A Sneak Peek at Anechoic Chamber Testing

[Mathieu Stephan] has something new in the works, and while he isn’t ready to take the wraps off of it yet, he was kind enough to document his experience putting the mysterious new gadget through its paces inside an anechoic chamber. Considering the majority of us will never get inside of one of these rooms, much less have the opportunity to test our own hardware in one, he figured it was the least he could do.

If you’re not familiar with an anechoic chamber, don’t feel bad. It’s not exactly the sort of thing you’ll have at the local makerspace. …read more

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Sign of the Smith Chart Times

The Smith chart is a staple for analyzing complex impedance. [W2AEW] notes that a lot of inexpensive test gear like the MFJ-259B gives you complex readings, but fails to provide the sign of the imaginary part of the complex number. That makes it difficult to plot the results on a Smith chart or carry out other analysis. As you might expect, though, he has a solution for you that you can see in the video, below.

A common method is to increase the frequency slightly. In a simple case, you’d expect the imaginary part — the reactance — to go …read more

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Antenna Analyzer is a Lab in a Box

There was a time when the measure of a transmitting radio antenna was having it light an incandescent bulb. A step up was a classic SWR/Power meter that showed you forward and reflected power. Over the years, a few other instruments have tried to provide a deeper look into antenna performance. However, the modern champion is the antenna analyzer which is a way of measuring vector impedance.

[Captain Science] did a review of an inexpensive N1201SA analyzer. This device is well under $200 from the usual Chinese sellers. The only thing a bit odd is the frequency range which is …read more

Continue reading Antenna Analyzer is a Lab in a Box

Antenna Analyzer is a Lab in a Box

There was a time when the measure of a transmitting radio antenna was having it light an incandescent bulb. A step up was a classic SWR/Power meter that showed you forward and reflected power. Over the years, a few other instruments have tried to provide a deeper look into antenna performance. However, the modern champion is the antenna analyzer which is a way of measuring vector impedance.

[Captain Science] did a review of an inexpensive N1201SA analyzer. This device is well under $200 from the usual Chinese sellers. The only thing a bit odd is the frequency range which is …read more

Continue reading Antenna Analyzer is a Lab in a Box