SLOT AERIALS AND THEIR RELATION TO COMPLEMENTARY WIRE AERIALS

(BABINET'S PRINCIPLE)*
By H. G. BOOKER, Ph.D.t
(The paper was first received I6//1 March, and in revised form 3rd May, 1946.)
(1) SUMMARY array being otherwise largely transparent. The characteristic
A hull-wave slot in a metal sheet may be used as a resonant aerial property of the array of half-wave slots in the metal sheet is that
in a manner similar to a half-wave dipole. The polar diagrams are it is almost perfectly transparent for waves incident upon it at
the same, but the directions of vibration of the electric and magnetic the resonant frequency of the array and with the magnetic field
fields are interchanged. If the slot is driven by means of a trans- vibrating parallel to the slots, the array being otherwise largely
mission line connected between opposite edges at the centre, the input reflecting. Not merely are statements such as the above true to
impedance at resonance is about 485 ohms. The relation between a high degree of accuracy, but valuable quantitative relations
resonant dipoles and resonant slots is an example of what in optics
is known as Babinet's principle. This principle is established in the
form required for electromagnetism and quantitative relations are
deduced from it.
Arrays of slots may be fed by transmission lines or wave guides to
form linear or broadside aerials. Resonant gratings of slots may be
used to polarize incident waves or act as band-pass filters. Single
resonant slots may be used in wave guides in the same way as parallel-
tuned circuits are shunted across transmission lines. All devices
adopted in connection with wire aerials have complements for slot
aerjals. Slots and dipoles may be combined to produce aerials with V/7//J/JM V)))))77\ ffJJJJfA t))tt))\ V/7J/fl
special polarization properties. Slots (with dielectric plugs) may be
used in the skin of aircraft to provide dragless aerials.
In addition, Babinet's principle may be used to reduce new problems
to old ones whose solution is already known. These include problems (a) Band-stop Filter
connected with discontinuities in transmission lines, wave guides with (b) Band-pass Filter
corrugated sides, magnetron cavities, and the leakage of electro-
magnetic radiation through holes in metal walls. Fig. 1.—Resonant gratings.
There is a wide variety of problems, both practical and theoretical
Shading denotes metal.
for which it is always wise to consider the possibility of applying Electric field vibrates horizontally.
Babinet's principle.
exist, for example, between the driving-point impedance of a
(2) INTRODUCTION centre-fed half-wave slot and that of a centre-fed half-wave
During the war there has been a great increase in the use of dipole that would just fit into the slot. It is the purpose of this
centimetre wavelengths, largely in connection with radar, and paper to describe some of these relationships and to indicate
this development has been accompanied by a considerable in- ways in which they have been or might be of practical value.
crease in the extent to which it is possible to apply the methods The paper is based on material originally issued by the Telecom-
of optics to design and analysis of radio equipment. An in- munications Research Establishment in secret form in December,
teresting aspect of this tendency is the use that has been made in 1941.
radio of what is known in optics as Babinet's principle. This Babinet's principle as used and proved in optics is actually too
principle is one which permits almost any piece of equipment crude an approximation to be of much practical value in radio
constructed of wires to be translated into a complementary equip- engineering, and a vital though simple extension of the principle
ment consisting of slots in metal sheets, there being a close rela- is required for electromagnetic applications. That the optical
tion between the behaviour of the two equipments. As an version of the principle is inadequate for radio engineering may
example consider a reflecting curtain of parasitic dipoles of the be seen from the fact that no mention is normally made of the
type frequently used in beam aerials at decimetre wavelengths. polarization of the exciting electromagnetic field in optical appli-
This is a flat array of parallel half-wave dipoles arranged in a cations. But it is obvious that in radio applications involving
half-wave lattice [see Fig. l(a)]. Regarding this as part of a wires and slots, voltage must be developed along wires but across
plane screen, let us now interchange metal and air, thereby slots. Thus for perfect reflection at the resonant frequency by
obtaining a metal screen in which is cut an array of half-wave the array of dipoles in Fig. \{a), the electric field of the incident
slots. Such a screen is illustrated in Fig. 1(6): the reason for wave must be parallel to the dipoles, whereas for perfect trans-
rotating Fig. l(b) through a right angle in relation to Fig. \(a) will mission by the array of slots in Fig. 1(6), it is the magnetic field
be indicated in the next paragraph. Babinet's principle suggests that must be parallel to the slots so that voltage is developed
that there should be an intimate relation between these two com- across the slots. These vital considerations of polarization do
plementary metal screens. In fact the characteristic property of not seem to have arisen in optics. Possibly conducting screens
the array of dipoles is that it is practically a perfect reflector for whose geometrical structure is comparable with or less than the
waves incident upon it at the resonant frequency of the array wavelength have never had to be considered in optics. But these
and with the electric field vibrating parallel to the dipoles, the cases, involving as they do vital resonance conditions, are the
* Radio Section paper. ones of major interest in radio.
