*Note: The information below can be referenced to: Carr, J.

, Practical Antenna
Handbook, Tab Books, Blue Ridge ummit, PA, !"#", $B%: &'#(&)'"*+&'(.
,dminister, J., ,lectromagnetics -chaum.s /utline0, 1c2raw'Hill, %ew 3ork, %3,
!""(, $B%: &'&+'&!#""('4.
Chapter 8 Waveguides
The microwa5e 6ortion of the radio s6ectrum co5ers fre7uencies from about "&& 1H8 to
(&& 2H8, with wa5elengths in free's6ace ranging from (( cm down to ! mm.
Transmission lines are used at fre7uencies from dc to about 4& or )& 2H8, but an9thing
abo5e 4 2H8 onl9 short runs are 6ractical, because attenuation increases dramaticall9 as
fre7uenc9 increases. There are three t96es of losses in con5entional transmission lines:
ohmic, dielectric, and radiation. The ohmic losses are caused b9 the current flowing in
the resistance of the conductors making u6 the transmission lines. The skin effect will
increase the resistance at higher fre7uencies: therefore the losses tend to increase in the
microwa5e region. ;ielectric losses are caused b9 the electric field acting on the
molecules of the insulator and thus, will cause heating through molecular agitation.
Radiation losses are the loss of energ9 as the electromagnetic wa5e 6ro6agates awa9
from the surface of the transmission line conductor.
<osses on long runs of commonl9 used coa=ial transmission line causes concern as low
as >&& 1H8. Because of the increased losses the 6ower handling ca6abilit9 decreases at
higher fre7uencies, therefore, at higher microwa5e fre7uencies, or where long runs make
coa= attenuation losses unacce6table, or where high 6ower le5els causes the coa= to
o5erheat, wa5eguides are used instead of the transmission lines.
This cha6ter will describe the 6ro6agation characteristics in a single conductor
transmission lines referred to as wa5eguides. ?hat is a wa5eguide@ Consider the Alight
6i6e analog9B illustrated in Cigure #.&A. A flashlight ser5es as our Ar'f source,B which
gi5en that light is also an electromagnetic wa5e is not all that unreasonable. The source
radiates into free's6ace, and s6reads out as a function of distance. The intensit9 6er unit
area at the destination D a wall falls off as a function of distance -;0 according to the
in5erse s7uare law -!E;
*
0. %ow consider the transmission scheme in Cigure #.&B, the
light wa5e still 6ro6agates o5er a distance ;, but is now confined to the interior of a
mirrored 6i6e. Almost all of the energ9 cou6led to the in6ut end is deli5ered to the
out6ut end, where the intensit9 is 6racticall9 undiminished. The light 6i6e analog9 ma9
not be the best wa9 to e=6lain the o6eration of wa5eguides, but rather a neat summar9 on
a sim6le le5el.
The internal walls of the wa5eguide are not mirrored surfaces, but instead electrical
conductors. 1ost wa5eguides are made of aluminum, brass, or co66er. ome
wa5eguides internal surfaces are electro6lated with either gold or sil5er to reduce ohmic
losses. The gold or sil5er ha5e lower resisti5ities than most other metals.
?a5eguides are hollow 6i6es, and ma9 ha5e either circular or rectangular cross sections.
Rectangular are, b9 far, the most common. These wa5eguides are used for high
fre7uenc9 transmission in the gigahert8 -microwa5e0 range. The T,1 mode cannot
6ro6agate in these single conductor transmission lines. /nl9 higher modes in the form of
trans5erse electric -T,0 and trans5erse magnetic -T10 modes can 6ro6agate in the
wa5eguide.
%otes b9: ;ebbie Prestridge !
<arge ;iffused Beam
;
A
mall $ntense Beam
B
Figure 8.0 ?a5eguide analog9 to light 6i6e.
Transverse and Axial Fields
The wa5eguide is 6ositioned with the longitudinal direction along the 8 a=is.
?a5eguide characteristics:
guide walls ha5e

c

-6erfect conductor0
dielectric'filled hollow has:
!.

c
&
-6erfect conductor0
*.

o r
(.

