Basic Principles of Physics For Electromagnetic Compati-Bility (EMC) and Their Application To Electrical Installations in Buildings

Forschungsbericht 2004
Hochschule fr
Technik und Wirtschaft
des Saarlandes
University of Applied Sciences
LPQI, Leonardo Power Quality Initiative, www.lpqi.org
Prof. Dr. W. Langguth

LPQI-152 Application Note short version 6-1-2
Page 1 of 18

lpqi_langguth_2004.doc - 1 - 05.03.2007 11:08

Basic Principles of Physics for Electromagnetic Compati-
bility (EMC) and their Application to Electrical Installations
in Buildings

Content

1 Introduction.......................................................................................................................1
2 Fields and currents as the fundamental sources of electromagnetic interferences..........2
3 Types of electromagnetic couplings .................................................................................3
3.1 The elementary coupling model of EMI ....................................................................3
3.2 The conductive coupling...........................................................................................5
3.3 The inductive coupling..............................................................................................6
3.3.1 The geometry dependence of the inductive coupling.......................................7
3.3.2 The frequency dependence of the inductive coupling......................................9
3.4 The capacitive coupling..........................................................................................11
3.5 The radiation coupling............................................................................................14
3.6 Complex systems of realistic EMI...........................................................................16
4 The EMC directive of the EU and its relevance for installations in buildings..................17
5 References.....................................................................................................................18

1 Introduction

In the past the electrical installation in conventional buildings was mostly loaded with linear
consumers like AC and DC motors, ohmic loads like filament lamps etc. were used, which
lead, if any, to minor interferences among the apparatus. Today and in the future an increas-
ing number of non-linear consumers (inverter driven AC motors, discharge lamps, energy
saving lamps etc,) are used. They produce a narrow band (NB) noise by devices running
repetitively at fixed frequencies above 9 kHz, which spreads all across the network. Typically
Switch-Mode Power Supplies produce this type of conducted interference signal (operating in
the range of 10kHz to 100kHz).

This power supply systems development is paralleled by a constantly increasing use of digi-
tal systems like IT equipment for multi media, technical facility management and systems for
the automation of industrial processes.

On one side power supply systems become more powerful and carry strong signals which
may lead to electromagnetic interferences (EMI), on the other side digital networks are ex-
panding, become more sensitive because of their rising data transfer rates and are increas-
ingly used also for safety relevant applications. This development demands strongly

Page 2 of 18


for high quality electrical installations in all buildings where otherwise electromagnetic incom-
patibility either leads to high costs or to an unacceptable loss of safety performance.

Basically all electrically conductive components of buildings and facilities participate in elec-
tromagnetic interferences either as a source (EMI transmitter) or as a drain (EMI receiver).
Beside the installed electrical conductors there are metallic pipelines, concrete armour, metal
faades or constructive steel work, which also may become part of the EMC-relevant installa-
tion and transmit EMI as well. It often occurs that a component acts as a source and as a
drain simultaneously. Typical examples are

Power supply lines
Measurement and control devices
Alarm devices and
Computer installations including networks

An insufficient installation together with a TN-C network configuration allows disturbing sig-
nals to spread across the entire building and even to intrude into neighbouring buildings of
the facility.

The increasing importance of EMC on all technical levels (electrical appliances, machines,
electrical installations, etc.) has been realised by the European Community. According to the
EMC directive of the EU 89/336/EEC (amended by directives 91/263/EEC, 92/31/EEC,
93/68/EEC, 93/97/EEC) also any electrical installation of buildings has to match the interna-
tional standards for EMC susceptibility and emission. The person or persons responsible for
design, engineering and construction (assembly and erection) become(s) the manufacturer
in the sense of the directive and assumes the full responsibility for the installations compli-
ance with all applicable provisions of the directive when taken into service.

To realise a reliable and cost effective electromagnetically compatible electrical installation of
a building it is absolutely necessary to perform an EMC analysis and to work out an EMC
plan at the very early planning stage of the object. All electrical installations should have to
be supervised and realised by EMC-trained personnel only. A somewhat more detailed dis-
cussion of the subject of EMC of electrical installations in buildings and facilities and the
EMC directive of the European Community is given in chapter 4.

Objective of the article is to give an overview and a basic understanding of the major physical
principles of electromagnetic interferences and a first view on the principles to reduce the
disturbing effects. On this basis the measures of an EMC compliant installation should be
easily understood.

This Application Note is accompanied by a Background Note with the same titel which can
be found on the LPQI homepage (www.LPQI.org), where the physics of EMC is explained
more in detail and more examples are discussed. A second Application Note (LPQI 6-1-3) is
intended to give a practical guideline what an EMC compliant installation should look like.

