AN INTRODUCTION TO ANTENNA THEORY:

RADIATION FROM A HERTZIAN DIPOLE

The general "radiation" or "antenna" problem comes down to the task of finding the
electromagnetic field associated with or derived from a given or known current distribution.
-
Arbit rary
origin
Observation
point
Current
distribution
r'
r
r' r
The answer is straight forward in concept. The vector potential of the total field is just a weighted
superposition of spherical wave contributions (see lecture entitled Electromagnetic Radiation - The
Basics for a treatment of spherical waves) from each current element of the distribution -- viz.

r
A
r
r , ( )

4
r
J
r
r , ( )dV
R
i
0

1
]
1
1
exp j k
r
r
r
r
i [ ]
r
r
r
r
i

'




;



i1
N

4
r
J
r
r , ( )
exp j k
r
r
r
r
[ ]
r
r
r
r
d V

[I-1]
There are two difficulties :
1. The computations are messy. Fortunately, even with modest computational resources, this
is no longer an insuperable problem.
2. The real problem is that, in general, we do not really know the current
distribution!
AN INTRODUCTION TO ANTENNA THEORY PAGE-2
R. Victor Jones, October 23, 2002
As always, intuition is important and it is very helpful to study in detail one simple distribution
-- i.e. a Hertzian dipole (an elemental or infinitesimal current element) located at the origin and
oscillating in the z-direction.

r
A
r
r , ( )

4
r
J
r
r , ( )
exp j k
r
r
r
r
[ ]
r
r
r
r
d V

4
exp j k
r
r [ ]
r
r
r
J
r
r , ( ) d V
vol0

4
exp j k r [ ]
r
z I ( ) l [ ]
[I-2]
Given this relatively simple expression for the vector potential, the arduous, but
straightforward, task is finding the associated electric and magnetic field strengths. From
the above expression for the vector potential

r
H
r
r , ( )
1

r

r
A
r
r , ( )

4
exp j k r [ ]
r
z I ( ) l
[ ]

'


;

I ( ) l
4
r

exp j k r [ ]
r

'


;

z

I ( ) l
4
d
d r
exp j kr
[ ]
r

'


;

r
r z
[I-3]
and since

r
r
r
r
r

r (see lecture entitled Electromagnetic Radiation - The Basics)
AN INTRODUCTION TO ANTENNA THEORY PAGE-3
R. Victor Jones, October 23, 2002

r
H
r
r , ( )
I ( ) l
4
d
d r
exp j kr [ ]
r

'


;

r z

I ( ) l
4
j k
r
+
1
r
2

'


;

exp j k r [ ]
r z
[I-4]
The electric field strength is obtained most directly by using the "Ampre's law" Maxwell
equation -- viz.

r
E
r
r , ( )
1
j
r

r
H
r
r , ( )

jk
r

r
H
r
r , ( ) [I-5]
where -- and thus

r
E
r
r , ( ) j
I ( ) l
4 k
r

j k
r
+
1
r
2



1
]
1
exp j k r [ ]
r z

'


;

j
I ( ) l
4 k
j k
r
+
1
r
2



1
]
1
exp j k r [ ]
r


r z [ ]+
r

j k
r
+
1
r
2



1
]
1
exp j k r [ ]



1
]
1

r z [ ]

'


;

j
I ( ) l
4 k
j k
r
+
1
r
2



1
]
1
exp j k r [ ]
r
r z
[ ]
+
d
d r
j k
r
+
1
r
2



1
]
1
exp j k r [ ]



1
]
1
r
r r z
[ ]

'


;

[I-6]
by the "bac-cab" rule
1

r
r z [ ] z
r
r z
r
r

z
r
r
r



_
,
z
r

r
r
r



_
,

z
r
r
r



_
,
z
r
r
r

1
r



_
,

z
r
r

r
r

1
r



_
,
z
z
r
3



_
,

r
r +
r
r r
r
2



_
,
z
3 z
r

z
r
2



_
,
r
z
r
[I-7a]

1
That is

r
a
r
b
r
c ( )
r
b
r
a
r
c ( )
r
c
r
a
r
b ( ).
AN INTRODUCTION TO ANTENNA THEORY PAGE-4
R. Victor Jones, October 23, 2002
and

r
r

r z [ ]

r

r z [ ]
z
r



_
,

r z [I-7b]
Therefore

r
E
r
r , ( ) j
I ( ) l
4 k
exp j kr [ ]
j k
r
+
1
r
2



1
]
1
z
r
2



_
,
r +
z
r



1
]
1

'

+
j 2k
r
2

2
r
3
+
k
2
r



1
]
1
z
r



_
,

r z



1
]
1

;

j
I ( ) l
4 k
exp j kr [ ]
j k
r
2
+
1
r
3



1
]
1
z
3z
r
r



1
]
1
+
k
2
r
z
r



_
,
r z



1
]
1

'


;

