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Transmission Media

Classification

In general, a transmission medium can be classified as

  • Linear, if different waves at any particular point in the medium can be superposed;
  • Bounded, if it is finite in extent, otherwise unbounded;
  • Uniform or Homogeneous, if its physical properties are unchanged at different points;
  • Isotropic, if its physical properties are the same in different directions.

There are two main types of transmission media:

  • Guided Mediaโ€”waves are guided along a solid medium such as a transmission line;
  • Unguided Mediaโ€”transmission and reception are achieved by means of an antenna.

One of the most common physical media used in networking is copper wire. Copper wire to carry signals to long distances using relatively low amounts of power. The unshielded twisted pair (UTP) is eight strands of copper wire, organized into four pairs.

Types

Guided Media

  • Transmission Lines
    • Balanced Lines
      • Twisted Pair Cables
      • Star-Quad Cables
      • Twin Lead Cables
      • Lecher Lines
    • Unbalanced Lines
      • Single Wire Cable
    • Coaxial Cables
    • Optical Fibre Cables
    • Planar Lines
      • Microstrip
      • Stripline
      • Co-Planar Waveguide

Unguided Media

  • Radio Waves
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