A complex quantity characteristic of a radio frequency transmission line which indicates the effect of the line on the transmitted wave. The real part indicates the attenuation and the imaginary part the phase shift.

The mathematical term which defines wave propagation. It is equal to 2 divided by the wavelength.

A quantity that describes the propagation of a wave. Usually designated , it is equal to the radian frequency divided by the phase velocity, and has units of per meter (m-1 ). A complex propagation constant describes both propagation and attenuation. The real part describes attenuation; the imaginary part, propagation.

For a given frequency of radiant energy, a complex quantity describing the medium through which the radiation is propagating. The real part is the specific attenuation, usually measured in decibels per unit path length, and the imaginary part is the phase constant or change in phase, in radians per unit path length.

For an electromagnetic field mode varying sinusoidally with time at a given frequency, the propagation constant is the logarithmic rate of change, with respect to distance in a given direction, of the complex amplitude of any field component.