E-plane and H-plane

The E-plane and H-plane are reference planes for linearly polarized waveguides, antennas and other microwave devices.

This article is about electromagnetism. For the light aircraft, see e-plane SSDR.

In waveguide systems, as in the electric circuits, it is often desirable to be able to split the circuit power into two or more fractions. In a waveguide system, an element called a junction is used for power division.

In a low frequency electrical network, it is possible to combine circuit elements in series or in parallel, thereby dividing the source power among several circuit components. In microwave circuits, a waveguide with three independent ports is called a TEE junction. The output of E-Plane Tee is 180° out of phase where the output of H-plane Tee is in phase.[1]

E-Plane

For a linearly-polarized antenna, this is the plane containing the electric field vector (sometimes called the E aperture) and the direction of maximum radiation. The electric field or "E" plane determines the polarization or orientation of the radio wave. For a vertically polarized antenna, the E-plane usually coincides with the vertical/elevation plane. For a horizontally polarized antenna, the E-Plane usually coincides with the horizontal/azimuth plane. E- plane and H-plane should be 90 degrees apart.

H-plane

In the case of the same linearly polarized antenna, this is the plane containing the magnetic field vector (sometimes called the H aperture) and the direction of maximum radiation. The magnetizing field or "H" plane lies at a right angle to the "E" plane. For a vertically polarized antenna, the H-plane usually coincides with the horizontal/azimuth plane. For a horizontally polarized antenna, the H-plane usually coincides with the vertical/elevation plane.

Illustrations
Diagram showing the relationship between the E and H planes for a horizontally polarized directional yagi antenna
Diagram showing the relationship between the E and H planes for a vertically polarized omnidirectional dipole antenna

Co- and cross-polarizations

Co-polarization (co-pol) and cross-polarization (cross-pol) are defined for the radiating E and H planes. These directions are defined in spherical coordinates corresponding to the spherical wavefronts of the propagating wave. By convention, the co-pol direction is the direction of the E field while the cross-pol direction is the direction of the H field. Receive power for a co-pol oriented antenna is maximum while receive power is minimum for cross-pol orientation.

See also

References
  1. Davis, George Kennedy, Bernard (1999). Electronic communication systems (4th ed.). New Delhi: Tata McGraw-Hill. p. 343. ISBN 0074636820.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)


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