ANTENNA COMPENDIUM View VOLUME 2The ARRL Antenna Compendium Volume 2 Editor Gerald L. (erry) Hall, KITD Assistant Editors Rod Gray, WA1DVU Randy Henderson, WISW Charles L. Hutchinson, KECH Joel P. Kleinman, N1BKE Production Leslie Bartoloth, KA1MJP- Michelle Chrisjohn, WB1ENT Sandra Damato Jacqueline Hernandez Jodi Morin, KA1JPA Stetfie Nelson, KAIFB David Pingree Dianna Roy Hilary Vose Jean Wilson Cover Design ‘Sue Fagan The Cover ‘Theme: Radio signals propagate from the antenna, through the ionosphere, and {o distant points on the globe. Sometimes the ionosphere displays visible phenomena, as discussed in the final paper of this volume. Feature photo: Aurora australis. Taken south of New Zealand looking toward ‘Antarctica, by Col Robert Overmyer from Spacelab Ill (Challenger). The principal investigators on the Spacelab Il auroral project were Dr. Thomas Hallinan and mission specialist Don Lind. The photo shows not only cloud layers, but also the airgiow layer, stars, and the aurora. (NASA photo) Inset photo: Aurora borealis, showing the entire auroral aval. Taken September 1981 from a spacecrait alitude of approximately 12,962 miles. The sun illuminates the earth from the left-hand side of the picture, (NASA photo)Copyright © 1969 by ‘The American Radio Relay League, Ine Copyright socured under the Pan-American Convention Intemational Copyright secured “This work is Publication No. 112 of the Racio ‘Amateurs Library, published by the Leegue A rights osarved. No part ofthis work may be raped nym exept By wren xmsion of tho publisher. Al Fights ancaion are reserved Printed in USA, ‘Queda reseracis 1203 os derechos $12.00 in tho USA 4st Eaton ‘Second printing, 1980 ISBN: 0-97250-254-5,Foreword In 1985 the ARRL added The ARRL Antenna Compendium, Volume 1 to its library of publications. That book contains 176 pages of previously unpublished material, covering a wide range of antenna types and related topics. The foreword of Volume 7 suggests that Volume 2 of The Compendium might logically follow. Like its predecessor, Volume 2 contains all brand-new material. Because antennas are a topic of great interest among radio amateurs, ARRL Headquarters continues to receive many more papers on the subject than can possibly be published as articles in the League's journal, QST. So again, as with Volume 1, those papers have been collected here and combined with solicited material. None of this ‘material has appeared in print before. Whether you have only a casual interest in antenna construction or a serious interest in understanding fundamental antenna theory, you'll most likely find something to stimulate your thinking. Will a companion Volume 3 appear in the future? Very likely Amateurs’ interest in antennas never ends. David Sumner, K1ZZ Executive Vice President Newington, Connecticut ‘September 1989Diskette Availability Six papers in this book contain listings of BASIC programs suitable for use with an IBM PC or compatible computer. Some papers include more than one program listing. The programs aid in performing various design tasks associated with antennas, as described in those six papers. The ARRL offers 2 5¥%4-inch (360K) computer diskette for the 1BM PC as an optional supplement to this volume. The diskette contains 11 BASIC programs in ASCII text format, and one compiled Pascal program allowing a more extensive series of calculations than its ‘corresponding BASIC counterpart. The diskette is copyrighted but not copy protected. The program files have been supplied by the authors of corresponding papers, and filenames have been assigned to resemble the authors’ last names. The diskette is made available as a convenience to the purchaser. The ARAL has verified that the programs run properly, but does not warrant program operation or the results of any calculations.Contents Vertical and Inverted L Antenna Systems 2 Vertical Antennas: New Design and Construction Data Archibald C. Doty, Jt, KBCFU, John A. Frey, WSESU, and Harry J. Mills, K4HU What length should a ¥4-) vertical radiator be for resonance? More than likely it is not 234/{(MH2). Capacitive bottom loading? Folded monopoles? Data from extensive tests are summarized in this comprehensive paper. 10 Steerable Arrays for the Low Bands Bob Alexander, W5AH You can aim your beam electronically with time-delay beam stecring. The beauty of this system is the steering angle is independent of frequency. Use multiband radiators for beam steering on different bands, 16 A Steerable Array of Verticals S. L. Seaton, K4OR This array covers the 40, 20 and 1S-meter bands. On 40 meters you can steer the beam in four directions. Band changing and beam steering are done without a complicated relay system, using a simple manual method to switch base loading coils 19 The Robert Tail—A DX Antenna Robert L. Brewster, WEHSK Invert @ bobtail curtain, feed it with coax, and you have an array that reaches out and grabs DX. Nest one inside another for 80- and 75:meter coverage. 