Electromagnetics Explained: A Handbook for Wireless/RF, EMC, and High-Speed Electronics

When a circuit starts behaving like an antenna—or a fast digital signal creates problems that a simple schematic cannot explain—electromagnetics becomes an engineering tool, not an abstract subject. Ron Schmitt’s Electromagnetics Explained connects field theory with the practical concerns of wireless/RF, EMC, and high-speed electronics.

The book ranges from electric and magnetic fields to transmission lines, antennas, shielding, and PCB layout. Its broad scope makes it useful for readers who want to understand how electromagnetic principles show up in actual electronic systems.

From fields to familiar circuits

The opening chapters establish the foundations: the electromagnetic spectrum, electric and magnetic fields, electrodynamics, and radiation. Schmitt then turns to the behavior of real components and circuits, including non-ideal resistors, capacitors, inductors, wires, and transmission lines. This progression connects foundational ideas to the practical details engineers encounter in design and measurement.

RF, transmission lines, and antennas

Substantial sections examine transmission-line models, characteristic impedance, reflections, standing waves, impedance matching, and time-domain reflectometry. The book also explores waveguides and shielding, S-parameters and network analysis, and the principles behind antennas—including dipoles, matching, polarization, and antenna arrays.

EMC and high-speed PCB design

For readers concerned with electromagnetic compatibility and signal integrity, a dedicated EMC section addresses interference, crosstalk, grounding, shielding, decoupling, cable behavior, and PCB layout. These topics show how field effects and circuit decisions meet in the design of electronic products.

A wide-angle view of electromagnetics

The later chapters broaden the discussion to lenses, dishes, diffraction, propagation, frequency-dependent materials, thermal radiation, and noise. Relativity and quantum physics also appear in the book’s conceptual treatment of electromagnetism, placing engineering ideas in a wider scientific context.

Engineers and technicians working with RF, wireless, EMC, or high-speed electronics will find a wide-ranging reference here; readers studying electronics may also value its connected treatment of fields, components, and signal behavior. 📘