IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON ELECTRONIC COMPUTERS, VOL. EC-16, NO.

2, APRIL 1967 185

may be chosen to be the product of two integers and

I i, LWiThI~i where a dead time is permitted between records. It is
therefore well suited for analysis of echo and seismic
rll9I~t~.f1 ~ | returns or any phenomena involving finite length rec-
r, columns ords with a dead time between records.
rrows 1i,j , @ IThe r1r2 analyzer must perform a substantial number
of calculations during one sample period so it will not

ARITHMETIC UNIT generally operate at sampling rates as great as those for

INPUT WSMOOTHING
GENERATOR OUTPUT the binary
When analyzer,
no dead time isbut it requires
allowable, fewercomponents.
the r1r2 analyzer could
A(N-I)...,A(2),A(I).A(O) X(N-I)....,X(2),XCI),X(o) be used in conjunction with a time compressor whereby
Fig. 5. The r1r2 analyzer composed of ri columns and r2 rows. the data would be read and stored during the dead time
and then put into the analyzer at a rate faster than it
CONCLUSIONS was originally sampled. This would be quite convenient
Two basic digital machine organizations have been when one analyzer is to be time shared by several differ-
presented which can in most cases find spectral esti- ent signals as in this case the extra data storage is
mates of a time function in real time. The basic opera- needed anyway. Assuming an arithmetic unit which will
tion of the machines draws heavily upon the algorithm perform a complex multiplication in one microsecond
for the machine calculation of complex Fourier series and an N of 400, sampling rates up to 8000 samples per
presented by Cooley and Tukey.1 second are feasible. If N is higher, however, the rate
The binary analyzer is restricted to cases where N must be lowered or a dead time must be allowed.
may be chosen to be a power of 2, but is very versatile in For large values of N, both of the analyzers discussed
terms of allowable sampling rates. A sampling rate of require a control unit which, due to roundoff errors,
500 000 samples per second is possible if each of the m must correct the updated values of W periodically
arithmetic units can perform a complex multiplication throughout the cycle. The point at which this becomes
in less than a microsecond. The same machine could also necessary varies with each application.
be used with a sampling rate of less than one sample per ACKNOWLEDGMENT
hour. The fact that each section of the analyzer works
somewhat independently of the others indicates that the The authors wish to thank R. Klahn, a Member of the
possibility of changing the value of N, as well as the Technical Staff at Bell Telephone Laboratories, for his
sampling rate, is feasible. valuable discussions which originally motivated this
The r1r2 analyzer is restricted to the case where N work.

