Linear-nonlinear approach to the analytical solution of a diode-loaded short dipole for complex signals

A diode detector consisting of a zero-bias Schottky diode connected to an electrically short dipole is a configuration commonly encountered in electric field measurement applications, e.g. wideband electric field probes. This circuit is described analytically by nonlinear differential equations, due to a nonlinear diode resistance. This problem is solved here using a novel linear-nonlinear analytical approach. It is based on the idea of keeping only the necessary nonlinearity of the circuit, while conveniently linearizing some steps of the procedure. Combining linear and nonlinear steps, the transfer function of a diode-loaded electrically short dipole is solved by a completely analytical, fairly simple procedure. This approach is applied separately to small signals and large signals, and to sine input signal and a complex signal with an arbitrary waveform. The obtained solutions describe the behavior of the electric field probe in various working conditions