2 Fields and currents as the fundamental sources of electromag-
netic interferences

Electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) describes the ability of any electrical or electronic sys-
tem, machine, appliance etc. to operate without malfunctions in a disturbing electromagnetic
environment without disturbing any other components of the whole system.

Page 3 of 18


The fundamental sources of any EMI which may cause the malfunction or the failure of an
apparatus are the basic fields and currents of electrodynamics. At low frequencies the elec-
tric and the magnetic field act independently, at high frequencies only the propagating elec-
tromagnetic field is of importance.

All fields at low, medium and high frequencies are generated by electric charges and cur-
rents. At low frequencies the electric and the magnetic fields are relatively short ranged,
drop from their source at least inversely proportional with the distance and therefore concen-
trate in the vicinity of the power supply lines, or any other type of cables or metallic objects
which might carry some current or some voltage.

Since the electric field is proportional to the voltage of the electrical installation, it may reach
a sufficient strength to cause any EMI effects over long distances in the proximity of high
voltage installations only. So in most installations electric fields do not play the major role.
However, at short distances, as in the case of neighbouring cables lying closely together in
cable trunks, the electric field, as well as the magnetic field, have to be considered as possi-
ble EMI sources.

The magnetic field is proportional to the electrical current. In many power supply systems the
currents may reach rather high amplitudes, magnetic fields may become strong and the risk
of EMI effects is large. This is likely to happen especially in a TN-C-type installation. Due to
the merger of the N and PE conductors into one PEN conductor and the connections to other
conductive parts of the building, the currents may be flowing across every region of the build-
ing and the resulting magnetic fields may cause EMI effects almost everywhere. The leakage
currents additionally unbalance the current sum in a TN-C system and the net magnetic field
strength of the TN-C system increases by orders of magnitude and spread across a wide
area, as will be discussed below.

Cathode ray tube type computer terminals of a 17 size are easily disturbed (flickering on the
screen) by magnetic fields of the order of 1.5 T, which are generated easily by a single
power line carrying a 50 Hz current of 10 A within the distance of 1.3 m. Larger cathode tube
computer terminals are even more sensitive to external magnetic fields. If the power line cur-
rents include higher frequency constituents, the generated magnetic fields will cause even
more of said effects.

At high frequencies the electric and the magnetic field merge into the electromagnetic field,
which travels through space at the velocity of light. The disturbance becomes long ranged.
Typical sources of electromagnetic fields in office buildings nowadays are radio and TV
transmitters, mobile phones, DECT telephones, wireless LANs, BLUETOOTHand indus-
trial installations in the microwave frequency range. But also cables of the power supply sys-
tem may act as antennas of electromagnetic fields, if high frequency signals intentionally
(e.g. power line communication) or unintentionally (e.g. fast transients) propagate across the
net. To immunize electrical installations against electromagnetic fields, a careful design and
installation of shielding measures have to be carried out.

3 Types of electromagnetic couplings
3.1 The elementary coupling model of EMI

To describe the mechanism of electromagnetic interferences it is easiest to start with a very
simple model. It consists of a source, which causes the interference, a coupling mechanism
or coupling media and the disturbed device.

Page 4 of 18


Fig. 3.1: Elementary coupling model of EMC

Examples for sources may be, as mentioned above, lines of the electrical power system,
antennas of wireless LAN Systems, etc. The coupling is established via the current if com-
mon conductors are shared by different circuits, or via the electrical, magnetic or electro-
magnetic field of which are generated by the current. The disturbed drains may be any kind
of apparatus or any parts of the electrical installation. Of course the complete electromag-
netic interaction of all installations in a building or in a facility is not so simple but rather is a
very complex combination of these elementary interactions. Additionally any drain may also
act as a source of EMI and vice versa.

It is a very important step in the planning phase of a new facility or a new installation in an
old facility to generate the matrix of all possible sources, coupling paths and potentially dis-
turbed objects. By aid of this matrix the possible amplitude of mutual interferences must be
estimated to assess which EMI disturbances may occur and which ones are of relevance.
Only on the basis of this EMI interaction matrix measures against EMI can be planned from
the beginning and a safe operation of facility is made sure in the end. It is only in the very
first planning stage of a project, where on the base of the EMC matrix a most cost and work
flow effective plan of the layout and the necessary EMC measures of a building or a facility
can be carried out.

In a short and phenomenological oriented description of the EMI mechanism four different
types of elementary interferences can be identified:

- the conductive coupling,
- the inductive coupling,
- the capacitive coupling,
- and the radiation coupling.

