14:332:481 Electromagnetic Waves

Course catalog description: Beginning with Maxwell's equations and the constitutive relations, the interaction of electromagnetic waves in various media will be presented. Practical applications in optoelectronics, fiber optics, and communications presented throughout the course.

Credits and contact hours: 3 credits; 1 hour and 20-minute session twice a week, every week

Pre-Requisite courses: 14:332:382

Co-Requisite courses: None

Topics Covered:

  • Review of Maxwell’s equations; constitutive relations and conductivity; complex algebra and phasors; time-harmonic fields and time averages.
  • The wave equation in isotropic media: free space, lossless media and lossy media.
  • The wave equation in isotropic media: uncharged and charged media; conducting and non-conducting media.
  • Polarization: linear, circular, and elliptical; handedness and helicity.
  • Time-harmonic waves.
  • Electromagnetic wave characteristics; plane waves in lossless and lossy media.
  • Power, Poynting theorem and Poynting Vector.
  • Boundary conditions; reflection and transmission coefficients; standing-wave ratio; power relations at the interface.
  • Reflections and transmissions at multiple interfaces; quarter- and half-wavelength transformers; Snell’s laws; Fresnel’s equations; critical angle, Brewster’s angle; total internal reflection.
  • Transmission line parameters; transmission line equations; transient and pulse propagation.
  • Impedances; reflection coefficient, VSWR and Power; Smith chart; cascaded transmission lines.  
  • Rectangular waveguides; TE and TM modes; wave propagation in waveguides.
  • Dielectric losses and conduction losses, TE10mode.
  • Basic antenna concepts.

Textbook: M. N. O. Sadiku, Elements of Electromagnetics, Prentice-Hall; S. J. Orfanidis, Electromagnetic Waves and Antennas, online book, available freely from: http://www.ece.rutgers.edu/~orfanidi/ewa/

Other supplemental material: class notes.