Polarization of Plane Waves
Polarization (or Polarisation for our British friends) is one of the fundamental characteristics of
any antenna. First we'll need to understand polarization of plane waves, then we'll walk through the
main types of antenna polarization.
Linear Polarization
Let's start by understanding the polarization of a plane electromagnetic wave.
A plane electromagnetic (EM) wave is characterized by electric and magnetic fields traveling in a
single direction (with no field variation in the two orthogonal directions). In this case, the electric
field and the magnetic field are perpendicular to each other and to the direction the plane wave is
propagating. As an example, consider the single frequency E-field given by equation (1), where the
field is traveling in the +z-direction, the E-field is oriented in the +x-direction, and the magnetic
field is in the +y-direction.
In equation (1), the symbol is a unit vector (a vector with a length of one), which says that the
E-field "points" in the x-direction.
A plane wave is illustrated graphically in Figure 1.
Figure 1. Graphical representation of E-field travelling in +z-direction.
Polarization is the figure that the E-field traces out while propagating. As an example, consider
the E-field observed at (x,y,z)=(0,0,0) as a function of time for the plane wave described by
equation (1) above. The amplitude of this field is plotted in Figure 2 at several instances of time.
The field is oscillating at frequency f.
Figure 2. Observation of E-field at (x,y,z)=(0,0,0) at different times.
Observed at the origin, the E-field oscillates back and forth in magnitude, always directed along the
x-axis. Because the E-field stays along a single line, this field would be said to be linearly
polarized. In addition, if the x-axis was parallel to the ground, this field could also be described as
"horizontally polarized" (or sometimes h-pole in the industry). If the field was oriented along the y-
axis, this wave would be said to be "vertically polarized" (or v-pole).
A linearly polarized wave does not need to be along the horizontal or vertical axis. For instance, a
wave with an E-field constrained to lie along the line shown in Figure 3 would also be linearly
polarized.
Figure 3. Locus of E-field amplitudes for a linearly polarized wave at an angle.
The E-field in Figure 3 could be described by equation (2). The E-field now has an x- and y-
component, equal in magnitude.
One thing to notice about equation (2) is that the x- and y-components of the E-field are in phase -
they both have the same magnitude and vary at the same rate.
Circular Polarization
Suppose now that the E-field of a plane wave was given by equation (3):
In this case, the x- and y- components are 90 degrees out of phase. If the field is observed at
(x,y,z)=(0,0,0) again as before, the plot of the E-field versus time would appear as shown in Figure
4.
Figure 4. E-field strength at (x,y,z)=(0,0,0) for field of Eq. (3).
The E-field in Figure 4 rotates in a circle. This type of field is described as a circularly
polarized wave. To have circular polarization, the following criteria must be met:
Criteria for Circular Polarization
The E-field must have two orthogonal (perpendicular) components.
The E-field's orthogonal components must have equal magnitude.
The orthogonal components must be 90 degrees out of phase.
If the wave in Figure 4 is travelling out of the screen, the field is rotating in the counter-clockwise
direction and is said to be Right Hand Circularly Polarized (RHCP). If the fields were rotating
in the clockwise direction, the field would be Left Hand Circularly Polarized (LHCP).
Elliptical Polarization
If the E-field has two perpendicular components that are out of phase by 90 degrees but are not
equal in magnitude, the field will end up Elliptically Polarized. Consider the plane wave travelling
in the +z-direction, with E-field described by equation (4):
The locus of points that the tip of the E-field vector would assume is given in Figure 5.
Figure 5. Tip of E-field for elliptical polarized wave of Eq. (4).
The field in Figure 5, travels in the counter-clockwise direction, and if travelling out of the screen
would be Right Hand Elliptically Polarized. If the E-field vector was rotating in the opposite
direction, the field would be Left Hand Elliptically Polarized.
