal Eplaane and the
t xy plane (azim
muthal
plane;
p
== /2) is the
t princiipal Hplaane. Otheer coordin
nate orien
ntations ccan be
selected.
s
The omn
nidirection
nal patterrn of Figu
ure 2.6 haas an infiinite num
mber of
principal
p
Eplaness (elevation planees; = c) and one principal Hplane
H
(azimutha
(
alplane;
=90o).

2.2.4 Fie
2
eld Regiions
The space
s
surrounding an antenna is usually subdiivided into three regions:
r
reactive
n
nearfield,
, radiating nearfieeld (Fresn
nel ) regio
on and farfield
(
(Fraunhof
fer
)regions
1.
1

Reacttivenearfieldregio
on

For most an
ntennas, the outeer
boundary
b
of this region
n is
0.62
0
/ , isth
hewaveleengthandD
isthelargeestdimensionoftheantennaa.
a.
a

Thereeactivefieeldpredom
minates

b.
b

For a very short dipole,

d
o
or
equivvalent radiator, the
t
outeer
bound
dary is commonly
c
y taken to
t
/2.

2.
2 Radiatiingnearffield(Fressnel)regio
on
Defin
ned as that region of the field of an
a antenn
na betwe
een the reeactive
nearfield
n
dregionan
ndthefarrfieldreggion
a Radiationfieldspredomin
a.
nate
b The an
b.
ngular field distribution
is deependent upon the
distanccefromth
heantenn
na.
c Iftheantennahasamaximum
c.
overall dimension whicch is
very sm
mall com
mpared to
o the
waveleength, thiis field re
egion
mayno
otexist.
Therregionislimitedbyy
0.62
2

/ .

3.
3 Farfield(Fraunh
hofer)reggion
a Theangularfield
a.
ddistribu
utionisesssentially independ
dentofthedistancefrom
theanttenna.
b The farrfield reggion is taken to exxist at disstances greater than 2
b.
theanttenna.
As the observvation is
m
moved
t the radiating
to
r
n
nearfield
d region
n, the
p
pattern
b
begins
to smooth
a
and
form
m lobes. In the
the
region,
f
farfield
is well formed,
p
pattern
u
usually
consisting of few
m
minor
lob
bes and one, or
m
more,ma
ajorlobes..

/ from

Figure 2.9 show

ws three patternss of a
parabolic
p
reflectorr calculated at disstances
of
o R 2
2D /, 4D
D /,and
dinfinity.
It is observed
d that th
he patterrns are
almost
a
identical,, excep
pt for some
difference
d
esinthep
patternsttructureaaround
the
t first null and at a leveel below 25 dB.
infinite distancces aree not
Because
B
realizable
r
e in practice, the most
m
com
mmonly
used
u
criterion forr minimu
um distan
nce of
farfieldo
f
observatio
onsis 2 /.

2.2.5 Ra
2
adian
and Stera
adian

Them
measureo
ofasolidangleisaasteradian.
One steradian
n is defin
ned as the solid
anglewith
a
hitsverteexattheccenterofasphere
ofradius
o
thatisssubtend
dedbyasspherical
surfacear
s
rea .
Sinceetheareaaofasphe
ereofrad
dius is
4 , there are
a 4 srr 4 / in a
closedsph
c
here.
The infinitessimal areea
surfaceof
s
fasphereeisgivenb
by

on the

(m2)

(21)

Therefore
T
e,thesolid
dangle d
d canbeewrittenas
/

(sr)

(22)

Example2.1
Forasphereofradius r,findthesolidangle(insquareradiansorsteradians)
ofasphericalcaponthesurfacesphereoverthenorthpoleregiondefinedby
sphericalanglesof030o,0360o.Dothis
a. exactly.
b. usingA12,where1and2aretwoperpendicularangular
separationsofthesphericalcappassingthroughthenorthpole.
Comparethetwo.
Solution:
a. Using(22),wecanwritethat
/

b.

0.83566

1.09662

Theapproximatebeamsolidangleisabout31.23%inerror.

2.3 RADIATION POWER DENSITY

Instantaneous Poynting vector is a power density and is used to describe
thepowerassociatedwithanelectromagneticwave

(23)

instantaneousPoyntingvector (W/m2)
instantaneouselectricfieldintensity (V/m)
instantaneousmagneticfieldintensity (A/m)

The total power, crossing a closed surface, can be obtained by integrating the
normalcomponentofthePoyntingvectorovertheentiresurface

(24)

P: instantaneoustotalpower (W);
n: unitvectornormaltothesurface
da: infinitesimal area of the closed surface

Fortimevaryingfields,averagepowerdensityisneeded,whichisobtained
byintegratingtheinstantaneousPoyntingvectoroveroneperiodanddividing
bytheperiod.Fortheform
, , ;

, ,

, , ;

, ,

25, 6

Usingthedefinitionsof(25)and(26)andtheidentity
Re

, ,

, ,

/2

(23)canbewrittenas

(23)

(27)

Finally,thetimeaveragePoyntingvector(averagepowerdensity)is

, ,

, , ;

/2 (W/m2) (28)

Note:

/2 representstheaverage(real)powerdensity
Therealpartof
Theimaginarypartrepresentsthereactive(stored)powerdensity

The 1/2 factor appears in (27) and (28) because the and
representpeakvalues,anditshouldbeomittedforRMSvalues

fields

Baseduponthedefinitionof(28),theaveragepowerradiatedpowercan
bewrittenas

Re

(29)

Example2.1
Theradialcomponentoftheradiatedpowerdensityofanantennais
(W/m2)

isthepeakvalueofthepowerdensity, isthesphericalcoordinate,
and istheradialunitvector.Determinethetotalradiatedpower.
SOLUTION
For a closed surface, a sphere of radius is chosen. To find the
totalradiated power, the radial component of the power density is
integratedoveritssurface.

2.4 RADIATION INTENSITY

Radiation intensity in a given direction is defined as "the power radiated
fromanantennaperunitsolidangle."
Theradiationintensityisafarfieldparameter,anditcanbeobtainedby
multiplyingtheradiationdensitybythesquareofthedistance.

(212)

Where
=radiationintensity(W/unitsolidangle);
=radiationdensity(W/m2)
The radiation intensity is also related to the farzone electric field of an
antennaby
,

, ,

2
|

Where

2
|

, ,
,

, ,

| (212a)

, ,

:farzoneelectricfieldintensityoftheantenna

E , E :farzoneelectricfieldcomponentsoftheantenna
:intrinsicimpedanceofthemedium
Thusthepowerpatternisalsoameasureoftheradiationintensity.
Thetotalpowerisobtainedbyintegratingtheradiationintensity,asgiven
by(212),overtheentiresolidangleof 4.Thus

Comparison:

(213)

Example2.2
ForExample2.I,findthetotalradiatedpowerusing(213).
SOLUTION
andby(213)
Using(212)

Foranisotropicsource, willbeindependentoftheangles and ,

.Thus(213)canbewrittenas
aswasthecasefor

(214)

ortheradiationintensityofanisotropicsourceas
/4 (215)

2.5
2 BEA
AMWID
DTH
Thebeamwidth
hofapatternisdeefined:theeangularseparatio
onbetweeentwo
identicalp
i
pointsonoppositesideofth
hepattern
nmaximu
um.
1.
1 HalfPo
owerBeam
mwidth(H
HPBW).
2.
2 FirstNu
ullBeamw
width(FNBW).
Offten,
the
term
beamwidt
b
th usuaally refeers to
HPBW.
H
he beamwidth is a
Th
between
tradeoff
t
n it and the side
lobe leevel. Th
he beamwidth
decreases
d
s, the side lobe increases
andvicev
a
versa.
Th
hebeamw
widthofttheanten
nna isalso
ousedto
odescribe
ethereso
olution
capabilitie
c
estodistinguishtw
woadjaceentradiatingsourcesortarggets.