The basic physical properties of the different couplings are summarized in the following table:

Source Frequency domain Coupling Range
Electrical current Low and
high frequency
conductive Short and long
Electric field Low frequency Capacitive Short
Magnetic field Low frequency Inductive Short
Electromagnetic
field
High frequency Radiative Long

Table 3.1: Elementary properties of EMI couplings

The dominant disturbing phenomena in buildings in general are due to the conductive and
inductive coupling, followed by the capacitive coupling. The radiation coupling usually is not
dominant until now, since the achieved field strengths are in most cases weaker than the
exposure values required in susceptibility tests by the EU EMC directive. However the in-
creasing use of wireless applications may lead to an increase of EMI phenomena in the fu-
ture.

Source of
EMC Disturbance
Coupling
Mechanism
Drain of
EMC Disturbance

Page 5 of 18


3.2 The conductive coupling

The conductive coupling occurs when different circuits use common lines and/or coupling
impedances. This may happen e.g. when different circuits use the same voltage source in
their circuit. The underlying principle of the conductive coupling can be readily seen in the
next figure.

Fig. 3.2: The conductive coupling

Circuit I may be part of a power supply network and circuit II part of data transfer network.
The voltage, which is superimposed to the signal u
2
due to the common coupling impedance
c c c
L j R Z + = for small
L i c
Z Z Z + << is given by
c
L i
c c
Z
Z Z
u
i Z u
+
=
1
1
. (eq. 3.1)

If the current i
1
and/or the coupling impedance Z
c
are large enough, the superimposed volt-
age u
k
in comparison to the signal u
2
may be large enough to disturb the data circuit.

The impedance of the shared line includes an ohmic and an inductive share,
( )
c c c
L j R Z + = . While the ohmic share of the coupling remains (apart of the skin effect) of
the same importance for all frequencies, the inductive share becomes of increasing impor-
tance for high frequencies. For a short discussion we look at the following model:

Fig. 3.3: Conductive coupling, simple model

Z
i

Z
L

Z
c

Z
2

u
1

.
.
i
1

u
2

I
II
u
c

=

Unit 1

Unit 2
c c c
L j R Z + = ) (
u
dist

Page 6 of 18


The disturbing voltage u
dist
, which drops across Z
c
and superimposes the signals of unit 2
depends on the ac current i(t) but also on its time variation di(t)/dt. In a simplified model the
disturbing voltage may be estimated by
dt
t di
L t i R u u u
c c dist L dist R dist
) (
) (
, ,
+ = + = . (eq. 3.2)

If we choose a set of realistic parameters for our model: a line length of l=2 m, an inherent
inductance of the line of L
c
=1 m H / , an ohmic resistance of R
c
=1, a current of i=1 A and
an increase of the current of di/di=1A/100 ns, we get the following contributions to the gal-
vanic coupling:

V u u u
V
dt
t di
L u
V t i R u
dist L dist R dist
c dist L
c dist R
21
20
) (
1 ) (
, ,
,
,
= + =
= =
= =
, (eq. 3.3)

At high frequencies the inherent inductance of the lines clearly plays the dominant role. This
remains true even if we take into account the increasing ohmic resistance of the line due to
the skin effect, which is not negligible for fast transients and digital signals.

Due to the rules of Kirchhoff, the disturbing signals may spread across the installation of an
entire facility and may even affect the installations of neighbouring facilities. To minimise the
galvanic coupling it is necessary to avoid connections between independent systems and in
case connections are necessary, to realise them in a minimal inherent inductance manner as
possible. Generally a galvanic decoupling of electrical power supply circuits can be achieved
using a TN-S instead of a TN-C network architecture and avoiding a common PEN conductor
for independent circuits. The state of the art of a modern electrical installation architecture is
discussed in other LPQI Application Notes.
3.3 The inductive coupling
A time varying external current i
1
(t) generates a magnetic field B(t) which induces a disturb-
ing voltage u
dist
(t) in any neighbouring circuit. In an equivalent circuit model this may be de-
scribed by a coupling of both circuits via a coupling inductivity M. The voltage u
dist
(t) gener-
ates a common mode current i
2
(t), which itself generates a magnetic field to weaken the ex-
ternal field. The current i
2
(t) superimposes to the currents of the disturbed system and may
lead to malfunctions of the system. The coupling of magnetic fields of the different systems
can be modelled by an equivalent circuit model by mutual inductances of the coupled cir-
cuits:

Fig. 3.4: The inductive coupling a) field model, b) equivalent circuit

Page 7 of 18


The strength of the coupling mainly depends upon three parameters:

- The strength of the disturbing current,
- the distance of source and drain
- and the frequency of the disturbing field.

The disturbing signal becomes large and significant if the

- currents of the external circuits are large
- currents of a go-and-return conductor get unbalanced (TN-C-system)
- circuits are close together and cover a large area
- signals of the external circuit vary rapidly in time and therefore have a large share of
high frequency contributions.