Characteristics of Microstrip Transmission Lines

H. R. KAUPP

Abstract-Equations are developed which accurately describe Index Terms-Characteristic impedance, copper-clad boards,
the characteristic impedance and signal propagation delay for nar- interconnections, microstrip line, printed boards, printed circuits,
row microstrip transmission lines. Differences in signal propagation propagation delay, signal paths, strip line, transmission lines.
delay for microstrip, strip line, and coaxial cables are compared as a
function of dielectric constant. The characteristic impedance equa-
tion is verified through comparison with experimental results for I. INTRODUCTION
impedance values from 40 to 150 ohms. The sensitivity of charac- 7TX1T ICROSTRIP transmission lines are the primary
teristic impedance to variations in physical parameters, such as I'\/ \l men use toitroncvhg-pe oi
dielectric constant, line width, and board thickness, is presented. AXv.. .
Finally the equation is shown to yield exceptionally accurate results circuits in digital computers. They are used not
when the inherent inaccuracies of the physical measurements are only because they provide the required uniform signal
considered. paths, but also because they can be fabricated by auto-
mated techniques. The cross section of a microstrip
Manuscript received November 14, 1966. lin is shw nFg .A nir ln fsgaie
The auth:or iS wilth thle Radi COorporation of America, Camden, sotie yecigteuwne oprfo
e
N. J. 08102.' 'i bandb thn teuwne oprfo e
186
Q y f 01t *2~
tL
~ ; ~---+
pd
t ,
'''''''''4
(CA)
COAXIAL
(b)
STRIP
(c)
MICROSTRIP
(d)
WI RE-gOVER
Fig. 1. Cross-sectional geometries of several types of
transmission lines.
tween the signal lines through photo resist techniques.
For computer applications, characteristic impedances
on the order of 50 to 100 ohms are required. This im-
pedance range leads to line widths on the order of 5 to
20 milsi and board thicknesses of 10 to 50 mils; within
the state-of-the-art. Logic circuit requirements often
make necessary tolerances of better than + 10 percent
on the characteristic impedance of the line. Thus, close
tolerances must be held on the w-idth of the lines and
the thickness of the board. In the past, measurements
had to be taken to obtain the characteristic impedance
of microstrip transmission lines. Only gross approxi-
mations to characteristic impedance exist in the litera-
ture, and these are for signal conductors that are very
wide with respect to the thickness of the board (Ref-
erence [1], page 597). The primary difficulty in analyz-
ing characteristic impedance and propagation delay of
a microstrip line is due to the fringe fields associated
with a narrow line in a compound dielectric medium.
In this paper, an equation is developed which will
predict the characteristic impedance of microstrip lines
to within 5 percent for line widths from 5 to 25 mils,
board thicknesses greater than 10 mils, and various
board materials. An empirical curve of propagation de-
lay as a function of board material dielectric constant
is also presented. The analytic results are verified by
comparing them with experimental results for imped-
ance values from 40 to 150 ohms. The equation is then
used to determine the sensitivity of characteristic im-
pedance to tolerances on the various physical parame-
ters. Finally, the equation is shown to yield excep-
tionally accurate results, considering the inherent in-
accuracies of the physical measurements.
II. DEVELOPMENT OF EQUATION FOR
CHARACTERISTIC IMPEDANCE
A. Basic Equation for Characteristic Impedance
The starting point of this development is the well-
known equation for the characteristic impedance of a
wire-over-ground transmission line (Fig. 1). This
equation is
Zo= 4kn
60
d_I r
iz>
l1 mil-10-3inches.
IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON ELECTRONIC COMPUTERS, APRIL 1967
where
er=relative dielectric constant of the ambient me-
Ehrhdium
z ,,
d=diameter of the wire
- GROUND h = distance between the center of the wire and the
ground plane.
In the following discussion, "equivalent" values of Er
and d will be determined for microstrip line. These
equivalent values will then be used in (1) to obtain the
characteristic impedance for the microstrip line. Cal-
culated values of characteristic impedance wATill then be
compared with measured values to verify the accuracy
of the equation.
B. Effective Dielectric Constant
The effective dielectric constant is best determined
through the signal propagation delay of the lines. For a
homogeneous dielectric medium, the propagation delay
per unit length is
Td =/WE (2)
where is the permeability of the medium and E its
A
permittivity. In free space, and for practical purposes
i
se of lht Howevr,ion transission einscusedffor
iner onnect. poses, ..trative li ty is
iunty. Consequently for lines of interest here,
Td = l.Ot6V\,E, ns/ft (3)
where Er iS the dielectric constant relative to air.
Figure 1 shows that the coaxial, strip, and wire-over-
ground transmission lines all have a homogeneous di-
electric inedium; thus the propagation delay is given
directly by (3). However, the microstrip line has a
compound dielectric medium consisting of the board
material and air. In addition, Surina has shown that
the propagation delay of a microstrip line does not de-
pend only on the dielectric constant [2].
In Figure 1.6 of DiGiacomo et al. [2], the propaga-
tion delay is shown to be a function of conductor line
width as well as of dielectric thickness. The effects of
dielectric thickness on propagation delay are accounted
for when the dielectric constant of the board is mea-
sured. For accurate prediction of characteristic im-
pedance the dielectric constant of each board should be
measured. This is necessary since 20 percent variations
are common in the relative dielectric constant values
of copper-clad boards.
The propagation delay increases with increased line
width. This effect is reasonable since for wider lines
1 more of the electric field is concentrated directly under
the line where the dielectric constant is greater. This
variation of propagation delay with line width appears
to be more acute for the thinner dielectric materials.
KAUPP: MICROSTRIP TRANSMISSION LINES 187
TABLE I
RELATIONSHIP OF DIELECTRIC CONSTANT AND PROPAGATION DELAY

Dielectric Thickness Erat(Measured Delay TdMicrostrip

Measured ComputedConstant
Effective Computed(ns/ft)
Strip
Type of Dielectric (mils) 25 MHz) (ns/ft) Dielectric Er Delay Td,
G-10 Fiber-Glass-Epoxy 60 4.70 1.73 2.9 2.20
G-10 Fiber-Glass-Epoxy 44 4.80 1.76 3.0 2.22
G-10 Fiber-Glass-Epoxy 8 5.23 1.82 3.205 2.32
Nylon Phenolic 19 4.19 1.51 2.205 2.08
Nylon Phenolic 55 4.39 1.57 2.385 2.12
Rexolite 32 2.89 1.49 2.15 1.74
Rexolite 57 2.89 1.45 2.035 1.74
Air 1 1.016 1 1.016

2.5

2.0a
0. 5. MIiCROSTRIP
0~~~~~~~~~~~~~ =O.47Sr
re +0.67

w~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
w
ET5W ,lililililetitl!tt}
W OWfflIl t t5 Xt~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~L
zst