ThemostcommonresolutioncriterionisFNBW/2,whichisusuallyusedto
approximateHPBW.
Thatis,twosourcesseparatedbyangulardistancesequalorgreaterthan
FNBW/2 HPBWofanantennacanberesolved.
If the separation is smaller, then the antenna will tend to smooth the
angularseparationdistance.

Example2.4
Thenormalizedradiationintensityofanantennaisrepresentedby
U

cos cos 3 , 0

90 , 0

Findthe
a. halfpowerbeamwidthHPBW(inradiansanddegrees)
b. firstnullbeamwidthFNBW(inradiansanddegrees)

Solution:

360

a. Since the
represents the power pattern, to find the halfpower
beamwidth.Let
3

U |

Since

0.5

cos 3

14.3250

0.25 rad

issymmetricalaboutthemaximumat
HPBW

0.5 rad

0,thentheHPBWis

28.65

b. Tofindthefirstnullbeamwidth(FNBW),letthe
U |

0.707

cos cos 3 |

equaltozero
0

Thisleadstotwosolutionsfor

90 ,

30

The one with the smallest value leads to the FNBW. Again, because of the
symmetryofthepattern,theFNBWis

radians 60
FNBW 2
3

2.6 DIRECTIVITY
Thedirectivityofanantennadefinedastheratiooftheradiationintensityin
agivendirectionfromtheantennatotheradiationintensityaveragedover
alldirections.
The average radiation intensity is equal to the total power radiated by the
antennadividedby 4.
Ifthedirectionisnotspecified,thedirectionofmaximumradiationintensity
isimplied.Directivitycanbewrittenas
D

D=directivity(dimensionless); D0=maximumdirectivity(dimensionless)
U=radiationintensity(W/unitsolidangle);
=totalradiatedpower(W)
=maximumradiationintensity(W/unitsolidangle);
=radiationintensityofisotropicsource(W/unitsolidangle);

For antennas with orthogonal polarization components, define the partial

directivityofanantennaforagivenpolarizationinagivendirectionas:
Partial directivity
Part of the radiation intensity with a given polarization in a given direction

the total radiation intensity averaged over all directions

So,inagivendirectionthetotaldirectivityisthesumofthepartialdirectivities
for any two orthogonal polarizations. For a spherical coordinate system, the
totalmaximumdirectivity fortheorthogonal and componentsofan
antennacanbewrittenas

whilethepartialdirectivities

and

areexpressedas

,
where
=radiationintensityinagivendirectioncontainedin fieldcomponent
=radiationintensityinagivendirectioncontainedin fieldcomponent

=radiatedpowerinalldirectionscontainedin fieldcomponent
=radiatedpowerinalldirectionscontainedin fieldcomponent

Example2.5
Find the maximum directivity of the antenna whose radiation intensity is
thatofExample2.2.Writeanexpressionforthedirectivityasafunctionofthe
directionalangles and .
Solution:
Theradiationintensityisgivenby

Themaximumradiationisdirectedalong:

/2

Thus

InExample2.2itwasfoundthat
P

Wefindthatthemaximumdirectivityisequalto

1.27

Since the radiation intensity is only a function of , the directivity as a

functionofthedirectionalanglesisrepresentedby
1.27

Example2.6
The radial component of the radiated power density of an infinitesimal
lineardipoleoflengthl <<isgivenby
(W/m2)
where is the peak value of the power density, is the usual spherical
is the radial unit vector. Determine the maximum
coordinate, and
directivity of the antenna and express the directivity as a function of the
directionalangles and .

Solution:

Theradiationintensityisgivenby

/2.Thus

Themaximumradiationisdirectedalong

Thetotalradiatedpowerisgivenby

/3

Using(216a),themaximumdirectivityisequalto
4

4
8

/3

1.5

greaterthan1.27inExample2.5.Thusthedirectivityisrepresentedby
1.5
Figure 2.12 shows the relative radiation intensities of Example 2.5
(U A sin)andExample2.6(U A sin )

a.
a Bothp
patternsaareomnid
directional
b.
b Examp
ple 2.6 has
h moree directio
onal charracteristiccs (is narrower) in the
elevattionplanee.

Anothere
A
example: Examin
nethedirectivityo
ofahalfw
wavelengtthdipole,which
atedby
approxim
a

1.67
7

(2.18)

Thevalue
T
esrepreseentedby((218)and
dthoseofanisotropicsourrce(
inFigure2
i
2.13(a,b).

1)are

Itisapparentthatwhen sin 1/1.67 / 57.44

122.56 ,the
dipoleradiatorhasgreaterdirectivitythanthatofanisotropicsource.
Outsidetherange,theisotropicradiatorhashigherdirectivity.Themaximum
directivityofthedipoleis1.67 2.23

/2.
Thedirectivityofanisotropicsourceisunity
Forallothersources,themaximumdirectivitywillbegreaterthanunity.
Thedirectivitycanbesmallerthanunity:infactitcanbeequaltozero.For
Examples2.3and2.4,thedirectivityisequaltozerointhe 0 direction.
Amoregeneralexpressionforthedirectivitycanbedevelopedtoinclude
sources with radiation patterns that may be functions of both spherical
coordinateangles and .
Lettheradiationintensityofanantennabeoftheform
,

| 219

where

is a constant, and

and

are the antenna's farzone electric

fieldcomponents.Themaximumvalueof(219)isgivenby
,

(219a)

Thetotalradiatedpowerisfoundusing
,

220

We now write the general expression for the directivity and maximum
directivityusing(216)and(216a),respectively,as
,

D ,

, D

221, 22

Equation(222)canalsobewrittenas
D

,
,

where

isthebeamsolidangle,anditisgivenby

223

1
,

224

,
,

,
,

(225)

merely normalizes the radiation intensity

Dividing by
, |
, ,anditmakesitsmaximumvalueunity.
The beam solid angle is defined as the solid angle through which all
thepoweroftheantennawouldflowifitsradiationintensityisconstant(and
equaltothemaximumvalueofU)forallangleswithin .