25 The Simplest Phased Array Feed System. Roy Lewallen, W7EL Feeding two array elements from a T connector with lines that differ electrically by V4 » will probably not give you 90° element phasing. Why not, and how you can get the proper phasing is explained here. -That Works 36 Unipole Antennas—Theory and Practical Applications Ron Nott, KSYNR Unipole antennas are sometimes likened to gamma-matched or shunted antennas. Are they the same? A properly designed folded unipole is superior in some ways. 39 Magnetic Radiators—Low Profile Paired Verticals for HF Russell E. Prack, KSRP Would you believe you can have an efficient HF vertical system without radials? And it need be only a small fraction of a wavelength high! 42 A Multiband Loaded Counterpoise for Vertical Antennas HLL Ley, Jr, NSCOR ‘There's been a lot of talk about using lumped loading in a counterpoise system of radials. Here are the results of experiments doing just that, with information included for you to bulld your own system. 46 A Multiband Groundplane for 80-10 Meters Richard C. Jaeger, K4IQJ IF lumped loading of counterpoise radials works, then why not use traps instead? And with a multiband radiator, you end up with a multiband groundplane antenna 50 Tunable Vertical Antenna for Amateur Use Kenneth L. Heliner, WB4AKK/AFA2PB You can feed a vertical antenna with an omega match. And with this arrangement you ean change bands with a relay. simple remote tuner gives you the final touch—the ablity to GSY up and down the band but yet adjust fora low SWAL 52 A 5/8-Wave VHF Antenna Don Norman, AFEB For either permanent or temporary mounting, this antenna accounts wel for itself. The location of the grounc-plane radials is optimized for minimum antenna current on the transmission line. 54 Some Experiments with HF and MF 5/8-Wave Antennas Doug DeMaw, W1FB A 5/8-wave vertically polarized antenna is a winner on 160 meters! Install it as an inverted L.Yagi-Type Beam Antennas 58 New Techniques for Rotary Beam Construction G. A. “Dick” Bird, G4ZU/F6IDC Fotatable beam antennas don’t always require aluminum tubing, nor do they need a large turing radius for reasonable gain and FIB ratio. Use these techniques to construct inexpensive beams. 61 The Attic Tri-Bander Antenna Kirk Kleinschmiat, NT@Z Efficient Yagi beams can be made of wire. This indoor Yagi antenna covers three HF bands! ’ 64 Yagi Beam Pattern-Design Factors Paul D. Frelich, W1ECO Over the years, antenna theorists frequently calculated complex radiation patterns for multclement systems by ‘combining array patterns. They considered the overall antenna as an array of arrays. Couple this concept with the ability of a computer, and you have a truly powerful analysis tool, Quad and Loop Antennas 88 Half-Loop Antennas Bob Alexander, WEAH Half ofa fullwave loop antenna can exist as wire in an inverted-U or inverted-V shape above ground. The other antenna half then exists as an image in the ground and radial system, Such an antenna offers quite respectable performance. 90 Coil Shortened Quads—A Half-Size Example on 40 Meters Kris Merschrod, KAZOIG/TI2 Try a quad with electrically lengthened elements. This paper tells you how to design them, and includes information con using a computer in the design work. Multiband and Broadband Antenna Systems 96 A 14-30 MHz LPDA for Limited Space Fred Scholz, K6BX/ You can cover 10, 12, 15, 17 and 20 meters with this rotatable array. Being mostly wite, it weighs litle and has low wind resistance. It's just the ticket if you live on a small city lot. I's great for portable use, too. 100 Antenna Trap Design Using a Home Computer Lamy V. East, WIHUE You can make traps for multiband antennas from nothing but lengths of coaxial cable. But how much coax, and wound in what coil dimensions? Avoid the tedium of cut-and-try designs with this simple computer program. 103. The Suburban Multibander Charles A. Lofgren, W6NNZ AA single antenna covers the 60- through 10-meter bands. Although the design resembles the GSRV antenna, its lineage and operation are different. 106 Fat Dipoles Robert C. Wilson Mention a ‘‘cage” dipole and you immediately have a hot conversational topic. This simplified technique offers some advantages of a cage dipole with a lot less wire. 108 Swallow Tail Antenna Tuner Dave Guimont, WB6LLO This unique adaptation of a fan dipole lets you remotely tune the antenna for 75 or 80 meters by mechanical means. It covers 40 meters, too. 110 The Coaxial Resonator Match Frank Witt, AITH Iyou use a dipole on 80 meters, you'd really ike to feed it with coax and have an SW below 2:1 across the entire 80-meter band, Recent ideas have met with success. This one uses a unique combination of coax sections as resonators. 119 A Simple, Broadband 80-Meter Dipole Antenna Reed E. Fisher, W2CQH ‘Several different schemes have been tried over the years for getting an SWR below 2:1 across the 80-meter band. This system uses multiple coaxial stubs at the feed point.Portable, Mobile and Emergency Antennas 126 Emergency Antenna for ARES/RACES Operation Ken Stuart, WSVVN The familiar J-pole antenna has been constructed with many mounting arrangements. A camera tripod makes a freestanding support that can be used almost anywhere, even on a flight of stats. 