Propagation

BHAVIN V KAKANI
IT-NU

Contents:
Introduction to RWP
Different methods of wave propagation between Tx and Rx.
Ground wave/ Surface wave propagation
Sky wave/ Ionospheric wave propagation
Space wave propagation

Technical details of each method

Field strength estimation in each method
Losses and attenuation
Pros and Cons

In 1864 ( James Clerk

Maxwell)
The time varying electric
and magnetic fields
together gives rise to an
electromagnetic wave
travelling in the space with
the velocity of light.

1880 ( Prof. Heinrich Hertz)

The Electromagnetic radio
waves follow the law of
rectilinear propagation,
that means the waves
travel from transmitter to
receiver in straight line.

Transverse wave
When a stone is dropped in water,

disturbances takes place on the

surface and the water moves up and
down. This disturbances is
transmitted in the form of expanding
circles of waves. Now, if a leaf is
placed on the surface, the leaf moves
up and down with each wave passing
under it. This type of wave produced
under the above conditions is called
transverse wave.

Transverse wave
A Transverse wave is a wave which occurs in the directions

perpendicular to the direction of the propagation.

An EM wave radiated by a transmitting antenna is a transverse wave. A
transverse wave is also called travelling wave.
When a wave is transmitted, it spreads in all the directions and its
amplitude decreases with the increase in distance.
Multiple path follows by signal to reach to destination.
The path follows by EM wave depends on parameters like
frequency of signal
atmospheric conditions
time of the day

Electromagnetic transmission moves in

space as transverse waves

 Thus, the electromagnetic wave that is propagated does not

depend on its (wave) properties but the properties of the
environment.
The power radiated by the transmitter spreads in all directions.
Hence, the receiver receives only a small amount of the
transmitted power.
So, the transmission loss between transmitting and receiving
antenna is the deciding factor regarding the usefulness of the
received signal.
The received energy may travel through different modes of
propagation.

EM wave with distance in

medium

Bounding box shows medium

Transmitter end and Receiver end

Propagation of radio
wave is not only used
in radio
communication for
transmission over
short and long
distance, but also in
radar, radio direction
finding, control of
machine from a
distance, etc.

Modes of Propagation:
o Ground wave/surface wave: travels along or near
the surface of
the earth.
o Space wave: travels directly from Tx to Rx; dont
follow earth and
dont move towards the sky.
o Sky wave: wave travels upwards into space/sky and
get reflected
back to Rx.

Modes of WP

Ionosphere
(80 - 720 km)

Sky wave

Mesosphere
(50 - 80 km)
Stratosphere
(12 - 50 km)

Space wave
tter
i
m
s
Tran

Ground wave
Earth

Rece
iv

er

Troposphere
(0 - 12 km)

Propagation Mechanisms
Reflection
Propagation wave impinges on an object which is large as
compared to wavelength
- e.g., the surface of the Earth, buildings, walls, etc.

Diffraction
Radio path between transmitter and receiver
obstructed by
surface with sharp irregular edges
Waves bend around the obstacle, even when LOS
does not exist

Scattering
Objects smaller than the wavelength of the
propagation wave
- e.g. foliage, street signs, lamp posts
13

Radio Propagation
Building

Direct Signal
Reflected Signal

hb

Diffracted
Signal

Transmitter

hm
Receiver

14

RF bands
Classification Band

Initials

Frequency Range

Characteristics

Extremely low

ELF

< 300 Hz

Infra low

ILF

300 Hz - 3 kHz

Very low

VLF

3 kHz - 30 kHz

Low

LF

30 kHz - 300 kHz

Medium

MF

300 kHz - 3 MHz

Ground/Sky wave

High

HF

3 MHz - 30 MHz

Sky wave

Very high

VHF

30 MHz - 300 MHz

Ultra high

UHF

300 MHz - 3 GHz

Super high

SHF

3 GHz - 30 GHz

Extremely high

EHF

30 GHz - 300 GHz

Tremendously high

THF

300 GHz - 3000 GHz

Ground wave

Space wave

Factors involved in the

Propagation of radio waves:
Earth characteristics in terms of conductivity, permittivity and
permeability.
Frequency of operation
Polarization of transmitting antenna
Height of the transmitting antenna
Transmitter power
curvature of the earth
Obstacles between the transmitter and receiver
Electrical characteristics of the atmosphere in the tropospheric region

Moisture content in the troposphere

Characteristics of the ionosphere

Earths magnetic field
Refractive index of the troposphere and ionosphere
permittivity of the troposphere and ionospheric regions
Distance between Tx and Rx
Roughness of the earth
Type of the earth like terrain, forest, sea water etc.