2.6.1Di
2
rectionaalPatterrns
Insteaadofusin
ng(223) tocompu
utethedirectivity, itisoftenconvenientto
derivesim
d
mplerexprressionsaapproximaately.
For antennas
a
with onee narrow
major
m
lo
obe and very negligible
minorlob
m
bes,thebeeamsolidangleis
approxim
a
atelyequ
ualtothe product
of
o the halfpowerr beamw
widths in
twoperpe
t
endicularplanes.
For a
a rotatio
onally symmetric
hallfpower
pattern,
p
the
two
beamwidt
b
ths
in
n
any

mmetricalpattern (b)SSymmetricalpattern
perpendic
p
cularplan
nesareth
hesame, (a)Nonsym
Figure2.1
14Beamsolidanglesfo
ornonsymm
metrical
asillustrat
a
tedinFigure2.14(b).
an
ndsymmetricalradiatio
onpatterns.

Withthisapproximation,(223)canbeapproximatedby
D

,
,

223

(226)

Thebeamsolidangle hasbeenapproximatedby
(226a)

Where

=halfpowerbeamwidthinoneplane,(rad)
=halfpowerbeamwidthinaplaneatarightangletotheother,(rad)
Ifthebeamwidthsareknownindegrees,(226)canbewrittenas
/

(227)

where
1d=halfpowerbeamwidthinoneplane(degrees)
2d=halfpowerbeamwidthinaplaneatarightangletotheother (degrees)

Thevalidityof(226)and(227)isbasedonapatternthathasonlyone
majorlobeandanyminorlobes.
Forapatternwithtwoidenticalmajorlobes,thevalueofthemaximum
directivityusing(226)or(227)willbetwiceitsactualvalue.
For patterns with significant minor lobes, the values of maximum
directivity obtained using (226) or (227), which neglect any minor
lobes,willusuallybetoohigh.

Example
E
2.7
Theeradiation
nintensityyofthem
majorlobeeofmanyy
antennas
a
canbead
dequatelyyrepresen
ntedby

where
w
is the maximum
m radiatiion inten
nsity. Thee
intensity existsonlyinthe upperhemispheree
radiation
r
(0
(
/2, 0
2 ),
) and it is show
wn in thee
Figure.Fin
F
ndthe
a.beams
a
ndapproxximate.
olidanglee;exactan
b.maximu
b
umdirecttivity;exacctusing(2
223)and
dapproxim
mateusingg(226).
Solution:
S
The halffpower point
p
of the
t patteern occurrs at
60 . Thus the
beamwidt
b
thinthe directiionis 120 .Sincethepatteernisindeependenttofthe

coordin
nate,

a.Beamsolidangle
/

steradians (224)

Approximate:Using(226a)
4.386 steradians (226)

b.Directivity
Exact:
Approximate:

:
4

10 log

6.02dB
2.865

4.57

2.7
2 ANT
TENNA
A EFFIC
CIENCY
Y
Associatedw
withanaantenna areanu
umberoffefficien
ncies.Theetotal
antenna
a
efficiency iss used to take
intoacco
i
ountlosse
esattheeinputteerminals
andwith
a
hinthesttructure oftheantenna.
Suchloss
S
sesmayb
bedueto
o
1.
1 Reflections beecause of the mismatch
betweeenthetransmisssionlineandthe
antenn
na
2.
2

lo
osses(co
onduction
nanddieelectric)
The overalleefficiencyycanbe written

as
a

(244)

where
totalefficiency(dimensionless)
reflection(mismatch)efficiency= 1

|| (dimensionless)

=conductionefficiency(dimensionless)
=dielectricefficiency(dimensionless)
=voltagereflectioncoefficientattheinputterminalsoftheantenna

Z Z / Z

Where
Z =antennainputimpedance,
Z =characteristicimpedanceofthetransmissionline
Usually and are very difficult to compute, but they can be
determinedexperimentally.

2.8 GAIN
The gain of the antenna is closely related to the directivity, it is a
measurethattakesintoaccounttheefficiencyoftheantennaaswellas
itsdirectionalcapabilities.
Directivity is a measure that describes only the directional
propertiesoftheantenna,anditiscontrolledonlybythepattern.
Absolutegainofanantennaisdefinedas"theratiooftheintensity,
inagivendirection,totheradiationintensitythatwouldbeobtainedif
the power accepted by the antenna were radiated isotropically. The
isotropically radiated power is equal to the power accepted by the
antennadividedby 4."
gain

(dimensionless)
(244)

Relativegainis definedas"the ratio of the power gaininagiven

direction to the power gain of a reference antenna in its referenced
direction."Thepowerinputmustbethesameforbothantennas.
The reference antenna is usually a dipole, horn, or any other
antenna whose gain can be calculated or it is known. In case the
referenceantennaisalosslessisotropicsource.Then
4

(dimensionless) (244a)

Whenthedirectionisnotstated,thepowergainisusuallytakenin
thedirectionofmaximumradiation.
Referring to Figure 2.17(a), we can write that the total radiated
power(P )isrelatedtothetotalinputpower(P )by
(245)

According to the IEEE Standards, "gain does not include

losses arising from impedance mismatches (reflection losses)
andpolarizationmismatches(losses)."

Bothareveryimportantlossesandneedtobeincludedinthelink
calculations of a communication system to determine the received or
radiatedpower.
Using(245)reduces(244a)to
,

(246)

whichisrelatedtothedirectivityof(221)by
,

(247)

Inasimilarmanner,themaximumvalueofthegainisrelatedtothe
maximumdirectivityby

G , |

e D , |

e D (247a)

The partial gain of an antenna for a given polarization in a given

directionis"thatpartoftheradiationintensitycorrespondingtoagiven
polarization divided by the total radiation intensity that would be
obtained if the power accepted by the antenna were radiated
isotropically."Thetotalgaininagivendirectionisthesumofthepartial
gainsforanytwoorthogonalpolarizations.
For a spherical coordinate system, the total maximum gain

for

theorthogonal and componentsofanantennacanbewrittenas

whilethepartialgains

where

and
,

(248)

areexpressedas
4

(248a)

U=radiationintensityinagivendirectioncontainedinfieldcomponent
U=radiationintensityinagivendirectioncontainedinfieldcomponent
Pin=totalinput(accepted)power

For many practical antennas an approximate formula for the gain,

correspondingto(227)or(227a)forthedirectivity,is
,

(249)

Usually the gain is given in terms of decibels instead of the

dimensionlessquantityof(247a).Theconversionformulaisgivenby
G dB

10 log

e D dimensionless (250)

Example2.8
Alosslessresonanthalfwavelengthdipoleantenna,withinputimpedance
of 73 ohms, is to be connected to a transmission line whose characteristic
impedance is 50 ohms. Assuming that the pattern of the antenna is given
,findtheoverallmaximumgainofthisantenna.
approximatelyby

SOLUTION
Letusfirstcomputethemaximumdirectivityoftheantenna.Forthis
|


P

U , sindd

2B

16
Prad

sind

3 B /4

1.697

Sincetheantennawaslossless,thentheradiationefficiency
=1
Thus,thetotalmaximumgain,asdefinedinthiseditionandbyIEEE,isequalto

G
D 1 1.697 1.697
G dB 10 log 1.697 2.297
whichisidenticaltothedirectivitybecausetheantennaislossless.
Thereisthelossduetoreflectionormismatchlossesbetweentheantenna
(load) and the transmission line. This loss is accounted for by the reflection
efficiencyof(251)or(252),anditisequalto
1

||

1
10 log

Z Z
Z
Z
0.965

0.965
0.155 (dB)

Thus,theoverallefficiencyis
0.965
0.155 dB
Thus,theoveralllossesareequalto0.155dB.
The gain in dB can also be obtained by converting the directivity and
radiationefficiencyindBandthenaddingthem.Thus,

dB 10 log 1.0 0
D dB 10 log 1.697 2.297
G dB
dB D dB 2.297
whichisthesameasobtainedpreviously.