o r
>. assumed
&
-no free charge0
%otes b9: ;ebbie Prestridge
a
b
F8
&
=
9
-a0
G
r
&
F8
a
-b0
*
Cigure #.!
The dimensions for the cross section are inside dimensions. Cigure #.!-a0 is a rectangular
wa5eguide shown in Cartesian coordinate s9stem: Cigure #.!-b0 shows a circular or
c9lindrical wa5eguide of radius a in a c9lindrical coordinate s9stem.
The time de6endence
e
j t
will be assumed for the electromagnetic field in the dielectric
core. The following e=6ressions for the field 5ector F -which stands for either E or H0,
assuming the wa5e is 6ro6agating in the F8 direction.
Rectangular coordinates C H C-=, 90 e
'Ik8
where:
F x y F x y a F x y a F x y a F x y F x y a
x x y y z z z z
- , 0 - , 0 - , 0 - , 0 - , 0 - , 0 + + +

C9lindrical coordinates F f r e
jkz

- , 0 where:
F r F r a F r a F r a F r F r a
r r z z r z
- , 0 - , 0 - , 0 - , 0 - , 0 - , 0

+ + +

The wa5e will 6ro6agate without attenuation, because the dielectric is lossless -J H &0.
<et k
*

_
,
-in radEm0 be the wa5e number and is constrained to be real and 6ositi5e.
The reason for se6arating the field 5ector into a trans5erse 5ector com6onent F
T
and an
a=ial 5ector com6onent C
8
a
8
is two'fold. The com6lete E K H fields in the wa5eguide
are known once either cartesian com6onent ;
8
or H
8
is known.
Transverse Components rom Axial Components
Assume a rectangular coordinate s9stem. 1a=well.s e7uation 9ields three scalar
e7uations:
-!a0
( ) ( ) ( ) + j j k
y
x y
x

-!b0
( ) ( ) ( ) j j k
x
y x
z

-!c0 ( ) ( ) j
x y
z
y
x

1a=well.s e7uation 9ields three additional scalar e7uations with J H &:
-*a0
( ) ( ) ( ) + j j k
y
x y
x

-*b0
( )
( )
( ) j j k
x
y x
z

-*c0
( ) ( ) j
x y
z
y
x

,liminate H
=
between -!a0 and -*b0 and H
9
between -!b0 and -*a0:
%otes b9: ;ebbie Prestridge (
-(a0
( ) ( )

y
c
z
c
z
jk
k y
j
k x

* *

-(b0
( ) ( )

x
c
z
c
z
jk
k x
j
k y

* *

L- ( ) ( ) k k
c
* * *
0 The 6arameter k
c
-also radEm0 functions as a critical wa5e number.
Example or !
"
:
?hat is AcriticalB about the number k
c
@
Cor 6ro6agation through a lossless dielectric, the wa5e number k must be real, but
( ) k k k k
c o c

* * * *
The wa5e number k
o
is of a uniform 6lane wa5e in the unbounded dielectric at the
gi5en M. Thus k
c
is a critical wa5e number in the sense that a guided wa5e.s same D
fre7uenc9 AtwinB must ha5e a wa5e number e=ceeding k
c
. tated otherwise, the
fre7uenc9 f of the guided wa5e must e=ceed the 7uantit9
( )
( ) u k where u
o c o
* ! ,
is the wa5e 5elocit9 in the unbounded dielectric.
Cinall9, take -(b0 and -(a0 substitute into -*a0 and -*b0:
-(c0
( ) ( )

y
c
z
c
z
jk
k y
j
k x

* *

-(d0
( ) ( )

x
c
z
c
z
jk
k x
j
k y

* *

$t is 6ossible to force either ,

8
or H
8
-but not both0 to 5anish identicall9. The non'
5anishing a=ial com6onent will determine all other com6onents 5ia e7uations -(0.
Example 8.#:
,=6ress 1a=well.s e7uations -!0 and -*0 in scalar form in c9lindrical coordinate
s9stem.
-!0
( ) ( ) ( ) + H E j
-*0
( ) ( ) ( ) E H j
L%ote: Cor the curl in c9lindrical coordinates refer to D
( )

