9/5/2007 Transmission Lines 1/2

3 Microwave Components
Let’s carefully examine each of the microwave devices that
are useful for radio design:

A. Transmission Lines
B. Amplifiers
C. Mixers
D. Oscillators
E. Isolators/Circulators
F. Switches and Attenuators
G. Power Dividers/Couplers
H. Filters

A. Transmission Lines

Perhaps the most common transmission line structure is

coaxial transmission line.

HO:Coaxial Transmission Lines

Coaxial transmission lines are used with connectorized

devices.

HO: Coax Connectors

We can also construct transmission lines on printed circuit

boards.
HO: Printed Circuit Board Transmission Lines

Jim Stiles The Univ. of Kansas Dept. of EECS

9/5/2007 Coaxial Transmission Lines 1/4

Coaxial Transmission Lines

The most common type of transmission line!

Outer
Conductor

a
+
ε V0
-

Inner
Conductor
Coax Cross-Section

The electric field ( )points in

the direction aˆρ .

The magnetic field ( )points

in the direction aˆφ .

E. M. Power flows in the direction

aˆz .

A TEM wave!

Jim Stiles The Univ. of Kansas Dept. of EECS

9/5/2007 Coaxial Transmission Lines 2/4

Recall from EECS 220 that the capacitance per/unit length of a

coaxial transmission line is:

2π ε ⎡ farads ⎤
C = ⎢ meter ⎥
ln ⎡⎣b/a ⎤⎦ ⎣ ⎦

And that the inductance per unit length is :

µ0 ⎡ b ⎤ ⎡ Henries ⎤
L= ln
2π ⎣⎢ a ⎦⎥ ⎢⎣ m ⎥⎦

Where of course the characteristic impedance is:

L
Zo =
C
1 µ0 ⎡b ⎤
= ln ⎢ ⎥
2π ε ⎣a ⎦

and:
β = ω LC = ω µ0 ε

Therefore the propagation velocity of each TEM wave within a

coaxial transmission line is:

ω 1 1 1 1
vp = = = =c
β µ0 ε µ0 ε 0 εr εr

where ε r = ε ε 0 is the relative dielectric constant, and c is the

“speed of light” (c = 3 × 108 m / s ).

Jim Stiles The Univ. of Kansas Dept. of EECS

9/5/2007 Coaxial Transmission Lines 3/4

Note then that we can likewise express β in terms ε r :

ω
β = ω µ0 ε = ω µ0 ε 0 ε r = εr
c

Now, the size of the coaxial line (a and b) determines more than
simply Z 0 and β (L and C) of the transmission line. Additionally,
the line radius determines the weight and bulk of the line, as
well as its power handling capabilities.

Unfortunately, these two characteristics conflict with each

other!

1. Obviously, to minimize the weight and bulk of a coaxial

transmission line, we should make a and b as small as possible.

2. However, for a given line voltage, reducing a and b causes

the electric field within the coaxial line to increase (recall the
units of electric field are V/m).

A higher electric field causes two problems: first, it results in

greater line attenuation (larger α); second, it can result in
dielectric breakdown.

Dielectric breakdown results when the electric field within the

transmission line becomes so large that the dielectric material
is ionized. Suddenly, the dielectric becomes a conductor, and
the value G gets very large!

Jim Stiles The Univ. of Kansas Dept. of EECS

9/5/2007 Coaxial Transmission Lines 4/4

This generally results in the destruction of the coax line, and

thus must be avoided. Thus, large coaxial lines are required
when extremely low-loss is required (i.e., line length A is large),
or the delivered power is large.

Otherwise, we try to keep our coax lines as small as possible!

Jim Stiles The Univ. of Kansas Dept. of EECS

9/5/2007 Coaxial Connectors 1/2

Coaxial Connectors
There are many types of connectors that are used to connect
coaxial lines to RF/microwave devices. They include:

SMA
The workhorse microwave connector.
Small size, but works well to > 20 GHz.
By microwave standards, moderately
priced.

BNC
The workhorse RF connector. Relatively
small and cheap, and easy to connect.
Don’t use this connector past 2 GHz!

F
A poorman’s BNC. The RF connector
used on most consumer products such as
TVs. Cheap, but difficult to connect
and not reliable.

Jim Stiles The Univ. of Kansas Dept. of EECS

9/5/2007 Coaxial Connectors 2/2

N
The original microwave connector. Good
performance (up to 18GHz), and
moderate cost, but large (about 2 cm in
diameter) ! However, can handle greater
power than SMA.

UHF
The poorman’s N. About the same size,
although reduced reliability and
performance.

RCA
Not really an RF connector. Used
primarily in consumer application for
video and audio signals (i.e., <20 MHz).
Cheap and easy to connect.

APC-7 and APC-3.5

The top of the line connector. Best
performance, but cost big $$$. Used
primarily in test equipment (e.g.,
network analyzers). 3.5 can work to
nearly 40 GHz.

Jim Stiles The Univ. of Kansas Dept. of EECS

9/5/2007 Printed Circuit Board Transmission Lines 1/3

Printed Circuit Board

Transmission Lines
Recall that a transmission line must consist of two separate
conductors. Typically, the volume between these conductors is
filled with a very low-loss dielectric.

For example, a coaxial line has an inner

conductor (conductor #1) and an outer
conductor (conductor #2), with the cylindrical
ε space between filled with dielectric.

However, we can likewise construct a transmission

line using printed circuit board technology. The substrate of
the circuit board is the dielectric that separates two
conductors. The first conductor is typically a narrow etch that
provides the connection between two components, while the
second conductor is typically a ground plane.

Below are some of the most popular types of printed circuit

board transmission lines:

Jim Stiles The Univ. of Kansas Dept. of EECS

9/5/2007 Printed Circuit Board Transmission Lines 2/3

Microstrip
Probably most popular PCB
transmission line. Easy fabrication
εr and connection, yet is slightly
dispersive, lossy, and difficult to
analyze.

Stripline
Better than microstrip in that it is
not dispersive, and is more easily
εr
analyzed. However, fabrication and
connection is more difficult.

Coplanar Waveguide
The newest technology. Perhaps
easiest to fabricate and connect
εεr r components, as both ground and
conductor are on one side of the
board.

Slotline
Essentially, a dual wire tranmission
line. Best for “balanced”
εr applications. Not used much.

Jim Stiles The Univ. of Kansas Dept. of EECS

9/5/2007 Printed Circuit Board Transmission Lines 3/3

www.emi.dtu.dk/education/bachelors_course/31025.html

An antenna array feed, constructed using microstrip

transmission lines and circuits.

www.eng.nus.edu.sg/EResnews/9511/nov95p2a.html

A wideband microstrip coupler.

Jim Stiles The Univ. of Kansas Dept. of EECS