Wheeler incremental inductance rule

The incremental inductance rule, attributed to Harold Alden Wheeler[1] by Gupta[2]: 101  and others[3]: 80  is a formula used to compute skin effect resistance and internal inductance in parallel transmission lines when the frequency is high enough that the skin effect is fully developed. Wheeler's concept is that the internal inductance of a conductor is the difference between the computed external inductance and the external inductance computed with all the conductive surfaces receded by one half of the skin depth.

Stripline illustrating the incremental Wheeler inductance rule.
Linternal = Lexternal(conductors receded) − Lexternal(conductors not receded).

Skin effect resistance is assumed to be equal to the reactance of the internal inductance.

Rskin = ωLinternal.

Gupta[2]: 67  gives a general equation with partial derivatives replacing the difference of inductance.

where
is taken to mean the differential change in inductance as surface m is receded in the nm direction.
is the surface resistivity of surface m.
magnetic permeability of conductive material at surface m.
skin depth of conductive material at surface m.
unit normal vector at surface m.

Wadell[4]: 27  and Gupta[2]: 67  state that the thickness and corner radius of the conductors should be large with respect to the skin depth. Garg[3]: 80  further states that the thickness of the conductors must be at least four times the skin depth. Garg[3]: 80  states that the calculation is unchanged if the dielectric is taken to be air and that where is the characteristic impedance and the velocity of propagation, i.e. the speed of light. Paul, 2007,[5] [a]: 149  disputes the accuracy of at very high frequency for rectangular conductors such as stripline and microstrip due to a non-uniform distribution of current on the conductor. At very high frequency, the current crowds into the corners of the conductor.

Example

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In the top figure, if

  is the inductance and   is the characteristic impedance using the dimensions  , and  ,

and

  is the inductance and   is the characteristic impedance using the dimensions  , and  

then the internal inductance is

  where   is the velocity of propagation in the dielectric.

and the skin effect resistance is

 

Notes

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  1. ^ Wheeler incremental inductance rule … should not be used for conductors of rectangular cross-section, because , … resistance and internal inductance reactance are not equal.[5]

References

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  1. ^ Wheeler, H. A. (September 1942). "Formulas for the Skin Effect". Proc. IRE. 30 (4): 412–424. doi:10.1109/JRPROC.1942.232015. S2CID 51630416.
  2. ^ a b c Gupta, K. C.; Garg, Ramesh; Bahl, I. J. (1979), Microstrip Lines and Slotlines, Artech House, ISBN 0-89006-074-6
  3. ^ a b c Garg, Ramesh; Bahl, Inder; Bozzi, Maurizio (2013), Microstrip Lines and Slotlines (3 ed.), Artech House, ISBN 978-1-60807-535-5
  4. ^ Wadell, Brian C. (1991), Transmission Line Design Handbook, Artech House, ISBN 0-89006-436-9
  5. ^ a b Paul, Clayton R. (2007), Analysis of Multiconductor Transmission Lines (PDF), Wiley