The inductive coupling, however, may not only be considered as a disturbing mechanism. If
the installation of cable trays or coaxial cables is done properly, which means if they are
connected without interruption with a low impedance also at high frequencies, they shield the
contained circuits against external magnetic fields especially at higher frequencies via the
inductive coupling.

3.3.1 The geometry dependence of the inductive coupling

The sensitive dependence of the inductive coupling on the electric network type and installa-
tions upon the geometry of the installation and their properties shall be demonstrated in the
following example. The conclusions are important for an EMC adequate planning and instal-
lation of electrical systems.

We consider a single line and a go-and-return line and calculate the influence of both sys-
tems on a circuit, modelled by a rectangular loop at a distance r.

Fig. 3.5 a) A single and a go-and-return conductor as sources of a magnetic field, b) an electrical circuit as a drain

The magnetic field of both configurations can be calculated precisely:

r
i(t)
r
1
=- a r
2
= a
i(t) -i(t)
r
Single or
multi line
system
Electrical
circuit
r
B-field
Magnetic
flux

Page 8 of 18


( ) ( )
( )( )

=
+

= =

Am
Vs
where
a r a r
t i a
r B
r
t i
r B
7
0
0
2
0
1
10 4 ,
) ( 2
2
,
) (
2

(eq. 3.4)

The magnetic field is proportional to the current i(t). But while the field of the single line de-
creases only inversely proportional to the distance, the field of the go-and-return conductor
decreases inversely proportional to the square of the distance at large distances. This leads
to a dramatic difference in distance dependence of the inductive coupling for both network
models. This behaviour for the magnetic field and for the inductive coupling per unit length is
shown in the next figure. The current i(t) is chosen to be 1 A and the distance a = 1.5 mm.

Fig 3.6 a) the magnetic field of a single and a go-and-return conductor, b) the coupling inductance per unit length
of a loop to a single and a go-and-return.

The magnetic field of the balanced go-and-return conductor is two orders of magnitude
smaller and drops faster than that of the single line. The same is true for the coupling induc-
tance. The dependence of the coupling inductance on the area of the loop is quite similar to
Fig 3.6 b) [For a detailed discussion see the Background Note in the web]. This example
provides the most elementary background knowledge for some golden rules for an EMC
compliant electrical installation:

- Keep the area of any electrical installation as small as possible.
- Maximize the distance to lines with high currents.
- Separate power lines from data lines
- Use TN-S systems only.

Only TN-S type systems are EMC-friendly. In TN-C systems unbalanced currents may arise,
which makes the TN-C system generate the magnetic field of a single line according to the
magnitude of the unbalanced current. Without changing the geometry of the installation the
unbalanced current generates a magnetic field and such an inductive coupling and distur-
bances at least two orders of magnitude higher than of a TN-S system installation.
B(r)
[ T ]

M/m
[ Vs/Am ]
r [ m ]
single conductor
go-and-return
conductor
go-and-return
conductor
r [ m ]
single conductor

Page 9 of 18


3.3.2 The frequency dependence of the inductive coupling

From the frequency behaviour of the inductive coupling valuable information can be ob-
tained, how any electrical installation has to be realised to get an optimal protection against
external high frequency disturbances. We consider again an idealistic experimental set up
similar to fig. 3.5b). Fig. 3.7a) shows the equivalent circuit of a short cut loop of self-
inductance L
2
and resistance R
2
which gets influenced by an external line carrying a current
i
1
(t) with a coupling inductance M.

(eq. 3.5)

Fig 3.7 a) Equivalent circuit for the inductive coupling, b) Transfer function of the coupled current

If we consider currents of a definite frequency ,
t j
e i t i

) ( ) (
2 , 1 2 , 1
= the transfer function of
the disturbing current ) (
1
i and the induced current ) (
2
i for the simple model of this short
cut circuit can be calculated exactly and yields the transfer function of fig 3.7b).

To get an understanding what this formula means for a real installation, we consider a loop
with a length of l = 0.3 m and a width of w = 0.1 m, with a d = 2 mm spacing from the disturb-
ing current line. For the internal resistance we choose R
2
= 50 . The inherent inductance
and the coupling inductance can be calculated for this example to be L
2
= 0.9 H and M =
0.2 H . The magnitude of the disturbing current per unit of the external current ) ( / ) (
1 2
i i
is shown in the following figure:

Fig 3.8 Case study of the transfer function of the current

The disturbing current i
2
increases with the external current i
1
and its frequency. At low fre-
quencies it increases proportional to , while at high frequencies i2 reaches its saturation
value. This saturation value is limited by the ratio
2
/ L M . To minimize the EMI effects an
EMC-friendly installation has to minimise the coupling inductance M and to maximise the self
inductance L
2
of the coupled circuit.