_
,
+

_
,
+

1
]
1
A
! !
r z
a
z r
a
r r
r a
z
r
r z r
z

%otes b9: ;ebbie Prestridge >
,7uation -!0 9ields -J H &0:
( ) ( ) j
r
j k
r
z

+
!
- 0
-i0
( ) ( ) j j k
r
r
z

- 0
-ii0
( ) ( ) j
r r r
r
z

! !
-iii0
,7uation -*0 9ields:
( ) ( ) + j
r
j k
r
z

!
- 0
-i50
( ) ( ) j j k
r
r
z

- 0
-50
( ) ( ) j
r r r
r
z

! !
-5i0
Example 8.$:
Nsing the e7uations of e=am6le #.!, find all c9lindrical field com6onents in terms
of ,
8
and H
8
.
Crom -i0 and -50, with k
c
as 6re5iousl9 defined,
( ) ( ) ( )

r
c
z
c
z
j
k r
j k
k r

* *
!
-!0
Crom -ii0 and -i50,
( ) ( ) ( )

r
c
z
c
z
j
k r
j k
k r

* *
!
-*0
Crom -!0 and -i0,
( ) ( ) ( )

j
k r r
j k
k r
c
z
c
z
* *
! !
-(0
Crom -!0 and -ii0,
( ) ( ) ( ) ( )

+
j
k r
j
k r r
c
z
c
z
* *
! !
->0
%ropagation &odes in Waveguide
$n a wa5eguide a signal will 6ro6agate as an electromagnetic wa5e. ,5en in a
transmission line the signal 6ro6agates as a wa5e because the current in motion down the
line gi5es rise to the electric and magnetic fields that beha5es as an electromagnetic field.
%otes b9: ;ebbie Prestridge 4
The trans5erse electromagnetic -T,10 field is the s6ecific t96e of field found in
transmission lines. ?e also know that the term Atrans5erseB im6lies to things at right
angles to each other, so the electric and magnetic fields are 6er6endicular to the direction
of tra5el. These right angle wa5es are said to be AnormalB or Aorthogonal Ato the
direction of tra5el.
The boundar9 conditions that a66l9 to wa5eguides will not allow a T,1 wa5e to
6ro6agate. Howe5er, the wa5e in the wa5eguide will 6ro6agate through air or inert gas
dielectric in a manner similar to free s6ace 6ro6agation, the 6henomena is bounded b9 the
walls of the wa5eguide and that im6lies certain conditions that must be met. The
boundar9 conditions for wa5eguides are:
!. The electric field must be orthogonal to the conductor in order to e=ist at the
surface of that conductor.
*. The magnetic field must not be orthogonal to the surface of the wa5eguide.
The wa5eguide has two different t96es of 6ro6agation modes to satisf9 these boundar9
conditions:
!. T, D trans5erse electric -,
8
H &0
*. T1 D trans5erse magnetic -H
8
H &0
The trans5erse electric field re7uirement means that the ,'field must be 6er6endicular to
the conductor wall of the wa5eguide. This re7uirement can be met with 6ro6er cou6ling
at the in6ut end of the wa5eguide. A 5erticall9 6olari8ed cou6ling radiator will 6ro5ide
the necessar9 trans5erse field.
/ne boundar9 condition will re7uire the magnetic -H0 field not to be orthogonal to the
conductor surface. ince it is at right angles to the ,'field, the re7uirement will be met.
The 6lanes that are formed b9 the H'field will be 6arallel to the direction of 6ro6agation
and to the surface.
Waveguide 'mpedan"es
Cor an9 trans5erse electromagnetic wa5e , the wa5e im6edance -in ohms0 is defined as
being a66ro=imatel9 e7ual to the ratio of the electric and magnetic fields, and con5erges
as a function of fre7uenc9 to the intrinsic im6edance of the dielectric:

E
H

->0
Cor a T, mode wa5eguide, -!a0 K -!b0 im6l9:
E H

*
*
*
*
*
*
*
*
+

_
,
+

_
,

_
,

x y y x
k k

%otes b9: ;ebbie Prestridge )
/r

k
-40
,7uation ->0 in5ol5es onl9 lengths of two'dimensional 5ectors, so O must be inde6endent
of the coordinate s9stem. ,=am6le #.( will confirm the 5alue of O
T,
b9 recalculating it in
c9lindrical coordinates. ,=am6le #.> shows -using rectangular coordinates0 that:
( ) ( )

k
-)0
Example 8.(:
Calculate O
T,
from the field com6onents in c9lindrical coordinates.
,
8
P &, -i50 and -50 of ,=am6le #.! gi5es:
( ) ( ) + j
r
j k
r
z