128 Portable 2-Meter Antenna Michael C. Crowe, VETMCC This portable 6/€- groundplane offers significantly better results than the typical antenna you'll find on any hhand-held transceiver. And yet it folds into a very small package, less than 2 inches diameter by 10 inches long 130 The Half-Wave Handie Antenna Ken L. Stuart, W3VVN Build this Y2-\ antenna for your hand-held transct 1. You'll need only a few parts, and the results will amaze you. Controlled Current Distribution Antennas 132. The Controlled Current Distribution (CCD) Antenna Stanley Keplan, WESROR, and E. Joseph Bauer, W9WQ What do you have when you break your antenna conductor up into many sections coupled with capacitors? If the seotion lengths and capacitor values are chosen properly, you have an efficient antenna with numerous advantages over a straight conductor. Here's how to design it 197. The End-Coupled Resonator (ECR) Loop Henry S. Keen, WTRS The controlled current distribution (CCD) technique can be applied to loop antennas, too. Here is basic information on why CCD works, as well. Balloon and Kite Supported Antennas 142 Balloons as Antenna Supports ‘Stan Gibilisco, WiGV Helium-filed balloons can serve well as supports for long end-fed wires at MF and HF. But there are pitfalls to avoid. Follow these tips for success. 145 Kite-Supported Long Wires ‘Stan Gibilisco, WIGV If you've ever flown a kite, you've probably thought about using one to hold up an antenna. Give it @ try. The results can be well worth the effort, aside from the fun you'll have. Antenna Potpourri 152 Antenna Selection Guide Eugene ©. Sternke, K6AH Your antenna type, the soil conditions in your area, and propagation radiation angles determine how much useful signal you have for working DX. Your antenna height plays a part, 100. These results of a comprehensive computer analysis will help you choose the best antenna for your needs. 157 A Ham's Guide to Antenna Modeling ‘Steve Trapp, N4DG Anyone with access to a computer can calculate numerous antenna end matching-network parameters. f you do your own programming, take advantage of the tips and math relationships in this paper. 162 A Window Slot Antenna for Apartment Dwellers Ermi Roos, WA4EDV Use the reinforcing steel and other metal n your building to enhance your VHF/UHF signal, rather than to shield it from radiating 164 Polar Pattern Plotter for the C64 ‘Stove Cerwin, WASFRF Let your Commodore 647 plot antenna radiation patterns for you. You can view pattems on the screen or sond them to the printer. 169 A VHF RF Sniffer Don Norman, AFeB ‘An absorptive wavemeter is a very useful item of test equipment when you work with RF power circuits. This design is one of the simplest, and yet itis quite effective.Baluns and Matching Networks 172 175 182 187 ‘Some Additional Aspects of the Balun Problem Albert A. Roehm, W20BJ ‘You don't need a complicated or expensive balanced matching network to go from coax to a balanced line operating with high SW, Just put a good balun ahead of your tuner. A Servo-Controlled Antenna Tuner John Svoboda, WeMIT Go one step beyond a manually adjusted matching network. With this semiautomatic, remotely controlled tuner, you can change bands quickly and easily. Remotely Controlled Antenna Coupler Richard Z. Plasencia, WORPV This device lets you remotely switch bands and tune a vertical antenna for 1.8, 3.5 and 7 MHz. It uses a unique, low-cost homemade variable capacitor that works as well as a vacuum variable. Phase-Shift Design of Pi, T and L Networks Robert F. White, WEPY Many amateurs use a matching network at one end of the transmission line. These networks, pi circuits in particular, are typically designed for a specific system Q. Designing for a specific phase shift offers a simpler design approach, as well as a better understanding of the relationships between various network types. Solar Activity and lonospheric Effects 198 204 ‘Sunspots, Flares and HF Propagation Richard W. Miller, VESOIE MINIMUF and similar computer programs are excellent for making predictions of HF propagation under normal ‘solar conditions. But unusual solar activity can render those predictions useless for a time. Use these guidelines to ‘get more reliable day-to-day predictions. Visible Phenomena of the lonosphere Bradley Wells, KR7L ‘You probably know the ionosphere contains regions (layers) with different electrical characteristics. You may also know the ionosphere is a zone of dynamic activity. But do you know why it sometimes emits light?Vertical and Inverted L Antenna SystemsVertical Antennas: New Design and Construction Data By Archibald C. Doty, Jr., KBCFU 947 Jackson Ra Fletcher, NC 28782 John A. Frey, W3ESU 841 Greenwood Dr Hendersonville, NC 28739 Harry J. Mills, KaHU 631 4th Ave W Hendersonville, NC 28739 he original objective of the test I programs that were the basis of this paper was to determine the base- impedance transformation that can be accomplished by design variations