DEPARTMENT OF TECHNICAL EDUCATION

ANDHRA PRADESH
Name : A.V.VENUGOPAL.
Designation : Lecturer.
Branch : ECE.
Institute : G.P.W, Hindupur.
Year/Semester : Third semester.
Subject : Analog communication.
Code : EC-305.
Topic : Transmission line and
wave propagation.
Sub-topic : Standing waves and standing wave ratio

Duration : 50Mts.
Teaching Aids : PPTs,Diagrams.

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OBJECTIVES

Upon completion of this period, you would be able to know

what is meant by
• Traveling wave and its velocity
• Incident wave and reflected wave
• Standing wave formation on transmission line with open
circuit and short circuit
• Standing wave ratio and reflection coefficient.

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Recap

Already we discussed about:

• The concept of reflection.

• The reflection coefficient.

• Expression for reflection coefficient.

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Traveling wave

• A sinusoidal wave applied to a matched line, will travel

towards the load from the source end, and disappear in
to the load.

• Such a wave is called a traveling wave.

• The signal at any point along the line will be the same as
the source except for a time delay.

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• The velocity of the wave traveling on the line is vp =f λ
where f = frequency in Hz, λ=wave length in meters.

• Phase delay produced by a given line is

• Φ=(360)L/ λ

• Φ=phase shift in degrees

• L=length of the line

• λ=wave length of the line.

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Standing waves

• In a mismatched line when a sine wave is applied at the

source end it will travel along the line towards the load.
This is called the forward wave or incident wave.

• A part of the energy will be reflected back from the load

due to mismatch, which travels towards the source is
called reflected wave.

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• Reflected wave magnitude and phase depends on type
of termination.

• At any point on the line the two waves on the line add
vertically ;to produce a resultant wave,

• This resultant wave is stationary on the line and is called

standing wave.

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Fig :standing waves in a transmission line
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 Open circuited line

• At the open circuited end of the line ,the peak voltage is

maximum.

• One quarter wave length away from that end ,the

incident and reflected voltage exactly cancel at each
other because the two signals have equal amplitude but
with opposite phase.

• The voltage is zero at the point.

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• At a distance of one half wave length from the open
circuited end, there is another voltage maximum.

• This repeats for every half wave length of segment of the

line.

• The current on the line will be maximum one quarter

wave length away and is zero at the open end.

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Fig : open circuited line.
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 Short circuited line

• The voltage at the load end is zero.

• There is no voltage at the shorted end.

• The voltage maximum occurs at one quarter wave length

from the load end.

• Null occurs at one half wave length.

• The cycle repeats for every half wave length segment of

the length.

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• The current on short circuited line has a maximum at the
termination.
• The current on the line will have a minimum one quarter
wave length away, and another maximum occur at a
distance of one half wave length from the load.

Fig :3 short circuited line

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 Mismatched line

• In mismatched line ZL is other than Z0

• The voltage standing wave formed will have a maxima

and minima.

• The voltage minima is not zero.

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Fig :standing wave on a transmission line
terminate in a load not equal to z0..

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 Standing wave ratio

• Standing wave ratio is defined as the ratio of maximum

to minimum current or voltage on a line having standing
waves.
• It is abbreviated as SWR .
• While dealing with the voltage ratio is called voltage
standing wave ratio.

VSWR=Vmax /Vmin
or
S=Vmax/Vmin.

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• SWR is a measure of mismatch between the load and
the transmission line.

• In general SWR is always greater than unity.

• VSWR=1 with ZL=Z0,for matched load.

• Higher value of SWR denotes the higher amount of

mismatch.

• SWR is easier to measure than reflection coefficient.

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Relation between swr and ‘k’ reflection coefficient

SWR=Vmax/Vmin.

• The maximum voltage on the line occurs where the

incident and reflected signals are in phase.

• The minimum voltage is found where the two waves are

out of phase

• Vmax=Vi+Vr and

• Vmin=Vi-Vr

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• SWR=(Vi+Vr)/(Vi-Vr)

=1+(Vr/Vi)/1-(Vr/Vi)

• SWR=(1+к )/(1- к)

• By rearranging к in terms of SWR is

к=SWR-1/SWR+1.

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 Expression of SWR for zl>z0

• SWR=1+к/1- к
=1+{(ZL-Z0)/(ZL+Z0}/1-{(ZL-Z0 /(ZL+Z0 )}
= (ZL+Z0+ ZL-Z0)/ (ZL+Z0- ZL+Z0)
= ZL/Z0

• Similarly if ZL>Z0

• SWR=Zo/ZL

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 Summary
• A sine wave moving from source end to load end on a
matched line is called traveling wave.

• The velocity of a traveling wave is Vp=fλ.

where f is frequency in Ω and λ.

• Depending on the length of the line there will be phase

shift produced.

Φ=(360)L/λ

where Φ=phase shift in degrees

L=length of the line in meters
λ=wave length of the line in meters.
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• Incident wave and reflected wave add vectoriIally to
produce resultant wave called stationary wave.

• VSWR=Vmax/Vmin.

• SWR is a measure of mismatch between the load and

the line.

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 QUIZ

1.In a standing wave an a open circuited line voltage

maxima occurs at a distance from the load end is :

(a) .n(λ/4)
(b) .n(λ/2)
(c) .3(λ/4)
(d) . λ/4

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2.VSWR is the ratio of

(a). Vmin/Vmax.
(b). Pmax/Pmin.
(c). Imax/Imin.
(d). Vmax/Vmin.

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3.Nomal value of SWR is ------

(a). 0
(b). -1
(c). >1
(d). 1

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4. When Z0>ZLSWR is given by

(A). Z0/ZL
(B). ZL/Z0
(c). Zs/Z0
(d). Z0/Zs

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 Frequently asked questions

1. Define SWR?
2. Explain the formation of standing wave on OC and SC
lines?
3. Derive the relation ship between reflection coefficient
and SWR.

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