In addition, elliptical polarization can be defined by its axial ratio, which is the ratio of the major
and minor axis amplitudes. For instance, the axial ratio of the wave given by equation (4) is 1/0.3 =
3.33. Elliptically polarized waves are further described by the direction of the major axis. The wave
of equation (4) has a major axis given by the x-axis. Note that the major axis can be at any angle in
the plane, it does not need to coincide with the x-, y-, or z-axis. Finally, note that circular
polarization and linear polarization are both special cases of elliptical polarization. An elliptically
polarized wave with an axial ratio of 1.0 is a circularly polarized wave; an elliptically polarized
wave with an infinite axial ratio is a linearly polarized wave.
In the next section, we will use the knowledge of plane-wave polarization to characterize and
understand antennas.
Polarization of Antennas
Now that we are aware of the polarization of plane-wave EM fields, antenna polarization is
straightforward to define.
The polarization of an antenna is the polarization of the radiated fields produced by an antenna,
evaluated in the far field. Hence, antennas are often classified as "Linearly Polarized" or a "Right
Hand Circularly Polarized Antenna".
This simple concept is important for antenna to antenna communication. First, a horizontally
polarized antenna will not communicate with a vertically polarized antenna. Due to the reciprocity
theorem, antennas transmit and receive in exactly the same manner. Hence, a vertically polarized
antenna transmits and receives vertically polarized fields. Consequently, if a horizontally polarized
antenna is trying to communicate with a vertically polarized antenna, there will be no reception.
In general, for two linearly polarized antennas that are rotated from each other by an angle , the
power loss due to this polarization mismatch will be described by the Polarization Loss
Factor (PLF):
Hence, if both antennas have the same polarization, the angle between their radiated E-fields is
zero and there is no power loss due to polarization mismatch. If one antenna is vertically polarized
and the other is horizontally polarized, the angle is 90 degrees and no power will be transferred.
As a side note, this explains why moving the cell phone on your head to a different angle can
sometimes increase reception. Cell phone antennas are often linearly polarized, so rotating the
phone can often match the polarization of the phone and thus increase reception.
Circular polarization is a desirable characteristic for many antennas. Two antennas that are both
circularly polarized do not suffer signal loss due to polarization mismatch. Another advantage of
circular polarization is that a RHCP wave will reflect off a surface and be LHCP. This is
advantageous because an antenna designed to receive RHCP waves will have some immunity to
the signal-fading effects of reflected waves interfering with the desired wave. These are some of
the reasons GPS signals from satellites are RHCP.
Suppose now that a linearly polarized antenna is trying to receive a circularly polarized wave.
Equivalently, suppose a circularly polarized antenna is trying to receive a linearly polarized wave.
What is the resulting Polarization Loss Factor?
Recall that circular polarization is really two orthongal linear polarized waves 90 degrees out of
phase. Hence, a linearly polarized (LP) antenna will simply pick up the in-phase component of the
circularly polarized (CP) wave. As a result, the LP antenna will have a polarization mismatch loss
of 0.5 (-3dB), no matter what the angle the LP antenna is rotated to. Therefore:
The Polarization Loss Factor is sometimes referred to as polarization efficiency, antenna mismatch
factor, or antenna receiving factor. All of these names refer to the same concept.
Effective Area (Effective
Aperture)
A useful parameter calculating the receive power of an antenna is the effective
area or effective aperture. Assume that a plane wave with the same polarization as
the receive antenna is incident upon the antenna. Further assume that the wave is
travelling towards the antenna in the antenna's direction of maximum radiation (the
direction from which the most power would be received).
Then the effective aperture parameter describes how much power is captured from a
given plane wave. Let p be the power density of the plane wave (in W/m^2).
If P_t represents the power (in Watts) at the antennas terminals available to the
antenna's receiver, then:
Hence, the effective area simply represents how much power is captured from the
plane wave and delivered by the antenna. This area factors in the losses intrinsic to the
antenna (ohmic losses, dielectric losses, etc.).