•!• Cavendish Laboratory, Cambridge, formerly Telecommunications Research
Establishment. The version of Babinet's principle required for electromagnetic
[620]
BOOKER: SLOT AERIALS AND THEIR RELATION TO COMPLEMENTARY WIRE AERIALS (BABINET'S PRINCIPLE) 621
applications is given in Section 3. Applications to the impedance ratio for the complementary screen and conjugate source. Then
relations for complementary metal screens are given in Section 4. Babinet's principle states that
The particularly important case of a half-wave resonant slot and «i + n 2 =»l (1)
its relation to the complementary half-wave dipole is discussed in
Section 5. Finally, in Section 6 some indication is given of the Babinet's principle may also be stated in terms of the waves re-
way in which slots have been or might be used in practice. flected by the screens as follows. For the first screen and source
let vl be the ratio of the reflected field produced in front of the
(3) BABINET'S PRINCIPLE plane of the screen to the reflected field that would be produced
Babinet's principle as used in optics may be described as with both screens present, that is, with a complete infinite metal
follows. Consider a thin plane screen which is black in the screen. Let v2 be the corresponding ratio for the complementary
sense that it is non-reflecting. Suppose that the screen is pierced screen and conjugate source. Then
by holes of any size, shape or distribution, and that in front of vt+v2 = l (2)
the plane of the screen, there is a source (or distribution of In what follows it will be assumed unless otherwise stated that,
sources). Let the screen obtained by interchanging holes and when we pass from a given metallic screen to the complementary
obstruct ions be called the complementary screen. Then Babinet's metallic screen, we at the same time pass from the given sources
principle states that the disturbance produced at any point to the conjugate sources in the sense described above.
behind the plane of the screen for each of two complementary As an application of Babinet's principle consider the comple-
screens adds up to give the disturbance that would be produced mentary screens illustrated in Fig. 1. Fig. \(a) represents a
with no screen. Obviously this is true on the basis of the simple curtain of identical regularly-spaced wires such as is often used
ray theory since the shadows formed by complementary screens behind a broadside array of aerials. Suppose that the curtain
are complementary. It is also true, however, when diffraction is extends indefinitely in all directions, and1 that an infinite plane
taken into account. This is often proved approximately in books wave is normally incident upon it with its electric field vibrating
on optics by a somewhat crude application of Huygens' principle. parallel to the wires. Then there is a frequency, corresponding
However, Babinet's principle is far more rigorous than this par- to a wavelength approximately twice the length of a wire, at
ticular proof would suggest. In fact it would be completely which the curtain completely reflects the incident wave. If the
rigorous but for the fact that a black screen is not quite a unique dipoles are in the form of flat strips all in the same plane we may
concept.1 In electromagnetism, however, we use metal screens regard the curtain as a screen to which we may apply Babinet's
at which the boundary conditions are unique and well known. principle. Take the complementary screen, and rotate it
Consequently Babinet's principle in electromagnetism is abso- through a right angle as shown in Fig. 1(6), so as to secure the
lutely rigid provided only that the screen is: effect of interchanging the directions of vibration of the electric
(i) plane, and magnetic fields in the incident wave. Then Babinet's prin-
(ii) perfectly conducting, ciple shows that, at the frequency at which the curtain of Fig. l(a)
(iii) indefinitely thin. is a perfect reflector, the grating of Fig. 1(6) is perfectly trans-
parent. Moreover, by considering frequencies displaced from
There is, however, an additional point of vital importance in- the resonant frequency it follows that the selectivity, or Q, of the
volved in Babinet's principle for electromagnetism. To satisfy complementary gratings of Fig. 1 is the same.*
the boundary conditions at the surface of the screen we have to
introduce image-sources which look out of image-space into (4) IMPEDANCE RELATIONS FOR COMPLEMENTARY
object-space through the face of the screen. When adding up METAL SCREENS
the fields produced behind the two complementary screens to The reflecting and transmitting properties of gratings of the
obtain the field that would be produced with no screen, the type indicated in Fig. 1 may conveniently be expressed in terms
image-sources associated with the complementary screens must of what is known as their equivalent surface-impedances or ad-
cancel each other out. Consequently, for Babinet's principle to mittances, and there is a simple relationship between the equivalent
hold, images in complementary screens must vibrate in anti-phase. surface-impedances of two complementary gratings.