Friis Equation origin

Derived in 1945 by Bell Labs worker Harald T. Friss
Gives the amount of power an antenna received under ideal
conditions from another antenna
Conditions:

Antennas must be in far field

Antennas are in unobstructed free space
Bandwidth is narrow enough that a single wavelength can be assumed
Antennas are correctly aligned and polarized

Friss free space equation

In wave propagation it becomes essential to calculate the loss during radio
transmission; it is known as radio transmission loss.
It is the ratio of the radiated power to the received power.

r in Km and f is expressed in MHz. Spatial attenuation is also called Transmission path

loss. At high frequency, this loss is severe.

We
obtain the expression for field strength (generally Electric field) at receiving
antenna using Poynting theorem:
The magnitude of power delivered can be obtained as

Replacing intrinsic impedance by 120pie and P dmax by its term we get

E = V/m
It is the expression for field strength at the receiving antenna for the wave
propagation in free space.

Ground Wave or Surface Wave

Propagation (Upto 2MHz)
A wave is said to be ground wave or surface wave when it propagates from Tx to Rx by
gliding over the surface of the earth.
Also called as Nortons surface wave.
Condition for ground wave propagation:

Both Tx and Rx antennas are closed to the earth

The antenna are vertically polarized.

They are limited to only a few kilometers.

The horizontally polarized antenna are not preferred as the horizontal component of
the electric field in contact with the earth is short circuited by it.
When the wave is in contact with the earth, it induces charges in the earth and
constitute a current.
The earth behaves like a leaky capacitance in carrying the induced current.

 As frequency increases, the capacitive impedance reduces and is

lowest for the highest frequencies.
Therefore, EM waves of higher frequency are practically short circuited
to earth through the capacitance.
Therefore only a limited range of frequencies could pass over the
surface of earth without being absorbed by it.
The wave is attenuated as it propagates due to imperfect nature of earth
Attenuation is mainly due to absorption and reflection of EM energy by
the earth.

 To minimize the losses, the transmission path must be over ground with high
conductivity.
With this respect, sea water is best conductor with very less losses.
flat rich soil and rocky area show maximum losses.
High power low frequency transmitters, using ground wave propagation are
preferably located on ocean fronts.
The medium wave broadcast service uses ground wave.
They are not affected by the changes in atmospheric conditions.
They require relatively high transmitter power.
This mode is suitable for low and medium frequency i.e. upto 2 MHz

Wave Tilting
Wave tilt is defined as the change in orientation of the vertically polarized ground
wave at the surface of the earth.
Tilt depends upon conductivity and permittivity of the earth.
As the wave progress over the curvature of the earth, the wave fronts start tilting
more and more.
This increase in tilt results in more short circuiting hence reducing the field
strength.
Finally, the waves die at appreciable distance.
Due to tilt there exist both vertical and horizontal component of the electric field.
It changes the original vertically polarized wave into elliptically polarized wave.

Ground wave field strength

According to Somerfield analysis, the ground wave field strength for
flat earth is given by

Ground Wave or Surface Wave

Propagation (Conti.)
depends on:
1. Power radiation of transmitting antenna
2. Directivity in vertical and horizontal planes

If the antenna is non-directional in the horizontal plane,

producing a radiated field which is proportional to the
cosine of the angle of elevation, then the field at unit
distance for a radiated power of 1kW is given by
= 300 V/m
P = power radiated in kilo watts
d = distance in kilometers

Ground Wave or Surface Wave

Propagation (Conti.)
The filed strength of a short vertical unipole antenna at a

distance d on a hypothetical flat perfectly conducting

earth is

P = power radiated in Watts

d = distance in meters
When P is expressed in kilo watts and d in kilometer then
Hence,

Ground Wave or Surface Wave

Propagation (Conti.)
If d is expressed in miles,

Thus, will be proportional to the square root of the power P.