A general relation for the effective aperture in terms of the peak antenna gain (G) of
any antenna is given by:
Effective aperture or effective area can be measured on actual antennas by comparison
with a known antenna with a given effective aperture, or by calculation using the
measured gain and the above equation.
Effective aperture will be a useful concept for calculating received power from a
plane wave. To see this in action, go to the next section on the Friis transmission
formula.
Antenna Efficiency
The efficiency of an antenna is a ratio of the power delivered to the antenna relative to the
power radiated from the antenna. A high efficiency antenna has most of the power present
at the antenna's input radiated away. A low efficiency antenna has most of the power
absorbed as losses within the antenna, or reflected away due to impedance mismatch.
[Side Note: Antenna Impedance is discussed in a later section. Impedance Mismatch is
simply power reflected from an antenna because it's impedance is not matched to the radio
it is connected to. ]
One nice property of antennas is that the efficiency is the same whether we are using the
antenna as a transmit or receive antenna. Hence, we could define antenna efficiency as the
ratio of "potential power received from all possible angles", but that's more complicated.
Just remember transmit and receive antenna efficiency is the same, and since it is easier to
understand efficiency in terms of power radiated vs. power supplied, we'll simply use that
definition. This property of antennas is known as antenna reciprocity.
The antenna efficiency (or radiation efficiency) can be written as the ratio of the radiated
power to the input power of the antenna:
[Equation 1]
Being a ratio, antenna efficiency is a number between 0 and 1. However, antenna efficiency
is commonly quoted in terms of a percentage; for example, an efficiency of 0.5 is the same
as 50%. Antenna efficiency is also frequently quoted in decibels (dB); an efficiency of 0.1 is
10% or (-10 dB), and an efficiency of 0.5 or 50% is -3 dB.
Equation [1] is sometimes referred to as the antenna's radiation efficiency. This
distinguishes it from another sometimes-used term, called an antenna's "total efficiency".
The total efficiency of an antenna is the radiation efficiency multiplied by the impedance
mismatch loss of the antenna, when connected to a transmission line or receiver (radio or
transmitter). This can be summarized in Equation [2], where is the antenna's total
efficiency, is the antenna's loss due to impedance mismatch, and is the antenna's
radiation efficiency.
[Equation 2]
From equation [2], since is always a number between 0 and 1, the total antenna
efficiency is always less than the antenna's radiation efficiency. Said another way, the
radiation efficiency is the same as the total antenna efficiency if there was no loss due to
impedance mismatch.
In practice, unless otherwise specified, antenna efficiency typically refers to the total
efficiency (including mismatch loss).
What causes an antenna to not have an efficiency of 100% (or 0 dB)? Antenna efficiency
losses are typically due to:
conduction losses (due to finite conductivity of the metal that forms the antenna)
dielectric losses (due to conductivity of a dielectric material near an antenna)
impedance mismatch loss
Examples of dielectrics include glass, plastics, teflon, and rubber. The strong Electric
Fields near an antenna lose energy to heat due to the conductivity of the dielectric. If the
electrical conductivity is zero, the dielectric loss within a material is zero. However, many
materials (such as silicone and glass) have conductivity that is low but still enough to
significantly decrease the antenna efficiency.
Efficiency is one of the most important antenna parameters. It can be very close to 100% (or 0
dB) for dish antennas, horn antennas, or half-wavelength dipoles with no lossy materials around
them. Mobile phone antennas, or wifi antennas in consumer electronics products, typically have
efficiencies from 20%-70% (-7 to -1.5 dB). Car radio antennas can have an antenna efficiency of
-20 dB (1% efficiency) at the AM radio frequencies; this is because the antennas are much
smaller than a half-wavelength at the operational frequency, which greatly lowers antenna
efficiency. The radio link is maintained because the AM Broadcast tower uses a very high
transmit power.
Improving impedance mismatch loss is discussed in the Smith Charts and impedance
matching section. Impedance matching can greatly improve the efficiency of an antenna.