RELATIVE DIELECTRIC CONSTANT 6r -42

Fig. 2. Propagation0 delays as a function of the relative dielectric
constant of the board material.
The maximum error in computing the effective dielec-
tric constant wxhile assuming that the propagation delay
is independent of line width is less than 5 percent as
can be shown from the aforementioned experimental
data. This maximum error occurs for a dielectric thick-
ness of 8 mils and a line width of 20 mils. Both of these
values yield a characteristic impedance on the order of
35 ohms, which is below the range of interest. Therefore,
variation of effective dielectric constant with line width
will be neglected. By working backward with (3), the
measured values of propagation delay for a microstrip
line can be used to determine the effective constant of
the composite medium. The effective dielectric con-
stant can then be related to the relative dielectric con-
stant of the board material,
In DiGiacomo et al. [2], measurements were made of
propagation delay and relative dielectric constant of
several board materials. These data, presented in Table
I, wxere used to compute the effective dielectric constant
from (3). The values from Table I were used to plot the
propagation delay of a microstrip line as a function of
relative dielectric constant in Fig. 2. For comparison,
a delay curve for a transmission line such as strip line
and coax, where the signal conductor is completely en-
cased in the dielectric material, is also shown in Fig. 2.
Note that a reduction in propagation time occurs in
a system that uses microstrip rather than strip line. At
present, mechanical considerations make the use of
fiber-glass-epoxy board material almost mandatory.
Fiber-glass-epoxy has a relative dielectric constant of
o 2 3 4 5 6
RELATIVE DIELECTRIC CONSTANT, Er
Fig. 3. Effective dielectric constant as a function of relativer
dielectric for a microstrip line.
about 5. With Er = 5, the difference in propagation delay
for strip line and microstrip line is 0.5 ns/ft. This means
that the interconnection system of computer would be
25 percent "slower" if strip line were used instead of
microstrip line. The difference in time delay between
strip and microstrip lines decreases with decreasing di-
electric constant. For example, using Teflon, which has
a dielectric constant of 2.2, strip line is only 15 percent
"slower" than microstrip.
To determine the characteristic impedance of a
microstrip line, the effective dielectric constant must be
functionally related to the relative dielectric of the
board material. This is done by plotting the appropriate
values from Table I, as in Fig. 3. Although a slight
curvature appears to exist, the points are connected by
a straight line for ease of analysis. When this is done the
curve does not pass through the only point that is a
theoretical certainty-namely the point (1, 1). How-
ever, material with a dielectric constant less than 2 is
not available for transmission line fabrication; conse-
quently, the use of the straight line is justifiable. As
seen from Fig. 3, the equation is
Ere t= .47der ± 0.67 (4)
where Ere is the effective relative dielectric constant for
a microstrip line made with a board material having a
relative dielectric constant (T.
188 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON ELECTRONIC COMPUTERS, APRIL 1967

C. Cross-Sectional Geometry
The remaining factor to be considered in developing 12
an equation for the characteristic impedance equation
of a microstrip line is its relationship to the cross-sec-
tional geometry of the signal line. If the rectangular ,
cross section of the microstrip line can be represented
by an equivalent circular cross section, (1) can be used.
A relationship does exist for transforming a rec-
tangular conductor into an equivalent cylindrical con- o
ductor. However, its application to the problem at hand re
is dubious, considering the assumptions with which it t 0.
was derived. The relationship in question was derived 5 a_
by Flammer [3] for a long narrow antenna surrounded o 0.6
by a concentric cylinder having a large radius. A pic- '- -
CUfRVE Xl l,llliiiiiiUiiiUiii
tornal representation of an applicable structure is a 2
°05 W
0. MFLA
i
A M1E S CURVE
coaxial cable with a large-diameter outer conductor and 8
a small diameter inner conductor of arbitrary cross sec- o
tion. Flammer's relationship is plotted in Fig. 4. Here
the ratio of equivalent diameter to width of rectangular
conductor is plotted as a function of the ratio of thick- 0.2
ness to width for the rectangular conductor. The curve
of Fig. 4 was later used extensively by Cohn [4] in his 0.1
work in strip transmission line.
Considering Flammer's assumptions, the application 00 0. 0.2 0.3 OA OZ5 0.6 0.7 0.8 0.9 1.0
of his curve to the symmetrical geometry of a strip RATIO OF STRIP THICKNESS TO WIDTH, t /w
line seems intuitively valid if the space between ground Fig. 4. Relationship between a round and rectangular signal
planes is large. The equation for the characteristic im- conductor that is far from its ground conductor.
pedance of a strip line, due to Cohn, is
60 4b d = 0.67w (0.8 +- (6)
Zo= In- (5) w
V/Er ird
for the circular equivalent to a microstrip line. When
where questioned as to the source of (6), Springfield said that
Er =relative dielectric constant of the board material, the equation is completely empirical and is valid over
b =distance between ground planes, a limited range. Upon investigation it was found that
d = equivalent diameter as determined from Fig. 4, Springfield's equation is an excellent straight-line ap-
w =line width, proximation to Flammer's curve, as is shown graphically
= line thickness. in Fig. 4.
This straight-line equation is good for the range of
The equation is valid for characteristic impedances of most immediate interest.
w 0 At present most microstrip lines are made from boards
-< 0.35 and < 0.25. having copper thickness of 1.4 or 2.8 mils (1 or 2 ounces
b -t b of copper per square foot). In addition, the narrowest
Note that Cohn's restrictions do not conform to Flam- widths of lines in production are 0.008 to 0.010 inch.
mer' s assumption. That is, the signal conductor can be However, uniform line widths of 0.005 inch will soon
relatively close to the ground planes. Nonetheless, Cohn be available. Thus, the maximum ratio of line thickness
used the curve of Fig. 4 and experimentally justified its to line width likely to be encountered is on the order of
applicability. 0.7. In addition, line widths are usually less than 0.020
Since the relationship between a round and a rec- inch; consequently ratios of thickness to width of less
tangular cross section worked for strip line it was tried than 0.1 are uncommon. The straight line approxima-
for microstrip line. Several values from the curve of tion from Fig. 4 is very accurate for ratios of thickness
Fig. 4, together with the effective dielectric constant to width between 0.1 and 0.8. Therefore, (6) will be
computed from (4), were inserted into (1). The results used in the relationship for the characteristic imped-
checked closely with experimental measurements of ance of a microstrip transmission line.
characteristic impedance.
There is additional verification of the applicability of D. Characteristic Impedance Equation
Flammer's curve to microstrip line. Springfield [5] used The characteristic impedance of the microstrip line
the straight-line equation, will be determined in this section. Substituting (4) for
KAUPP: MICROSTRIP TRANSMISSION LINES 189
TABLE II
COMPARISON OF MEASURED AND COMPUTED VALUES OF THE CHARACTERISTIC IMPEDANCE OF MICROSTRIP LINES

