Transmission Lines

As the name suggests, the

transmission line is a structure
which can transport electrical
energy from one point to
another.

At low frequencies, a
transmission line consists of
two linear conductors
separated by a distance.
When an electrical
source is applied between
the two conductors, the line
gets energized and the
electrical energy flows along
the length
of the conductors

Various Types Of
Transmission Line

Consists of a solid conducting rod surrounded by

the two conductors. This line has good isolation
of the electrical energy and therefore has low
electromagnetic interference (EMI) .

 Consists of two parallel conducting rods. In this

case the electrical energy is distributed between
and around the rods. Theoretically the electric
and magnetic fields extend over infinite
distance
Though its strength reduces as the distance
from the line. Obviously this line has higher EMI.

Consists of a dielectric substrate having ground plane on one side

and a thin metallic strip on the other side. The majority of the
fields are confined in the dielectric substrate between the strip and
the ground plane.
Some fringing field exist above the substrate which decay rapidly
as a function of height. This line is usually found in printed circuit
boards at high frequencies.

If the two conductors are symmetric around

the ground, then the line is called the
balanced line, otherwise the line is an unbalanced line

Transit Time Effect

It is important to note that No Signal can travel

with infinite velocity. That is to say that if a
voltage or current changes at some location, its
effect cannot be felt instantaneously at some
other location. There is a finite delay between the
'cause' and the effect. This is called the ' Transit

Let the signal travels with velocity v

along the line. Then the Transmit time

Important Observation
Even for ideal conductors i.e., no resistance,
there is a voltage difference between AA'
and BB'
When is transmit-time effect important?
Ideally the transit time effect should be
included in analysis of all electrical circuits.
However if the time period of the signal is
much larger than the transit time, we may
ignore the effect of transmit time.

Important Observation
That is the transit time effect can be
neglected if

Transit time effect become important when the length of the circuit
becomes comparable to the wavelength.
As the frequency
increases, the wavelength reduces and the transit time effect
becomes more and more important.

Distributed Circuit Elements

Distributed Circuit Elements

The distributed parameters can be defined per unit length of the line.
R = Resistance of both conductors together for unit length of the line
(ohms/m)
L = Inductance (self and mutual) for both conductors together for
unit length of hte line (Henery/m)
C = Capacitance between two conductors for unit length of the line
(Farad/m)
G = Leakage conductance between two conductors for unit length of

Transmission Line Analysis

Physical Interpretation of
Voltage & Current Solutions

represents a voltage travelling wave in +x

direction (left to right),

The second term in the voltage solution

gives a travelling wave but travelling in
negative' x direction (right to left

Important Conclusion
The Voltage and the Current
exist in the form of waves on a
transmission line.
In general, we can say that in a
circuit, any time varying voltage
and/or current always exist in
the form of waves.

Complex Propogation
Constant

Characteristic Impedance of
Transmission Line

How standing waves are formed on a line?

The result is a 'Standing Wave'. Of course in

general it is a partial standing wave since the
amplitudes of the two travelling waves may not
be equal.

Origin of Backward Wave

The only possibility then is, that the forward wave
reaches the right end of the line and does not find
correct conditions for transferring the full power to the
load impedance. The part of the energy then gets
reflected from the load which results into the
'Backward Wave'.

Voltage Reflection Co-efficient and its Relation to Load Impedance

Interesting to Note
The transmission line provides a medium
of impedance Z0 for the energy flow. Any
departure from Z0 creates an impedance
step. This impedance step disrupts the
smooth flow of energy and the part of the
energy is reflected.
Larger the impedance step more is the
reflected energy and higher the reflection
coefficient.

General Impedance
lengthTransformation
is measured towards

If the
the generator it
is taken positive.
If the length is measured away from the generator,
it is taken negative.

Loss Less Transmission Line

Spatial Variation of Current &

Voltage

Voltage Standing Wave Ratio

The maximum and minimum peak
voltages measured on the line are

Return Loss & Reflection Co-efficient