2.9
2 BEA
AM EFF
FICIEN
NCY
Beam
m efficie
ency is frequen
ntly useed to judge th
he qualiity of
transmitt
t
tingand receivingantenn
nas.Foraananten
nnawith itsmajo
orlobe
alongthezaxis((=0),th
directed
d
hebeamefficienccy(BE)issdefined
dby
BE

(253)
is thee halfangleof th
he cone within which
w
thee
percenta
p
ageoftheetotalpo
oweristo
obefoun
nd.
Equattion(253)canbe
ewritten
nas
BE

,
,

(254)

(d
dimensio
onless)

If ischosenastheanglewherethefirstnullorminimumoccurs
(see Figure 2.4), then the beam efficiency will indicate the amount of
powerinthemajorlobecomparedtothetotalpower.
A very high beam efficiency is necessary for antennas used in
radiometry, astronomy, radar, and other applications where received
signalsthroughtheminorlobesmustbeminimized.

2.10 BANDWIDTH
Thebandwidthofanantennaisdefinedas"therangeoffrequencies
within which the performance of the antenna, with respect to some
characteristic,conformstoaspecifiedstandard."
Thebandwidthcanbeconsideredtobetherangeoffrequencies,on
either side of a center frequency, where the antenna characteristics
(such as input impedance, pattern, beamwidth, polarization, side lobe
level,gain,beamdirection,radiationefficiency)arewithinanacceptable
valueofthoseatthecenterfrequency.
The bandwidth is usually expressed as the ratio of the
uppertolowerfrequenciesofacceptableoperation.Forexample,
a10:1bandwidthindicatesthattheupperfrequencyis10times
greaterthanthelower.

For narrowband antennas, the bandwidth is expressed as a

percentageof the frequency difference (upper minus lower) over
the center frequency of the bandwidth. For example, a 5%
bandwidth indicates that the frequency difference of acceptable
operationis5%ofthecenterfrequencyofthebandwidth.

2.11 POLARIZATION
Polarization of an antenna in a given direction is defined as "the
polarizationofthewavetransmitted(radiated)bytheantenna.
Polarization of a wave is defined as "that property of an
electromagneticwavedescribingthetimevaryingdirectionandrelative
magnitudeoftheelectricfieldvector"
When the direction is not stated, the polarization is taken to be the
polarizationinthedirectionofmaximumgain."
Polarizationoftheradiatedenergyvarieswiththedirectionfromthe
centeroftheantenna,sothatdifferentpartsofthepatternmayhave
differentpolarizations.
Polarization is the curve traced by the end point of the arrow
representing the instantaneous electric field. A typical trace as a
functionoftimeisshowninFigures2.18(a)and(b).

Figure2.18
8Rotationofaaplaneelectromagneticwaaveanditspo
olarizationelliipseatz=0asafunctiono
oftime.

Polarizat
P
ionmaybeclassiifiedas
1.
1 Ellipticcal
Thefigurethaattheeleectricfielldtracesisanellipse.
nsarespecialcasesofelliptical
Linearandcirrcularpolarization

2. Linear
Ifthevectorthatdescribestheelectricfieldatapointinspaceasa
function of time is always directed along a line, the field is said to be
linearlypolarized.
Verticalpolarization
horizontalpolarization
3. Circular
Thefigureoftheelectricfieldistracedina
Clockwise(CW):theelectricfieldvectorisrighthandpolarization
Counterclockwise (CCW): the electric field vector is lefthand
polarization.

4. Copolarizationandcrosspolarization
At each point on the radiation sphere the polarization is usually
resolvedintoapairoforthogonalpolarizations,thecopolarizationand
cross polarization. Copolarization represents the polarization the
antenna is intended to radiate (receive) while crosspolarization
representsthepolarizationorthogonaltothecopolarization.

2.11.1Linear,Circular,andEllipticalPolarizations
The instantaneous field of a plane wave, traveling in the negative z
direction,canbewrittenas
,

(255)

According to (25), the instantaneous components are related to their

complexcounterpartsby
,

t+kz)

t+kz+

t+kz+
,

t+kz+

t+kz)

t+kz+
where

and

) (256)
)

) (257)

are,respectively,themaximummagnitudesofthe

xandycomponents.
A. LinearPolarization
Forthewavetohavelinearpolarization,thetimephasedifference
betweenthetwocomponentsmustbe

n,

Whichmeansthatthephasesof

0, 1, 2, 3, (258)

z, t and

z, t arethesameor

reverse.
B. CircularPolarization
Circularpolarizationcanbeachievedonlywhen

themagnitudesofthetwocomponentsarethesame
thetimephasedifferencebetweenthemisoddmultiplesof /2.
Thatis,

E
2n , n
2n , n

E (259)
0, 1, ,2, for CW (260)
0, 1, ,2, for CCW (261)

If the direction of wave propagation is reversed (i.e., +z direction), the

phases in (260) and (261) for CW and CCW rotation must be
interchanged.
C. EllipticalPolarization
Ellipticalpolarizationcanbeattainedonlywhen
the timephase difference between the two components is odd

multiplesof /2 andtheirmagnitudesarenotthesame
or, when the timephase difference between the two components is
notequaltomultiplesof/2(irrespectiveoftheirmagnitudes).That
is,
|
When

E E
2n , n

0, 1, ,2, for CW 262a

Or

0,

0, 1, ,2,

0,

0, 1, ,2,

2n , n

0, 1, ,2, for CCW 262b

263
264

For elliptical
e
polarization, the curvve
tracedat
t
tagiven
nposition
nasafu
unctiono
of
time
t
is a
a tilted ellipse,
e
ass shown in Figurre
2.18(b).T
2
Theratio
oofthe major axxistothe
minorax
m
xisistheaxialratio(AR),