This means that, if one screen is a perfect conductor of electricity, It is perhaps necessary to explain what is meant by the equiva-
its complement must be what we may describe theoretically as a lent surface-impedance or admittance of gratings such as those
perfect conductor of magnetism. A perfect conductor of illustrated in Fig. 1. To do this it is convenient initially to think
magnetism is, of course, non-existent in nature. But we may of a uniform, infinite, plane, thin screen made of material whose
overcome this difficulty as follows. After passing to the com- surface conductance is G: a square of such material would have
plementary screen, interchange electric and magnetic quantities a total conductance G between opposite edges. Let this screen
everywhere. The complementary screen thus reverts to a perfect be set up in a homogeneous medium whose intrinsic admittance!
conductor of electricity, while the directions of vibration of the is Y. Let a plane wave whose electric field is <f, be incident
electric and magnetic vectors in the surrounding electromagnetic normally on one side of the screen, and let <f [ and <f2 o e t n e
field are everywhere interchanged. This means that, if the source electric field in the waves reflected and transmitted normally to
associated with the original metal screen is an elementary electric the screen. Then the relation between <?v $\ and #'2 is
dipole (or small condenser), that associated with the comple-
mentary metal screen must be an elementary magnetic dipole (or &I(2Y + G) = $ \ l ( - G ) - F 2 K 2 Y ) . . . (3)
small coil). Two sources related in this way may be called con- These are the same formulae as are obtained when a conductance
jugate. Babinet's principle for electromagnetism may now be G is shunted across a transmission line of characteristic ad-
stated as follows:— mittance Y.
Consider two complementary metal screens satisfying condi- Now suppose the screen is not simply resistive but is a grating
tions (i), (ii) and (iii) above, and at corresponding points in front such as indicated in Fig. 1, so that it possesses stored electro-
of each screen let there be conjugate sources (or systems of magnetic energy in addition to, or instead of, resistance. Then
sources). For the first screen and source let ux be the ratio of • It should be noted however that a thin strip of breadth b (small compared with
the wavelength) behaves essentially like a circular wire of diameter 6/2 from the view-
the field produced behind the plane of the screen to that which point of selectivity.
wouid be produced with no screen. Let u2 be the corresponding t Ratio of magnetic field (amp/m) to electric field (volts/m) for a simple plane
wave in the medium.
 622 BOOKER: SLOT AERIALS AND THEIR RELATION TO COMPLEMENTARY WIRE AERIALS (BABINET'S PRINCIPLE)
the relation between the incident, reflected and transmitted waves electricfieldvibrating parallel to the wires the equivalent surface-
is still given by (3) but G is now complex or even purely imaginary. impedance is
It is this complex G that is known as the equivalent surface- X ) ] . . . . (11)
admittance of the grating.
Let Yj and Y2 be the equivalent surface-admittances for two This is purely inductive provided that the surrounding medium
complementary gratings such as those shown in Fig. 1 and let is loss-free, Z being given by equation (5) in the case of free space.
Y be the intrinsic admittance of the surrounding medium. For The inductance is of course associated with stored magnetic
free space energy in the vicinity of the wires. The complementary grating is
Y^UZ (4) indicated in Fig. 2(6) and has been rotated through a right angle
so as to secure the effect of interchanging the directions of vibra-
where Z = 377 Q . . (5) tion of the electric and magneticfieldsin the incident wave. The
equivalent surface-impedance Z 2 of this grating for a plane wave
approximately. We have for the two gratings incident normally with its electric field vibrating across the slots
(6) is deduced from (11) by (9). Expressed in terms of admittance,
the result is
Y2) = -Y2) == (7) Y2^4jY(dlX)loge[(2d)l(7rb)] . . . . (12)
The same formulae are obtained when an admittance Yl or Y2 is Thus the grating in Fig. 2(b) is purely capacitive, the capacitance
shunted across a transmission line of characteristic admittance Y. being that existing across the slots. That an inductive grating of
From equation (1) the sum of the transmission-coefficients the type indicated in Fig. 2(b) can be combined with a capacitive
given by equations (6) and (7) is unity. This gives grating of the type indicated in Fig. 2(6) to give a resonant grating
Y2 - 4Y2 of the type indicated in Fig. 1(6) is not, of course, in the least
(8)
surprising: allowance has to be made, however, for interaction
or, in terms of the corresponding impedances between the two gratings.
