Exercise 13 - Wave reflection and transmission at normal incidence

EMT 238 - Electromagnetic Theory

Lecture Review

When a plane wave propagating in medium 1, with permittivity 1 and permeability 1

encounters an interface with a different medium 2, with permittivity 2 and permeability
2 , a portion of the wave is reflected from the interface while the remainder of the wave is
transmitted. The electric field amplitude of each of the waves takes the form:
~ i = Ei n
E
0 cos(k1 z t)
~ r = Ern
cos(k1 z + t)
E

Incident wave:
Reflected wave:

~ =
E
t

Transmited wave:

cos(k2 z
E0t n

t)

~ i and E
~ r are the same because both waves are in the same
Notice that the wavenumbers of E
~ t is different since it is in a different medium. The
medium, whereas the wavenumber of E
angular frequencies of all the waves are of course the same as frequency does not depend
on medium. You should also be caution with the sign of the t-term which indicates the
propagation direction of the respective wave.
The amplitudes of the reflected wave, E0r , and the transmitted wave, E0t , are related to the
amplitude of the incident wave, E0i via the relations
E0r
2 1
=
i
E0
2 + 1
t
E
22
= 0i =
E0
2 + 1

(reflection coefficient)
(trasmission coefficient)

where is the intrinsic impedance of the medium

r

=

The standing wave ration in medium 1 is defined as
S=

1 + ||
1 ||

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Exercises
1. A plane wave in air with an electric field amplitude of 5 V/m is incident normally upon
the surface of a lossless, nonmagnetic medium with r = 1.69. Determine the following
(a) The reflection and transmission coefficients.
(b) The standing-wave ratio in the air medium.
(c) The average power densities of the incident, reflected, and transmitted waves.
2. A plane wave travelling in a medium with r1 = 9 is normally incident upon a second
medium with r2 = 4. Both media are made of nonmagnetic, non-conducting materials.
If the magnetic field of the incident plane wave is given by
~ i = 2a
z cos(2 109 t ky)
H

(A/m)

(a) Obtain time-domain expressions for the electric and magnetic fields in each of the
two media.
(b) Determine the average power densities of the incident, reflected, and transmitted
waves.
3. A 400 MHz, with an electric field amplitude of 20 V/m, travelling in the +z-direction
is normally incident in air upon a dielectric medium with r = 9. The electric field is
polarized along the x-direction.
(a) Obtain the reflection and transmission coefficients.
(b) Calculate the standing-wave ratio in the air medium.
(c) Obtain time-domain expressions for the electric and magnetic fields in each of the
two media.
(d) Determine the percentages of the incident average power reflected by the boundary
and transmitted into the second medium.
4. Repeat Problem 3, but replace the dielectric medium with a medium with r = 1.44 and
r = 1.

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