of ver- tical folded-monopole antennas having an electrical height of % A. As folded mono- poles consist of two %-n vertical elements, the starting point for the program was to determine the correct heights for the various elements to be used. These elements hhad diameters ranging from 0.125 inch to 2.0 inches in diameter. Vertical antennas are not too compli- cated. They can be drawn, looking from the feed point, as a series Fesistor, induc- tor and capacitor. See Fig 1. The resonant frequency of a vertical is “a frequency at which the input impedance of an antenna is nonreactive.” In other words, when the inductive reactance of the radiating element is exactly balanced by the capacitive reac- tance of the antenna system at a certain fre~ ‘quency, the antenna is resonant at that frequency. Height-to-Diameter Ratio ‘To give an example of how this works, Je’s first look at a resonant. vertical antenna, The vertical radiating wire has a certain natural value of inductive reactance. ‘This value is balanced at resonance by the capacitive reactance resulting from the adjacency of the radiating element to ground or to nearby structures, For illus- tative purposes this capacitance can be imagined as resulting from many small capacitors, cach having one end attached to the antenna, and the other end attached to the ground. Fig 2A illustrates. If the diameter of the radiator is Increased, this increases the surface area of the element that is “looking” at the round, as illustrated in Fig 2B, Thus the clement will have greater capacitance to around—just as making capacitor plates ‘Notes appear on page 9. 2 Fig 1—The equivalent circuit of a vertical antenna. The tesistor, represents the ‘Several resistances inherent in an antenna, including the ohmic resistance value of the metalic antenna element, the radiation Fesistance of the antenna, etc. The induc. {or, Lis the sellnductance of tho wire or ‘tubing used as the radiating elemant, and the capacitor, C, is the capacitance be- tweon the radiating element and the {round or surrounding objects. larger increases their capacitance. Tf the antenna system with the larger diameter element, Fig 2B, is to remain resonant at its original frequency, it must be shortened enough so that it once again provides the same capacitance to ground as did the original radiator, Fig 2A. This is referred to as the height- (or lenath-) to- diameter ratio, or the antenna-to-diameter effect on the resonant frequency of a vertical antenna, Simply stated, the “fat- ter” a radiating element is, the shorter it ‘must be to maintain a fixed resonant fre- quency. This explains why the physical ht of a 4-2 vertical antenna can be considerably less than an electrical quarter wavelength. End Effect ‘There is a second phenomenon, referred to as end effect, that also results in the physical length of a radiator being shorter than the electrical length. End effect results from the boundary condition atthe end(s) of the radiator, ie, where the metalic ele- ‘ment ends and a nonconducting medium begins (as air, or an insulator). In this area there is a concentration of electric lines of force, which implies a greater capacitance per unit length than is found along the rest of the radiator. ‘The result of this “extra capacitance" at te Fig 2—The capacitance of a verical antenna to ground can be imagined as the fesult of many small capacitors, each hav- ing one end connected to the radiating ele- ment and the other end to ground. The rawing at A represents a thin radiator, at B, one of greater diameter, and one requir ing a shorter element lengin In order to maintain resonance. the end of an element isto load the element ‘and thus reduce its resonant frequency. ‘This it will be necessary to reduce the physical length of the element to maintain is original resonant frequency. In sum mary, anything that ads capacitance to 8 vertical antenan must be recogized when deriving a formula for the physical height of the radiating element AS the Yé-h vertical is one of the most commonly used. antenna systems, we assumed that there would be no problem in finding a formula that would provide explicit dimensional data for the height of the test antennas that We wished t0 vse Wrong! Heres «small portion of what was found on this subject in an extended Tierature search. A number of references acknowledge thatthe height of a vertical antenna must be adjusted to compensate for the antenna height-to-diameter ratio, or for end effect. But most of them do not agree on how much compensation should be made’ for these. important factors. In previous publications ARRL provides a formula for various configurations of Yd vertical antennas 3s? 234 i fue ‘This formula is apparently derived from 984 _ 26. ess 58 for end effect t= SEB = 2S ess 504 for end ef 234 F ‘This formula is incorrect, as it does not make provision for the important height-1o- diameter factor discussed above. (The 198815th edition of the ARRL Antenna Book corrects ths situation in part.) Moxon notes that, “Even when no insulators are used, the