Z y . . 1.72 (Q\
(5) THEORY OF RESONANT SLOTS
The same result could have been deduced from equation (2) Consider a straight narrow slot, about a half wavelength long,
using the reflection coefficients given by equations (6) and (7). cut in an otherwise infinite, plane, perfectly conducting, thin
We see from equation (9) that the geometric mean of the equiva- sheet of metal. Suppose that it is excited by means of a generator
lent surface-impedances of two complementary gratings is equal connected between opposite edges at its centre as shown in Fig. 3.
to half the intrinsic impedance of the surrounding medium. For The metal comprising the two opposite edges of the slot may be
free space, in accordance with equation (5) the right-hand side of regarded as forming a transmission line which is short-circuited
equation (9) is except for the half wavelength constituting the slot. The slot
- 35 477 (ohms)2 . . . . (10) radiates considerably more than a corresponding twin-wire trans-
The curtain indicated in Fig. l(a) is a simple form of band-stop mission line because of the extent to which current associated
filter for simple infinite plane waves and corresponds to a series with the slot spreads over the metal. During one half-cycle,
resonant circuit shunted across a transmission line (Tj = oo at currentflowsround the ends of the slot as indicated in Fig, 3(«),
resonance). The grating indicated in Fig. 1(6) is a simple form of
band-pass filter for simple infinite plane waves and corresponds
to a parallel resonant circuit shunted across a transmission line
(Y2 ~ 0 at resonance). The slots in Fig. 1(6) function like
resonant slots of the type discussed in the next section.
Another example of complementary gratings is shown in
Fig. 2. Fig. 2(«) represents a plane grating of equidistant parallel

7/////
(a) Flow of current (b) Distribution of chartfe
o

Fig. 3.—Mechanism of half-wave slot.

(a) Inductive
:1 ( b) Capacitive
and charge accumulates on the opposite edges of the slot as
indicated in Fig. 3(6): during the next half-cycle the process
reverses.
Consider the dipole complementary to the slot shown in Fig. 3.
It consists of a narrow rectangular strip of metal fed at the
centre with a generator as shown in Fig. 4. Fig. 4(a) shows a
Fig. 2.—Inductive and capacitive gratings. view of the dipole at right angles to the plane of the strip, while
Shading denotes metal.
Electric field vibrates horizontally.

wires in the form of fiat strips of breadth 6 with their centre-lines

distant d apart. Suppose for simplicity that 6 is small compared Y1
with d, which itself is small compared with the wavelength A. (a) Viewed normal to strip (6) Viewed edgewise
For a plane wave incident normally on this grating with its Fig. 4.—Dipole complementary to slot of Fig. 3.
BOOKER: SLOT AERIALS AND THEIR RELATION TO COMPLEMENTARY WIRE AERIALS (BABINET'S PRINCIPLE) 623
Fig. A{b) shows a view in the plane of the strip at right angles to It is clear from the procedure described above that the electro-
its length. XYZYJX is a contour round which we shall need to magnetic fields of a slot and its complementary dipole are
integrate. We may pass from thefieldassociated with this dipole identical except that the directions of vibration of the electric
to that associated with the complementary slot by the following and magnetic fields are interchanged. The polar diagrams for
procedure, illustrated in Fig. 5. the two cases are therefore identical. It should be noted, how-
(i) Interchange electric and magnetic quantities everywhere. ever, that this assumes that the slot is cut in a plane metal sheet
We now have a dipole made of a rectangular strip of what we which extends to infinity. For a finite sheet there would be
may describe theoretically as a perfect conductor of magnetism. diffraction at the outer edge (see Section 6).
It is excited by a magnetic generator at its centre. This we may The relation between the driving-point impedance of a slot and
regard as taking the form of a loop of wire containing an anti- complementary dipole may be calculated as follows. Let
symmetrical pair of electric generators as indicated in Fig. 5(a)
Fj, 7t = voltage and current delivered by generator exciting
dipole.
Zj = FJ/ZJ = driving point impedance of dipole.
V2,I2 = voltage and current delivered by generator exciting
f slot.
Z 2 = V2/I2 = driving point impedance of slot.
<f,, Ht = electric and magnetic fields produced by dipole.
c
$2, H2 — electric and magnetic fields produced by slot.
H H H H H H H ds — vector element of length.
From the contours XYZY'X, ABCB^A in Figs. 4(b) and 5(d) we
obtain
. . . . (13)
XYZ

- 2 . . . . (14)

— e2ds — g2ds . . . . (15)

(a) (b> (O (d) 'ABIC

Fig. 5.—Relation between dipole and complementary slot.

