What are S-parameters, anyway?

Scattering parameters offer an alternative to impedance parameters for

characterizing high-frequency devices.
Rick Nelson, Senior Technical Editor -- Test & Measurement World, 2/1/2001
Elementary circuit theory provides many methods
for describing electronic networks. Those methods,
however, best describe DC and low-frequency
circuits. They fall short when the wavelengths of the
signals of interest shrink to become comparable to
the physical dimensions of the circuit of interest. To
characterize high-frequency circuits, you can
employ S-parameters (or scattering parameters) in
place of the impedance or admittance parameters
that describe low-frequency circuits.
To give you a basis for understanding S-
parameters, I will first review low-frequency
analysis techniques. Most college texts present
circuit analysis in terms of equations describing
node voltages and loop currents. For a three-
terminal circuit, such as the one shown in Figure 1,
you can write three simultaneous equations in six
variables; for the node voltages and current
directions shown in Figure 1, these equations
suffice:
i
1
+ i
3
= i
2
(1)
i
1
= (v
1
v
3
)/R
1
(2)
i
2
= (v
3
v
2
)/R
2
(3)
If you specify any three variables, you can calculate the rest.
Of course, without having to solve any equations, you recognize that if the current into node 3 of
the Figure 1 circuit is zero (i
3
= 0), the voltage at node 3 is 80% of the difference between the node
1 and node 2 voltages.
A problem
But address this question: for v
1
v
2
= 10 V (assume that v
2
= 0), what voltage at node 3 will
sustain a 1-A current into node 3? To get the answer, substitute the specified values into
Equations 1 through 3 to obtain Equations 4 through 6:
(4)
(5)


Figure 1. You can evaluate three-terminal
networks like this one by solving three
simultaneous equations having three
unknowns.
(6)

Substituting Equations 5 and 6 into Equation 4 yields
(7)
If you multiply both sides of Equation 7 by 8 , Equation 7 reduces to 40 V 4v
3
+ 8 V = v
3
, or 5v
3
= 48 V, so v
3
= 9.6 V.
Thats not too tough a calculation, but you probably would need paper and pencil to solve it.
Further, the algebra increases dramatically with circuit node count. Although you can use a
computer to solve sets of algebraic equations, you might find it difficult to conveniently load your
equations into a computer. (The easiest way, in fact, is probably to enter your circuit graphically
using a schematic-capture program and then use a simulator such as Spice to develop and solve
the equations for you.)
But whether you intend to calculate circuit values by hand or with computer assistance, you can
simplify the computational and data-management aspects of the problem if you can group your
circuit nodes into appropriate pairs, which leads to the concepts of ports and matrix
representations of circuit characteristics (see Matrix math methods). In fact, you neednt know
anything about internal circuit topology to make use of the port concept. Given a black box, you
can make lab measurements that let you develop a simple matrix representation of the internal
circuitry.
So, what is a port?
Figure 2a shows a two-port network. You
can treat any circuit as a two-port network
if you can select two pairs of nodes (for
example, an input pair and an output pair)
such that the current into the positive node
of a pair equals the current out of the
negative node of the same pairthat is, i
1

must equal i
A
and i
2
must equal i
B
in Figure
2a. Figure 2b shows the Figure 1 circuit
rearranged to emphasize that it is indeed a
two-port network. (See clarification, below)
A two-port network can be represented by
a 2-by-2 matrix. (An n-port network, having
n pairs of nodes, can be represented by an
n-by-n matrix). In Figure 2a, the x
ij
terms
(where x
ij
represents the value at row i
column j) stand in for impedance
parameters (Z-parameters), admittance
parameters (Y-parameters), hybrid
parameters (h-parameters), chain
parameters (A-, B-, C-, and D-parameters),
or S-parameters. I will briefly review Z-
parameter representations to illustrate how matrix representations work and how you can derive
matrix parameters from laboratory measurements. Then, I will show you how you can apply
similar matrix representations to characterize high-frequency circuits using S-parameters.

