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Re: [TowerTalk] what size wire for kilowatt TX ??

To: towertalk@contesting.com
Subject: Re: [TowerTalk] what size wire for kilowatt TX ??
From: K4SAV <RadioIR@charter.net>
Date: Sat, 03 Jan 2009 22:00:15 -0600
List-post: <towertalk@contesting.com">mailto:towertalk@contesting.com>
..."I'm not buying that!  Current flow depends on impedance, R+jX, not 
radiation
resistance.".....

Ah, but it's confusing.  For a short vertical that is not tuned to 
resonance, if the source is a voltage source, the feedpoint is at a low 
current and the voltage at the feedpoint is equal to the source.  If the 
source is a current source, the feedpoint is at a high voltage and the 
current is equal to the source.  If the feedpoint is a power source, 
then the feedpoint will be at a high voltage AND at a high current.  No, 
you cannot multiply voltage times current and get the power.  Remember 
the phase calculations done when figuring real power?  When you split 
that vector, the equivalent current going into the antenna at zero phase 
angle is highly dependent on the radiation resistance of the antenna.  
So the lower that resistance, the higher the feedpoint current (the 
feedpoint voltage also goes up).  There is a lot of reactive power but 
all that does is drive up the feedpoint voltage.

The mag loop analogy may be confusing to some because it is usually 
tuned to resonance by a cap.  That leaves a very small impedance because 
the radiation resistance is very low, and everyone tries to make 
resistive losses as low as possible to make the thing work.  So now you 
have to drive maybe 0.5 +j0 ohms.  I think you can do the math for that.

Jerry, K4SAV

Martin Ewing wrote:

>I'm not buying that!  Current flow depends on impedance, R+jX, not radiation
>resistance. Your short whip runs at high voltage and low current.  There is
>lots of current in the matching network, but little gets into the antenna
>wire.  Another way to see it is that the "boundary condition" on current
>flow is that it must be zero at the end of the wire (unless there are sparks
>flying!).  Transforming back a fraction of a wavelength to the feed point,
>you're still mostly voltage and little current.
>
>A small loop antenna is the complement, mostly current and little voltage.
>
>73 & Cheers,
>Martin AA6E
>
>On Sat, Jan 3, 2009 at 4:46 PM, Steve Hunt <steve@karinya.net> wrote:
>
>  
>
>>Nope - the current will be much higher in an electrically short antenna.
>>What matters is not its high reactance - that will get tuned out by the
>>matching circuitry - but the low radiation resistance where the power is
>>being dissipated. If you don't believe it, just picture how much current
>>is flowing in a small magnetic loop antenna or a mobile whip.
>>
>>73,
>>Steve G3TXQ
>>
>>Martin Ewing wrote:
>>    
>>
>>>This all assumes you're talking about a full size dipole.  If your
>>>      
>>>
>>antenna
>>    
>>
>>>is more like a short whip, the current in the wire is much less, since it
>>>      
>>>
>>is
>>    
>>
>>>a high impedance antenna.  Then, your problem is in the antenna
>>>tuner/coupler and ground system, where there could be high losses.
>>>
>>>      
>>>
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>>
>>
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>>    
>>
>
>
>
>  
>

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