How Should Antennas Be Oriented Relative to the Transmission of Radio Waves?

[sona1177]

Homework Statement

An electric dipole antenna used to transmit radio waves is oriented vertically.

At a point due north of the transmitter, how should a second electric dipole antenna be oriented to serve as a receiver?

answer=vertical (since it should be aligned with the electric field, which is also vertical). I am not sure if this is right.

At a point due north of the transmitter, how should a MAGNETIC dipole antenna be oriented to serve as the receiver.

The magnetic field is along the east-west axis. So i don't understand why the receiver isn't along the east/west axis.

Homework Equations

The Attempt at a Solution

 

[vela]

What exactly do you mean by the receiver being "along the east/west axis"?

 

[sona1177]

It's direction.

 

[sona1177]

I don't understand how to figure out where the electric and magnetic dipole antennas are supposed to be oriented. Could you help me with this please?

 

[vela]

I realize you probably have a picture in your head and what you are writing seems to describe that picture perfectly, but when you say the receiver (I assume you mean antenna here) is oriented along the east-west axis, it's not at all clear to me what you mean. You need to be a bit more explicit and define what you mean by the orientation of the antenna.

 

[sona1177]

I realize you probably have a picture in your head and what you are writing seems to describe that picture perfectly, but when you say the receiver (I assume you mean antenna here) is oriented along the east-west axis, it's not at all clear to me what you mean. You need to be a bit more explicit and define what you mean by the orientation of the antenna.

This is the question as it is written in the book:

An electric dipole antenna used to transmit radio waves is oriented vertically.

a) At a point due south of the transmitter, what is the direction of the wave's magnetic field?

b) At a point due north of the transmitter, how should a second electric dipole antenna be oriented to serve as a receiver?

c) At a point due north of the transmitter, how should a magnetic dipole antenna be oriented to serve as a receiver?

I don't know how to do this problem at all. other than knowing that the direction of the wave's magnetic field is east/west