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Re: [Amps] close to off topic - how to read antenna R + jX ??

To: Dan Sawyer <dansawyer@earthlink.net>
Subject: Re: [Amps] close to off topic - how to read antenna R + jX ??
From: David Kirkby <david.kirkby@onetel.net>
Date: Sun, 27 Feb 2005 02:31:04 +0000
List-post: <mailto:amps@contesting.com>
Dan Sawyer wrote:

>Thanks Alek,
>
>I will do the math tonight and see if the LC are resonant for the 
>frequency. The LC readings are very close for 2 different 50 ohm 
>terminators and an antenna that is close to resonant. The frequency was 
>7.24 MHz.
>  
>
Well here's I done it in Mathematica

http://www.wolfram.com/

for you.

f=1/(2 * pi * sqrt(l c) )

In[4]:= 1 / (2 * Pi Sqrt[ 2 10^-6 2500 10^-12])   

You might not follow the formatting, as I doubt it will print properly 
in an email, and I can't be bothered to output it in another form and 
put on a web page.

        5000000 Sqrt[2]
Out[4]= ---------------
              Pi

At this point Mathematica has done the computation eexactly (so there is 
no rounding errors), but lets put it in a more human readable format, by 
asking Mathematica for a numerical value.

In[5]:= N[%]

                  6
Out[5]= 2.25079 10


But the resonate frequency of the 2uH and 2500pF caps is 2.25 x 10^6 Hz, 
or 2.25 MHz.

But it is a pointless computation, as there are an infinite set of L's 
and C's which will resonate at any given frequency. Those values 
resonate at 2.25MHz, but if you half L (make it 1uH) and double C (make 
it 5000pF)  it would resonate at exactly the same frequency.

>Is the Z reaking accurate?
>
Z is normally meant to mean impedance, which in general has both a real 
(R) and imaginary (X) parts. Since you have not quoted the X part, you 
have not stated an impedance, only a resistance. But for a perfect dummy 
load, one would expect R=50, X=0, so it has indicated the resistive part 
right, but you can't say it has given you the correct impedance, since 
you have not quoted one.

>Dan
>
BTW, you might want to take a look at Mathematica

http://www.wolfram.com/

Whilst it's an expensive program (~$1800 on Windoze), there was at one 
point (probably still is) a free download that will compute anything, 
but does not allow you to save the results.

Mathematica is useful if you want to play around with some text books on 
this sort of thing, as unlike calculators, you don't need to put numbers 
in, but can leave equations in the form of unknown R's, L's, C's etc. 
(In Mathematica, you should use lower case variables).

If you wanted to find the solution of a quadratic

ax^2 + bx + c == 0

which you might recall from school days, you don't need to know what a, 
b, and c are.

In[8]:= Solve[ a x^2 + bx + c == 0,x]

again the result does not print too well, but it shows the two solutions.

                 Sqrt[-bx - c]          Sqrt[-bx - c]
Out[8]= {{x -> -(-------------)}, {x -> -------------}}
                    Sqrt[a]                Sqrt[a]

You could write a simple function to compute the resonance frequency of 
any inductance and capacitance. I'll force it to print the the result 
numerically this time, but using '1.0' rather than '1' in the formula.

In[16]:= f[l_,c_]=1.0/ (2 Pi Sqrt[l c])

         0.159155
Out[16]= ---------
         Sqrt[c l]

In[17]:= f[2 10^-6, 2500 10^-12]

                   6
Out[17]= 2.25079 10


It's well worth looking at for learning. And if you want to learn about 
complex numbers (i.e. those with an imaginary part), which you need to 
understand impedance properly, Mathematica can calculate with them just 
as easily as real numbers.


First try a calculation.
In[18]:= (3 - 20 I) / (4 + 9 I)

Mathematica produces an exact result, which might not be what you want.

           168    107 I
Out[18]= -(---) - -----
           97      97


So you ask it for a numerical approximation.

In[19]:= N[%]

Out[19]= -1.73196 - 1.10309 I

And so we have divided two complex numbers, and get a complex result.

Good luck.

-- 
Dr. David Kirkby, 
G8WRB

Please check out http://www.g8wrb.org/ 
of if you live in Essex http://www.southminster-branch-line.org.uk/



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