30 MHz
2 1
2
) (
) (
L
M
i
i
=
M
i
i
=
) (
) (
1
2
) (
) (
1
2
i
i

) (
) (
1
2
i
i

1 , ,
2
1
2 2
2
= =
+
= j j s i
sL R
sM
i

Page 10 of 18


Since fast disturbances contain a higher frequency content, they generate an higher amount
of disturbances. This can be seen from the following figure, where the calculated disturbing
current of trapezoidal currents as a model for digital signals is shown.

Fig 3.9 Inductive coupling of a slow and a fast trapezoidal current

It can be seen from fig. 3.9 that the disturbing current reaches more than 10% of the ampli-
tude of the slow and more than 15% of the amplitude of the fast external current. These high
values result from the short rise times of the digital signals. Similar high values are to be ex-
pected from any electronic switching process like that from phase-angle control dimmers.
The switching of the dimmer can be modelled by the onset of the trapezoidal signal. The re-
maining part of the 50 Hz signal only adds a negligible contribution.

Until now we have been looking at the short circuit loop as a drain of EMI. In this case, the
electrical properties have to be optimised to minimize the disturbing current i
2
(t). The property
of the induced current i
2
(t) to generate a magnetic field that weakens the external field can
also be used to shield inlaying sensitive electrical or electronic systems. In this case the elec-
trical parameters of the short circuit loop have to be optimised to optimise the counter field
generating current i
2
(t) and to minimise the net magnetic flux through the loop. Practical ex-
amples of this application are the shield of any shielded cable, cable trays, unused cores of
cables etc. The net magnetic flux across the area of our model short circuit loop can be cal-
culated as
( ) 1 , ,
2
1
2 2
2
2
= =
+
= j j s i
sL R
MR
i
loop
. (eq. 3.6)
It can be seen that the net magnetic flux gets minimised for small values of R
2
. The shielding
properties of our model short circuit loop is shown in the next figure for various values of R
2
:

Fig 3.10 Shielding effectiveness of a short circuit loop for various values of its resistance R
2
.

The shielding effectiveness increases drastically with decreasing resistance of the short cir-
cuit loop, here shown for values of = 5 , 50 , 500 ,
2
R .

To optimise the shielding properties of a short circuit loop, its resistance must be small espe-
cially for high frequencies where the EMI effects are large and an effective shielding is ur-

i
1
(t)
i
2
(t)
i
2
(t)
t
t
loop

=
2
R
=500
2
R
= 50
2
R
=5
2
R
i(t)

Page 11 of 18


gently needed. From this result important installation rules in buildings emerge. All connec-
tions of shielding facilities like cable trunks, cable channels, cabinets etc. have to be of low
resistance at high frequencies. Due to the Skin-effect (see Background Note), the resistance
of any electric conductor increases with the frequency of the signal. Therefore special ge-
ometries of the conductors must be selected appropriately to optimise the conductivity at
high frequencies. Not optimal are normal cables of circular cross section, optimal are con-
nections of a large rectangular cross section (copper strips) or flexible braided copper con-
ductors, which have a large surface and therefore a low resistance at high frequencies.

Of course a short circuit loop works only effectively as a shielding device if the protective
current may flow and there is no interruption in the short circuit loop. Especially shields have
to be connected to ground at both ends to enable a unhindered flow of the shield current.

3.4 The capacitive coupling
The time varying electrical field of an external system influences time varying charges in the
disturbed system. The flow of the displacement currents can be modelled in an effective cir-
cuit by stray capacities, which connect the two systems and cause the disturbing voltages.

Fig. 3.11: The capacitive coupling a) field model, b) equivalent circuit

Similar to the case of the inductive coupling, the capacitive coupling becomes large if

- the two circuits are close together,
- the voltage difference of the two circuits is large,
- the signals in the external circuit are rapidly varying over time and therefore include a
large content of high frequency elements

As an example one may consider the cables of a power supply circuit and of a local area
network circuit, which may lie parallel with little spacing along a distance of 10 m in a cable
tray. If the current in the power cable has a pure sine waveform at 50 Hz and 230 V, the dis-
turbing signal in the data cable reaches an amplitude of 10 V, which may be acceptable. If
the current in the power cable, however, includes high frequency components which may be
generated by frequency converters (adjustable speed drives) or other non-linear components
like phase-angle control dimmers, the disturbing signal in the data cable may reach an ampli-
tude of more than 90 V which may lead to a poor performance or malfunctions of LANs.

If in the planning phase of the electrical installation of a building the cabling and shielding of
the systems are planned properly and the installation is carried out carefully, these types of
disturbances can be excluded or at least minimized to a tolerable amount.