resonant length of a dipole is slightly less than the free-space half wavelength, depend- ing on the ratio of length to diameter but ‘typically 2.4% for wire elements rising to 4.7% for I-inch diameter tubing at 14 MHz, ‘or half this at 28 MHz." Another source of information disagrees with both the older ARRL and the Moxon data. In reporting on tests with Yagi-Uda dipole antennas, Green states, “During the experimental measurements, it was found that agreement between theory and practice was always obtained at a frequency one or two percent lower than the design value, ‘This was not affected by the number of ele- ‘ments nor their spacings, but only by their diameter, suggesting a dipole ‘end effect”,”*’ Several other sources provide excellent or good data and mathematical analyses of end effect—but no specific formulas, for designing a vertical Finally, however, two references provide explicit data describing the shortening effect (on a 90° vertical antenna resulting from its height to diameter ratio. Brown and Woodward refer to the “shortening effect for zero reactance” (ie, resonance) in terms Of percent of a quarter wavelength, and pro- Fig This photo shows the variation of ahts found necessary to resonate, jements of various diameters at 29.0 MHs. The length diference Detween the thinnest clement (1/8 inch) and the thickest element (@inches) is 5 Inches, Fig 5—Test equipment was located at the base of the antenna, beneath the courterpoise system. Equipment so located is virtually vide data on the basis of the “antenna/ diameter” ratio (height-to-diameter ratio expressed in degrees).!” Laport takes another approach toward describing the hheight/diameter ratio effect—but comes out with almost identical dimensional con- clusions." ‘The importance of the height-to-diameter shortening factor is illustrated by Fig 3. A S-inch variation of element heights was found necessary to resonate the thinnest and the thickest elements used in this test pro- gram at the same frequency—29.0 MHz, In this test series, the objective was to determine correct antenna heights for the {est frequency—and not to separately define cach of the factors determining the correct height for the radiating element. Thus, the ‘two element-shortening factors discussed above were combined into a single shorten- ing factor, C, and the following formula derived. 246 © E t where hh = height of a %4-d vertical monopole, feet Fig 4—Tesis in the 27- to 90-MHz range were performed over this counterpeise system. lt consists of 64 radial wires covering a 20- x 20-foot area. invisible" to the an na ise f= frequency, MHz C = a factor to compensate for all aspects of the antenna system that cause the physical height of the radiating element to be less than its electrical length (le, height-to-diameter ratio, end effect, et) ase Resistance and C Factor Tests ‘The antennas tested were located above the center of a 20- x 20-foot 64-radial ‘counterpoise raised 5 feet above a brick ter- race. The counterpoise is shown in Fig 4, A and B. Tests were conducted in the 27° to 30-MHz range. Extensive prior testing had proved that a counterpoise of this size would provide a fair approximation of the elusive “perfect ground,” and should assure uniformity of testing without concern about anomalies in the ground system. Test equipment was located at the base of the antenna, directly under the counterpoise, 2s shown in Fig 5. Previous experience had shown that equipment under a properly designed counterpoise is virtually “invisible” fo an antenna located above the counter- poise radial wires ‘When testing began, it was apparent that 3the base impedances of the ¥é-) vertical ‘monopoles tested were considerably lower than anticipated. Also, the height-to- diameter effects encountered were quite different from those which had been Published for dipole antennas. Several weeks ‘were spent rebuilding, revising and recali- rating the test setup, but the height anomaly persisted. As retest error with our ‘venerable General Radio impedance bridge ‘was consistently low, we finally concluded. that our readings must be correct. Fig 6 shows the shortening effect found for the physical Iength of an electrical i-h vertical monopole antenna over a counter- poise. This graph takes into account all factors that cause a vertical antenna to have a physical height less than an electrical 4. Further testing produced the base- resistance figures shown in Table 1. The lower than expected values for the “fatter” radiators were of concern until we noticed the recent work of Richmond, which indi- ‘cates similar values for monopole antennas ‘operating over a circular disk (i, a solid counterpoise)." Capacitive Bottom Loading of Vertical ‘Antennas The “final report” of the test program described so far in this paper was written, ‘provided to participants, and fled away. We id not originally plan to publish this data. However, the nagging question remained: Had some factor been missed that would help to explain the unexpectedly. short heights found for 4-2 vertical monopoles? ‘The