Badr University in Cairo

Faculty of Engineering and

Technology
Microwave Circuit
ECO 311
Lect. 1
Prof. Dalia Elsheakh
Dalia-Mohamed@buc.edu.eg
Microwave Circuit

0.1 Course Description

0.2 Course Objectives
0.3 Book
0.4 Course Outline
0.5 Grade Distribution
1-Application of Microwave
2- Comparison between transmission & waveguide
3-Parallel waveguide
4-Rectangular waveguide
5- Circular waveguide
6- Resonator
7- Dielectric Waveguide
0.1 Course Description
ECO 311 Electromagnetic Waves
Introduction to microwave engineering which include: frequency
allocations, typical MW system, microwave applications advantages
and disadvantages of using high frequency. Derivation and solution the
wave equations in waveguides to determine the wave characteristics.
Analyze various MW Passive Components such as: power
dividers/combiners, couplers, resonators and cavities. Lab
measurement of different MW parameters .

Course goals
Ability to understand the principles of microwave engineering and
technology. Perform the basic microwave measurements.
0.2 Course Objectives
Upon a successful completion of this course, the student will
be able to:

• Understanding the principles of microwave engineering and technology.

• Derive and solve the wave equations in many microwave structures such as
transmission lines and waveguides to analyze the wave propagation along
them.

• Investigate different passive microwave components such as: power

dividers/combiners, couplers, resonators and cavities.

• Measure different characteristics and parameters of microwave components.

• Measure the impedance and perform matching in microwave circuits.

0.3. Text Book
Two textbooks will be used extensively throughout this course

1. “Microwave Engineering”, 3rd edition by David M. Pozar.

2. “Microwave Devices and Circuits” 3rd edition by Samuel-liao

6
0.4. Course Outline

Chapter 1: Parallel Waveguide

Chapter 2: Rectangular Waveguide

Chapter 3: Circular Waveguide

Chapter 4 :Excitation and coupling of Waveguides

Chapter 5 : Cavity Devices

Chapter 6 : Dielectric waveguide

Chapter 7 : N port Microwave Network Analyzer

Course Outline
Week Lec Items/Topics Assignments
1 1 Parallel Waveguide Problem Set #1
Dielectric Rectangular Waveguide
2 2 Problem Set #2
TEM TM TE
Circular Waveguide
3 3 Problem Set #3
TEM TM TE
4 4 Waveguide Excitation
Cavity
5 5 Problem Set #3
Rectangular Cavity Circular Cavity
TWO PORT RF NETWORKS
6 6 IMPEDANCE PARAMETERS ADMITTANCE PARAMETERS
HYPRID PARAMETERS ABCD PARAMETERS
HIGH FREQUENCY PARAMETER FORMULATION OF S –
PARAMETER
7 7 Problem Set #4
PROPERTIES OF S-PARAMETER RECIPROCAL AND LOSS LESS
NETWORKS
8 8 Midterm Exam
9 9 MICROWAVE Cavity Problem Set #5
10 10 Drevision concept of rectangular and circular resonator

11 11 Dielectric waveguide

12 12 Revision
0.5 Grade Distribution

10
10
20
10
50
100

Course goals
- Ability to understand, analyze, design, implement and test the
Electric and Magnetic field
- Ability to understand, analyze Maxwell equation and wave
propagation.
1.1 Introduction to Microwaves (Continued)
1.1.1 Frequency Allocations
• Frequency assignments and technical standards are set internationally by the International
Telecommunication Union (ITU), the ITU is a specialized agency of the United Nations and
its administrative headquarters is located in Geneva, Switzerland.
• Usually each nation establishes an agency that is responsible to meet the overall frequency
plan and standards that are adopted by the ITU within the country borders.
• In Egypt the National Telecom Regularity Authority (NTRA) is responsible for the frequency
allocation.

ISM : Industrial, Scientific and Medical UWB : Ultra Wide Band

ECO 311
 1.1 Introduction to Microwaves (Continued)

1.1.1 Frequency Allocations

1.1 Introduction to Microwaves (Continued)
1.1.2 Typical MW System

Fig. 1.1(a) Full-duplex communication system.

ECO 311

Fig. 1.1(b) Guided vs. unguided propagation

1.1 Introduction to Microwaves (Continued)

1.1.2 Typical MW System

Guiding Structures
1. Cable Transmission Lines

Fig. 1.2
15 of 34 ECO 311
1.1 Introduction to Microwaves (Continued)
1.1.2 Typical MW System

2. Waveguides
Guiding Structures

3. Printed Transmission Lines

Fig. 1.3

16 of 34 ECO 311
1.1 Introduction to Microwaves (Continued)

1.1.2 Typical MW System

MW Components for A Wireless System

• Transmission Lines.
• Filters.
• Resonators.
• Amplifiers. Magic T

• Oscillators.