!
- 0
-i50
( ) ( ) j j k
r
r
z

- 0
-50
( ) ( ) ( )
H

_
,

_
,

r r
k k k *
*
*
*
*
* *


( )

E
H
k
Example 8.)
Calculate O
T1
from the field of com6onents in rectangular coordinates.
H
8
P &, -*a0 and -*b0:
-*a0
( ) ( ) ( ) + j j k
y
x y
x

-*b0
( )
( )
( ) j j k
x
y x
z

%otes b9: ;ebbie Prestridge +
*olution:
( ) ( )

x y y x
k
or
k *
*
*
*
* *
+

_
,
+

_
,

( )

E
H
k
+etermination o the Axial Fields
All that remains for a com6lete descri6tion of T, and T1 modes is the
determination of the res6ecti5e a=ial fields:
C
8
H H
8
T,
C
8
H ,
8
T1
The cartesian coordinate F e
z
jkz
of F -in either rectangular or c9lindrical coordinates0,
must satisf9 the scalar wa5e e7uation

*
* *
*
*
! F

F
z u t
,
( ) ( ) ( )
( )
* *
F e F e
z
jkz
z
jkz
-+0
And the a66ro6riate boundar9 conditions which are inferred from the boundar9
conditions on the com6onents of F
T
. L%ote: Trans5erse com6onents such as

e
jkz

are not cartesian com6onents and do not obe9 a scalar wa5e e7uation.
Expli"it *olutions or TE &odes o a ,e"tangular -uide
The wa5e e7uation -+0 becomes:

*
*
*
*
*
&
H H
H
z z
c z
x y
k + +

This was 6re5iousl9 defined as ( ) ( ) k k

c
* * *
. ol5e b9 using se6aration of
5ariables:
( ) ( )
z x x x x y y y y
x y k x k x k y k y - , 0 cos sin cos sin + +
-#0
where k k k
x y c
* * *
+
. The se6aration constants k
=
and k
9
are determined b9 the boundar9
conditions. Consider first the ='conditions

y y
y a y - , 0 - , 0 & &
: in 5iew of -(a0 '
( ) ( )

y
c
z
c
z
jk
k y
j
k x

* *

and ,
8
P & these translate into:

z z
x x
x x a

&
&
%otes b9: ;ebbie Prestridge #
A66l9 these conditions to: -#0 '
( ) ( )
z x x x x y y y y
x y k x k x k y k y - , 0 cos sin cos sin + +
This will result in B
=
H & and ( ) sin , , ,... k a or k
m
a
m
x x
& & ! *

and b9 s9mmetr9, the

boundar9 conditions in 9 force B
9
H & and ( ) k
n
b
n
y

& ! * , , ,...
,ach 6air of nonnegati5e integers -m, n0 Dwith the e=ce6tion of -&, &0 which will
result in a tri5ial solution'identifies a distinct T, mode, indicated as T,
mn
. This mode has
the a=ial field

zmn mn
x y
m x
a
n y
b
- , 0 cos cos

-"0
And the trans5erse field is obtained through -(0 D -refer to 6ages *'( of these notes0. The
critical wa5e number for T,
mn
is:
k
m
a
n
b
c mn

_
,
+

_
,

* *
This is in terms of which the wa5e number and the wa5e im6edance for T,
mn
are:
( ) ( ) k k
mn c mn

* *
-!&0
( )
( ) ( )

mn
c mn
k

* *
-!!0
L%ote: m, n are integers that define the number of half wa5elengths that will fit in the -a0
and -.0 dimensions, res6ecti5el9: a, b are the wa5eguide dimensions. -see Cigure #.*0
Example 8./:
This e=am6le will show for the T1
mn
modes of a rectangular wa5eguide and it will show
that k
cT1mn H
k
cT,mn
. The subscri6ts T, and T1 can be dro66ed from all modal 6arameters
of rectangular guides sa5e the wa5e im6edance.
/btain the analogues of -"0 D -!*0 for T1
mn
.
Analogous to -#0,
( ) ( )
z x x x x y y y y
x y C k x D k x C k y D k y - , 0 cos sin cos sin + +
%otes b9: ;ebbie Prestridge
b
a
Figure 8.$ Rectangular wa5eguide -end 5iew0
"
( ) ( ) where k k k k
x y c
* * * * *
+