Page 12 of 18


To discuss the most important features of the capacitive coupling we consider again an ele-
mentary model, which can be solved analytically. The model system consists of two circuits,
which for simplicity of the model use the same return conductor. The equivalent circuit model
of the system is shown within the next figure.

Fig. 3.12: Three line model for the capacitive coupling

The lines a and c are part of the external system, lines b and c of the disturbed system. If we
consider voltages of a definite frequency ,
t j
e u t u

) ( ) (
2 , 1 2 , 1
= the relation between the
disturbing voltage ) (
1
u and the coupled voltage ) (
2
u for this simple model can be pre-
cisely calculated and yields
1 , ,
) ( 1
2
1
2
2
2
= =
+ +
= j j s u
C C sR
C sR
u
bc ac
ac
. (eq. 3.7)

We choose for the model parameters R
2
=1k, C
ab
=C
cb
=100 pF, which is reasonable for
parallel cables 1 mm thick, with a 5 mm spacing over a length of 10 m and an external volt-
age of u
1
=220 V. The behaviour of the frequency dependence of the capacitive coupled volt-
age u
1
is shown in the next figure.

Fig. 3.13: Frequency behaviour of the capacitive coupling
The behaviour of the capacitive coupling is very similar to the inductive coupling. The disturb-
ing voltage u
2
increases at low frequencies linearly with the frequency of the disturbing signal
and reaches a saturation value at high frequencies. Again fast disturbing signals including a
large share of high frequency will influence the disturbed circuit massively. The next figure
shows the coupled voltage of a normal 230 V sine-wave of 50 Hz and of a phase-angle con-
trol dimmer.

) (
2
u
1
u
C C
C
bc ab
ab
+
1 2
u C R
ab
) (
2
u
u
1
(t)

C
ac

C
bc

u
2
(t)
R

Page 13 of 18


Fig. 3.14: Capacitively coupled signals of a) a 50 Hz sine wave b) a phase-angle control dimmer

The sine-wave leads to a sine-disturbing signal with an amplitude of about 7 mV, which in
most cases can be neglected. However, the dimmer modelled as an instantaneous switching
process leads to a voltage peak of 110 V.

The capacitive coupling may be reduced using shielded cables. The model of a pair of
shielded cables is shown in the next figure.

Fig. 3.15: Capacitive coupling of two shielded cables

The conducting shields S
1
and S
2
are connected one sided to the system. The frequency
behaviour of the disturbed voltage u
2
is the same as in eq. 3.7, where C
ab
has to be replaced
with
24 13
24 13
1
C C
C C
C
+
= and C
bc
by C
34
. The maximum voltage that might be coupled amounts to
1
24 34 13 34
2
/ / 1
1
u
C C C C
u
+ +
= which shows that a good capacitive connection C
34
between the
conductor and the shield improves the effectiveness of the shield. For various capacitive
couplings the shielding effectiveness of a shielded cable against a fast transient pulse is
shown in the next figure.

( ) t u
2

( ) [ ]
4
1
10 ) 100 sin( 220

= t t u
u(t)
t

( ) ( )
[ ]
2
5
1
10
10 ) 100 sin( 220
= t t t u

t
u(t)
( ) t u
2

S
2

1
u
1
u
2
C
13

C
24

C
34

2
3
4

Page 14 of 18


Fig. 3.16: Shielding of a burst pulse by shields of a different internal capacitive coupling

3.5 The radiation coupling
Electromagnetic fields travel through space at the velocity of light s m c / 10 998 . 2
8
= and
may influence electrical installations in the near or far surrounding of the source. Typical
sources of electromagnetic fields are radio or TV transmitters, mobiles or any other kind of
wireless applications. The high frequency parts of fast signals or of fast transients (ESD,
surge, burst, lightning) may also lead to the radiation of electromagnetic fields via cables or
any other parts of the electrical installation and may cause disturbances in electrical systems
in other parts of the building.

If the disturbances on the power supply or data net contain high frequency components, all of
the various elements in electrical installation systems may act as antennas which radiate the
electromagnetic fields. The Hertz Dipole may serve as an elementary model to estimate the
magnitude of radiated fields. Some details and approximate formulas are discussed in the
accompanying Background Note. All conductive parts of the electrical installation may serve
as antennas, such as

- Cables
- Apertures and slots of cases, cubicles etc.
- Printed board strips.

Especially apertures and slots of cases radiate into the surrounding or into the housing, dis-
turbing other objects in the environment and/or transmitting electromagnetic fields from the
outside into the systems.

As an example we may look at an electrostatic discharge of a human body onto a metal
plate. The light arc of the electrostatic discharge not only transports a significant current but
also generates an electromagnetic field, easily reaching a field strength of 0.5 - 4 kV at a
distance less than 1 m. These electromagnetic fields may disturb the electrical system inside
via the antenna properties of the slots of a poorly designed or manufactured cubicle.

