An Automated Microwave Waveguide Measurement Technique

The tedious and often difficult measurement of dielectric permittivity and permeability as a function of microwave frequency has been simplified using an automated microwave waveguide cell measurement system. The measurement system comprises a microwave VNA under PC control and a data processing section. The overall experimental setup and computer program for the automation of data acquisition are fully discussed. This includes the automatic solution of the transcendental equation to determine the dielectric properties for a frequency band. Experimental data taken using this system is presented to show the feasibility of this automated system for material characterisation. The simplicity, applicability and robustness of this proposed system has applications throughout manufacturing and food processing industries.