Measured Line Line Dielectric Characteristic

Case Dielectric Thickness Width Thickness Impedance (ohms) Percent Error* h/d
No. Constant t (mils) w mils) h (mils)
c-r at 25 MHz t ml) w(is ml) Comp. Zo Meas. Zo0m
1 2.9 2.8 24 29 86.5 90.0 + 3.9 8.97
2 2.9 2.8 10 67 152 150 -1.3 9.27
3 4.3 2.8 22 19 62.6 65 +3.7 1.39
4 4.3 2.8 10 19 85.7 82 -4.5 2.62
5 4.3 2.8 10 55 124.8 124 -0.64 7.68
6 4.7 2.8 15 8 41.3 42.5 +2.82 0.807
7 4.7 2.8 10 8 52.5 53 +0.93 1.1
8 4.7 2.8 20 8 32.9 36 +8.61 0.64
9 4.7 2.8 10 10 60.4 59.5 -1.51 1.38
10 4.7 2.8 15 14 61 61 0 1.41
11 4.7 2.8 10 14 72 73 +1.37 1.93
12 4.7 2.8 20 22 68.8 67 -2.69 1.76
13 4.7 2.8 15 22 76.9 76.5 -0.523 2.22
14 4.7 2.8 10 27 95.3 98 +2.75 3.74
15 4.7 2.8 20 31 80.5 81 +0.617 2.48
16 4.7 2.8 15 31 89.0 90.5 +1.66 3.25
17 4.7 2.8 10 31 100 102 +1.96 4.29
18 4.7 1.4 10 31 105 4.93
19 4.7 2.8 5 31 119 116 -2.58 6.82
20 4.7 2.8 23 44 88.6 85.5 -3.62 3.1
21 4.7 2.8 15 44 101 99.2 -1.81 4.44
22 4.7 2.8 10 44 112.2 111.2 -0.9 6.08
23 4.7 2.8 23.5 60 98.9 94 -5.21 4.14
24 4.7 2.8 15 60 112 111 -0.9 6.05
25 4.7 2.8 10 60 123.2 125.4 +1.75 8.29
26 4.7 2.8 3.7 60 146 151 +3.31 15.6
27 5.23 2.8 10 8 50.2 53 +5.38 1.7
28 5.23 2.8 20 8 31.4 36 +12.8 0.64
29 5.23 2.8 7.5 10 64.5 70 | +7.9 1.11
*
(Z0m Z0)/Z0m

