Three-dimensional standing waves in a microwave oven

A microwave oven operating at a frequency of 2.45 GHz was designed for demonstrating three-dimensional standing waves. The three-dimensional standing wave patterns formed on cobalt chloride paper placed at the center of the oven chamber were examined. The images on the cobalt chloride paper corresponding to antinodes of the standing waves were recorded by a digital camera after turning on the microwave oven. The results show that the numbers of antinodes of the standing waves in each plane agree with those of the theoretical calculation of the electric field distribution in the oven chamber.