AR

, 1AR
265
5

where
w
OA

OB
B

E
E

2E E cos 2
2E
E E coss 2

/
/

266

267

Thetiltoftheellipse,relativettotheyaaxis,isreepresente
ed givvenby

tan
n

cos 2

268

SUMMARY
1. LinearPolarization

Atimeharmonicwaveislinearlypolarizedatagivenpointinspaceifthe

electricfield(ormagneticfield)vectoratthatpointisalwaysorientedalongthe
same straight line at every instant of time. This is accomplished if the field
vector(electricormagnetic)possesses:
a. Onlyonecomponent,or
b. Two orthogonal linear components that are in time phase or 180o (or
multiplesof180o)outofphase.
2. CircularPolarization
Atimeharmonicwaveiscircularlypolarizedat agiven pointiftheelectric
(ormagnetic)fieldvectoratthatpointtracesacircleasafunctionoftime.The
necessaryandsufficientconditionstoaccomplishthisare:
a. Thefieldmusthavetwoorthogonallinearcomponents,and
b. Thetwocomponentsmusthavethesamemagnitude,and

c. Thetwocomponentsmusthaveatimephasedifferenceofoddmultiples
of90o.
3. EllipticalPolarization
A wave is elliptically polarized if it is not linearly or circularly polarized.
Althoughlinearandcircularpolarizationsarespecialcasesofelliptical,usually
in practice elliptical polarization refers to other than linear or circular. The
necessary and sufficient conditions to accomplish this are if the field vector
(electricormagnetic)possessesallofthefollowing:
a. Thefieldmusthavetwoorthogonallinearcomponents,and
b. Thetwocomponentscanbeofthesameordifferentmagnitude.
c. (1)Ifthetwocomponentsarenotofthesamemagnitude,thetimephase
difference betweenthe two components must not be 0 or multiples of
180 (becauseitwillthenbelinear).(2)Ifthetwocomponentsareofthe
samemagnitude,thetimephasedifferencebetweenthetwocomponents
mustnotbeoddmultiplesof90o(becauseitwillthenbecircular).

2.11.2PolarizationLossFactorandEfficiency
Thepolarizationofthereceivingantennawillnotbethesameasthe
of the incident wave. This is stated as "polarization mismatch." The
amountofpowerextractedbytheantennafromtheincidentsignalwill
notbemaximumbecauseofthepolarizationloss.Assumingtheelectric
fieldoftheincidentwaveis
E

269

where istheunitvectorofthewave.Assumingthepolarizationof
theelectricfieldofthereceivingantennais
E E 270
where is its unit vector (polarization vector). The polarization loss
factor(PLF)isdefined
PLF | |
cos| | dimensionless 271

where
w
is th
he anglee betweeen the two uniit polarization of
o the
incoming
i
gwavean
ndoftheevectorsshowninFigure2.19.
Iftheeantennaaispolarization matched
d,
its
i PLF

1 and
d the anttenna will extracct

maximum
m
mpowerfromtheeincomingwave.
Anoth
her figurreofmerit descrribing the
polarizat
p
ion charracteristiccs of a w
wave and
that
t
of an anteenna is the po
olarization
efficiency
e
y.

Figu
ure2.19Po
olarizationunit
vectorssofinciden
ntwave(
)and
antenn
na( )

Polarizationeefficiencyyisdefin
nedas:
werreceivedbyaananten
nnafrom
magiven plane
"Theeratiooffthepow
wave
w
of arbitraryy polarization to the pow
wer that would be
b receivved by
thesame
t
eantennafromaplanew
waveofth
hesamepowerfluxdensittyand

direction of propagation, whose polarization has been adjusted for a

maximumreceivedpower."
|
| | |

Where

|
|

271a

=vectoreffectivelengthoftheantenna
=incidentelectricfield

The vector effective length

is a vector that describes the

polarizationcharacteristicsoftheantenna.BoththePLFand
thesameanswers.

leadto

Example2.9
Theelectricfieldofalinearlypolarizedelectromagneticwavegivenby
,

isincidentuponalinearlypolarizedantennawhoseelectricfieldpolarization
canbeexpressedas
, ,

Findthepolarizationlossfactor(PLF)
SOLUTION
Fortheincidentwaveandtheantenna

,
ThePLFis:
PLF |

10 log

0.5

3dB

1. Even the incoming wave and the antenna are linearly polarized, there is a
3dBlossinextractedpowerbecausethepolarizationoftheincomingwaveis

notaliggnedwith
hthepolarizationo
oftheanteenna.
2.
2

Iftheepolarizationofth
heincomin
ngwaveissorthogo
onaltothe
epolarizaationof
the antenna,
a
then there will bee no poweerextractted by the antenna from
theincomingwaveand
dthePLFw
willbezeroord
dB.

InFiggures2.20(a,b)weeillustrateethepolaarizationlossfactorrs(PLF)offtwo
typesofa
t
antennas;wiresand
dapertures.

(aa)PLFfortraansmittingaandreceivin
ngapertureantennas

(b)PLFfortransmittingandreceivingglinearwireeantennas
Fiigure2.25P
Polarizationllossfactors(PLF)forapertureandlinearwireaantennas.

The polarizattion loss must always be taken in

nto accou
unt in th
he link
calculatio
c
nsdesign
nofacom
mmunicationsystem
mbecauseeinsomecasesitm
maybe
averycrit
a
ticalfacto
or.
Link calculatio
ons of co
ommunicaation systems for outer
o
spaace explorations
are
a very stringent because of limitaations in spacecrafft weight. In such cases,
powerisa
p
alimitingconsideraation.Theedesignm
mustprop
perlytakeintoacco
ountall
lossfactorstoensu
ureasucccessfulopeerationoffthesysteem.

Anaantennath
hatisellip
pticallypo
olarizedisscomposeedoftwocrossedd
dipoles,
as
a shown in Figuree 2.26. Th
he two crrossed dip
poles provide the two orthogonal
fieldcomp
f
ponents.

Figure2.26Geomeetryofelliptticallypolarizedcrossd
dipoleantenna.

If th
he two dipoles aree identicaal, the fieeld intenssity of each along zenith
(perpendi
(
iculartottheplaneofthetw
wodipoles)would beofthe
esameinttensity.
Also,ifth
A
hetwodip
poleswerrefedwittha90 degreetim
d
mephase
edifferencce,the
polarizatio
p
onalongzzenithwo
ouldbecirrcularand
delliptical.

2.12
2 INP
PUT IM
MPEDA
ANCE
Inpu
utimpedaanceisdeefinedas "theimpeedancepresented atananttennas
terminals
t
ortheratioofthe
evoltagettocurrenttatapairrofterminalsorth
heratio
oftheapp
o
propriate compone
entsoftheeelectrictomagneeticfieldsatapoint."
Inpu
ut impedaance at the inpu
ut
terminals
t
of the antenna iss primarily
g. In Figure 2.2
interestin
i
27(a) the
are designated as ab. The
terminals
t
ratio
r
of th
he voltagge to currrent at the
terminals,
t
, with no
n load attached
d,
defines
d
the impedance of the
antennaa
a
as

where
w
ZA=anteennaimpeedanceatterminalsab (ohms)
RA=anteennaresisttanceattterminalsab (o
ohms)

(272)

XA=anteennareacttanceatterminalsab (ohms)
me the an
ntenna is attached
d to a gen
nerator
Assum
withinter
w
rnalimped
dance

274

where
w
R =rresistanceeofgenerratorimpeedance (ohms)
X =rreactance
eofgenerratorimpeedance (ohms)
Being
B
use
ed in the transmittting mod
de, the an
ntenna
andgener
a
ratorcanberepressentbyFiggure2.27
7(b).
To find
f
the amount of power delivered to for rad
diation an
nd the
amountd
a
dissipatedin assheat(
/2),w
wefirstfin
ndthecurrrentdeveeloped
withinthe
w
eloopwh
hichisgiveenby

A 275

anditsmagnitudeby | |
where

|
|

275a

isthepeakgeneratorvoltage.