results of tests made by Brown and Woodward have been published in their highly respected paper. They show that the formula for the height of a vertical antenna over normal ground (with all shortening factors included for an antenna having a height/diameter ratio of 100) was p= 230 height, feet frequency, MHz ur tests (using counterpoise), however, showed figures in the range between 205 and 220, We also remembered an unexplained antenna height anomaly that occurred when. ‘we constructed the vertical antenna used in ‘our extensive studies of counterpoises. ‘This antenna was carefully designed, using data from The ARRL Antenna Book, to be resonant at 1840 kHz, However, when tested, it was found to be resonant at approximately 1700 kHz (ie, more than 10 feet t00 high!) Some months later the first clue to the ‘unusually short antenna heights appeared when we built and tested a number of 440-MHiz folded-monopole antennas over ‘counterpoises. Fig 7 shows one of these antennas. Here is what we found from a series of tests on these antennas. 4 | | cae Fig 8—Shortoning factor, C, a8 a function of an ‘bated on measurements of &-\ verical monopoles over a 6+racal counterpoise, approximetcly 0.6 s square and approximately 0.15 ) above ground. A minor shit in the C-factor value will ‘occur with different counterpoise sizes and height above ground. enna height to-diamoter ratio. This curve is Table 1 Base Resistance of 4-Wavelength Vertical Antennas over a 64-Radial Counterpoise Unipole Actual W/O Base Resonant Theoretical Diameter Height Ratio sis. Frequency Height Factor 0.4125 inch 741 712 985 ohms 29.1MHz 845R 0.877 0.375 Tas 238 20.0 28.45 365 (0.86 0375 7a 237 230 23.4 860 0.86 0.375 73a a6 200 237 857 0.861 0.625 Tae 143 25.0 23.1 B46 (0.849 0.625, yaa 142 280 282 B72 (0.846 0.625 733141 25.0 234 35s (0.86 0.625 T7138 250 28.95 850 ones 0.875 743 102 235 277 88s (O.S7 0.875 738101 235 279 8s2 (0837 1.0525 728 8 25 280 879 (O26 4.9125 738067 220 274 899 (0.822 1875 72546 210 278 891 gta 200 725044 2x0 278 895 0810 1) The resonant frequency of a YX vertical antenna used with a counterpolse varies as the size of the ground system (or plate, in the design tested) under the ‘ounterpoise. The larger the ground system, the lower the resonant frequency. 2) The resonant frequency of a vertical antenna used with a counterpoise varies with the distance between the counterpoise and the ground. The greater the distance, the higher the resonant frequency. In other words, the capacitance between the counterpoise and ground is acting to eapacitively bottom load the vertical radiator. The concept of loading vertical antennas to reduce their physical height is certainly not new. Verticals are often induc tively loaded, as with top, center, or base Toading coils. Capacitive top loading (a top that) is also common. As a matter of fact, the idea of capacitive bottom loading dis- ‘cussed here is mentioned in the literature, although it has apparently not been exten sively tested or applied.” Capacitive Bottom Loading Tests A series of tests was conducted to better define and quantify the capacitive-bottom- loading effect. The emphasis in these tests was changed—instead of attempting to‘maintain a constant resonant frequency, we decided to determine what range of resonant frequencies could be attained with a fixed height of vertical radiator by varying the value of the capacitive bottom loading, In deriving the test program, we con- sidered that the eapacitive-bottom-loading effect can be described as follows: As the frequency of operation is raised, an antenna of fixed length looks at its base feed point like an increasing resistance in series with decreasing capacitance. The resulting inductive reactance at the feed point must be tuned out, which necessitates the use of capacitive reactance, which is provided by & capacitor In the antennas tested, capacitance was ‘added between the feed point of the antenna and the ground system, in order to supply the required capacitive reactance. By varying the value of this capacitive reactance, the frequency at which the base impedance of the antenna is purely resistive, ie, its resonant frequency, was varied. The following tests were conducted with two 11-inch-diameter copper-clad printed cireuit board plates (capacitive elements 1 and 2 in Fig 8) adjacent to the base of the vertical radiator. A 24- x 36-inch metal plate was spaced under these capacitive ele- ‘ments to simulate a vehicle body or other ground system. Test No. I ‘The capacitance between capacitive elements 1 and 2 (CEI and CE? in Fig 8A) was varied by inserting fixed capacitors ranging in value from 0 to 1000 pF. The resonant frequency of the antenna system ‘was found to vary from 27.8 to 30.7 MHz Test No. 2 ‘See Fig 8B. The spacing between capaci- tive elements 1 and 2 was varied from 1/8 inch to 1-3/8 inch. The resonant frequency of the antenna system was found to vary from 28.7 to 32.1 MHz, Fig 7—One of tho 440.MHz antennas Used for testing. With these antennas twas learned that the “resonant frequency of