TRANSMISSION LINE

Characteristics
• It is a metallic conductor system used to transfer
electrical energy from one point to another using
electrical current flow.

• Nowadays, the transmission line is made of

parallel-conductor (copper wire) and coaxial
cable.

• It consists of 2-wire line since transmission line

for transverse electromagnetic TEM wave
propagation always have 2 conductors.

• The characteristic of Transmission Line are

determined by its electrical properties :
Conductivity & Insulator Dielectric Constant
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 Types of Transmission Lines

• Open-Wire
• Twin-Lead
• Twisted-Pair
• Coaxial

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 Metallic transmission lines

Open-wire Twin lead

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 Metallic transmission lines
Unshielded twisted-pair

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 Metallic transmission lines

Coaxial cable

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 Metallic transmission lines
Differential, or balanced, transmission system

Balanced lines have equal impedances from the two

conductors to ground
Twisted-pair and parallel lines are usually balanced

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 Ideal Transmission Line
• No losses
– conductors have zero resistance
– dielectric has zero conductance
– possible only with superconductors
– approximated by a short line

• No capacitance or inductance
– possible with a real line only at dc
– with low frequencies and short lines this can
be approximated

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  The electrical properties determine the PRIMARY electrical
constant:
 Series Resistance, R
 Series Inductance, L
 Shunt Capacitance, C
 Shunt Conductance, G

 The combined above parameter is called LUMPED

PARAMETERS.

 Refer to Figure 12-14 & 12-15 in the textbook for the two-wire
parallel transmission line and single section transmission line.

 The transmission line characteristic is called SECONDARY

CONSTANT.

 The secondary constants are:

1. Characteristic Impedance
2. Propagation constant

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 Two-wire parallel transmission line
electrical equivalent circuit

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 Characteristic Impedance
The characteristic Impedance, Zo is defined as :
A transmission line must be terminated at purely
resistive load for maximum power transfer.

 Zo = ( R  jwL) / (G  jwC )
 Zo = R/G for Low Frequencies
 Zo = L/C for high Frequencies

The conductance between 2 wires are determined

by the shunt leakage resistance, Rs

The load impedance, ZL must match with

characteristic impedance, ZO

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  Refer to figure 12-16 for Characteristic impedance
of a transmission line of infinite section.

 The characteristic impedance can be calculated

by using Ohm’s Law:
Zo = Eo / Io

where Eo is source voltage and Io is transmission line

current

 The characteristic impedance also can be

calculated by its physical dimension:

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 Any transmission line that is terminated is a purely
resistive Load in infinite line:

 Zi = Z o

 No Reflected Wave

 V & I in phase

 Maximum Power Transfer from source to load

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 Propagation Constant
 Propagation Constant is used to express the
attenuation (signal loss) and the phase shift per
unit length of a transmission line.

 It is defined as :
 = α+ jβ

  ( R  jwL )(G  jwC )

Where  = propagation constant (unitless)

α = attenuation coefficient (nepers per unit
length)
β = phase shift coefficient (radians per unit
length)
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 For an ideal line R and G are zero

  j LC purely imaginary and no attenuation

 0
   LC

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 Transmission Lines Losses
• Conductor Losses
•Increases with frequency due
to skin effect
• Dielectric Heating Losses
•Also increases with frequency
• Radiation Losses
• Not significant with good
quality coax properly installed
• Can be a problem with open-
wire cable
• Coupling Losses
• Corona

Skin effect
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 Transmission Lines Losses

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