Antenna Basics and EM Wave Propagation

Describe the characteristics of a radio wave.

Describe the basic operation and characteristics of transmission lines and
antennas.
Define the optical properties of electromagnetic waves.
Define the characteristics of ground waves, sky waves, and space waves.
 A radio signal is called an electromagnetic wave because it is made up of both
electric and magnetic fields.
Whenever voltage is applied to the antenna, an electric field is set up.
At the same time, this voltage causes current to flow in the antenna, producing a
magnetic field.
The electric and magnetic fields are at right angles to each other. These electric
and magnetic fields are emitted from the antenna and propagate through space
over very long distances at the speed of light.
Radiation of Waves
Propagation of Waves
 A magnetic field is an invisible force field created by a magnet. An antenna is a
type of electromagnet. A magnetic field is generated around a conductor when
current flows through it.
 An electric field is also an invisible force field produced by the presence of a
potential difference between two conductors. A common example in electronics is
the electric field produced between the plates of a charged capacitor
The SI unit for magnetic field strength is ampere-turns per meter.
The SI unit for electric field strength is volts per meter.
 The electric and magnetic fields produced by the antenna are at right angles to
each other, and both are perpendicular to the direction of propagation of the wave.
 Antennas actually produce two sets of fields, the near field and the far field.
The near field describes the region directly around the antenna where the electric
and magnetic fields are distinct. These fields are not the radio wave, but they do
indeed contain any information transmitted.
These fields weaken with the distance from field is also referred to as the Fresnel
zone.
The far field that is approximately 10 wavelengths from the antenna is the radio
wave with the composite electric and magnetic fields.
 Polarization refers to the orientation of magnetic and electric fields with respect to
the earth. If an electric field is parallel to the earth, the electromagnetic wave is
said to be horizontally polarized; if the electric field is perpendicular to the earth,
the wave is vertically polarized.
For optimal transmission and reception, the transmitting and receiving antennas
must both be of the same polarization. Theoretically, a vertically polarized wave
will produce 0 V in a horizontal antenna and vice versa. But during transmission
over long distances, the polarization of waves changes slightly because of the
various propagation effects in free space.
 The term antenna reciprocity means that the characteristics and performance of an
antenna are the same whether the antenna is radiating or intercepting an
electromagnetic signal.
A transmitting antenna takes a voltage from the transmitter and converts it to an
electromagnetic signal. A receiving antenna has a voltage induced into it by the
electromagnetic signal that passes across it.
In most communication systems, the same antenna is used for both transmitting and
receiving, and these events can occur at different times or can be simultaneous. An
antenna can transmit and receive at the same time as long as some means is
provided for keeping the transmitter energy out of the front end of the receiver. A
device called a diplexer is used for this purpose.
 Once a radio signal has been radiated by an antenna, it travels
or propagates through space and ultimately reaches the
receiving antenna. The energy level of the signal decreases
rapidly with distance from the transmitting antenna. The
electromagnetic wave is also affected by objects that it
encounters along the way such as trees, buildings, and other
large structures. In addition, the path that an electromagnetic
signal takes to a receiving antenna depends upon many factors,
including the frequency of the signal, atmospheric conditions,
and time of day. All these factors can be taken into account to
predict the propagation of radio waves from transmitter to
receiver.
 Radio waves act very much as light waves do. Light waves
can be reflected, refracted, diffracted, and focused by other
objects.

Reflection.
Refraction.
Diffraction.
 Refraction is the bending of a wave due to the physical makeup of the medium
through which the wave passes.

The degree of bending depends

on the index of refraction of a
medium n, obtained by dividing
the speed of a light (or radio)
wave in a vacuum and the speed
of a light (or radio) wave in the
medium that causes the wave to
be bent.
The relationship
between the angles
and the indices of
refraction is given by
a formula
known as Snells law:
 Remember that light and radio waves travel in a straight line. If an obstacle appears
between a transmitter and receiver, some of the signal is blocked, creating what is
known as a shadow zone.
 The three basic paths that a radio signal can take through space are the ground
wave, the sky wave, and the space wave.
 Ground or surface waves leave an antenna and remain close to the earth (see Fig.
14-40). Ground waves actually follow the curvature of the earth and can, therefore,
travel at distances beyond the horizon. Ground waves must have vertical
polarization to be propagated from an antenna. Horizontally polarized waves are
absorbed or shorted by the earth.
 Ground wave propagation is strongest at the low- and medium-frequency
ranges. That is, ground waves are the main signal path for radio signals in the 30-
kHz to 3-MHz range. The signals can propagate for hundreds and sometimes
thousands of miles at these low frequencies. AM broadcast signals are
propagated primarily by ground waves during the day and by sky waves at
night.
The conductivity of the earth determines how well ground waves are propagated.
The better the conductivity, the less the attenuation and the greater the distance
the waves can travel. The best propagation of ground waves occurs over salt
water because the water is an excellent conductor. Conductivity is usually
lowest in low- moisture areas such as deserts.
At frequencies beyond 3 MHz, the earth begins to attenuate radio signals. Objects
on the earth and features of the terrain become the same order of magnitude in
size as the wavelength of the signal and thus absorb or adversely affect the signal.
For this reason, the ground wave propagation of signals above 3 MHz is
insignificant except within several miles of the transmitting antenna.
 Sky wave signals are radiated by the antenna into the upper atmosphere, where
they are bent back to earth. This bending of the signal is caused by refraction in a
region of the upper atmosphere known as the ionosphere.
The ionosphere is generally considered to be divided into three layers, the D layer,
the E layer, and the F layer; the F layer is subdivided into the F1 and F2 layers.
 The third method of radio signal propagation is by direct waves, or space waves. A
direct wave travels in a straight line directly from the transmitting antenna to the
receiving antenna.
Direct wave radio signaling is often referred to as line-of-sight communication.
Direct or space waves are not refracted, nor do they follow the curvature of the
earth.
 Because of their straight-line nature, direct wave signals travel horizontally from the
transmitting antenna until they reach the horizon, at which point they are blocked,
as shown in Fig. 14-42.
If a direct wave signal is to be received beyond the horizon, the receiving must be
high enough to intercept it.
 Obviously, the practical transmitting distance with direct waves is a function of the
height of the transmitting and receiving antennas. The formula for computing the
distance between a transmitting antenna and the horizon is
 To find the practical transmission distance D (mi ) for straight-line wave
transmissions, the height of the receiving antenna must be included in the
calculations:

where hr is the height of receiving antenna, ft.

 Line-of-sight communication is characteristic of most radio signals with a
frequency above approximately 30 MHz, particularly VHF, UHF, and microwave
signals. Such signals pass through the ionosphere and are not bent.
 Answer the following
Questions: in a sheet of
paper.

1. From the example, solve the angle

at which the light ray leaves the
material.
2. If an antenna (originally vertical) is
mounted horizontally at the same
height above sea level,
radiocommunications range is
severely reduced. Why is this?