Thepowerdeliveredtotheantennaforradiationisgivenby
|

| | |

W 276

andthatdissipatedasheatinantennaby
|

| | |

W 277

ThepowerdissipatedasheatontheinternalresistanceRgofthegeneratoris
|

W 278

The maximum power delivered to the antenna occurs when conjugate

matchingisachieved
;
Forthiscase

279, 2080

|
|

281
282

283

From(281)(283),itisclearthat

284

Thepowersuppliedbythegeneratorduringconjugatematchingis

W 285

2.14 ANTENNA RADIATION EFFICIENCY

The conductiondielectric efficiency e is defined as the ratio of the
power delivered to the radiation resistance , to the power delivered to
.Theradiationefficiencycanbewrittenas

dimensionless 290

Forametalrodoflength andarea ,thedcresistanceis given by

ohms
If the skin depth

2/

290a

of the metal is very small compared to

thesmallestdiagonalofthecrosssectionoftherod,thecurrentisconfinedtoa
thinlayerneartheconductorsurface.Thereforethehighfrequencyresistance
canbewritten,basedonauniformcurrentdistribution,as
ohms
Where

290b

2 istheperimeterofthecrosssectionoftherod( : theradiusofwire)
istheconductorsurfaceresistance

istheangularfrequency
isthefreespacespermeability
isthemetalsconductivity.
Example2.13
Aresonanthalfwavelengthdipoleismadeoutofcopper( 5.710 s/m)
wire. Determine the conductiondielectric (radiation) efficiency of the dipole
antenna at 100 MHz, the radius of the wire b is 310 , and the
radiationresistanceofthe /2 dipoleis73ohms.
SOLUTION
At

10 Hz
3 ;
2

10

3/2 ;
6

10

For a /2 dipole with a sinusoidal current distribution R L

where

isgivenby(290b).Therefore,
1
2
e

0.25
6
10
0.9952

10

99.52; e

4
10
5.7 10
dB

10log

0.349
0.9952

0.02

2.15
2
ANT
TENNA VECTOR
R EFFEC
CTIVE LENGTH
L
H AND EQUIVA
E
ALENT
ARE
EAS

An antenna
a
in the receiving
r
g mode, whateveer its forrm, is ussed to
capture(
c
(collect)electrom
magneticwavesandtoexttractpow
werfrom
mthem,
asshown
a
ninFigurres2.29(a)and(b
b).
Fore
eachantenna,itssequivalentlengtthandequivalen
ntareasccanbe
definedt
d
todescriibetherreceivinggcharacteristicso
ofananttenna,w
whena
waveisin
w
ncidentu
uponthe
eantennaa.

2.15.1VectorEffectiveLength
The effective length of an antenna is a quantity to determine the voltage

induced on the opencircuit terminals of the antenna when a wave

impinges upon it. It should be noted that it is also referred to as the
effectiveheight.
The vector effective length
representedby
,

for an antenna is a complex vector

,

(291)

It is a farfield quantity and it is related to the farzone field

radiatedbytheantenna,withcurrent initsterminals

(292)
Theeffectivelengthisparticularlyusefulinrelatingtheopencircuitvoltage
ofreceivingantennas.Thisrelationcanbeexpressedas

(293)
where

=opencircuitvoltageatantennaterminals
=incidentelectricfield
=vectoreffectivelength
In(293)
oflength

canbethoughtofasthevoltageinducedinalinearantenna

when

and

arelinearlypolarized.

From the relation of (293) the effective length of a linearly polarized

antennareceivingaplanewaveinagivendirectionisdefinedas
The ratio of the magnitude of the opencircuit voltage developed at the
terminalsoftheantennatothemagnitudeoftheelectricfieldstrengthinthe
directionoftheantennapolarization.

Inaddition,theantennavectoreffectivelengthisusedtodetermine
thepolarizationefficiencyoftheantenna.

Example2.14
The farzone field radiated by a small dipole of length

and

withatriangularcurrentdistributionisgivenby
8
Determinethevectoreffectivelengthoftheantenna.
Solution:Accordingto(292),thevectoreffectivelengthis
(292)

2
Thisindicatestheeffectivelengthisafunctionofthedirectionangle .
Themaximumopencircuitvoltageatthedipoleterminals occurswhenthe
incidentdirectionofthewaveisnormaltothedipole( 90 ).
In addition, the effective length of the dipole to produce the same output

opencircuitvoltageisonlyhalf(50%)ofitsphysicallengthifitwerereplaced
byathinconductorhavingauniformcurrentdistribution
The maximum effective length of an element with an ideal uniform current
distributionisequaltoitsphysicallength.

2.15.2 AntennaEquivalentAreas

AntennaEquivalentAreas
Thescatteringarea

Thelossarea
thecapturearea

Antenna Equivalent Areas

are used to describe the power
capturingcharacteristicsofantennaswhenwaveimpingonthem,which
inagivendirectionisdefinedastheratiooftheavailablepoweratthe
terminals of a receiving antenna to the power flux density of a plane
wave incident on the antenna from that direction, the wave being
polarizationmatchedtotheantenna.Ifthedirectionisnotspecified,the
directionofmaximumradiationintensityisimplied.Itiswrittenas
| |

(294)

Where

=effectivearea(effectiveaperture)(m2);

=powerdeliveredtotheload(W);

=powerdensityofincidentwave(W/m2)

Usingg the equ

uivalent of
o Figure 2.28, wee
canwrite
c
(294)as
|
|

(294))

(295))

Unde
er conditions of maximum
m powerr transferr (conjuggate mattching),

an
nd

, thee effectivve area of
o (295) reduces to the
maximum
m
meffective
eapertureegivenbyy
|

(296)

When(29
W
96)ismultipliedbyytheincid
dentpoweerdensityy,itleadstothecaptured
(289).
powerof
p

(297)

All captured power by an antenna is not delivered to the load. In

fact, under conjugate matching only half of the captured power is
deliveredtotheload;theotherhalfisscatteredanddissipatedasheat.
To account for the scattered and dissipated power, in addition to the
effective area, the scattering, loss and capture equivalent areas are
defined.
The scattering area is defined as the equivalent area when
multiplied by the incident power density is equal to the scattered or
reradiatedpower.Underconjugatematchingthisiswrittenas
A

(297)

multipliedbytheincidentpowerdensitygivesthescatteringpower.