But now the boundar9 conditions are:

z z
y a y and - , 0 - , 0 & &
z z
y x b - , 0 - , 0 & &
This will re7uire that:
C k
m
a
C k
n
b
x x y y
& &

where m n , , , ,.... ! * (
%ote that neither m nor n is 8ero in a T1 mode.
The re7uired formulas are:

zmn mn
x y
m x
a
n y
b
- , 0 sin sin

-!0
k
m x
a
n y
b
k
c c mn mn

_
,
+

_
,


* *
-*0
k k
mn mn

-(0
( )

mn
k

->0
0elo"it1 and Wavelength in Waveguides:
Cigure #.( illustrates the geometr9 for two wa5e com6onents sim6lified for sake of
illustration. There are three different wa5e 5elocities to consider with res6ect to
wa5eguides: free space velocity -c0, group velocity -Q
g
0, and phase velocity -Q
6
0.
The s6ace 5elocit9 of 6ro6agation in unbounded free's6ace, i.e., the s6eed of light
-c H ( L !&
#
mEs0.
The group velocity is the straight line 5elocit9 of 6ro6agation of the wa5e down the
center'line -8'a=is0 of the wa5eguides. The 5alue of Q
g
is alwa9s less than c, because the
actual 6ath length taken as the wa5e bounces back and forth is longer than the straight
line 6ath -i.e., 6ath ABC is longer than 6ath AC0. The relationshi6 between c and Q
g
is:
Q
g
H c sin a
L%ote: 0
g
is the grou6 5elocit9 in -mEs0, " is the free s6ace 5elocit9 -( L !&
#
mEs0, and a
is the angle of incidence in the wa5eguide.
The 6hase 5elocit9 is the 5elocit9 of 6ro6agation of the s6ot on the wa5eguide wall where
the wa5e im6inges -e.g., 6oint ABB in Cigure #.>0. This 5elocit9 is actuall9 faster than
both the grou6 5elocit9 and the s6eed of light. The relationshi6 between the 6hase and
grou6 5elocities can be seen in the ABeach analog9.B $f we consider an ocean beach that
wa5es will arri5e from offshore at an angle other than "&R, meaning the arri5ing wa5e
fronts will not be 6arallel to the shore. The arri5ing wa5es at Q
g
as it hits the shore will
strike a 6oint down the beach first, and the A6oint of strikeB races u6 the beach at a faster
%otes b9: ;ebbie Prestridge !&
Antenna
a
b
c
F
This end is o6enS
6hase 5elocit9, Q
6
, that is faster than Q
g
. $n a microwa5e wa5eguide the 6hase 5elocit9
can be greater than ".
&ode Cuto Fre2uen"ies
The 6ro6agation of signals in a wa5eguide de6ends in 6art u6on the o6erating fre7uenc9
of the a66lied signal. The angle of incidence made b9 the 6lane wa5e to the wa5eguide
wall is a function of fre7uenc9. As the fre7uenc9 dro6s, the angle of incidence increases
towards "&R.
$n 6ractice one ma9 deal with fre7uencies and not wa5e numbers. $t is desirable to
re6lace the conce6t of the critical wa5e number -k
c
0 b9 one of the cutoff frequency -f
c
0.
This was accom6lished in the e=am6le for -k
c
0 -refer to 6age ( of these notes0:
( )
f
u
k k
c
o
c c

*
!
*
-!(0
$n terms of the cutoff fre7uenc9 f
c
and the o6erating fre7uenc9 f f
c
>

*
-!&0, -!!0, and -!*0 will become:
%otes b9: ;ebbie Prestridge
Q
g
C
B
A a
a

>

g
>
&
!!
Figure 8.( Antenna radiator in a ca66ed wa5eguide.
Figure 8.) ?a5e 6ro6agation in a wa5eguide
f
u m
a
n
b
cmn
o