which shows a view along the length of the dipole. At the

~[ 2
U = .fiT,* = 2
XYZiX
. . . . (16)

surface of the rectangular strip forming the dipole, the magnetic But, in view of the procedure (i), (ii), (iii), (iv) described above
field H is normal, and points in opposite directions on the two and illustrated in Fig. 5, it follows that
faces of the strip. At other points in the plane of the strip the
electric field % is normal to the plane. These features are illus- 2 (17)
trated in Fig. 5(a) and follow directly from corresponding results J
XYZ W
for the dipole of Fig. 4 by interchanging electric and magnetic
quantities. ^z[Hyds (18)
(ii) Use the magnetic dipole of Fig. 5(a) in conjunction with the JABC
complementary metal screen of Fig. 3 as shown in Fig. 5(6). The
perfect conductor of magnetism in Fig. 5(a) and the perfect con- where Z is the intrinsic impedance of the surrounding medium,
ductor of electricity in Fig. 3 fit together to form an infinite given by (5) for free space. From (13), (16) and (17) it follows
screen, as indicated in Fig. 5(b). The associated electromagnetic that
field is the same as that of Fig. 5(o), since the condition that <f Vl^\ZI2 (19)
should be normal to the perfect conductor of electricity is thereby and from (14), (15) and (18) that
satisfied.
(iii) Reverse one of the generators in Fig. 5(6) as shown in V2 = iZFl (20)
Fig. 5(c), thereby reversing the electromagnetic field on one side
of the screen. The electric field % at the surface of the perfect Multiplying (19) and (20) we obtain
conductor of electricity now points in opposite directions on the VffllA^lZi (21)
two faces, whereas for the perfect conductor of magnetism it or ZXZ2^\Z?- (22)
points in the same direction as shown in Fig. 5(c).
(iv) Remove the perfect conductor of magnetism in Fig. 5(c), Thus the geometric mean of the driving-point impedances of a
leaving a slot in a metal sheet fed at its centre by a pair of slot and complementary dipole is equal to half the intrinsic im-
generators connected in parallel as indicated in Fig. 5(d). This pedance of the surrounding medium. This is the same as the
we may do without upsetting the electromagnetic field of relation (9) between the equivalent surface-impedances of com-
Fig. 5(c) since there was no discontinuity of magnetic field at the plementary gratings. For a half-wave dipole at resonance it is
perfect conductor of magnetism in Fig. 5(r). ABCB'A in usual to take the centre impedance as
Fig. 5(d) is a contour round which we shall need to integrate.
The pair of generators in Fig. 5(d) may of course be replaced by Zj = 0 1 9 4 Z (23)
a single generator. = 73 a (24)
624 BOOKER: SLOT AERIALS AND THEIR RELATION TO COMPLEMENTARY WIRE AERIALS (BABINET'S PRINCIPLE)
for free space from equation (5). It follows from equation (22) Suppose we have a half-wave slot in a metal screen and that
that the centre-impedance of a half-wave slot at resonance is it is excited, not by a generator, but by a wave incident on one
side of the screen. Let W kilowatts be the power transmitted
Z2 - 1-29Z (25) through the slot to the further side of the screen, and V kilovolts
- 485 Q (26) the r.m.s. electromotive force developed across the centre of the
slot. The relation between Wand Kmay be calculated as follows.
for free space. If V is the r.m.s. electromotive force across the Assuming that free vibration swamps forced vibration, the slot
centre of the slot in kilovolts and W is the power radiated in functions substantially as if it were excited by a generator
kilowatts, then radiating 2 W kilowatts equally divided between the two sides of
W 1000J^/Z2 (27) the screen. We therefore only have to replace W by 2 W in (27),
(28) and (29). This gives for free space
-776F2/Z (28)
j/=l-OV^ (35)
-2-06F2 (29)
A grating of resonant slots of the type shown in Fig. \(b) is
for free space. This power is, of course, equally divided between dealt with in the same way as a curtain of resonant dipoles of
the two regions of space on either side of the metal screen, the type shown in Fig. l(a). The mutual impedance between two
unless steps are taken to the contrary. slots is related to the mutual impedance between the two com-
It is obvious from Babinet's principle that the selectivity of a plementary dipoles by equation (22). The interaction between
slot and its complementary dipole are the same. Equation (22) slots and dipoles involves, however, new considerations which
states in fact that impedance for the one is proportional to ad- have been worked out but which will not be discussed in this
mittance for the other, the constant of proportionality being paper. In the above discussion particular emphasis has been laid
independent of frequency, assuming of course that the sur- on straight half-wave resonant dipoles and slots. The argument
rounding medium is not dispersive. We can reduce the may however be directly extended to any planar wire and com-
selectivity of a slot by widening it just as we can reduce the plementary slot. The driving point impedances of comple-
selectivity of a dipole by increasing its lateral dimensions. mentary metal screens at corresponding points are always
A slot regarded as a transmission line should have a charac- related by equation (22).