[I-8]
Given the complexity of these field expressions, it extremely useful to "parse" the terms
according to their "one-over-r-to-the-n-ness" -- viz.
The Radiation or Far-Zone Fields ("one-over-r"):

r
H
fz
r
r , ( ) j
k I ( ) l
4
exp j kr [ ]
r



1
]
1

r z [I-9a]

r
E
fz
r
r , ( ) j
k I ( ) l
4
exp j kr [ ]
r



1
]
1

r

r z [ ] [I-9b]
The Induction or Intermediate-Zone Fields ("one-over-r-squared"):

r
H
iz
r
r , ( )
I ( ) l
4
exp j kr [ ]
r
2



1
]
1

r z [I-10a]

r
E
iz
r
r , ( )
I ( ) l
4
exp j kr [ ]
r
2



1
]
1
z
3 z r ( )
r

r



1
]
1
[I-10b]
AN INTRODUCTION TO ANTENNA THEORY PAGE-5
R. Victor Jones, October 23, 2002
The Static or Near-Zone Field ("one-over-r-cubed"):

r
E
nz
r
r , ( ) j
I ( ) l
4 k
exp j kr [ ]
r
3



1
]
1
z
3 z r ( )
r

r



1
]
1
[I-11]
Consider now the Poynting Vector in the Radiation or Far-Zone since it is a measure of
the radiated power far from an antenna and, thus, is the key factor in the evaluation of the
characteristics and performance of antenna designs:

r
S
fz
r
r , ( )
1
2
r
E
fz
r
r , ( )
r
H
fz

r
r , ( )
{ }

1
2
j
k I ( ) l
4
exp j k r [ ]
r



1
]
1

r

r z [ ]

'


;

j
k I

( ) l
4
exp j k r [ ]
r



1
]
1
r z

'


;

1
2
k
2
I ( )
2
l [ ]
2
4 [ ]
2
r
2
r z [ ] r r z [ ] [ ] { }

1
2
1
4



1
]
1
2
k
2
I ( )
2
l [ ]
2
r
2
r z
2
r

1
2
1
4



1
]
1
2
k
2
I ( )
2
l [ ]
2
r
2
sin
2
r
[I-12]
This expression may be integrated over a spherical surface of radius r to obtain the total
power radiated by the infinitesimal current element
AN INTRODUCTION TO ANTENNA THEORY PAGE-6
R. Victor Jones, October 23, 2002

W
fz
r
r , ( )
r
S
fz
r
r , ( )

r 2 r
2
sin d
0

1
2
k
2
I ( )
2
l [ ]
2
8
sin
3
d
0

[I-13]
and since sin
3
d
0

sin 1 cos
2
[ ] d
0

cos
cos
3

3



1
]
1
0

4
3

W
fz
r
r , ( )
1
2
k
2
I ( )
2
l [ ]
2
6

1
2

2 I ( )
2
3
l

1
]
1
2

1
2
R
rad
I ( )
2
[I-14]
where

R
rad

k
2
l [ ]
2
6

2
3
l

1
]
1
2
is defined as the radiation resistance . Further,
since the impedance of free space
0

0
120 ohms

W
fz
r
r , ( )
1
2
120 ( )
2 I ( )
2
3
l

1
]
1
2
watts amp
2
40
2
I ( )
2 l

1
]
1
2
watts amp
2
[I-15a]
and

R
rad
120 ( )
2
3
l

1
]
1
2
ohms
80
2
l

1
]
1
2
ohms 790
l

1
]
1
2
ohms
[I-15b]
AN INTRODUCTION TO ANTENNA THEORY PAGE-7
R. Victor Jones, October 23, 2002
A Simple Application - Light Scattering: As a model of an electromagnetic scattering
center we suppose that we have a very small, polarizable "molecule" -- viz.

r
p ( ) ( )
r
E
inc
( ) [I-16]
where ( ) is the "polarizability" of the molecule and, thus, the current flow in the molecule
is given by

I ( ) l z j
r
p ( ) j ( )
r
E
inc
( ) [I-17]
When this induced current is substituted into Equation [I-12], we obtain the electromagnetic
intensity re-radiated or scattered by the molecule

r
S
fz
scat
r
r , ( )
1
2
1
4



1
]
1
2
k
2
I ( )
2
l [ ]
2
r
2
sin
2
r

1
2
1
4



1
]
1
2
k
2
r
2

2
( )
r
E
inc
( )
2
[ ]
sin
2

1
2
c
4



1
]
1
2
k
4
r
2

2
( )
r
E
inc
( )
2
[ ]
sin
2
r
[I-18]
This is the very famous Rayleigh scattering (why the sky is blue ) formula which states
that the scattering intensity varies as "one-over-lamda-to-the-fourth-power."
AN INTRODUCTION TO ANTENNA THEORY PAGE-8
R. Victor Jones, October 23, 2002
APPENDIX: ON SPHERICAL WAVES
We need to establish that spherical waves are valid solutions of Maxwell's equation (or, more
precisely, of the inhomogeneous Helmholtz equation derived from Maxwell's equations)

2
r
A
r
r , ( ) + k
2
r
A
r
r , ( )
r
J
r
r , ( ) [A-1]
1. Let us first look for solutions in "current-free" region so that