Microstrip filter Amplifiers

Resonators

• Couplers.
Couplers
• Mixers. Mixers

• Detectors.
• Antennas
Fig. 1.4
17 of 34
Microwave Properties
Advantages of Microwaves
 1: Microwave Concepts
• Microwaves are the ultrahigh, super high, and extremely
high frequencies directly above the lower frequency
ranges where most radio communication now takes place
and below the optical frequencies that cover infrared,
visible, and ultraviolet light.

• Microwave Communication Systems

• Microwave communication system uses transmitters,
receivers, and antennas.
• The same modulation and multiplexing techniques used
at lower frequencies are also used in the microwave
range.
• The RF part of the equipment is physically different
because of the special circuits and components that are
used to implement the components.
 Properties of Microwaves
1. Microwave is an electromagnetic radiation of short
wavelength.
2. They can reflect by conducting surfaces just like
optical waves since they travel in straight line.
3. Microwave currents flow through a thin outer layer
of an ordinary cable.
4. Microwaves are easily attenuated within short
distances.
5. They are not reflected by ionosphere

29
 1: Microwave Concepts
Advantages and Limitations
1. Increased bandwidth availability:
➢Microwaves have large bandwidths compared to the common bands like
short waves (SW), ultrahigh frequency (UHF) waves.
➢For example, the microwaves extending from  = 1 cm -  = 100 cm
(i.e) from 30GHz – 0.3GHz, this region has a bandwidth of 27GHz.
2. Improved directive properties:
➢The second advantage of microwaves is their ability to use high gain
directive antennas, any EM wave can be focused in a specified
direction (Just as the focusing of light rays with lenses or reflectors).
3. Fading effect and reliability:
➢Fading effect due to the variation in the transmission medium is more
effective at low frequency.
➢Due to the Line of Sight (LOS) propagation and high frequencies, there
is less fading effect and hence microwave communication is more
reliable. 30
 1: Microwave Concepts
Advantages and Limitations
4. Power requirements:
➢Transmitter / receiver power requirements are pretty low at
microwave frequencies compared to that at short wave band.
5. Communications requirements:
➢ Moving into higher frequency ranges has helped to solve the
problem of spectrum crowding.
➢ Today, most new communication services are assigned to the
microwave region.
➢ At higher frequencies there is a greater bandwidth available for
the transmission of information.
➢ Wide bandwidths make it possible to use various multiplexing
techniques to transmit more information.
➢ Transmission of high-speed binary information requires wide
bandwidths and these are easily transmitted on microwave
frequencies.
31
 1: Microwave Concepts

Advantages and Limitations

6.Transparency property of microwaves:
➢ Microwave frequency band ranging from 1GHz –
10 GHz are capable of freely propagating
through the atmosphere.

➢ The presence of such a transparent window in a

microwave band facilitates the study of
microwave radiation from the sun and stars in
radio astronomical research of space.

32
 1: Microwave Concepts
Disadvantages of Microwaves
• The higher the frequency, the more difficult it becomes to
analyze electronic circuits.
• At microwave frequencies, conventional components
become difficult to implement.
• Microwave signals, like light waves, travel in perfectly
straight lines. Therefore, communication distance is limited
to line-of-sight range.
• Microwave signals penetrate the ionosphere, so multiple-
hop communication is not possible.
• TE,
Transverse Electric waves, also referred as H-waves, are
characterized by Ez = 0 and Hz ≠ 0 (no Electric field in the
direction of the propagation).
TE waves can be supported inside closed conductors, as well as
between two or more conductors.
• TM,
Transverse Magnetic waves, also referred as E-waves, are
characterized by Ez ≠ 0 and Hz = 0 (no Magnetic field in the
direction of the propagation).
Same as TE the TM waves can be supported inside closed
conductors, as well as between two or more conductors.

