Y-parameters, or **admittance parameters**, are a way to characterize the electrical behavior of **two-port networks**. A two-port network is any electrical system with two pairs of terminals: one for input and one for output. Y-parameters express the relationship between the voltages and currents at the input and output ports of this network. The parameters themselves are derived from the network's **admittance** (which is the reciprocal of impedance).
### Understanding Two-Port Networks
A **two-port network** typically has:
- An **input port** where a voltage and current are applied (denoted as \( V_1 \) and \( I_1 \)).
- An **output port** where another voltage and current are present (denoted as \( V_2 \) and \( I_2 \)).
The goal of using Y-parameters is to relate the voltages at the two ports to the currents flowing through them.
### Y-Parameter Equations
The Y-parameters are defined by the following linear equations:
\[
I_1 = Y_{11}V_1 + Y_{12}V_2
\]
\[
I_2 = Y_{21}V_1 + Y_{22}V_2
\]
Where:
- \( I_1 \) is the current at the input port,
- \( I_2 \) is the current at the output port,
- \( V_1 \) is the voltage at the input port,
- \( V_2 \) is the voltage at the output port,
- \( Y_{11}, Y_{12}, Y_{21}, Y_{22} \) are the **admittance parameters** (Y-parameters), expressed in siemens (S).
#### Physical Meaning of the Y-parameters
1. **\( Y_{11} \)**: Input admittance with the output short-circuited.
\[
Y_{11} = \left. \frac{I_1}{V_1} \right|_{V_2=0}
\]
This is the ratio of input current to input voltage when the output port is short-circuited (i.e., \( V_2 = 0 \)).
2. **\( Y_{12} \)**: Reverse transfer admittance with the input short-circuited.
\[
Y_{12} = \left. \frac{I_1}{V_2} \right|_{V_1=0}
\]
This describes how the input current is affected by the output voltage when the input port is short-circuited (i.e., \( V_1 = 0 \)).
3. **\( Y_{21} \)**: Forward transfer admittance with the output short-circuited.
\[
Y_{21} = \left. \frac{I_2}{V_1} \right|_{V_2=0}
\]
This describes how the output current is affected by the input voltage when the output port is short-circuited.
4. **\( Y_{22} \)**: Output admittance with the input short-circuited.
\[
Y_{22} = \left. \frac{I_2}{V_2} \right|_{V_1=0}
\]
This is the ratio of output current to output voltage when the input port is short-circuited.
### Measurement of Y-Parameters
To determine the Y-parameters experimentally, you would perform two different tests:
1. **Short-circuit the output port (set \( V_2 = 0 \))** and measure \( I_1 \) and \( I_2 \) as a function of \( V_1 \).
2. **Short-circuit the input port (set \( V_1 = 0 \))** and measure \( I_1 \) and \( I_2 \) as a function of \( V_2 \).
### Applications of Y-Parameters
Y-parameters are useful in analyzing:
- **Small-signal behavior** of electronic circuits such as amplifiers.
- **High-frequency circuits** where admittance-based representations can be easier to work with than impedance parameters (Z-parameters).
- **Parallel circuits**, as Y-parameters naturally describe currents and admittances.
### Conclusion
The Y-parameters provide a powerful and convenient way to model two-port networks, especially in high-frequency and parallel circuits. These parameters describe how currents at the input and output depend on voltages at the same or opposite ports, allowing for both forward and reverse interactions to be captured in a simple linear form.