Time domain reflectometry model : analysis and characterization of a chafing defect in a coaxial cable

This paper presents experimental and numerical studies of a chafing soft defect realized by partially milling coaxial cables. The approach is based on the time domain reflectometry technique. The numerical model consists in solving Maxwell's equations while an incident Gaussian pulse is injected on the faulty line. The experimental time domain measurements are performed with a vector network analyzer. To get the experimental results comparable to the numerical ones, a process to denoise the measured impulse responses is proposed. The reflection coefficients obtained are compared to those given by a classical approach based on a chain matrix model to show the impact of 3D numerical modeling in studying soft faults.