• Need to find the fields components of the em

wave inside the waveguide
• Ez Hz Ex Hx Ey Hy
• We’ll find that waveguides don’t support TEM
waves
• TEM
means Transverse Electromagnetic mode since both Electric and
Magnetic fields are transverse (perpendicular) to the direction
of propagation.
Ez = Hz = 0 TEM mode is also termed a differential mode,
because the signal current flowing on the inner conductor is
directed opposite to the ground current flowing on the outer
conductor.
The TEM mode has several unique characteristics:
- At least two unconnected conductors and a single insulating material
are required for it to exist.
- Its cut-off frequency is 0 Hz.
- It has only two field components (E and H) aligned with the transverse
coordinates, no longitudinal (z-directed) Electric or Magnetic field
component.
- Its propagation constant is the wavenumber in vacuum multiplied with
the square root of the relative dielectric constant εr of the insulator.
- TEM mode, because of the symmetry of the structure, all discontinuity
elements in the plane of the center strip are purely reactive.
• Quasi-TEM (Hybrid mode)

It has non-zero Electric and Magnetic fields in

the direction of propagation.
Hybrid modes are higher order modes with
cut-off frequencies different from DC (0 Hz)
and are undesirable.
These modes are a combination of both, the
transverse electric (TE) and transverse
magnetic (TM) modes and thus have the
longitudinal components of both, the electric
and the magnetic fields.
The wave propagates in two different medias
(air and dielectric) in a hybrid mode.
Waveguide
Coaxial Line Waveguide
Waveguides
1-Transmission line and Waveguide
2-Transmission line and Waveguide
3-Transmission line and Waveguide
 16.360 Lecture 20

Electric boundary condition

  b   d  
 E • dl = lim [ E2 • dl +  E1 • dl ] = 0;
C
h →0
a c
the tangential component is continuou
across the boundary of two media.
    
E1 = E1t + E1n , E1t l − E2t l = 0,
    
E2 = E2 t + E2 n , E1t = E2t ,
 16.360 Lecture 20

Electric boundary condition

     

C
D • ds = lim 
[
h →0
D • d
top
s +  D • ds
bottom
] =  s s;

 
D1n s − D2 n s =  s s,
the normal component of D changes, the
  amount of change is equal to the surface
D1n − D2 n =  s ,
Charge density.
Waveguides
Fig. 2
(a) General two-conductor transmission line and (b) closed waveguide.
Fig. 3 Geometry of a parallel plate waveguide.
• TE
Transverse Electric waves, also referred as H-waves,
are characterized by Ez = 0 and Hz ≠ 0 (no Electric
field in the direction of the propagation).
TE waves can be supported inside closed conductors,
as well as between two or more conductors.
• TM
Transverse Magnetic waves, also referred as E-waves,
are characterized by Ez ≠ 0 and Hz = 0 (no Magnetic
field in the direction of the propagation).
Same as TE the TM waves can be supported inside
closed conductors, as well as between two or more
conductors.
Modes
• TEM
means Transverse Electromagnetic mode since both Electric and Magnetic
fields are transverse (perpendicular) to the direction of propagation. Ez = Hz =
0
TEM mode is also termed a differential mode, because the signal current
flowing on the inner conductor is directed opposite to the ground current
flowing on the outer conductor.
The TEM mode has several unique characteristics:
- At least two unconnected conductors and a single insulating material are
required for it to exist.
- Its cut-off frequency is 0 Hz.
- It has only two field components (E and H) aligned with the transverse
coordinates, no longitudinal (z-directed) Electric or Magnetic field
component.
- Its propagation constant is the wavenumber in vacuum multiplied with the
square root of the relative dielectric constant Dk (or εr) of the insulator.
- In TEM mode, because of the symmetry of the structure, all discontinuity
elements in the plane of the center strip are purely reactive.
• Quasi-TEM
(Hybrid mode) has non-zero Electric and Magnetic fields in the
direction of propagation.
Hybrid modes are higher order modes with cut-off frequencies
different from DC (0 Hz) and are undesirable.
These modes are a combination of both, the transverse electric
(TE) and transverse magnetic (TM) modes and thus have the
longitudinal components of both, the electric and the magnetic
fields.
The wave propagates in two different medias (air and dielectric) in
a hybrid mode.
Parallel plate waveguides
TE modes in a parallel-plate waveguide

• The parallel-plate waveguide consists of two parallel metal

sheets is also kn own as a planar transmission line.
• Assume the plate distance b <<<<the plate width in the x-
direction and neglect fringe fields at the plate edges.
• Assume uniform fields along x-direction as if the plates
have an infinite width.
• This means that we can do a two-dimensional analysis
where any variation in the x-direction is zero.
1. Mathematical Analysis

The value n = 0 must be excluded since this case corresponds to fields having no
variations over the cross section, and we have already the condition that the electric
field is zero at the boundaries. In the following discussion we shall limit ourselves to
the case n = 1.
2. Physical Interpretation
3. Velocities
Three different velocities in the planar waveguide
4. Field
Attenuation due to Dielectric Loss