the dielectric constant and (6) for the equivalent di-
ameter into (1) yields the characteristic impedance,
60 4k
Zo = l\/0.475
V/0.475Er +0.67 In
0.67L_0.67(0.8w + t)_j
Reducing this equation yields
87 5.98h
Zo= In
i
.(7) (
/Er + 1.41 L0.8w + t_
Now the parameter range for which the equation is
valid must be determined. This is best accomplished by
comparing values computed using (7) with values ob-
tained experimentally.
In Reference [2], Surina made measurements of Zo
using three board materials and a wide range of dielec-
tric thicknesses and line widths. In Table II these ex-
perimental values of Zo are compared with correspond-
ing computed values. Most of the available data are
for G-10 fiber-glass-epoxy board material.
As seen from Table II, very good agreement exists
between the experimental and computed values. The
most significant errors occur for the last three cases 27,
28 and 29, where the dielectric constant is 5.23. Only
one other calculation (case 23) had an error greater than
5 percent. A decrease in dielectric constant from 5.23 to
4.7 for case 27, a lO-mil-wide line, decreased the error
from 5.38 to 0.93 percent. If the dielectric constant
value were wrong the error would be reduced. However,
using a dielectric constant of 4.7 instead of 5.23 for the
geometry of case 28 (resulting in case 8) only decreases
the error from 12.8 percent to 8.6 percent. This in-
dicates that the line width is too great with respect to
the dielectric thickness for (7) to be applicable.
As indicated, (1) is valid only when the dielectric
thickness is much greater than the line diameter. How-
ever, the results in Table II indicate that a ratio of h
to d greater than one leads to accurate results for micro-
strlp lines. Before the results are concluded to be rea-
sonable, the effects of physical tolerances must be con-
sidered.
III. VARIATION OF TRANSMISSION LINE
CHARACTERISTICS WITH PHYSICAL PARAMETERS
A Efects of Dielectric Constant Variations
Determination of the effects of changes in the dielec-
tric constant on the characteristic impedance is best
accomplished by relating the effective dielectric con-
stant to the dielectric constant of the board material
and its tolerance. Let k be the tolerance on the dielectric
constant of the board material, Er, and let n denote a
nominal value. Then
Er =(1 + k)Ern (8)
Inserting this relationship into (4) and reducing yields
Ere =0.475kern + Eren
where fr is the nominal value of the dielectric constant
and Eren is the nominal value of the effective dielectric
 190 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON ELECTRONIC COMPUTERS, APRIL 1967

T.O 1 E 1 W W W (rnO! W HE T
1.0~~~~~~~~~~~~ LERARNCE ONBOAARD
THE

Ernom MR DIEECRI CONS JATERDLELCTRICACOASTATN

z0.61.;4
0 T
0. eb Erno TH
gggHX02RgE
OLRNE NTE FETIE
1.0 SE
0.9

Fi. . aiooftleane as a.untono.bad.aera

wd0.ielectric c0onstant RELATIVE DILCI C T E
effect o changesz b materialielectric
rt 03 rnoRELATIERA
DIELECTRIC CONSTANT, 6r lt4' W1 k ;+

40. k- Cre
n r- EreTHE0T47ERANC
-.7k ±N 0.67 (9)R pecn.9
reno
valueIof
r
=
dielectric constant.
9 pret
The ratio ZONST-NT,(10

chage in Rthdieftlerinc costafnctiof the board material 4 2 s3 6 7 8 9 l

electric c n a .0From Fi.6

of~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~Fg 5te eis ga chage isec
thes thangnominbal
plote initinFig 5. ilcrccnsato hor
Aostexpeted aTgien kro changin
thefecie dielectric con- whtereZ is
tho oialvleo im-eac
the characteristic
famcrsrplle
stant of thvenboadmtraysnvrttlytasitdpdne o n stetlrneo h fetv i
to he ffctieielctrc onsan. Cnsiertheco- eerepniconstvanit.iTus ifnhtroleratincdelapoiie is 3.9

lqain()epess
than80eercnttfit
e e change badmtheriale
in Thistnchngon the characteristic impedance callno be
istasitte
tiedielectric constant rseto the effctivespodieec relateddrectltrom()ad9,toernesoflth
the board matserital
trccoanstnt Thti,iih oeacn
thebordielectric constant thrug the user ofera (9.Thsisdn
has a mAterial is ed
tolerance ± g0ierent
of +~~~~~theaolraek
~~~~~~~
pecn,teefciedeeti innhrceisti
10 ondeffectrive
the Fig.e 6. (Morhe noinsihti
imeac wilvaylesthn+420rcn
gained byusn theuaatrveti
c of-
deeticostant wilbels
than
8aerapecn.Tis
+or Fig.e5
totlyrasiedpan,Z obaindth respetive tolerance onthe effectivedi
toteeffectiivoe
constanthas rnuce stedielectric desdr
constant. h o- delectric and,i then
Thconstant.ofvarations applyiange
dielectrictis resutie
h ortoe
atoerance o + 7.8 prcent anthe 6s cneffenct Fig. in the constant.o
crae.FrTfo,wihhsadelectricconstant of Figur (10).).Fro 6 illustrates that ameac10 percent chang ininl
2.1, tan 10 percent oh change in board materialwolTesl hiecti coanstaint rhesutchrceinti a i4perent chang in
dinletachi nsangeo tol 6s percensmttein the effective dielectri chreateristirctl impedane folrandieeoftric consant ofter5a
trcconstant. Evenaftetlrneo
for h or dielectric constantthogteusof10,)a variato indine
Figuera 5s ca be convenietl toleac used obtain chage ectriic. c.(I/onstansgt haol gaie 50 percnt efetheonuvthe
teidielectric constant. ees
For toleances oftheret board Ti.5totihe
mxumvriapetion indilectric onstant
efrciv

valuet indicated frbiFg.5Thsaproximation the variatiic

can onstn in- ahe
dielectric constant spl for ingltieslboar
breaveriie throughlousewfc(3). Tu,fra dielectric thickness
b1))iue wil 6leustrts than± 5 percent.
0 cnseqeintl
consta 1 ecnt
~o,i hane bi oard material frmcotilnecnsreucted of fib er-gasepoxy
dielectric constant
wudrsl thanei
has a toleaneo ofl ±61 percent,i the effective dielectric characteristic impedance will vardilessthacnstn
+4 peren

hasr
tradilcrconstant . of±78pecnfn
tolerance s the oard s coneqmxiueneo chranges in tedielectric constant.fo
 KAUPP: MICROSTRIP TRANSMISSION LINES 191

K4 0 W W X ! W X W X X X ) ln ( 1 > >W1 m6 in ,35

+ ( I IN O I D

EFFEI -,IV -D C thIckes1s o ln wd f a h mtera etri

4.T._r.+'L067 cstan2t3o 4.
Y_60 I-5-98(1-±
q')hl 1

zov

is2lSlEEttS eS il< E :11 E

PRE CHANGE IN DIEL
- tEC
-+TRIC THICKNESS OR LINE WIDTH,X rECR EASE IN
6
0
n IN+60CREASE INhl
(11
U;
12~~~~~~~~~ OER1WANC ON DILECTI 25 2-0 5 i 10 5 0 5 X10m 1 IS 20 25 m