P being effective power radiated in kilowatts and d, the
distance in kilometers. The reduction factor A depends on
1.
2.
3.

Frequency
Dielectric constant
Conductivity of earth

A is a complicated function of all the above factors and is

expressed in terms of p (numerical distance) and b (phase
constant).
p and b are determined by frequency, distance and
dielectric characteristics of ground.

Ground wave field strength by

Maxwells equation
The field strength at a distance d is given by

Sky Wave Propagation/

Ionospheric Wave
Propagation (2-30 MHz)
(RADIO MIRROR)

Sky wave propagation

Practical importance at medium and high frequencies (i.e. at medium
waves and short waves) for very long distance radio communication.
Electromagnetic waves reach the receiver after getting reflected from the
ionized region in upper atmosphere called as ionosphere (50km-400km)
Ionosphere acts as reflecting surface and reflects back electromagnetic
waves of frequencies between 2 to 30MHz.
Electromagnetic waves of frequency more than 30MHz are not reflected
back instead they penetrate it.
As sky wave propagation is suitable for 2 to 30MHz, it is also known as
Short Wave Propagation.

Sky wave propagation (conti.)

It is also called point to point propagation or communication as
long distance point to point communication is possible through it.
Extremely long distance i.e. round the globe communication is
possible through multiple reflection of sky wave.
In a single reflection from the ionosphere the radio waves cover a
distance not more than 4000km.
The signal received through sky wave propagation are subjected to
fading where signal strength varies with time.
Because at receiver multipath signals are received. So, provision for
fading has to be made.

How ionosphere is formed?

The ionosphere

 D- layer : Absorbing, Disappears at night

E-layer : Reflecting, partially disappears at night
F1 and F2 layer : Reflecting, Combine into single F
layer at night
NOTE : The Reflecting layers are responsible for sky wave
propagation.

There are 2 natural phenomenon that can

propagate VHF signal over long distances :
SPORADIC- E PROPAGATION/
TROPOSPHERIC SCATTERING

TROPOSPHERIC DUCTING

Space Wave Propagation (Above

30MHz)
The EM wave that propagates from Tx to Rx in the earths troposphere is called
space wave or tropospheric wave.
Practical importance at VHF band (30-300MHz), UHF, microwave in communication
like television, radar, frequency modulations, etc.
Electromagnetic waves reaches the receiver either directly or after reflection from
the ground in the earths troposphere region (upto 16km from earths surface).
In former, waves reaches directly from transmitting antenna to receiving antenna
while in latter, the waves reaches the receiving antenna after reflection from the
ground, where a phase change of 180 is introduced due to reflection at the ground.
Although both waves leave the transmitting antenna at same time and phase but
they may reach the receiving antenna either in phase or out of phase because of
difference in path length.

Space Wave Propagation (conti.)

Strength of the received signal may be stronger or weaker than the direct
path signal depending on whether the two waves are adding or opposing
phase.
At receiver, the signal strength is the vector addition of direct and indirect
waves.
Also called Tropospheric Propagation because space wave propagates
through troposphere.
Mainly in VHF because at such high frequency sky wave and ground wave
propagation both fail.
Beyond 30MHz sky waves fail as the wavelength become too short to be
reflected from ionosphere and ground wave propagates near antenna as
attenuation is high.

Space Wave Propagation (conti.)

Also called as line of sight propagation as at VHF, UHF and microwave
frequencies, it is limited to line of sight distance and by curvature of earth.
Propagate slightly more than line of sight due to refraction in the
atmosphere of the earth.
In line of sight communication, transmitting and receiving antennas can see
each other.
To increase distance between both of them in line of sight communication,
height of antennas can be increased.
Curvature of earth and heights of transmitting and receiving antennas
decides the maximum range of communication through direct waves.