Conducting elements like cables and slots of the installation start to radiate when their linear
dimension roughly becomes half of the wavelength or larger. The wavelength of an elec-
tromagnetic wave and its frequency f are related via the velocity of light by the relation
f c / = . Some typical pairs of values are collected in the following table:
( )

2
1
1
t u
( ) t u
2

C
34
= 10 pF
C
34
=100 pF
C
34
=500 pF
u(t)
[V]
t

Page 15 of 18


f [MHz] [m]
0.1 3000
1 300
10 30
100 3
1000 0.3

Tab. 3.2: Some values of frequencies and corresponding wavelengths

Frequencies and wavelengths of typical electromagnetic fields are given in the following ta-
ble:

Region Wavelength [m] Frequency f [Hz]
Long wave radio (AM)
3 3
10 2 10 1 . 1
5 5
10 85 . 2 10 5 . 1
Middle wave radio (AM)
2 2
10 6 . 5 10 9 . 1
6 5
10 6 . 1 10 35 . 5
Short wave radio (AM)
2 1
10 1 10 2 . 1
7 6
10 6 . 2 10 3
Ultra short wave radio (FM)
0 0
10 4 . 3 10 8 . 2
8 6
10 08 . 1 10 75 . 8
TV
1 1
10 3 . 7 10 8 . 3

8 7
10 9 . 7 10 1 . 4
Mobiles, GSM 900
1
10 3 . 3

8
10 9
Mobiles, GSM 1800
1
10 7 . 1

9
10 8 . 1
Mobiles, UMTS
1
10 4 . 1

9
10 1 . 2
Microwave, Radar
1 4
10 1 10 1

12 9
10 3 10 3
Infrared
4 5
10 1 10 8 . 7

14 12
10 9 . 3 10 3
Visible
7 7
10 7 . 7 10 8 . 3

14 14
10 9 . 7 10 9 . 3
Ultraviolet
7 9
10 8 . 3 10 1

17 14
10 3 10 9 . 7
X-Rays
9 11
10 1 10 1

19 17
10 3 10 3
Gamma Rays
11
10 1

<
19
10 3 >

Realistic housings cannot be absolutely dense with respect to electromagnetic fields. Aper-
tures like holes for cables and ventilation and slots at doors are unavoidable. These aper-
tures reduce the effective shielding of any housing. An acceptable shielding effectiveness
may be achieved by an appropriate design of the housing. The amount of leakage from a
shield discontinuity depends mostly on three items

- The maximum linear dimension of the aperture
- The wave impedance
- The frequency of the source.

For slots with a length of 2 / l the shielding effectiveness is given by

=
l
S
2
log 20

(eq. 6.20)

Decreasing the slot length by a factor of 2 increases the shielding by 6 dB. The next figure
shows the shielding effectiveness for various frequencies plotted against the slot length.

Page 16 of 18


Fig. 3.17: Shielding effectiveness of a slot of various length as a function of frequency

In practical installations the maximal length of the slots should be smaller than 1/20 of the
wavelength to guarantee a shielding effectiveness of at least 20 dB. From eq. 6.20 or from
fig. 6.17 the corresponding maximal slot length of any housing can be seen to get a required
shielding effectiveness.

3.6 Complex systems of realistic EMI

A realistic situation of EMI consists of a complex combination of all the elementary couplings
mentioned above. A simple example of an automation system shows, that all of the couplings
apply to a single system in contact with its environment at the same time.

Fig. 3.18: Various couplings paths of an automation system

The single system is embedded in a complex network of other systems and they all together
form a system of complex mutual EMI interrelations. To guarantee a proper functioning of the

Automation System

Electro-
magnetic
Fields
I/O Signal Cables
Bus Cables
Power
Supply
Ground-
ing
Cables
f
l= 1 cm
l= 5 cm
l=10 cm
l=50 cm
l= 1m
S [dB]

Page 17 of 18


whole system, a so-called EMC matrix has to be generated and evaluated during the plan-
ning process for a new building but also for new electrical installations in an old building at
the very early stages of the work.

4 The EMC directive of the EU and its relevance for installations in
facilities and buildings.

In order to create a common European market, a set of different EU-directives has been for-
mulated European Commission which should guarantee that different products, produced in
different member states of the EU, satisfy a common quality standard. If this standard is
guaranteed by heeding the standards of the EU sales of these products are permitted in
every member country of the EU without any further restriction.