Finally, a note on dB vs. percentage. It is very common in industry to quote antenna efficiency in
percent. However, there are two strong reasons why antenna efficiency should be measured in
decibels (dB):
{1} everything associated with the RF (radio frequency) world is measured in dB: transmit
power is dB, isolation is in dB, desense is in dB, radio sensitivity is in dB. Hence, it follows
antenna efficiency should be in dB.
{2} If a change to an antenna is made, and someone says "how much did the efficiency
change" and the response is "5%", that is ambiguous. An increase from 1% to 6% is a
huge change (7.8 dB), whereas an increase from 85% to 90% is small (0.24 dB).
Hence, I almost always measures antenna efficiency in dB and encourage everyone else to.
The Friis Equation
On this page, we introduce one of the most fundamental equations in antenna theory,
the Friis Transmission Equation. The Friis Transmission Equation is used to
calculate the power received from one antenna (with gain G1), when transmitted from
another antenna (with gain G2), separated by a distance R, and operating at
frequency f or wavelength lambda. This page is worth reading a couple times and
should be fully understood.
Derivation of Friis Transmission Formula
To begin the derivation of the Friis Equation, consider two antennas in free space (no
obstructions nearby) separated by a distance R:
Figure 1. Transmit (Tx) and Receive (Rx) Antennas separated by R.
Assume that Watts of total power are delivered to the transmit antenna. For the
moment, assume that the transmit antenna is omnidirectional, lossless, and that the
receive antenna is in the far field of the transmit antenna. Then the power density p (in
Watts per square meter) of the plane wave incident on the receive antenna a
distance R from the transmit antenna is given by:
If the transmit antenna has an antenna gain in the direction of the receive antenna
given by , then the power density equation above becomes:
The gain term factors in the directionality and losses of a real antenna. Assume now
that the receive antenna has an effective aperture given by . Then the power
received by this antenna ( ) is given by:
Since the effective aperture for any antenna can also be expressed as:
The resulting received power can be written as:
[Equation 1]
This is known as the Friis Transmission Formula. It relates the free space path loss,
antenna gains and wavelength to the received and transmit powers. This is one of the
fundamental equations in antenna theory, and should be remembered (as well as the
derivation above).
Another useful form of the Friis Transmission Equation is given in Equation [2]. Since
wavelength and frequency f are related by the speed of light c (see intro to frequency
page), we have the Friis Transmission Formula in terms of frequency:
[Equation 2]
Equation [2] shows that more power is lost at higher frequencies. This is a
fundamental result of the Friis Transmission Equation. This means that for antennas
with specified gains, the energy transfer will be highest at lower frequencies. The
difference between the power received and the power transmitted is known as path
loss. Said in a different way, Friis Transmission Equation says that the path loss is
higher for higher frequencies.
The importance of this result from the Friis Transmission Formula cannot be
overstated. This is why mobile phones generally operate at less than 2 GHz. There
may be more frequency spectrum available at higher frequencies, but the associated
path loss will not enable quality reception. As a further consequence of Friss
Transmission Equation, suppose you are asked about 60 GHz antennas. Noting that
this frequency is very high, you might state that the path loss will be too high for long
range communication - and you are absolutely correct. At very high frequencies (60
GHz is sometimes referred to as the mm (millimeter wave) region), the path loss is
very high, so only point-to-point communication is possible. This occurs when the
receiver and transmitter are in the same room, and facing each other.
As a further corrollary of Friis Transmission Formula, do you think the mobile phone
operators are happy about the new LTE (4G) band, that operates at 700MHz? The
answer is yes: this is a lower frequency than antennas traditionally operate at, but from
Equation [2], we note that the path loss will therefore be lower as well. Hence, they
can "cover more ground" with this frequency spectrum, and a Verizon Wireless
executive recently called this "high quality spectrum", precisely for this reason. Side
Note: On the other hand, the cell phone makers will have to fit an antenna with a
larger wavelength in a compact device (lower frequency = larger wavelength), so the
antenna designer's job got a little more complicated!