Field Strength due to Space

wave

Factors affecting Space Wave

Propagation
Curvature of the earth
Earths imperfection and roughness
Hills tall buildings and other obstacles
Height above the earth
Transition between ground and space wave.
Polarization of the waves.

Effect of curvature of earth

When the distance between Tx and Rx antenna is considerably large,
curvature of the earth has considerable effect on space wave propagation.
The field strength at the receiver becomes small as the direct ray may not be able
to reach the receiving antenna.
It create shadow zones (no signal zone).
It reduces possible distance of transmission

Duct Propagation
It is a phenomenon of propagation making use of the atmospheric duct
region. The duct region exists between 2 levels where the variation of
refractive index with height is minimum.
In this, the ray which is parallel to earth surface travels round the earth in a
series of hops with successive reflections from the earth.

Salient features of Duct

Propagation
It happens when dielectric constant changes with height suddenly
and rapidly.
It is a specific case of refraction of RF energy
It takes place at VHF, UHF and microwave frequencies and in
areas contiguous to ocean
It is similar to waveguide propagation of microwaves
Long distance communication is possible when this phenomenon
takes place.
It is not a standard propagation. It happens during monsoons.

Tropospheric Scatter Propagation or

Forward Scatter Propagation (Above 300
MHz)
Practical importance at VHF, UHF and microwaves.

UHF and microwaves signals were found to be

propagated much beyond the line of sight propagation
through
the
forward
scattering
in
tropospheric
irregularities.
Also called
troposphere

Troposcatter

as

uses

properties

of

Also lead to the discovery of ionospheric scatter

propagation for signal frequencies in lower end of VHF
band.
Therefore, it is possible to achieve reliable communication
over communication range of 160km to 1600km by using
high power transmitter and high gain antennas.

Tropospheric Scatter Propagation or

Forward Scatter Propagation (Conti.)
Two different theories for forward scatter propagation:
1.
2.

Ionospheric- from scattering of radio waves from lower layer

of ionosphere
Tropospheric- from scattering from either blobs or fine layers
in troposphere

Suggested that ionospheric scatter might be due to blobs or

fine layers at lower edge of E layer or it could be from the
ionized trails of myriads of small meteors which bombard the
earth from the outer space.
Permits communication in the range of 1000km to 2000km
at 25MHz to 60MHz.
Importance of ionospheric scatter decreases beyond 60MHz,
but tropospheric scatter is effective from 100MHz to atleast
10GHz

Tropospheric Scatter Propagation or

Forward Scatter Propagation (Conti.)
Due to greater attenuation of signal along the path, forward
scatter is useful for point to point communication, radio or
television relay links where it is possible to use extremely high
gain antennas and high power transmitters.
Two directional antennas (transmitting and receiving) are pointed
that their beams intersect midway between them above horizon.
The blobs of air masses or eddies in the troposphere scatter
radio waves due to turbulence and this happens when they are
situated in the common volume facing transmitting and receiving
antenna beams.
When wavelength is more than the eddies, scattering occurs in
all direction but, when it is small, forward scattering dominates
into the cone of angle .
The angle should be as small as possible

Tropospheric Scatter Propagation or

Forward Scatter Propagation (Conti.)
Both ionospheric and tropospheric scatter produces
undesirable noise and fading which can be minimized to
certain extent by diversity reception.
Sometimes there is formation of inversion layers in
troposphere under certain tropospheric conditions and
propagation in this layer is called as duct propagation
or Super-refraction.
Long distance communication with relatively less
attenuation is possible in frequency from 300MHz to
30000MHz i.e. UHF and SHF range.

Some important
definitions
Virtual Height
Critical Frequency
MUF
Skip distance
LUF
OWF

Virtual Height
As the wave is refracted from the layer, it is bent down
gradually rather sharply.
The actual path of the wave is a curve and is due to
refraction of the wave.
It is more of reflected rather than refracted, the path can
be assumed to be straight lines TD and RD.
The height OD is called the virtual height of the ionized
layer as it is not its true height.
Virtual height is always greater than the true height
If virtual height is known then the angle of incidence can
be calculated.

