Propagation of short current pulses on a transmission line with nonlinear resistance

Abstract

This paper presents a study of the propagation of short current pulses on a uniform transmission line considering nonlinear losses. Two cases are considered. One of them assumes a voltage source to excite an infinite transmission line, in a situation that can be viewed as analogous to a lightning strike to ground. This transmission line is assumed either lossless or lossy, being the per-unit-length resistance treated either as constant or nonlinear. A second case assumes the voltage source to be inserted between two transmission lines, one of them lossless and the other lossy. The lossless transmission line is grounded at one end and the lossy transmission line is assumed infinite, in a situation that can be viewed as analogous to a lightning strike to a tall grounded object. The role of the line resistance on the currents calculated in both cases is investigated in an attempt to infer its impact on return-stroke current propagation.