Loop Proximity Effects in Three-Loop Antenna Systems

Abstract

Three-loop antenna systems (TLASs) are one of the few sensors with the ability to simultaneously detect all of the components of the electromagnetic field. The theory of TLASs ignores the presence of the other orthogonal loops and assumes that the response is that of a dual-loaded loop in isolation. This paper investigates the loop proximity effects for the cases of plane wave and centrally located dipole moment sources, as a function loop wire radius. It is shown through simulations that the responses of the TLAS sensor are unaffected by the presence of the other loops when considering just the magnetic field component of the plane wave and the magnetic dipole source. However, the TLAS reponses to the electric field component of the plane wave and the electric dipole moment can be significantly affected.