Virtual Height (Conti.)

Virtual height of an ionospheric layer is defined as the

height to which a short pulse of energy sent vertically

upward and travelling with the speed of light would reach
taking the same two ways travel time as does the actual
pulse reflected from the layer.
In measurement of virtual heights the transmitting point
and the receiving point are usually placed very close so
that the wave sent are nearly vertically upward
It is given by:
T = time required for round trip
c = velocity of light in m/s

Ionosonde and Ionogram

Critical Frequency
The highest frequency which can be reflected by a

particular layer at vertical incidence is called as critical

frequency.
It is different for different layers.
Denoted by fo or fc
Critical frequency for a particular layer is proportional to
the square root of maximum electron density in the layer.
The refractive index of ionized medium is given as

Vertical incidence = angle of incidence is zero

Critical Frequency
(Conti.)
At vertical incidence, the electron density go on increasing

and reaches to its maximum electron density (N m).

Nm is expressed in per cubic meter and fc is expressed in
MHz.
Then the highest frequency is the one where the refractive
index becomes zero.

Critical frequency is the highest frequency which can be

reflected by a particular layer at vertical incidence but it is
not the highest frequency which will get reflected for any
other angle of incidence.

Critical Frequency
(Conti.)
Thus, critical frequency gives an idea that radio waves of

frequency equal to or less than the critical frequency will

be reflected back by the ionospheric layer irrespective of
the angle of incidence.
Radio waves of frequency greater than critical frequency
will also be returned to earth only when the angle of
incidence is significantly glancing so that following
equation is satisfied at frequency involved, otherwise the
wave will penetrate the concerned layer
However, it may be reflected back by a still higher layer.

Maximum Usable
Frequency (MUF)

Critical frequency is the maximum frequency of radio wave

which is returned from a ionized layer at vertical incidence.
However, when the frequency of radio wave exceeds the critical
frequency, then the influence of ionospheric layer on the path of
propagation depends on the angle of incidence at the
ionosphere.
Thus the maximum usable frequency (MUF) is also a limiting
frequency which can be reflected back to earth for some specific
angle of incidence rather than the vertical incidence.
Defined as the maximum possible value of frequency for which
reflection takes place for a given distance of propagation.
If the wave frequency is higher than MUF then the wave
penetrate the ionized layer and does not reflect back to the
earth.

MUF (Conti.)
Can also be defined as the frequency which makes a given

receiving point corresponds to a distance from the

transmitter equal to skip distance.
Can be defined as the highest frequency which can be
used for sky wave communication between two given
points on the earth.
Thus MUF is the highest frequency which can be used for
sky wave communication between two given points on
earth and there is different values of MUF for each pair of
points on globe.
Normal value varies from 8-35MHz
Where, D = skip distance and h = height of the layer

Lowest Usable Frequency (LUHF

or LUF)
As the MUF limits the highest permissible frequency for
sky wave propagation in a given path, the LUF gives the
lowest permissible frequency.
It is limited by absorption by the D-layer during day time
and by increased noise at lower frequencies during night.
The value of daytime LUF is normally much higher than
that the night time.
The value of LUF is calculated from the measurement of
noise level at the receiving site and estimated value of
sky wave absorption in the given propagation path.

Optimum Working
Frequency (OWF)

For satisfactory reception of signals at receiving points, it is

essential that the frequency should be less than MUF and
absorption of waves by ionosphere be small.
Highest possible frequency gives the strongest sky wave
signal at the receiver and hence it is preferred to work
around the MUF.
Optimum frequencies are selected from the prediction of
MUF based on monthly average and in practice there is a
daily variation about 15% from this mean value.
Hence it is normal to use frequencies 85% of MUF.
Therefore, there is a frequency called optimum working
frequency or optimum traffic frequency which is 50% to 85%
of MUF and is used to accommodate a number of channels

Radio Horizon

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