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[TowerTalk] fractal antenna

To: <towertalk@contesting.com>
Subject: [TowerTalk] fractal antenna
From: w8ji.tom@MCIONE.com (w8ji.tom)
Date: Wed, 23 Dec 1998 20:47:09 -0500
Hi Fred and Reid,

> I know Chip (N1IR) quite well, and I've seen the math behind his antenna
> designs.  It is my opinion that he should characterize fractal antennas
> as providing substantial reduction in size while minimizing reduction in
> performance.

Not necessarily. There is no electrical advantage to packing a ton of wire
in a small space, unless the goal is a heater. 

So far as I know, no one has ever answered the simple question "why does
fractal folding offer a performance advantage?".

I see two major issues that are unresolved:

1.) The data is based almost entirely on models. There are many losses not
accounted for in modeling when wires are bent at fractional wavelength
intervals. Performance could be a whole lot worse than expected in many
cases.

2.) The antennas are virtually impossible to construct.

73 Tom

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