The loss area is defined as the equivalent area, which when

multipliedbytheincidentpowerdensityleadstothepowerdissipated
asheatthrough .Underconjugatematchingthisiswrittenas
|

(298)

multipliedbytheincidentpowerdensitygivesthedissipatedpower.
The capture area is defined as the equivalent area, which when
multiplied by the incident power density leads to the total power
capturedbytheantenna.Underconjugatematchingthisiswrittenas
|

(299)

multipliedbytheincidentpowerdensity,itleadstothecapturedpower.
Thetotalcaptureareaisequaltothesumoftheotherthree,or

Capture Area Effective Area Scattering Area Loss Area

Theapertureefficiency ofanantenna,whichisdefinedasthe
ratioofthemaximumeffectivearea A
area A ,or

oftheantennatoitsphysical

(2100)

For aperture type antennas, such as waveguides, horns, and

reflectors,themaximumeffectiveareacannotexceedthephysicalarea
A or 0
1).Thereforethemaximum
butitcanequalit(A
valueoftheapertureefficiencycannotexceedunity(100%).
0) the maximum value of the
For a lossless antenna (R
scatteringareaisalsoequaltothephysicalarea.Thereforeeventhough
the aperture efficiency is greater than 50%, under conjugate matching
only half of the captured power is delivered to the load and the other
halfisscattered.

Example2
E
2.15
Aunifo
ormplaneewaveisincidentu
uponaveeryshortllosslessdipole(l<<<),as
shown
s
in Figure 2.29(a). Find the maximum
m
effective area asssuming th
hat the
radiation
r
80
0 / , and the incident field is
resistance of the dipole is R
linearlypo
olarizedaalongtheaxisoftheedipole.
Solution:
S
For
F R
0,them
maximumeffectiveearea
of(296)r
o
reducesto
o
|

| |
8

(296)
1

Since
S
the
e dipole is
i very sh
hort, the induced
d current can be assumed to be
constanta
c
andofuniformphaase.Thein
nducedvo
oltageis

where
VT=inducedvoltageonthedipole
E=electricfieldofincidentwave,l=lengthofdipole
Forauniformplanewave,theincidentpowerdensitycanbewrittenas
/2
whereistheintrinsicimpedanceofthemedium(120ohmsforafreespace
medium).Thus
8

| |
/2 80

0.119

2.16
2 MAX
XIMUM DIRECT
TIVITY AND
A
MA
AXIMUM
M EFFECT
TIVE AR
REA

To derive
d
th
he relattionship betweeen direcctivity and maxximum
effective
e
area, leet Anten
nna 1 bee a transsmitter and 2 a receiver. The
effective
e
areas and
a direcctivities of each are designated as , and
, . Iff antenna 1 were isotrop
pic, and the total
t
radiated pow
wer. its
powerd
radiated
r
densityattadistan
nce wouldbe
w

(2101))

Because
B
o the directive properties
of
p
s
oftheant
o
tenna,itsactualde
ensityis

(2102))

The
T pow
wer colleccted (recceived) by
b the antenna and
a transferred to
t the
loadwou
l
uldbe

(2103)

If antenna 2 is used as a transmitter, 1 as a receiver, and the

interveningmediumislinear,passive,andisotropic,wecanwritethat
4

(2104)

Equating(2103a)and(2104)reducesto
(2105)
Increasing the directivity of an antenna increases its effective area in
directproportion.Thus,(2105)canbewrittenas
(2106)
where A and A (D and D )arethemaximumeffectiveareas
(directivities)ofantennas1and2,respectively.Ifantenna1isisotropic,

then D

1 anditsmaximumeffectiveareacanbeexpressedas
(2107)

For example, let the antenna be a very short

dipole

whose effective area = 0.119 and maximum directivity = 1.5. The

maximumeffectiveareaoftheisotropicsourceisthenequalto
.
.

(2108)

Using(2108),wecanwrite(2107)as
(2109)
In general then, the maximum effective aperture (A
antennaisrelatedtoitsmaximumdirectivity(D )by

) of any

(2110)

2.17
2
FR
RIIS TRA
ANSMIS
SSION EQUAT
E
ION AN
ND RAD
DAR RA
ANGE
EQUAT
E
TION
The analysiss and design off radar and com
mmunicaations syystems
requiret
r
theuseo
oftheFriisTransmission Equation
nandthe
eRadar Range
Equation
E
n.
2.17.1Fr
2
riisTranssmissionEquation
The Friis Transmissio
on Equattion relattes the power
p
re
eceived to
t the
powertr
p
ransmitteedbetweeentwo antennaasseparaatedby R
R

thelarge
t
estdimen
nsionofeeitheran
ntenna.

,, D is

Assumingthetransmittingantennaisisotropic.Iftheinputpoweratthe
terminals of the transmitting antenna is P , then its isotropic power
density W atdistance R fromtheantennais
W

2113

e :theradiationefficiencyofthetransmittingantenna.
For a nonisotropic transmitting antenna, the power density of
(2113)inthedirection , is
W
Sincetheeffectivearea
efficiency anddirectivity

(2114)

ofthereceivingantennaisrelatedtoits
by
;

thepower

collectedbythereceivingantennais

(2115)

e D ,

ee

| |
(2118)

Theratioofthereceivedtotheinputpoweras
,

(2117)

Thepowerreceivedbasedon(2117)assumesthatthetransmitting
and receiving antennas are matched to their respective lines or loads
andthepolarizationofthereceivingantennaispolarizationmatchedto
theimpingingwave.
Ifthesetwofactorsarealsoincluded,thentheratioofthereceived
totheinputpowerof(2117)isrepresentedby
,

| |

| | | |

(2118)

Forreflectionandpolarizationmatchedantennasalignedformaximum
directionalradiationandreception,(2118)reducesto

2119

Equations (2117), (2118), or (2119) are known as the Friis

Transmission Equation, and it relates the power (delivered to the
receiverload)totheinputpowerofthetransmittingantenna .The
term

is called the freespace loss factor, and it takes into

accountthelossesduetothesphericalspreadingoftheenergybythe
antenna.

2.17.2Ra
2
adarRan
ngeEquaation
Assu
uming that the trransmitteed poweer is incid
dent upo
on a targget, as
shownin
s
nFigure2
2.32.

The radar cross section (RC

CS) or eccho areaa ( ) of
o a targget, is
as the area
defined
d
a
inteerceptingg that am
mount of
o powerr which, when
scattered
s
disotrop
pically,prroducesaatthereceivera density whichis equal
tothatsc
t
catteredbytheactualtarget.Ineq
quationfform

(2120)

| |

| |

(2120a)

=radarcrosssectionorechoarea (m2)
R=observationdistancefromtarget (m)
W =incidentpowerdensity (W/m2)
W =scatteredpowerdensity (W/m2)
E (E )=incident(scattered)electricfield (V/m)
H H )=incident(scattered)magneticfield (A/m)

Usingthedefinitionofradarcrosssection,wecanconsiderthat
the transmitted power incident upon the target is initially
captured

then it is reradiated isotropically, insofar as the receiver is

concerned.
The amount of captured power

is obtained by multiplying the

incidentpowerdensityof(2114)bytheradarcrosssection,or
W

(2114)

(2121)

Thepowercapturedbythetargetisreradiatedisotropically,andthe
scatteredpowerdensitycanbewrittenas
,

(2122)

Theamountofpowerdeliveredtothereceiverloadisgivenby
,

(2123)

Equation(2123)canbewrittenastheratioofthereceivedpowertothe
inputpower,or
,

(2124)