2
r
A
r
r , ( ) + k
2
r
A
r
r , ( ) 0 [A-2]
Our goal is to find a solution which depends only on the magnitude of the observer's
position vector and, thus, we look for solutions in the form

r
A
r
r , ( )
r
a
f r, ( )
r
[A-3]
where

r
r
r and

r
a is a constant vector. To see if this form of solution works, we need
to find div grad
f r, ( )
r



1
]
1
. To that end, we first use the "chain rule" to find grad
f r, ( )
r



1
]
1
-- viz.

grad
f r, ( )
r



1
]
1

r

f r, ( )
r



1
]
1

r
r
[ ]
d
d r

f r, ( )
r



1
]
1

r
r
[ ]
1
r
d
d r
f r, ( )
1
r
2
f r, ( )



1
]
1
[A-4]
However
AN INTRODUCTION TO ANTENNA THEORY PAGE-9
R. Victor Jones, October 23, 2002

r
r
r
x
2
+ y
2
+ z
2
[ ]

x x
x
2
+ y
2
+ z
2
+
y
r
y
x
2
+ y
2
+ z
2
+
z z
x
2
+ y
2
+ z
2

r
r
r
r
[A-5]

2
r
A
r
r , ( )
r

r

r
A
r
r , ( )
r

r

r
a
f r, ( )
r



1
]
1

r
a
r

r

f r, ( )
r



1
]
1

r
a
r
r
1
r
d
d r
f r, ( )
1
r
2
f r, ( )



1
]
1

'


;

[A-6]
and using the "chain rule"

2
r
A
r
r , ( )
r
a
r
r
1
r
d
d r
f r, ( )
1
r
2
f r, ( )



1
]
1

'


;

r
a
r
r
r
r
[ ]
d
d r
1
r
2
d
d r
f r, ( )
1
r
3
f r, ( )



1
]
1

'

+3
1
r
2
d
d r
f r, ( )
1
r
3
f r, ( )



1
]
1

;

r
a r
1
r
2
d
2
d r
2
f r, ( )
3
r
3
d
d r
f r, ( ) +
3
r
4
f r, ( )



1
]
1

'

+3
1
r
2
d
d r
f r, ( )
1
r
3
f r, ( )



1
]
1

;

r
a
1
r
d
2
d r
2
f r, ( )



1
]
1
[A-7]
AN INTRODUCTION TO ANTENNA THEORY PAGE-10
R. Victor Jones, October 23, 2002
Therefore

2
r
A
r
r , ( ) + k
2
r
A
r
r , ( ) 0 becomes

r
a
1
r
d
2
d r
2
f r, ( )



1
]
1
+ k
2
r
a
f r, ( )
r



1
]
1
0 [A-8a]
or
d
2
d r
2
f r, ( ) + k
2
f r, ( ) 0 [A-8b]
Therefore, we see that the homogeneous Helmholtz equation has two independent solutions
-- viz.

r
A
r
r , ( )
r
a C
+
exp j k r [ ]
r



1
]
1
+
r
a C

exp +j k r [ ]
r



1
]
1
[A-9]

r
a C
+
exp j k r [ ]
r



1
]
1
Outwardly propagating spherical wave

r
a C

exp + j k r [ ]
r



1
]
1
Inwardly propagating spherical wave
2. To determine the constant in the outwardly propagating spherical wave, we now study
the behavior of the inhomogeneous equation in the vicinity of the
singularity -- i.e. at r = 0 -- where the source of the wave must be located. To cope with
the singularity, we integrate the inhomogeneous equation over a small sphere of radius R
centered at r = 0.

2
r
A
r
r , ( )dV
vol. of sphere

+ k
2
r
A
r
r , ( )dV
vol. of sphere

r
J
r
r , ( )dV
vol. of sphere

[A-10]
If we use Gauss' theorem to transform the first term on the left hand side
AN INTRODUCTION TO ANTENNA THEORY PAGE-11
R. Victor Jones, October 23, 2002

d
r
S
r

[ ]
r
A
r
r , ( )
surf. of sphere

+ k
2
r
A
r
r , ( )dV
vol. of sphere

r
J
r
r , ( )dV
vol. of sphere

[A-11]
and substitute the outwardly propagating spherical wave form

d
r
S
r
r
[ ]
d
d r
C
+
exp j k r [ ]
r



1
]
1

'


;

surf. of sphere

+ k
2
C
+
exp j k r [ ]
r



1
]
1

'


;

dV
vol. of sphere

r
a
r
J
r
r , ( )
[ ]
dV
vol. of sphere

[A-12a]

C
+
d
d r
exp j k r [ ]
r



1
]
1
surf. of sphere

R
2
d + k
2
C
+
exp j k r [ ]
r



1
]
1

'


;

dV
vol. of sphere

r
a
r
J
r
r , ( )
[ ]
dV
vol. of sphere

[A-12b]
Therefore in the limit that the radius of the small sphere goes to zero

4 C
+

r
a
r
J
r
r , ( )
[ ]
dV
vol. of sphere
R0

[A-13]
so that

r
A
r
r , ( )

4
r
J
r
r , ( )
[ ]
dV
R0

'


;

exp j k r [ ]
r
[A-14]