A Method for Determining Vector Reflection Coefficient Based on Scalar Amplitude

Short-circuited reflection method is usually used to characterize the dielectric property of materials. When using the method, the extraction of the vector reflection coefficient (VRC) of the metal-backed sample is the key to determine the complex permittivity of the sample. Traditionally, the VRC is measured by a vector network analyzer associated with the transmission line or the antenna. In this letter, a method for determining the VRC using a scalar network analyzer is presented, which requires only one perturbation-two-port network composed of a standard sample layer. Based on the amplitude of the VRC, the phase of the VRC can be determined by the proposed rigorous analytical algorithm. The proposed method has been confirmed theoretically and experimentally, and the applicability of the method is analyzed.