[TenTec] Re: Rudimentary SWR question...

[Bill Fuqua]

         An interesting point. Has anyone looked at the curriculum of the 
ARRL's Big Project. I did a word search thru the lab manuals and words such 
as resonance, resonate,etc are not existent.  Resonance is a very important 
concept not only in radio but in science particularly in physics.  It is 
the action between two complementary energy storage mechanisms (kinetic and 
potential) that not only  provides for selectivity but for storage of 
oscillating energy.  An example would be a pipe organ. The open end of the 
pipe is a poor acoustic coupler to the air but by resonance the oscillating 
(acoustic) pressure inside the tubes builds up to a point that the energy 
coupled to the ambient (room) air equals plus some heat loss, equals the 
energy being pumped into the pipe.

         An efficient not resonant coupler to the air would also be a horn. 
Speakers with horns have been used for some time. If you simply use  the 
speaker drive with out a horn or connect it to a non-resonant pipe very 
little sound would be produced. However, if you do use a horn you get 
effective coupling. A resonant pipe works as well but only works only 
at  the fundamental frequency or odd overtones.  I guess being an engineer 
working with physicist has made me look at things in more than from a 
circuits point of view.  Sometime things are more interesting when you see 
them from a different perspective.

   73
Bill wa4lav



William L. Fuqua III P.E.
Electrical Engineer
CP 177 Chemistry Physics Building
Department of Physics and Astronomy
University of Kentucky
Lexington,KY 40506-0055
Phone: 1-859-257-4155
e-mail:  wlfuqu00 at uky.edu