Figure 2. (a) You can completely describe the
external functionality of a two-port network by
means of a 2x2 matrix. (b) The voltage divider of
Figure 1 constitutes a two-port network.
In a Z-parameter representation, the matrix elements take on the values that satisfy this matrix
equation:
(8)
To measure z
11
, you leave port 2 open-circuited, apply a test voltage v
1
to port 1, and divide that
voltage by the resulting current i
1
into port 1:
z
11
= v
1
/i
1
for i
2
= 0 (9)
Similarly, to measure z
22
, you leave port 1 open-circuited, apply a test voltage v
2
to port 2, and
divide that voltage by the resulting current i
2
into port 2:
z
22
= v
2
/i
2
for i
1
= 0 (10)
Parameters z
11
and z
22
are called the open-circuit driving-point impedances (Ref. 1).
Visualizing the measurements of the remaining two matrix entriesthe open-circuit transfer
impedanceswith respect to the instrumentation you would use is slightly more difficult.
Mathematically, the upper-right matrix parameter is
z
12
= v
1
/i
2
for i
1
= 0 (11)
To make the measurement, you can use two voltage sources: use one to apply test voltage v
1
to
port 1; then monitor current i
1
into port 1 and adjust the second voltage source, connected to port
2, until i
1
= 0. Then, divide v
1
by the resulting current i
2
into port 2. Similarly, to measure the lower-
left matrix parameter, you apply v
2
to port 2, adjust the v
1
voltage until i
2
goes to zero, and divide
v
2
by the resulting i
1
:
z
21
= v
2
/i
1
for i
2
= 0 (12)
You can try these out for the circuit values shown in Figure 2b, either on the bench or with some
quick calculations. Calculating the z terms on the matrix major diagonal (top left to bottom right) is
simple:
With i
2
= 0, z
11
= v
1
/i
1
, where i
1
= v
1
/(2 + 8 ). So z
11
= 10 V.
With i
1
= 0, z
22
= v
2
/i
2
, where i
2
= v
2
/(8 ). So z
22
= 8 .
Calculating the remaining two terms is a tad more difficult. To determine z
12
= v
1
/i
2
for i
1
= 0, note
that if i
1
= 0, then v
2
= v
1
, and i
2
= v
1
/8 , so z
12
= 8 .
Finally, to determine z
21
= v
2
/i
1
for i
2
= 0, note that i
1
= v
1
/10 , so z
21
= v
2
/(v
1
/10 ), or (10 ) v
2
/v
1
.
Note also that if i
2
= 0, then v
2
= 0.8 v
1
, so z
12
= 8 . These calculations yield the following matrix
equation:
(13)
You can test out this representation on the Figure 2 circuit problem that was solved above with
three node equations: if v
1
= 10 V, what value of v
2
will sustain a 1-A current into port 2? With
these values, Equation 13 becomes
(14)
which yields
10 V = (10 V) i
1
+(8 V)(1 A) = (10 V) i
1
+ 8 V (15)
and
v
2
= (8 V) i
1
+ (8 V)(1 A) (16)
Therefore, from Equation 15, i
1
= (2 V)/10 , or 0.2 A, which, substituted into Equation 16, yields
v
2
= (8 )(0.2 A) + 8 V = 9.6 V, which is the same result obtained from solving the node equations.
Active networks
You can apply matrix
parameters to active
networks as well as to
passive ones like the
Figure 2 voltage divider.
Figure 3 models a
transistor amplifier using
two resistors and a
dependent current source.
Using equations 9 and 10,
you can determine that
z
11
= v
1
/i
1
for i
2
= 0 is R
b

and that z
22
= v
2
/i
2
for i
1
=
0 is R
L
.
To determine z
12
= v
1
/i
2
for
i
1
= 0 (Equation 11), imagine applying a test current (1 A, for instance) to port 2. Then, while
holding i
1
to zero, measure v
1
. If i
1
= 0, then v
1
must equal zero, so z
12
= 0/(1 A) = 0. This result
helps to illustrate the physical meaning of Z- and other matrix parameters. The subscript ij
indicates the effect on port i of a test input applied to port j. The fact that z
12
= 0 for the transistor
amplifier simply means that nothing you do to the amplifiers output will change its input.
Conversely, parameter z
21
does have a nonzero value, meaning that something done to the input
will affect the output (as you would expect for an amplifier). To calculate z
21
= v
2
/i
1
for i
2
= 0
(Equation 12), first note that for i
2
= 0, 1000i
b
R
L
must equal v
2
. Therefore, z
21
= (1000i
b
R
L
)/i
1
, and
since i
1
equals i
b
(representing transistor base current), z
21
= 1000R
L
. This matrix equation
therefore represents the transistor amplifier:
(17)
You can use this equation to calculate the no-load output voltage in response to a 1-V input with
the resistance values as shown in Figure 3:
(18)