teristic impedance, with the aid of which the driving-point im-
pedance at any one point of the slot can be deduced from that (6) SOME POSSIBLE APPLICATIONS OF SLOTS
at any other point by ordinary theory of transmission lines. In
fact, however, there is some difficulty in defining the charac- Since the above theoretical work was done in 1941, numerous
teristic impedance of a slot and in calculating it precisely. This practical applications of slots have arisen in Great Britain
arises from the fact that a condenser formed by cutting an infinite- and overseas. It is not however the function of this paper to
length slot in an infinite metal sheet has a capacitance that describe these developments in detail, or the techniques that have
been worked out to fulfil the conditions involved in the various
is infinite. This is true even if the slot has a finite breadth b,
applications. Some idea of the way in which slots can be used
and is due to large contributions from the metal distant from
in practice is given below, nevertheless.
the slot. In practice, of course, it is only metal within a distance
of about A/(2TT) of the slot that really matters. On this basis an It is obviously impracticable to enumerate all the possible ways
approximate characteristic admittance Y% of the slot may be in which slots could be used. Any plane system of wires used
evaluated as in any application (a simple example would be a twin-wire
transmission line) can be regarded as a metal screen to which
72°-(2/7T)rioge[(2A)/(7rZ>)] . . . . (30)
Babinet's principle can be applied to deduce a complementary
Y being the intrinsic admittance of the surrounding medium. In system of slots having complementary properties. In fact it is
terms of this characteristic admittance, the selectivity of a half- not even necessary that the system of wires should be plane. If
wave slot may be evaluated by the same argument as would be it is not plane, the precise quantitative relationship involved in
used for a transmission line, the result being Babinet's principle becomes an approximation, but the qualitative
ideas persists largely unchanged (for example, a bent or twisted
Q - (3D twin-wire transmission line). Thus almost any equipment
where Y2 is the reciprocal of (25). The difficulty that arises in normally built of wires could, with sufficient ingenuity, be trans-
specifying the characteristic impedance of a slot corresponds lated into a complementary equipment incorporating slots.
exactly to the difficulty in specifying the characteristic impedance However, in many cases the complementary equipment would be
of a single wire. The latter may be taken to be the same as if clumsy and of little practical interest, wire-arrangements being
the wire formed the inner conductor of a concentric trans- preferable. In other cases, however, it is the slots that constitute
mission-line whose outer conductor is of radius A/(2TT). Thus, the more convenient arrangement, while there are some problems
for a wire of diameter b/2, or a strip of breadth b, the charac- for which slots provide the only satisfactory answer.
teristic impedance is An obvious application of half-wave slots is to use them for
aerials instead of half-wave dipoles. Two practical points
(7r6)] . . . . (32) immediately arise:
and in terms of this the selectivity of a half-wave dipole is (i) it is not possible for the sheet in which the half-wave slot
is cut to be an infinite plane,
Q^7TZy2Zl (33)
(ii) one usually wants the slot to radiate on only one side of
Z t being given by (23). Notice that (30) and (32) satisfy the sheet.
Z0Z« = | Z 2 (34) The second of these difficulties may be overcome simply, by
boxing the slot in on the side from which no radiation is desired.
Z\ being the reciprocal of Y\. Notice also that, by virtue of (22) If this is done with a hemisphere of radius about A/4 concentric
and (34) the selectivities (31) and (33) are equal, as they should with the centre of the slot, no appreciable reactive load is thrown
be by Babinet's principle. across the centre of the slot. If the box is such as to throw a
BOOKER: SLOT AERIALS AND THEIR RELATION TO COMPLEMENTARY WIRE AERIALS (BABINET'S PRINCIPLE) 625
reactive load across the slot, this may be balanced out by re- in one side of a wave guide. This application has proved par-
adjusting the length of the slot. One form of box that has been ticularly convenient in practice. Detailed work, both theoreti-
used by Dr. C. H. Westcott of the Telecommunications Research cal and experimental, has been done to establish the technique
Establishment is constructed by cutting the slot along the of positioning the slots on a wave guide so as to produce any
generator of a circular metal cylinder: if the diameter of the desired distribution of amplitude and phase, and consequently
cylinder regarded as a wave guide is less than that required to any desired polar diagram. The pioneer in this application has
prevent transmission of the lowest mode in non-evanescent form, been Dr. W. H. Watson (see page 747). A set of parallel
then the ends of the cylinder may be left open without causing linear arrays of this type may be fitted together to form a broad-
appreciable radiation from them. When a half-wave slot is side array of the type indicated in Fig. 1(6), or alternatively a single
boxed up non-reactively on one side of the sheet so that it can linear array can be placed along the focal line of a cylindrical
only radiate on the other side, the centre-impedance of the slot paraboloid.