the vertical radiator depends onthe size of the counterpoise and its distance ftom ground. This ect has been termed capacitive bbotiom loading, Test No. 3 ‘Three different materials (sheet plastic, plywood and perfboard) were inserted between capacitive elements 1 and 2, Fig SC. Each material had a different dielectric constant. The resonant frequency of the antenna system was found to vary ftom 28.7 to 29.2 Miz. Test No. 4 As shown in Fig 8D, the relative diameters of capacitive elements 1 and 2 ‘were varied from a ratio of 1:1 to approxi- mately 1:5. The resonant frequency of the antenna system was found to vary from 25.2 to 36.4 MHz—more than 10 MHz! Practical Antennas Uti Bottom Loading A.number of antennas for use on 440, 145 ‘and 29 MHz have been built to evaluate the practical aspects of capacitive bottom loading. The 29-MEiz model was extensively tested, and found to be tunable from 25.9 to 31.5 MHz without changing the height of the vertical radiator. With 100 watts input, a small trimmer capacitor was found to be satisfactory. On-the-air performance ‘on the amateur 10-meter band was excellent. A and B of Fig 9 show 145-MHz mobile antennas constructed with the capacitive bottom-loading feature. In many months of on-the-air use this feature has allowed tuning of the antenna over a considerable frequency range while it was mounted at different locations on several different vehicles. Performance has been consistently excellent. ing Capacitive Impedance Transformation of Folded- Monopole Antennas ‘The folded-monopole antenna consists of two or more parallel, vertical elements approximately ¥4-\ high, and all connected atthe top. ‘These elements are at right angles 10, and fed against, a suitable counterpoise, ground plane or other artificial ground mio NI Ee etecrmic ce OTTO ay Base Fig 8—A through D, four test arrangements to determine the effects of capacitive bottom loading (see text). The feed method for al ‘casos is shown at E. CE = capactve element system. IEEE describes a folded monopole 8 being “a monopole antenna formed from half of a folded dipole with the unfed ele- ‘ment(6) directly connected to the imaging plane.” ©. M. Woodward has provided the Fol- lowing description of the electrical charac- teristics of folded-monopole antennas.!* He notes that this approach was first suggested by Walter van B. Roberts in 1947.9 First, consider a folded monopole of height h, fed against an ideal ground of perfect conduc tivity ‘and infinite extent, as shown in Fig 10A. The generator, e, has zero inter- nal impedance. Next, the circuit can be modified as shown in Fig 10B, using three“ Fig 8—The bases of mobile antennas constructed with the capacitive-bottomioading feature. Fig 10—tilustrating the analysis of current flow within the boundary conditions of a folded monopole, See text. ‘generators having zero internal impedance. Instantaneous polarities are indicated by At point A, the left-hand leg of the folded monopole is fed by {wo of the generators in series, ie, a total voltage of e. At point BB (the right-hand leg) the two driving gener- ‘ators are bucking; hence point B is at zero potential with reference to ground. Thus it is seen that the boundary conditions of the ‘wo drawings are identical. We may now find the current that flows using super- position theory. Consider first the case with only the ‘generator that is joined to the ground turned fn, Fig 10C. Since the other two generators, hhave zero impedance, then the two lower «ends of the monopole legs are ted in parallel and fed as a simple monopole by the i ‘generator, ¢/2. The current from this ‘generator is then Current = 22 % Wo “This current i the push-push mode, wi cx erent Rowing in the same diecions fn the parallel conductors, > i he radia thon impedance ofthe “at” monopole fed against ground. Now, let us far off this generator, and tumom the oter to generators as shown in Fig 10D. We now have the push-pull mode! withthe curens flowing in Oppo- Site dictions in the two parallel legs. Tis cireait snow a nonradating transmision- line section shor crete atthe far end “The input reactance i then Zs = Zc tan (b/d x 368) ohms where Zs = input reactance at the base Ze = characteristic impedance of the ‘ransmission line h = height, feet 2 = wavelength, feet and the current flow is e/Zs- Finally, with all generators on, the cur rent flow at point A of Fig 10B the sum ofthe currents found in Figs 10C and 10D. Wy ~ Tes ‘The inpat impedance ofthe folded mono pole is Current = : ; Wy fis Aly es Se Se ea asaike ee pele Pertormance is consistently excellent. Fig 11—Equivalont circuit ofthe folded monopole. Hence, the equivalent circuit of the folded monopole is that shown in Fig 11. Thus, the radiation impedance of the two legs fed in parallel Fig 10C) is multiplied by four, and the resulting impedance is placed in parallel with the transmission line stub (Fig 10D). If the stub is 4-d long, then the input impedance of the folded monopole is, theoretically, four times the radiation impedance of the push-push mode. Or, to pu it