Figure 3. Matrix parameters can describe active as well as passive
networks. This amplifier includes a transistor having a beta of 1000
and a 1-M input resistance.
Therefore, 1 V = (1 M) i
1
, so i
1
= 1 A, and v
2
= (10 M)(1 A) = 10 V.
Z-parameters for microwaves?
The impedance matrix is a
general analytical tool applicable
in theory to any multiport network.
Practically, though, it is difficult to
apply to microwave networks. You
cant conveniently apply a test
signal and simultaneously monitor
the response. Current and voltage
ratios arent constant throughout a
microwave network; they depend
on position relative to wavelength.
You can choose to make network
measurements at a location that
you define as the networks
reference plane (or calibration
plane), but even then your
instrumentation leads will
introduce loading and other errors.
To accurately measure millimeter-
wavelength voltage and current
signals simultaneously at a
reference plane, you would need
miniature sources and meters with
submillimeter-length leads.
What you can do to measure a
microwave network is apply incident waveforms and measure the resulting waveforms that your
network reflects and transmits (Figure 4). Just as Z-parameters relate port voltages and currents,
S-parameters relate incident waves to transmitted or reflected ones.
Note that S-parameters are not independent of Z-parameters. Z-parameters are not unique to low-
frequency circuits, and S-parameters are not unique to microwave networks. You can describe
any network in terms of either, and if you have one set of parameters, you can derive another.
Here, for example, is s
11
in terms of the Z-parameters:
(19)
where z
01
and z
02
are the characteristic impedances of ports 1 and 2. Ref. 2 provides a table of the
algebraic relationships among all the S-parameters, Y-parameters, and chain parameters for two-
port networks. As Equation 19 suggests, deriving S-parameter descriptions based on network
topology would be a nightmare. Because S-parameters directly relate incident and reflected or
transmitted waves, however, they are ideal for characterizing microwave devices in a laboratory.
Consider only ports 1 and 2 in Figure 4. For source and measurement instruments having the
same characteristic impedance (typically 50 ), parameter s
11
describes the relationship between
port 1s incident signal V
1
+
and port 1s resulting reflected signal V
1

: s
11
= V
1

/V
1
+
. Similarly, s
22
=
V
2

/V
2
+
,
relating incident and reflected waves on port 2. (In commonly used terminology, the plus
superscript always indicates a waveform propagating toward a network, and the minus superscript
represents a waveform, either reflected or transmitted, moving away from the network. Some

Figure 4. You can cue up an incident voltage waveform
and direct it toward an n-port network. An S-parameter
matrix describes the relative strengths of reflected and
transmitted signals at each port. The plus superscript
represents an incident wave (moving toward the network).
The minus superscript indicates a wave moving away from
the network (whether transmitted or reflected).
instrument vendors use the variable a
ij
to represent incident waves and b
ij
to represent transmitted
and reflected waves.) The remaining two S-parameters for two-port networks relate incident
waveforms at one port to transmitted waves at the other: s
12
= V
1

/V
2
+
(that is, the transmitted
signal at port 1 divided by the incident signal at port 2) and s
21
= V
2

/V
1
+
(that is, the transmitted
signal at port 2 divided by the incident signal at port 1). The complete matrix representation
follows:
(20)

Figure 5. Vector network analyzers include the source and
receiver instruments needed to measure S-parameters.
You can choose S-parameter test-set options to
conveniently route signals to and from your DUT.
To make S-parameter
measurements, you need a signal
source and receivers capable of
measuring your source signal as
well as the response signals
reflected from or transmitted
through your DUT. Vector network
analyzers (which measure signal
magnitude and phase) include
such instrumentation and are
readily adaptable to S-parameter
measurements. Vendors offer their
vector network analyzers with S-
parameter test-set options (Figure
5), which include the power splitters, switches, and couplers necessary to route signals to and
from your DUT.
The measurement examples and corresponding S-parameter matrices shown in Figure 6 are
based on a vector network analyzer and S-parameter test set having 50- characteristic
impedance. If you connect a 25- resistor to port 1 and leave port 2 unused (Figure 6a), the S-
parameter matrix reduces to a single parameter (the resistor is a one-port network requiring a 1x1
matrix), which represents the reflection coefficient. The following equation (Ref. 3) describes the
reflection coefficient due to a load impedance Z
L
with respect to characteristic impedance Z
0
:
= (Z
L
Z
0
)/(Z
L
+ Z
0
) (21)
For the values shown in Figure 6a, = s
11
= (25 -50 )/(25 +50 ) = 0.333, or 0.333 with a
180 phase angle.
Figure 6b shows the application of a 1-GHz signal to a 3-in. length of lossless 50-V cable. The
lossless cable contributes no amplification or attenuation, but the 3-in. length represents about a
quarter wavelength at 1 GHz and therefore contributes a 90 phase shift, so s
12
= 1 at 90 (that is,
a signal applied to port 2 produces a signal delayed by 90 at port 1) and s
21
= 1 at 90 (that is, a
signal applied to port 1 produces a signal delayed by 90 at port 2).
Figure 6c shows a matched 15-dB amplifier. It exhibits no reflections on input or output, and, as
for the Figure 3 circuit, a signal applied to the output wont affect the input, so s
11
= s
12
= s
22
= 0.
The nonzero s
21
parameter represents the amplifiers gain and phase shift. Note that the gain in
decibels relates to the S-parameter as follows: 15 dB = 20log
10
(V
2

