This calculator converts values between VSWR, Return loss, Reflection Coefficient and Mis-Match Loss.
VSWR (Voltage Standing Wave Ratio) is the measure of how efficiently RF power is transmitted in to a load. For example, if a power amplifier is connected to an antenna through a transmission line - ideally there will be no reflections and all the signal from the power amplifier will be transmitted to the antenna. However in the real world, there will be some mismatches which will cause some of the signal to get reflected back in to the transmission line. VSWR is the measure of how much signal get reflected back in to the system. It is the ratio between transmitted and reflected waves. A high VSWR indicates poor transmission-line efficiency and reflected energy.
Return Loss is a amount of power that is lost to the load and does not return in to the system as a reflection. It is expressed in dB - A high return loss means more power is lost at the load.
Reflection Coefficient indicates how much of an electromagnetic wave is reflected by an impedance discontinuity in the transmission medium. It is a ratio of the amplitude of the reflected wave to the wave incident at the junction. The reflection coefficient is denoted by the symbol gamma. The magnitude of the reflection coefficient does not depend on the length of the line, only the load impedance and the impedance of the transmission line.