is double the value given by equations (25) and (26) and is of the A parasitic array of half-wave slots of the type indicated in
order of a thousand ohms. Fig. 1(6) may be used to control the polarization of an incident
The fact that in practice slots have to be cut in metal sheets of wave. Alternatively, such an array may be used as a band-pass
finite size has comparatively little influence on the impedance filter to pass only wavelengths in the neighbourhood of twice the
properties of slots, provided there is a reasonable surround of length of the slot (and harmonics). In the latter application it
the order of A/(2TT) or more. The polar diagram of the slot is, may be desirable that the array should cope with incident waves
however, appreciably modified. Suppose first of all that the slot of all polarizations. To achieve this, each element of the array
is radiating on both sides of the sheet, and consider a point in may consist of a pair of perpendicular crossed slots, or alterna-
the plane of the sheet, but outside its perimeter. At such a tively of a circular slot one wavelength in circumference at
point radiation is received equally from both sides of the sheet resonance. The same technique may be used in wave guides.
and, in accordance with Fig. 5(d), the two contributions are in A resonant slot cut in a metal screen placed across a wave guide
anti-phase. Consequently, zero radiation occurs in all directions is the analogue of a parallel-tuned circuit shunted across a trans-
in the plane of the sheet, whereas with an infinite sheet zero mission line: it forms a band-pass filter. A drawback of this
radiation occurs only in the two directions defined by the align- arrangement is that it restricts the ability of the guide to handle
ment of the slot. The larger the metal sheet, the smaller is the high power. If 100 kW is passing through a single half-wave slot,
range of angles near the plane of the sheet in which the polar the r.m.s. electromotive force developed across the slot at its centre
diagram is modified in the way described. If the slot is only is about 10 kV from equation (35). This drawback may however
allowed to radiate on one side of the sheet, then radiation does be turned to advantage and used as the basis for a system of
take place in the plane of the sheet, but the energy density is radar transmission and reception using a common aerial. When
reduced by diffraction by a factor of two in comparison with the the equipment transmits, the resonant slot is short-circuited by
case of an infinite sheet. the spark which passes across it, and this is arranged to connect
An example of the use of a single slot arranged to radiate on the transmitter to the aerial. Otherwise the resonant slot is
one side from a sheet of finite size is provided by the problem transparent and the receiver is connected to the aerial. Dr.
of feeding from the focus a paraboloidal mirror cut so that its W. D. Allen was working on these problems of handling centi-
horizontal dimension is appreciably greater than its vertical metric wavelengths in wave guides in 1941 at the Telecommuni-
dimension. If it is desired to illuminate such a mirror with cations Research Establishment, and it was largely his experi-
vertically-polarized waves, we need only place at the focus a mental work that inspired the developments outlined in this paper.
vertical half-wave dipole and reflector. But suppose we wish to There are, of course, slot-complements to all the well known
illuminate the mirror with horizontally-polarized waves. If we arrangements of wire aerials. These include end-fire arrays, end-
merely rotate the dipole through a right angle we then fail to fed elements, full-wave elements, V elements and folded elements.
illuminate the sides of the mirror effectively at the same time The last of these is illustrated in Fig. 6. The driving point im-
wasting power above and below the mirror. The obvious pro-
cedure in such a case is to use a vertical half-wave slot at the
focus. At decimetre wavelengths this can be fed from a con-
ventional transmission line and matching device. At centimetre
wavelengths, it could be fed by attaching a wave guide to that
face of the slot from which radiation is not desired. In fact,
when an Hj-wave guide is allowed to radiate from an open end,
this end is merely functioning as a crude low-<2 slot. x.
A grating of the type shown in Fig. 1(6) can be energized by 2
means of transmission lines connected across the slots, and used (a) Folded dipole
as a broadside array. The grating can be provided with a
parallel reflecting sheet, and the entire system constructed as a
metal box totally enclosed except for the slots in one face. To (b) Folded slot
avoid throwing reactance across the slots, the reflecting sheet
would have to be about £A behind the slotted sheet. Reduction Fig. 6.—Folding technique for modifying input impedance.
of this separation would throw inductive reactance across the
slots which could be balanced by lengthening the slots beyond pedance of the folded dipole in Fig. 6(a) is four times that given
the usual half wavelength. An array of slots of this type could by (23) and (24), while that of the folded slot in Fig. 6(6) is one
be fitted to an aircraft in such a way that the slots were cut in quarter of that given by (25) and (26). This is a useful way of
the skin of the aircraft and plugged with dielectric material. reducing the rather high driving point impedance of a half-wave
Dragless aerials of this type may become a necessity with high slot. It might seem at first sight that the feeding arrangements
speed jet-propelled aircraft. for the folded dipole illustrated in Fig. 6(6) are unbalanced, since
An array consisting of a single line of half-wave slots may be one terminal of the generator is connected to a small insulated
conveniently fed at centimetric wavelengths by cutting the slots strip of metal while the other is connected to the whole of the
626 BOOKER: SLOT AERIALS AND THEIR RELATION TO COMPLEMENTARY WIRE AERIALS (BABINET'S PRINCIPLE)
rest of the sheet. It must be remembered, however, that the
insulated strip is about a half wavelength long and constitutes
what is sometimes known as a "dipole-earth."