/V
1
+
) where s
21
= V
2

/V
1
+
, so
0.75 = log
10
(s
21
). Therefore, s
21
= 10
0.75
= 5.62 (at an unspecified phase angle).
These examples illustrate how easy it is to relate S-parameters to the performance of microwave
circuits. The April issue of T&MW will provide more information on the vector network analyzers
you can use to make S-parameter measurements. T&MW
References
1. Murdoch, Joseph B., Network Theory, McGraw-Hill, New York, NY, 1970. p. 69.
2. Mongia, Rajesh, Inder Bahl, and Prakash Bhartia, RF and Microwave Coupled-Line Circuits,
Artech House, Boston, MA, 1999. p. 52.
3. Nelson, Rick, High Speeds and Fine Precision Knock PCB Traces Off Pedestal, Test &
Measurement World, January 2000. p. 22.
Rick Nelson received a BSEE degree from Penn State University. He has six years experience
designing electronic industrial-control systems. A member of the IEEE, he has served as the
Figure 6. These measurement examples and
corresponding S-parameter matrices are based on
instrumentation having a 50- characteristic impedance.
(a) For a 25- resistor connected to port 1, the S-
parameter matrix reduces to a single parameter, s
11
=
0.333 with a 180 phase angle. (b) A 3-in. length of cable
represents about a quarter wavelength at 1 GHz, so s
12
=
s
21
= 1 at 90. (c) A matched amplifier exhibits no
reflections on input or output, and a signal applied to the
output wont affect the input, so s
11
= s
12
= s
22
= 0. The
nonzero s
21
parameter represents the amplifiers gain and
phase shift.
managing editor of EDN, and he became a senior technical editor at T&MW in 1998. E-mail:
rnelson@tmworld.com.
Matrix math methods
Matrix notation offers a convenient way of
manipulating the sets of simultaneous algebraic
equations often used to represent circuit
performance. For example, the set of n equations


which might relate an n-node circuits voltages,
currents, and impedances, is equivalent to this
matrix representation:


which you can also write as
V = ZI
Note that this representation lets you directly calculate values for V as a function of Z and I. You
can manipulate this equation algebraically to provide I in terms of V and Z:
I = Z
-1
V
Where Z
-1
is the inverse of matrix Z.
Obtaining the inverse of a matrix is tedious and difficult for a human (it involves calculation of
matrix cofactors and determinants as well as transposition, not to mention a trip to the library to
find a textbook that explains those terms). But matrix inversion is easy for a computer or calculator
(Figure).
Furthermore, matrix representations provide a consistent way to represent circuit properties. If you
and a colleague sit down to develop sets of loop or node equations for a moderately complex
circuit, your sets will probably differthey may both be right, but either or both may contain errors
that wouldnt be readily apparent. If you solve the equations and get different numerical answers,
youll have no easy way of telling who, if either of you, is right. If you agree on port definitions
ahead of time, however, the matrix representations you and your colleague derive should be
identical. If not, you can rework your derivations until you both agree. Then, let a computer or
calculator do the heavy computational lifting.Rick Nelson

The freeware Calc98 program from Flow
Simulation International (Sheffield, UK)
makes matrix math a snap. One button
generates the inverse (right) of the matrix
shown at left. You can download the
program from www.calculator.org.
Clarification
A reader wrote in: In Fig. 2(b) shouldn't the voltage at the right node be V sub 3 and the current
be i sub 3?
Rick Nelson clarifies: What I was trying to suggest here is that the arbitrary node assignments
made to the three-terminal circuit in Figure 1 should give way to port-specific nomenclature when
that circuit is represented as a two-port network. Although it's perfectly reasonable to assign v-
sub-1, v-sub-2, and v-sub-3 (with corresponding i values) in any order to the nodes of the 3-
terminal circuit, the subscripts for the 2-port descriptions are most meaningful if they are arranged
to correspond to the port designations: v-sub-1 and i-sub-1 for port 1, and v-sub-2 and i-sub-2 for
port 2. That way, for example, in a matrix description of the network, a matrix parameter in row 2
column 1 would reflect an effect on v-sub-2 (at port 2) of an applied i-sub-1 (at port 1).
I made another attempt at emphasizing the significance of node assignments in the sidebar,
saying "If you and a colleague sit down to develop sets of loop or node equations for a moderately
complex circuit, your sets will probably differ...If you agree on port definitions ahead of time,
however, the matrix representations you and your colleague derive should be identical."
It is jarring to see "v-sub-3=9.6 V" on p. 24 and then "v-sub-2=9.6 V" on p. 26. In retrospect, I wish
I had:
Commented explicitly on the change in subscript numbering,
Swapped i-sub-2 and v-sub-2 with i-sub-3 and v-sub-3 in Figure 1 (although the quiet
disappearance of v-sub-3 and i-sub-3 in Figure 2b would have de-emphasized one of the points I
was trying to make), or
Perhaps the best approach, used sub-A, sub-B, and sub-C to describe the voltages and currents
in Figure 1.