Expression(2124)isusedtorelatethereceivedpowertotheinput
power, It does not include reflection losses and polarization losses. If
thesetwolossesarealsoincluded,then(2124)mustbeexpressedas
,

| |

| | | |

(2125)
For polarizationmatched antennas aligned for maximum directional
radiationandreception,(2125)reducesto

2126

Equation(2124),or(2125)or(2126)isknownastheRadarRange

Equation.Itrelatesthepower P (deliveredtothereceiverload)tothe
input power P transmitted by an antenna, after it has been scattered
byatargetwitharadarcrosssection(echoarea)of .
Example2.16
Two lossless Xband 8.2 12.4 GHz horn antennas are separated by a
distance of 100 . The reflection coefficients at the terminals of the
transmitting and receiving antennas are 0.1 and 0.2 , respectively. The
maximum directivities of the transmitting and receiving antennas (over
isotropic)are16dBand20dB,respectively.Assumingthattheinputpowerin
thelosslesstransmissionlineconnectedtothetransmittingantennais 2W,and
the antennas are aligned for maximum radiation between them and are
polarizationmatched,findthepowerdeliveredtotheloadofthereceiver.
Solution:
Forthisproblem
e

1 becauseantennasarelossless.

| |

1 becauseantennasarepolarizationmatched

D ,D

D because antennas are aligned for maximum

radiationbetweenthem

16 dB39.81(dimensionless)

20 dB100 (dimensionless)

Using(2118),wecanwrite
2

39.81

100 1

0.1

0.2 1 =4.777mW

2.17.3AntennaRadarCrossSection
The radar cross section is a farfield parameter, which is used to
characterizethescatteringpropertiesofaradartarget.
monostaticorbackscatteringRCS
bistaticRCS
TheRCSofatargetisafunctionof
1. polarizationoftheincidentwave,
2. theangleofincidence,
3. theangleofobservation,
4. thegeometryofthetarget,
5. theelectricalpropertiesofthetarget,
6. thefrequencyofoperation.
TheunitsofRCSofthreedimensionaltargetsarem2,ordBsm,orRCS/2in
dB.
The RCS of a target can be controlled using primarily two basic methods:

shapingandtheuseofmaterials.
Shaping is used to attempt to direct the scattered energy toward
directionsotherthanthedesired.However,formanytargetsshapinghas
to be compromised in order to meet other requirements, such as
aerodynamicspecificationsforflyingtargets.
Materials are used to trap the incident energy within the target and to
dissipatepartoftheenergyasheatortodirectittowarddirectionsother
thanthedesired.
Usuallybothmethods,shapingandmaterials,areusedtogetherinorderto
optimizetheperformanceofaradartarget.
One of thegolden rulesto observe in order to achieve low RCS is to
roundcorners,avoidflatandconcavesurfaces,andusematerialtreatmentin
flarespots.

Problems

2.4. Find the half-power beamwidth (HPBW) and first-null beamwidth (FNBW),
in radians and degrees, for the following normalized radiation intensities:
a U
cos b U
cos
c U
cos 2 d U
cos 2
e U
cos 3 f U
cos 3
0 90 , 0 360
2.7. The power radiated by a lossless antenna is 10 watts. The directional
characteristics of the antenna are represented by the radiation intensity of
a U B cos
b U B cos
(watts/unit solid angle) and (0 /2, 0 2)
For each, find the
(a) maximum power density (in watts/square meter) at a distance of 1,000
m(assume far-field distance). Specify the angle where this occurs.

(b) exact and approximate beam solid angle 2A.

(c) directivity, exact and approximate, of the antenna (dimensionless and in dB).
(d) gain, exact and approximate, of the antenna (dimensionless and in dB).
2.8. You are an antenna engineer and you are asked to design a high
directivity/gain antenna for a space-borne communication system operating at 10
GHz. The specifications of the antenna are such that its pattern consists basically
of one major lobe and, for simplicity, no minor lobes (if there are any minor
lobes they are of such very low intensity and you can assume they are negligible
/zero). Also it is desired that the patternis symmetrical in the azimuthal plane. In
order to meet the desired objectives, the mainlobe of the patternshould have a
half-power beamwidth of 10 degrees. Inorder to expedite the design, it is
assumed that the major lobe of the normalized radiation intensity of the antenna
is approximated by
U ,
cos
and it exists only in the upper hemisphere (0 /2, 0 2). Determine
the:
(a) Value of n (not necessarily an integer) to meet the specifications of the major
lobe. Keep 5 significant figures in your calculations.

(b) Exact maximum directivity of the antenna (dimensionless and in dB).

(c) Approximate maximum directivity of the antenna based on Kraus formula
(dimensionless and in dB).
(d) Approximate maximum directivity of the antenna based on Tai & Pereiras
formula (dimensionless and in dB).
2.9. In target-search ground-mapping radars it is desirable to have echo power
received from a target, of constant cross section, to be independent of its range.
For one such application, the desirable radiation intensity of the antenna is given
by

U ,

1
0o 20o

0.342 csc 20o 60o 0o 360o

o
o

0
60

180

Find the directivity (in dB) using the exact formula.

2.15. The radiation intensity of an antenna is given by

U ,
cos sin
for 0/2 an d 02(i.e., inthe upper half-space). It is zero in the lower
half-space. Find the
(a) exact directivity (dimensionless and in dB)
(b) elevationplan e half-power beamwidth (in degrees)
2.17. The maximum gain of a horn antenna is +20 dB, while the gain of its first
sidelobe is 15 dB. What is the difference in gain between the maximum and
first sidelobe:
(a) in dB
(b) as a ratio of the field intensities.
2.34. A 300 MHz uniform plane wave, traveling along the x-axis in the negative
x direction, whose electric field is given by

r
Ew E0 ja y 3a z e jkx

where Eo is a real constant, impinges upon a dipole antenna that is placed at the

originan
o
d whose electric field radiated tow
ward the x-axis in
n the positive x
direction
d
is
i givenby
y

r
Ea Ea a y 2 a z e jkx

where
w
Ea is a real constant.
c
Determin
D
ne the follo
owing:
(a)
( Polarizzation of the incideent wave (includin
ng axial raatio and seense of rootation,
if
i any). Yo
ou must ju
ustify (staate why).
(b)
( Polarizzation of the antenn
na (includ
ding axiall ratio and
d sense off rotation, if any).
You
Y must justify (sstate why
).
(c)
( Polarizzation losss factor (d
dimension
nless and in dB).

2.35.
2
Thee electric field of a uniform plane waave travelling along
g the neggative z

directionis given by

Ewi a x ja y E0 e jkz

and is incident upon a receiving antenna placed at the origin and whose radiated
electric field, toward the incident wave, is given by

e jkr
Ea a x 2a y E1
r
Determine the following:
(a) Polarizationof the incident wave, and why
(b) Sense of rotation of the incident wave.
(c) Polarization of the antenna, and why
(d) Sense of rotation of the antenna polarization.
(e) Losses (dimensionless and in dB) due to polarization mismatch between the
incident wave and the antenna.