Finally, if the antennas are not polarization matched, the above received power could
be multiplied by the Polarization Loss Factor (PLF) to properly account for this
mismatch. Equation [2] above can be altered to produce a generalized Friis
Transmission Formula, which includes polarization mismatch:
[Equation 3]
See also decibel math, which can greatly simplify the calculation of the Friis
Transmission Equation.
Antenna Temperature
Antenna Temperature ( ) is a parameter that describes how
much noise an antenna produces in a given environment. This
temperature is not the physical temperature of the antenna.
Moreover, an antenna does not have an intrinsic "antenna
temperature" associated with it; rather the temperature depends
on its gain pattern and the thermal environment that it is placed
in. Antenna temperature is also sometimes referred to
as Antenna Noise Temperature.
To define the environment (and hence give the full definition of
antenna temperature), we will introduce a temperature
distribution - this is the temperature in every direction away
from the antenna in spherical coordinates. For instance, the night
sky is roughly 4 Kelvin; the value of the temperature pattern in
the direction of the Earth's ground is the physical temperature of
the Earth's ground. This temperature distribution will be written
as . Hence, an antenna's temperature will vary depending
on whether it is directional and pointed into space or staring into
the sun.
For an antenna with a radiation pattern given by , the noise
temperature is mathematically defined as:
This states that the temperature surrounding the antenna is
integrated over the entire sphere, and weighted by the antenna's
radiation pattern. Hence, an isotropic antenna would have a
noise temperature that is the average of all temperatures around
the antenna; for a perfectly directional antenna (with a pencil
beam), the antenna temperature will only depend on the
temperature in which the antenna is "looking".
The noise power received from an antenna at temperature can
be expressed in terms of the bandwidth (B) the antenna (and its
receiver) are operating over:
In the above, K is Boltzmann's constant (1.38 * 10^-23
[Joules/Kelvin = J/K]). The receiver also has a temperature
associated with it ( ), and the total system temperature (antenna
plus receiver) has a combined temperature given by .
This temperature can be used in the above equation to find the
total noise power of the system. These concepts begin to
illustrate how antenna engineers must understand receivers and
the associated electronics, because the resulting systems very
much depend on each other.
A parameter often encountered in specification sheets for
antennas that operate in certain environments is the ratio
of gain of the antenna divided by the antenna temperature (or
system temperature if a receiver is specified). This parameter is
written as G/T, and has units of dB/Kelvin [dB/K].
Finally, note that many RF engineers like to use the term Noise
Figure (or Noise Factor, NF) to describe systems. This is the
ratio of the input SNR (signal to noise ratio) to the output SNR.
Basically, all RF devices (like mixers and amplifiers) add some
noise. Antenna temperature doesn't really relate to a Noise
Figure, as the signal level power input varies greatly with the
desired signal's direction of arrival, while the noise added is a
constant.
Why do Antennas Radiate?
Obtaining an intuitive idea for why antennas radiate is helpful in understanding the
fundamentals of antennas. On this page, I'll attempt to give a low-key explanation
with no regard to mathematics on how and why antennas radiate electromagnetic
fields.
First, let's start with some basic physics. There is electric charge - this is a quantity of
nature (like mass or weight or density) that every object possesses. You and I are most
likely electrically neutral - we don't have a net charge that is positive or negative.
There exists in every atom in the universe particles that contain positive and negative
charge (protons and electrons, respectively). Some materials (like metals) that are
very electrically conductive have loosely bound electrons. Hence, when a voltage is
applied across a metal, the electrons travel around a circuit - this flow of electrons is
electric current (measured in Amps).
Let us get back to charge for a moment. Suppose that for some reason, there is a
negatively charged particle sitting somewhere in space. The universe has decided, for
unknown reasons, that all charged particles will have an associated electric field with
them. This is illustrated in Figure 1.
