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The 3 Port Coupler

The document discusses the properties required of a matched, lossless, and reciprocal 3-port coupler. It shows that assuming such a device exists leads to an overconstrained system of equations with no solutions. Therefore, a matched, lossless, and reciprocal 3-port coupler is a physical impossibility. Alternative 3-port devices are presented that have some but not all of the desired properties.
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0% found this document useful (0 votes)
25 views

The 3 Port Coupler

The document discusses the properties required of a matched, lossless, and reciprocal 3-port coupler. It shows that assuming such a device exists leads to an overconstrained system of equations with no solutions. Therefore, a matched, lossless, and reciprocal 3-port coupler is a physical impossibility. Alternative 3-port devices are presented that have some but not all of the desired properties.
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
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Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
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2/10/2005 The 3 port Coupler.

doc 1/4

The 3-Port Coupler


Say we desire a matched and lossless 3-port Coupler. Such a
device would have a scattering matrix :

⎡S11 S12 S13 ⎤


S = ⎢⎢S21 S22 S23 ⎥⎥
⎢⎣S31 S32 S33 ⎥⎦

Assuming the device is passive and made of simple (isotropic)


materials, the device will be reciprocal, so that:

S21 = S12 S31 = S13 S23 = S32

Likewise, if it is matched, we know that:

S11 = S22 = S33 = 0

As a result, a lossless, reciprocal coupler would have a


scattering matrix of the form:

⎡ 0 S21 S31 ⎤
S = ⎢⎢S21 0 S32 ⎥⎥
⎢⎣S31 S32 0 ⎥⎦

Just 3 non-zero scattering parameters define the entire


matrix!

Jim Stiles The Univ. of Kansas Dept. of EECS


2/10/2005 The 3 port Coupler.doc 2/4

Likewise, if we wish for this coupler to be lossless, the


scattering matrix must be unitary, and therefore:

2 2
S21 + S31 = 1 S31∗ S32 = 0
2 2
S21 + S32 = 1 S21∗ S32 = 0
2 2
S31 + S32 = 1 S21∗ S31 = 0

Since each complex value S is represented by two real numbers


(i.e., real and imaginary parts), the equations above result in 9
real equations. The problem is, the 3 complex values S21, S31 and
S32 are represented by only 6 real unknowns.

We have over constrained our problem ! There are no solutions


to these equations !

As unlikely as it might seem,


this means that a matched,
lossless, reciprocal 3-port
device of any kind is a
physical impossibility!

Jim Stiles The Univ. of Kansas Dept. of EECS


2/10/2005 The 3 port Coupler.doc 3/4

For example, the following 3 port coupler is lossless, but not


matched:
Port 2
Z0
⎡ −1 2 2 ⎤
⎢ 3 3 3⎥
S = ⎢ 2 3 −1 3 2 3 ⎥
Port 1 Z0
⎢ ⎥
⎢2 2 −1 ⎥ Z0
⎣ 3 3 3⎦
Port 3

Since:
S11 = S22 = S33 = −1 3 ≠ 0

the coupler is not matched! However, the matrix is unitary, and


therefore this design is lossless.

Alternatively, we might try this 3-port device:

Port 2
R Z0
⎡0 3 3 ⎤ R
⎢ 5 5⎥
S = ⎢3 5 0 3 5 ⎥ Port 1 Z0 R
⎢ ⎥
⎢3 3 0⎥
⎣ 5 5 ⎦ Z0
Z0 Port 3
R =
3

Jim Stiles The Univ. of Kansas Dept. of EECS


2/10/2005 The 3 port Coupler.doc 4/4

For this design, the ports are matched! However, the resistors
make the device lossy:

S11 2
+ S21 2
+ S31 2
= 0 + 9 25 + 9 25 = 18 25 < 1

Oh sure, maybe you can


make a lossless reciprocal
3-port coupler, or a
matched reciprocal 3-port
coupler, or even a
matched, lossless (but
non-reciprocal) 3-port
coupler. But try as you
might, you cannot make a
lossless, matched, and
reciprocal three port
coupler!

Jim Stiles The Univ. of Kansas Dept. of EECS

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