_
,
+

_
,

*
*
*
-Rectangular waveguide0 -!& bis0
k
u
f f or
f
f
cmn
o
c mn nn
o
c mn

_
,

*
!
* *
*

-!! bis0

mn
o
c mn
f
f

_
,
!
*
-!* bis0
where
u
f
o
o
is the wa5elength of an imaginar9 uniform 6lane wa5e at the o6erating
fre7uenc9 and where

o
is the 6lane wa5e im6edance of the lossless
dielectric. The second form of -!! bis0 e=hibits the relation between the operating
wavelength T
o
and the actual guide wa5elength T
mn
. Cor T1
mn
wa5es, -!* bis0 is re6laced
b9 Usee -)0V
mn
o
cmn
f
f

_
,
!
*
-!>0
The 6hase 5elocit9 of a T,
mn
or T1
mn
wa5e is gi5en b9:
u f
u
f
f
mn mn
cmn

_
,

&
*
!
-!40
The meaning of cutoff is made 6articularl9 clear in -!40. As the o6erating fre7uenc9
dro6s to the cutoff fre7uenc9, the 5elocit9 becomes infinite. This is a characteristic, not
of wa5e 6ro6agation, but of diffusion -instantaneous s6read of e=6onentiall9 small
disturbances0.
Example 8.3
+eine the notion of cutoff wavelength.
The cutoff wa5elength T
c
is the wa5elength of an unguided 6lane wa5e whose
fre7uenc9 is the cutoff fre7uenc9: i.e., T
cL
f
c
H u
o
$s the cutoff wa5elength an u66er limit on the guide wa5elength, Iust as the cutoff
fre7uenc9 is a lower limit on the guide fre7uenc9@
%otes b9: ;ebbie Prestridge !*
%o: in fact, the formula

mn
o
cmn
u
f f

* *
shows that an -m, n0 mode can
6ro6agate with an9 guide wa5elength greater than T.
+ominant &ode
The dominant mode of an9 wa5eguide is that of the lowest cutoff fre7uenc9. %ow, for a
rectangular guide, the coordinate s9stem ma9 alwa9s be oriented to make a W b.
ince f
m
a
n
b
cmn

_
,
+

_
,

* *
for either T, or T1, but neither m nor n can 5anish in T1, the
dominant mode of a rectangular guide is in5ariabl9 T,
!&
, with
( )
f
u
a
a
k
u f
c
o o
o
o
o !& !&
*
!&
!& !& !&
!&
*
! *
*

X
Crom -"0, ,
8!&
P &, and the e7uations -Trans5erse Com6onents from A=ial
Com6onents ection0:

z x
x
a
!& !& !&
& cos

x y x o
o
j
a x
a
j
a x
a
!&
!&
!& !& !& !& !&
* *

_
,

_
,

sin sin -!)0

y!&
&
Cor H
!&
real, the three non8ero field com6onents ha5e the time'domain e=6ressions:
( )
z
x
a
t k z
!& !& !&

_
,
cos cos

( )
x
a x
a
t k z
!&
!&
!& !&
*

_
,

_
,

sin sin -!+0

( )
y o
a x
a
t k z
!&
!&
!& !&
*

_
,

_
,

sin sin
Plots of the dominant'mode fields -!+0 at t H & are gi5en in Cigs. #.4 and #.). Both

y x
and
5ar9 as ( ) sin x a
. This is indicated in Cigure #.4 b9 drawing the lines of
E close together near = H aE* and far a6art near = H & and = H a. The lines of H are shown
e5enl9 s6aced because there is no 5ariation with 9. This same line'densit9 con5ention is
used to indicated the local 5alue of
E
y in Cigure #.)-a0 and of
%otes b9: ;ebbie Prestridge !(
H +
x z
* *
in Cigure #.)-b0. %otice that the lines of H are closed cur5es -di5 H H &0: the H field ma9
be considered as circulating about the 6er6endicular dis6lacement current densit9 4
;
.
%otes b9: ;ebbie Prestridge
,
&
b
9
=
Figure 8./ Trans5erse cross section
a
9
b
&
a
H
,
9
b
&

!&
>

!&
*
(
>
!&

'8
H
'8
=
a
&
(
>
!&

!&
*

!&
>
Cigure #.) <ongitudinal cross sections
-a0 Y = H aE*
-b0 Y 9 H const
!>
=
%otes b9: ;ebbie Prestridge !4