The wave cutoff probe, a precise measurement method for measuring the electron density, was recently proposed. To characterize the cutoff probe system, in this paper, the microwave simulations of a cutoff probe system were performed at various configurations of the cutoff probe system. The influence of the cutoff probe spectrum stemming from numerous parametric elements such as the probe tip length, probe tip distance, probe tip plane orientation, chamber volume/geometry, and coaxial cable length is presented and discussed. This article is expected to provide qualitative and quantitative insight into cutoff probe systems and its optimization process. V C 2012 American Institute of Physics. [http://dx.