another way, so long as the element ‘diameters are equal, the input impedance of a folded monopole will be four times that of a unipole antenna. Our tests showed this to be truein practice, so long asthe element diameters are relatively “fat” as compared. to their height. Tin practice itis of much more interest to determine what impedance transformations ‘can be accomplished by changing the diameters of the folded-monopole elements ‘and/or the spacing between the elements Data of this type—which has not been previously available in the literature—will allow the design of folded monopoles having base impedances matching the feed line to the antenna, Thus separate impedance ‘matching sections or devices are not required to feed the antenna. This reduces losses in system efficiency. ‘Common practice has been to feed most vertical antennas with coaxial cable that has‘@ nominal impedance of 50 ohms. As the base impedance of the usual ¥4-) vertical antenna is only a fraction of $0 ohms, an impedance-matching device is required for efficient operation of the antenna system. Design data has not been previously avail. able that will allow the construction of folded-monopole antennas with predeter- ‘mined values of base impedance, as, for example, 50 ohms. Data from our tests, presented below, provides this design information, Folded-Monopole Test Results ‘The center test frequency was 29.0 MHz, ‘The artificial ground system was the same as described earlier, a 20- x 20-foot coumterpoise elevated 5 feet above an extensive paved terrace (see Fig 4). Again, (64 radials were used, with a peripheral wire ‘connecting their ends to eliminate the pos- sibility of resonance in the array. Equipment included a S-watt, erystal- controled RF source (with the output power monitored on a Bird model 43 RF watt- meter), a General Radio 916A. RF im- pedance bridge, and a Drake model SSR-1 receiver. The test equipment was located immediately adjacent t0 the base ofthe test antennas so that it was not necessary to extend the lengths of the GR bridge leads, Fig 12. The operators also positioned them” selves under the counterpoise, as shown in Fig 13. This arrangement was used because, as indicated earlier, extensive experience had shown that objects under a counterpoise are virtually *‘lectrically invisible” to a vert cal antenna above the counterpoise ‘Table 2 shows the base impedances found for two-element folded-monopole antennas having element diameters from 1/8 inch to 2.0 inches, and with spacings between the clements of 2 to 10 inches. The “main ele- ment?” is that which has its bottom end attached to the counterpoise. The “drop wire” is the fed element. In each case shown, the frequency was varied to achieve zero reactance. For reference, the base resistance for 2 %-\ unipole is included in the data for each basic main-clement diameter. From the theory of images, the input impedance of a folded monopole should be ‘one half that of a folded dipole having the same clement dimensions. It will be noted that this theoretical consideration does not apply to the values we found. ‘Since commonly used resistance values of 52.and 72 ohms are compatible with avail- able coaxial feed lines, it is useful to note how these conditions can be obtained. As Table 2 shows, using the commonly avail- able element lengths and diameters, there are many combinations resulting in base resistances at or near 72 ohms, and three at (or near 52 ohms. Itis always interesting to check test results with similar work previously undertaken by others. This was done, and the data in ‘Table I compared with the only other tests Fig 12—To avoid long tes leads, of the antenna, Fig 12—John Frey, WSESU, a left, and Hary Mis, K4HU, discuss come of the test results Of the same kind found in the literature— those conducted by Brown and Woodward more than 40 years azo.» After converting the Brown-Woodward data to 29.0 MHz, here is what was found. The Brown: Woodward data shows a resistance of approximately 115 ohms for a folded mono- pole having an A/D ratio (antenna height- to-diameter ratio) of 85. Our tests of an equivalent folded monopole (h/diam ratio of 82, with 1-1/16- x 7/B4inch elements spaced 4 inches) showed 120 ohms base resistance. Brown and Woodward's Graph 6 shows 70 ohms for another configurat of folded monopole. Our equivalent 1/8- x 5/8-inch folded monopole with 4-inch spacing showed 72 ohms, Practical Application to Amateur Antennas ‘The impedance-transformation charac- teristics of folded-monopole vertical antennas offer several tempting possibili- ties to Amateur Radio operators, The folded-monopole vertical is inherently a broader antenna than a monopole, just as 2 folded dipole has broader bandwidth than ‘assingle-wite dipole, Thus the folded mono- pole offers significant operational advantage—particularly on the 80- and 160-meter bands. AS has been shown above, the folded ‘monopole, if properly designed, can be constructed to offer base impedance values that will allow direct feed with coaxial line—without the need for an impedance Z