~~~~~~~~~IDT AN LIN THIKES T F-~igv__.

-~~8.......
Chane in chaacerm+<4
IIIIIIIist
Iic|I
imeacasoiae wit a changeI 2

1S tb St XX lEi'lM:llrll-W
= i=wv - - . .~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ .... .......

cross~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~r
sectional geoEtCRfrASmirotriNlne
4AZ0Vw 601(1
i~~_ q)- 61n 1+). 12
Th nex fatr to be cosdee are th e-2TwXf
|-fects omXf independen{t
Xof th vaue of i and w; it deed onlylllllll

thickness wi be assme to have th sam tolerance chng inLCTI geometrysl is inesl propotoa to the2
as0th lin with Thi ca beSniterprteRAdLiOn twoS was noin.8.Call characteristic imlpedance.ascae vt lg

of 2.8
ness rathe 1.4width
or the
than,tr on heorLCTI 2)ST and
line thiCk-
tolerance individually,
Thethickness
mis. an qis
eracedisecgive ecn.Te
T1 tinks Fig 7.ll withe curv ane
c baer usdiefcri
nes2stpclyls hn+1 ecn.Fra1-i-Ao/r 97(56 1. hs
widelin tht iSnomnaly 2. mis tick,a 1 pecen
on ticknes has a .6 perent eSct on he Notethat te absoute chnge forthe wost cas is no
tolerane
eqiaet imtr ftelie hs ol aueasmmtia. hti, h bvease wudhv
cse manr
vaiato In man cae meac
incaatrsi thtlerances of th lin
flesta n sign;1.Fol[
) 0r an imeac derese h mus deres
en+47om fh a nrae y1 ecnn or w
18thcnsca
<h be ignored
ihafbrgaseoybad At prset sina codutor musta increae
erae Fo example
y1 in)Fig
ecn.Hwvr7, asme toeane
a n
ar mad h witilcrctikesad
Let q etetlrneo crae y1 ecn n erae y1 ecn
m omirsrplie
the.toeac nteln eihroeo two
n ietikes te sineto oeacsaervre)tevleo o theln wit of ± 10 pearcentinand oeucngthes ealine height
AloltndntX oia au sbfr.Fo 7 1. hswudhv curd vrterneo
77

ounce of copperioper squaracerfoot,c whichayields afnthick- of ±h15pherceant. in the woarscasterimi ism+10dpcents

nsistpcallyslesecthoanl10merpecntfor ico-mpl-ne
a
widelin thaisnomiall 2.8mil thik, 10 ercnt ZOVEre = -0 9.7n (1+56=)6 -n (15. ohms.(2
tolFferace on thickessihasVarain2.Iecntefc\o h ote that theabsolue hng foaractherwosti casedisnoti
euvaletint i diaetecriof theiline.s Th,isewould caus an symmtreical thleatcis, the abdtovanswter woulde havem
vaiaethicnst,on
in characteristic impedancelesthnoe
of beednc+14. ohmspifehhad incesedb 15mna palern aonde
omicwithia fiber-glass-epoxy bard.si wair 10e
had decrase Howg
byntypercent.g nmever,ehdu hoin

