PLEASE HELP ME...need to learn Transmission Line Theory (Desperate PLEA) =/

[whiteboyatcal]

I'm in an upper-division Electromagnetics course at UC Berkeley and I'm struggling big time. This is the first course I have ever taken where I have attended class everyday and tried to understand the textbook but not learned a single thing. The prof. teaches way over the heads of the students and people confront him about this in office hours but he continues to teach in the same fashion. Only about 20% of the original course enrollment is left (everyone dropped it) and deadlines keep getting pushed back in the class because the students aren't learning. The first midterm kept getting pushed back, but now I will finally have to take it this Thurs. The one saving grace is that the prof. is willing to assign the course grade purely on student's scores on the final exam.

However, this means that between now and December I really need to learn the following material:

1.) Application and derivation of Maxwell's Equations
2.) Transmission Lines, Impedance Matching, VSWR, how to read Smith charts
3.) Pulse Propogation and wave equations, TEM waves
4.) Antennas, Radiation, Wireless networks

What is a good resource or starting point to learn this material? Are there any particularly good websites? Any hints or tips? Am I entirely screwed?

PLEASE HELP ME!!!

 

[gopunk]

i really have no idea on the topic, but have you talked to the professor? as in, say "i really enjoy your lectures, but i am not understanding all of the material. are there any additional resources you can recommend?" or if he is not approachable, talk to another professor in the dept, or some grad student? i dunno how you learn, but i learn best with a good book (lecture doesn't really do anything for me), so often the key for me is to find that one book that i can "get".

so if you are the book type, it often helps to go to the engineering library, and go through all the books on the topic, looking for one that fits you.

 

[whiteboyatcal]

Good idea about the engineering library gopunk, I hadn't thought of that. The prof. is very friendly and very approachable, but instead of explaining things he tends to just giveaway the answers. He pretty much solved all of the problems he put on the HW sets in lecture before the HW was even due. I know this material is difficult (everyone told me not to take it, but I ended up stuck in the class anyway) but what I need is someone just to point me in the right direction (i.e. tell me a starting point that lead them to learn this material).


Haha, I remember one time during the first few weeks of school a lot of students complained that he wasn't explaining what was presented in the textbook. So at the next lecture he held up the book and basically spent the hour and a half saying "Okay, now we're on page 21, this page is about blah blah blah, you better learn this stuff! Okay, on to page 22, this is a neat equation. Page 23...."

 

[gopunk]

Originally posted by: whiteboyatcal
Good idea about the engineering library gopunk, I hadn't thought of that. The prof. is very friendly and very approachable, but instead of explaining things he tends to just giveaway the answers. He pretty much solved all of the problems he put on the HW sets in lecture before the HW was even due. I know this material is difficult (everyone told me not to take it, but I ended up stuck in the class anyway) but what I need is someone just to point me in the right direction (i.e. tell me a starting point that lead them to learn this material).

hmm, so if i were you, i would just ask him if he had any other books to recommend. most profs have plenty of books just lying around, and are more than happy to lend you a book. i had to do that this qtr, and it worked out great... i really like the book he lent me. another thing you can do is check the websites for similar courses at other universities to see what textbook they use. and take a look at their lecture notes too. for example, http://web.mit.edu/6.013/www/lectures.html (this i should do myself actually...)

are there other sections for this course that are being taught? you might try sitting in on a different prof's lecture, if there are.

 

[Mani]

Those aren't difficult concepts, though a month is not a lot of time. One book I would recommend (along with talking to your prof about all of this) is Fundamentals of Applied Electromagnetics by Fawwaz Ulaby. It explains all these concepts you mentioned very well. Most everyone I know who has used it likes it. Not to mention he was my prof in school.

You can probably find it in an engineering library though I know you can easily find it online - Amazon had it last I checked.

 

[Hayabusa Rider]

Try the ARRL website. They are the main representative organization for Amateur Radio in the US

They have many resources you might find useful

 

I undertsand where you're coming from, White Boy At Cal. Don't sweat it. There are simply times the brain is not prepared to absorb ideas or concepts. If you've tried all of your best, tried textbooks, tried listening attentively to lectures, well, maybe this isn't the right time for the course. You can relearn.

Carry on with your struggle to pass the class. But if it should not happen as you would like, don't sweat it. Errors are okay and there's always room for improvement.

Best of luck.