It would appear that slot aerials are capable of making a con-
(a) Discontinuity in parallel plate transmission-line
tribution to the problem of designing a radiating element that
produces circular polarization in all directions of radiation. In
theory, this can be achieved merely by feeding a coincident slot
and dipole in quadrature, for the separate elements have the
same field of radiation except that the directions of vibration of (b) Equivalent circuit
the electric and magnetic fields are interchanged. It might be
thought that a dipole and slot in close proximity would interact
so violently as to make the arrangement impracticable. It would
appear theoretically, however, that this is not so, but the arrange-
ment has not been tried in practice.
There is a possible application of slot-aerials even at broad- Plane
casting wavelengths which should perhaps be mentioned even Wave
though it is rather far-fatched. It would be feasible to use the
earth's surface as a conductor in which to cut a slot-aerial, im-
proving the conductivity of the earth if necessary by conventional
"earthing" technique. The procedure would be to cut a trench
a half wavelength long and a quarter of a wavelength deep, and (c) Plane wave incident on slotted metal block
apply voltage across the centre of the slot. In the horizontal
plane there would be a maximum of radiation at right angles to
the slot and a minimum along the slot. There would, of course,
be as much radiation vertically as the maximum in the horizontal
plane. This would be a diawback for normal broadcasting
purposes, but there might be applications in which a polar
diagram of this type would be satisfactory, and in which the
absence of obstructions above ground-level would be a distinct
advantage.
Not only is Babinet's principle capable of suggesting new
methods for handling radio waves particularly at centimetre (d) Wave guide with slotted wall: magnetron cavity
wavelengths, but it is also able to aid in the solution of new
problems by reducing them to problems whose solution is already Fig. 7.—Some problems in which Babinet's principle is helpful.
known. One such problem is the leakage of electromagnetic
radiation through a hole in a metal wall, which reduces by the grating shown in Fig. 2(6). This we have already deduced
Babinet's principle to the problem of scattering of radiation by by Babinet's principle from the properties of the grid shown in
the complementary disc. Another problem in which Babinet's Fig. 2(a). The upshot is that the capacitance C in Fig. l(b) has an
principle serves a useful purpose is that of reflection from a admittance i(Y2/d) where Y2 is given by equation (12).
junction in a parallel-plate transmission line where the plates The argument of the previous paragraph may easily be ex-
suffer a discontinuous change in separation [see Fig. 7(a)]. Let tended to deal with a wave incident obliquely upon the metal
b and d be the separations in the two transmission lines and, for block in Fig. 7(c), and then by introducing short-circuits on either
simplicity, suppose that b is small compared with d which itself side of the face of the block we may solve the problem of a
is small compared with the wavelength A. Let Z be the intrinsic wave guide of the type indicated in Fig. l{d). Wave guides having
impedance of the medium in the line of width d. The intrinsic slotted walls of this type have interesting filter properties. More-
impedance of the medium in the line of width b may if desired over a cavity of the type shown in Fig. l{d), if bent round into
be different from Z. For example, it could be (d/b)Z so as to circular form, becomes one of the type used in connection with
make the characteristic impedances of the two lines equal. In magnetron oscillators. A slotted block of the type indicated in
this case, however, the two lines would not be quite matched Fig. 7(c) is in fact an all-metal construction having properties
because of a lumped shunt capacitance C at the junction as qualitatively similar to a dielectric medium.
shown in Figs, (a) and (b). The capacitance C may be calculated Details of all these applications will no doubt be published in
by an application of Babinet's principle as follows. Using image- due course by various authors. Sufficient has been said however
technique, the problem of Fig. 7(«) may be replaced by that indi- to indicate that the electromagnetic version of Babinet's principle
cated in Fig. 7(c). This diagram represents a semi-infinite block is a powerful technique in giving birth to new ideas and in
of metal, bounded by a plane face, perpendicular to which the reducing new problems to old ones whose solution is known.
block is sliced by slots of breadth b with their centres distant d
apart. A plane wave is incident normally on the face of the (7) REFERENCES
metal with its electric field vibrating across the slots. A reflected (1) FRANK—v. MISES: Differentialgleichungen der Physih, 1935,
wave is produced in front of the metal as well as transmitted 2, p. 815.
waves down the slots. In addition, there is a capacitive storage (2) WESSEL, W.: "Passage of Electric Waves through Wire
field just in front of the metal block which is substantially the Gratings," Hochfrequenz Technik und Elektroakustik,
same as that occurring in similar circumstances on either side of 1939, 54, p. 62.