In the case of EMC the EU directive EU 89/336 amended by directives 91/263/EEC,
92/31/EEC, 93/68/EEC, 93/97/EEC describe the general standards for any product to guar-
antee Electromagnetic Compatibility by restricting the maximum emission of the product and
its minimum sensitivity against external EMI. The manufacturer of any transportable product
has to declare the conformity of his product with the standards of the EU by the declaration
of conformity. The product has to be marked by the manufacturer or any other responsible
person with the CE-sign to certify its compliance with the EMC directive and eventually other
directives. This CE-sign is a kind of passport, which allows the product to travel across
the border and being sold in any other country of the European market.

The directive applies to components, finished products, systems and installations. Electrical
installations in facilities and buildings must not marked with the CE-sign and the declaration
of the conformity is not required since the location of the installation is fixed. However the
compliance with the standards of the EU directive has to be guaranteed. This is the task of
these person(s) who are responsible for design, engineering and construction of the electri-
cal installation. There are two possible ways to guarantee and verify the compliance with the
safety limits: Either to use for the installation EMC certified apparatus, systems and mod-
ules, which are installed by EMC trained personnel or to use any modules and get the EMC
compliant behaviour of the installation tested and certified by measurements of an EMC labo-
ratory or a notified body. In any case the planner has to testify the compliance with the EMC
standards of the EU directive by appropriate documents. Additionally the manufacturer of
the EMC relevant installations must provide clear instructions for operation and maintenance
in the instructions for use in accordance with the annex III of the EU directive. These instruc-
tions must give information on intended conditions of use, instructions on installation, as-
sembly, adjustment, taking into service, use and maintenance. Where necessary, warnings
about limitations of use have to be given as well.

The safest way to guarantee the compliance of an electrical installation of a building may be
to heed the following rules

- Perform an EMC planning of the electrical installations of the building from the very
beginning of planning the building by an EMC expert.
- Use installation modules and materials which are EMC certified only.
- Carry out the installations by EMC skilled staff only.
- Have the installation supervised by EMC skilled engineers.

Since the subject of EMC has been included in the curricula of a few vocational and engi-
neering schools only during the last years, there is a need of further education on this topic.
Several courses have been offered so far by various parties in order to educate planners,
engineers and installation personnel on the topic of EMC compliant installations in buildings.

Page 18 of 18


In view of increasing costs due to EMC damages, also the German trade associations of in-
surances like the Verband der Deutschen Schadensversicherer and their partners offer a
course to educate EMC skilled persons (EMV-Sachkundiger), where the qualified persons
are privileged to plan and supervise EMC compliant installations or to remedy EMC problems
in facilities and private and public buildings.

Facing the development of the usage of new technologies in the facility management of me-
dium and large buildings as well as the increasing importance of new technologies in smart
homes in the private sector an EMC-correct installation in the next future will be more crucial
than ever before to avoid malfunctions and distubances the componets of a modern electrical
installation.

5 References

[Durc] G. Durcansky: EMC correct Design of Apparatus (in German), Francis, 1995
[EMC] Electromagnetic compatibility (EMC), Guide to the Application of Directive
89/336/EEC, European Communities 1997
[Fa] S. Fassbinder: Disturbances of the Power Supply Net by active and passive
Components (in German), VDE Verlag, 2002
[Goe] J . Goedbloed: Electromagnetic Compatibility (in German), Pflaum Verlag,
1990
[Grap] M. Grapentin: EMC for the Installation of Buildings (in German), Verlag
Technik, 2000
[Hab] E. Habiger: Electromagnetic Compatibility (in German),, Hthig, 1998
[Kei] B. Keiser: Principles of EMC, Artech House, 1987
[Kod] V.P. Kodali: Engineering Electromagnetic Compatibility, IEEE Press, 1996
[Koh] A. Kohling: EMC of Buildings, Facilities and Apparatus (in German), VDE-
Verlag, 1998
[Leh] G. Lehner: Theory of Electromagnetic Fields (in German), Springer, 1994
[Ott] H. W. Ott: Noise Reduction techniques in electronic Systems, A. Wiley, 1988
[Pau] C. R. Paul: Introduction to Electromagnetic Compatibility, J ohn Wiley, 1992
[Pei] D. Peier: Electromagnetic Compatibility (in German),, Hthig, 1990
[Rod] A. Rodewald: Electromagnetic Compatibility (in German), Vieweg, 1995
[Rud1] W. Rudolph, O. Winter: EMC according VDE 0100 (in German), VDE-Verlag,
2000
[Rud2] W. Rudolph: An EMC primer for Electricians (in German), VDE-Verlag, 2001
[Schn] Guideline Electromagnetic Compatibility (in German), EMC-Guideline
ZX62920D, 1998, Groupe Schneider
[Schw] A. Schwab: Electromagnetic Compatibility (in German), Springer, 1996
[VDE] DIN/VDE 0848 : Safety in electrical, magnetic and electromagnetic Fields (in
German)

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