Lethe qhbe the toler anceo the ilcrcticknessandi r2 cerascedsb 10 perenti and.w. dhecurveased bye1 psercent
mthe toeramnceo on the lineawidthmi andglienthicness. (rbtheassignmeinatioof tolerances .
aervsd)The value ofs
calsoleritic denoedanomna valuetias beore. Frowost (7 have curfrehad. Ove the rangsie of
15.3cohs w ouldoclra
192 IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON ELECTRONIC COMPUTERS, APRIL 1967
TABLE III
EXPECTED ACCURACY OF MEASUREMENT FOR VARIOUS GEOMETRIC CONFIGURATIONS OF MICROSTRIP LINE WITH
FIBER-GLASS-EPOXY DIELECTRIC. (ABSOLUTE VARIATIONS, w = 0.5 MIL, h =2 MILS)
Nominal w Variation of w Nominal h Variation of h
(mils) (percent) (mils) (percent)
20 2.5 8 25
10 5 8 25
10 5 10 20
20 2.5 31 6.45
10 5 31 6.45
5 10 31 6.45
10 5 60 3.3
practical interest the lack of symmetry is not of serious
consequence.
The change in characteristic impedance as a function
of geometric tolerances for a fiber-glass-epoxy board is
given in Fig. 8. In the worst case (for tolerances of 10
percent on dielectric thickness, line thickness, and line
width), the variation in impedance would be 7.1 ohms.
A linear approximation to the curve of Fig. 8 gives the
handy figure of 0.35 ohm per percent variation (0.7 ohm
per percent in the worst case). This approximation leads
to an error of about 0.3 ohm at tolerances of + 15 per-
cent. However, using the curve for worst-case approxi-
mation, the error is only 0.14 ohm at 15 percent.
The general curve of Fig. 7 is also useful for com-
puting ranges of characteristic impedance values. In a
given problem one or two values of characteristic im-
pedance can be computed from (7) and the other values
filled in by using Fig. 7. The gradient 0.35 ohm per
percent geometric change is convenient for estimating
changes in Zo for fiber-glass-epoxy boards.
C. Effects of Physical Measurement Limitations
Several factors have not been included in the equa-
tions for propagation delay and characteristic imped-
ance. As mentioned, the effect of line width on the ef-
fective dielectric constant was neglected because it was
small.
Another factor not yet considered is the variation of
board material dielectric constant with frequency.
Fortunately, the dielectric constant for materials of
interest does not vary excessively with frequency. The
dielectric constant of fiber-glass-epoxy decreases about
0.17 unit per factor of ten in frequency from 1 kHz
to several hundred megahertz (as observed from six
plots of Er versus frequency made from data measured
by J. J. Surina). This gradient is a convenient number
to have, since most measurements of the dielectric con-
stant are made at frequencies below 1 MHz.
Nonetheless the question arises as to what frequency
should be used for obtaining the dielectric constant.
The frequency used here was 200 MIHz. It was selected
by considering the line lengths used in the measure-
ments. The characteristic impedance measurements in
DiGiacomo et al. [2] were made by observing signal
reflections on the line caused by a known resistance
Corresponding Nominal Value Variation of Zo
Max. Variation f (ohms) (percent)
in Zo (ohms) o ZO0(hs pret
11 32.9 33
11.8 52.5 22
9.4 60.4 16
3.2 80.5 3.8
4.0 100 4.0
5.9 119 5.0
2.9 123.2 2.4
termination. The lines were 15 inches long which, for
fiber-glass-epoxy, yields a propagation delay of 2.3 ns.
Thus to clearly discern the reflected signal levels, a rise-
time on the order of two or three nanoseconds is needed.
(In the measurement a 1-ns risetime was used.) These
risetimes correspond to a bandpass frequency range of
100 to 350 MHz. Supported by reasoning in this rather
loose manner, the 200-MHz figure was chosen.
Fortunately, greater accuracy is not required in
choosing the frequency. The frequencies considered are
within a factor of 5 of each other. Thus, the error in the
dielectric constant will be less than 0.08 or 1.7 percent.
This would cause an error of less than 0.7 percent in the
characteristic impedance calculation. Consequently, to
emphasize the frequency at which the dielectric constant
should be obtained is unnecessary, and 200 MHz is a
reasonable figure to use.
The next consideration is the accuracy of the physical
measurements on the microstrip lines. The line widths
can only be measured to within 0.5 mil. The etching
process causes the line cross section to be trapezoidal
rather than rectangular, making the width measure-
ment difficult. In addition, the dielectric thickness of
fiber-glass-epoxy can vary 2 mils or more over a given
board. (Of three 16X 16 inch boards, 30 mils thick, two
boards showed variations in excess of 3 mils.) The as-
sumption of a 0.5-mil accuracy in measuring line width
and a conservative 2-mil accuracy for dielectric thick-
ness leads to the errors shown in Table III.
In addition to measurement variations of the line
geometry, variations in dielectric constant must be
examined. Measurements of the dielectric constant at
three points, each on several fiber-glass-epoxy boards,
resulted in variations as high as 0.2 unit. However, even
using a more typical variation of 0.1 unit out of 5
means that another 2 percent measurement inaccuracy
must be added to those of Table III. Consequently,
considering the accuracy in measuring physical parame-
ters, the computed values of characteristic impedance
cannot be expected to agree with experimental values
by any better than 5 percent. For lower values of im-
pedance, on the order of 40 to 60 ohms, agreement
within 10 percent can be considered excellent. The
values of characteristic impedance computed in Table II
are well within the expected accuracy.
IEEE TRANSACTIONS ON ELECTRONIC COMPUTERS, VOL. EC-16, NO. 2, APRIL 1967 193

