# Adding a Plane Wave Source

Add a plane wave source to illuminate a model with a uniform electric field.

Note: All sources are considered active during the calculation for each plane wave incident direction.
1. On the Source/Load tab, in the Ideal source group, click the  Plane wave icon.
2. In the Magnitude (V/m) field, specify the magnitude of the plane wave.
3. In the Phase (degrees) field, specify the phase of the plane wave.
4. Specify the operation mode using one of the following:
• To create a single plane wave, click Single incident wave.
Tip: Use multiple single incident plane wave sources to create a specific field distribution.
• To create a single plane wave that loops over multiple directions, select Loop over multiple directions.
5. In the Polarisation angle field, specify the angle, $\eta$ in degrees, measured in a right-handed sense around the direction of propagation, from $\vartheta$ to ${E}_{0}$ .
6. Under Polarisation, specify the polarisation type:
• Left hand rotating elliptical
• Linear
• Right hand rotating elliptical
7. [Optional] Select the Calculate orthogonal polarisations check box to create an additional orthogonal plane wave (although still a single plane wave source).
Note: Select this option when exporting transmission / reflection coefficients to a .tr file.
8. In the Ellipticity (0 to 1) field, specify the polarisation.
Note:
• Ellipticity = 0: linear polarisation
• Ellipticity 1: circular polarisation
9. In the Label field, add a unique label for the plane wave source.
10. Click the Create button to create the plane wave source and to close the dialog.