Figure 1. A negative charge has an associated Electric Field with it, everywhere in
space.
So this negatively charged particle produces an electric field around it, everywhere in
space. The Electric Field is a vector quantity - it has a magnitude (how strong the field
strength is) and a direction (which direction does the field point). The field strength
dies off (becomes smaller in magnitude) as you move away from the charge. Further,
the magnitude of the E-field depends on how much charge exists. If the charge is
positive, the E-field lines point away from the charge.
Now, suppose someone came up and punched the charge with their fist, for the fun of
it. The charge would accelerate and travel away at a constant velocity. How would the
universe react in this situation?
The universe has also decided (again, for no apparent reason) that disturbances due to
moving (or accelerating) charges will propagate away from the charge at the speed of
light - c0 = 300,000,000 meters/second. This means the electric fields around the
charge will be disturbed, and this disturbance propagates away from the charge. This
is illustrated in Figure 2.
Figure 2. The E-fields when the charge is accelerated.
Once the charge is accelerated, the fields need to re-align themselves. Remember, the
fields want to surround the charge exactly as they did in Figure 1. However, the fields
can only respond to events at the speed of light. Hence, if a point is very far away
from the charge, it will take time for the disturbance (or change in electric fields) to
propagate to the point. This is illustrated in Figure 2.
In Figure 2, we have 3 regions. In the light blue (inner) region, the fields close to the
charge have readapted themselves and now line up as they do in Figure 1. In the white
region (outermost), the fields are still undisturbed and have the same magnitude and
direction as they would if the charge had not moved. In the pink region, the fields are
changing - from their old magnitude and direction to their new magnitude and
direction.
Hence, we have arrived at the fundamental reason for radiation - the fields change
because charges are accelerated. The fields always try to align themselves as in Figure
1 around charges. If we can produce a moving set of charges (this is simply electric
current), then we will have radiation.
Now, you may have some questions. First - if all accelerating electric charges radiate,
then the wires that connect my computer to the wall should be antennas, correct? The
charges on them are oscillating at 60 Hertz as the current travels so this should yield
radiation, correct?
Answer: Yes. Your wires do act as antennas. However, they are very poor antennas.
The reason (among other things), is that the wires that carry power to your computer
are a transmission line - they carry current to your computer (which travels to one of
your battery's terminals and out the other terminal) and then they carry the current
away from your computer (all current travels in a circuit or loop). Hence, the radiation
from one wire is cancelled by the current flowing in the adjacent wire (that is
travelling the opposite direction).
Another question that will arise is - if its so simple, then everything could be an
antenna. Why don't I just use a metal paper clip as an antenna, hook it up to my
receiver and then forget all about antenna theory?
Answer: A paper clip could definitely act as an antenna if you get current flowing on
the antenna. However, it is not so simple to do this. The impedance of the paper clip
will control how much power your receiver or transmitter could deliver to the paper
clip (i.e. whether or not you could get any current flowing on the paper clip at all).
The impedance will depend on what frequency you are operating at. Hence, the paper
clip will work at certain frequencies as an antenna. However, you will have to know
much more about antennas before you can say when and it may work in a given
situation.
In summary, all radiation is caused by accelerating charges which produce changing
electric fields. And due to Maxwell's Equations, changing electric fields give rise to
changing magnetic fields, and hence we have electromagnetic radiation. The subject
of antenna theory is concerned with transferring power from your receiver (the energy
is contained in voltages and currents) into electromagnetic radiation (where the energy
is contained in the E- and H-fields) travelling away from the antenna. This requires
the impedance of your antenna to be roughly matched to your receiver, and that the
currents that cause radiation add up in-phase (that is, they don't cancel each other out
as they would in a transmission line). A multitude of antenna types produce ways of
achieving this, and you can find descriptions about them on the antenna list page.