IV. SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS The accuracy of these equations has been verified ex-
The equations perimentally for board materials with dielectric con-
stants of 2.9, 4.3, 4.7, and 5.2, dielectric thicknesses
60 5.98h from 8 to 60 mils, and line widths from 4 to 25 mils.
ZO = A_- in (ohms) These parameters yield characteristic impedance values

and
ranging from 40 to 150 ohms. The validity of the equa-
tion is dubious for values of dielectric thickness less
Td = 1.016N/ere (ns/ft) than 80 percent of the line width.
describe the characteristic impedance and propagation REFERENCES
delay of microstrip transmission lines to within the ac- [1] national Data for Radio
ReferenceTelephone Engineers, 4th ed. New York: Inter-
and Telegraph Corp., 1956.
curacy that physical measurements can be made. [2] J. J. DiGiacomo, A. Feller, H. R. Kaupp, and J. J. Surina, "De-
In the equations, sign and fabrication of nanosecond digital equipment," RCA
Publication, March 1965.
[3] C. Flammer, "Equivalent radii of thin cylindrical antennas with
Ere = 0.475Er + 0.67 arbitrary cross-section," Stanford Research Institute, Stanford,
Calif., Technical Report, March 1950.
is the effective dielectric constant relative to air; Er iS [4] S.Microwave "Problems
B. Cohn, Theory andin Technique,
strip transmission lines," IRE Trans. on
vol. MTT-3, pp. 119-126,
the dielectric constant of the board material, h is the March 1955.
dielectric thickness, w is the line width and t is the line W. K. Springfield,
[5] applications," "Multilayer printed circuitry in computer
presented at Fall Meeting of Printed Circuits,
thickness. Chicago, Ill., October 6, 1964.

Multiple Reflections on Pulse Signal Transmission

Lines Model for Computer Solution
GUSTAV N. WASSEL, MEMBER, IEEE

Abstract-A mathematical model for multiple reflections on loss- GLOSSARY OF SYMBOLS

less, distortionless signal transmission lines is developed for step
changes in voltage or current at the source. The model is quite Ak or AL' factor by which a portion of Ak or AL'
general and is valid for a source driving either one or two lines each is affected by Ak-1 or AL'-1
loaded with an arbitrary number of discontinuities at arbitrary Bk,i or BL,i' factor by which a portion of Ak or AL'
distances. It will give an exact solution for discontinuities and termi-
nations which are purely resistive and allows for resistances of any
Ak±i or AL +i
is affected by
circuit capacitance
C
size, none of which need be alike. Although an exact solution is C ctr whichAV
valid only when the capacitances are negligible, a method is pre- or D1' factor by which
by
A VSI affects A1 or 1'
f
,

sented which will partially compensate for a capacitively distorted do and do' identically zero (i.e., distance from
wave if the capacitive-characteristic resistance time constant is source to itself)
reasonably small compared to the transit time of the line. Considera- or dL' distance from source to kth load in un-
tions for digital computer simulation of the mathematical model are
discussed and several examples including open backplane wiring primed branch or to Lth load in primed
comparing actual and computer results are given. The model and branch
simulation are especially useful for lines which are not terminated Ek and EL' factors used to calculate A1 and A,'
in the characteristic impedance at the source or load end and also lo initial current or equivalent current
where modification of the model can be made to investigate reactive from source prior to disturbance
and nonlinear terminations.
k number of the load in unprimed branch
Index Terms-Backplane wiring, computer wiring, digital design, Ko "i c a suc
discontinuity reflections, line loading, multiple reflections, pulse, K,rfeto ofiin tsuc
reflections, reflection model, step response, terminations, trans- Kk or KL' reflection coefficient at kth load in un-
mission lines. primed branch or Lth load in primed
Manuscript received June 23, 1966; revised October 19, 1966. branch
This work was supported by the Burroughs Corporation, Pasadena, L number of the load in primed branch
Calif. .m number of loads in the L or primed
The author is with the Dept. Electronics Engrg., California State bac
Polytechnic College, Pomona, Calif., and the Pasadena Plant, bac
Burroughs Corporation, Pasadena, Calif. He is at present at the N number of the reflection at a discon-
Technical College of Dar es Salaam, Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, Easttnuy
Africa, on a two-year teaching assignment.tiuy