Scribd
Upload
323 views4 pages

RF BALUNs

This document discusses different types of baluns (balanced-unbalanced transformers) that can be used to connect coaxial feedline to balanced antennas. It describes several simple homemade balun designs using wire and ferrite cores that can eliminate feedline radiation, improve the antenna radiation pattern, and reduce interference. These include an auto-transformer balun, twisted wire baluns, and a half-wave coaxial cable balun suitable for VHF frequencies. The document encourages experimenting with different balun designs and refers to books like the ARRL Handbook for more information on working with baluns.

Uploaded by

Mahmoud Shaaban
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
323 views4 pages

RF BALUNs

This document discusses different types of baluns (balanced-unbalanced transformers) that can be used to connect coaxial feedline to balanced antennas. It describes several simple homemade balun designs using wire and ferrite cores that can eliminate feedline radiation, improve the antenna radiation pattern, and reduce interference. These include an auto-transformer balun, twisted wire baluns, and a half-wave coaxial cable balun suitable for VHF frequencies. The document encourages experimenting with different balun designs and refers to books like the ARRL Handbook for more information on working with baluns.

Uploaded by

Mahmoud Shaaban
Copyright
© © All Rights Reserved
We take content rights seriously. If you suspect this is your content, claim it here.
Available Formats
Download as PDF, TXT or read online on Scribd
You are on page 1/ 4

RF BALUNs

One of the most important components in of transmitting system is the antenna feeder
system. If you are fortunate enough to have 500 watts then a few watts here or there
may not mean very much to you, but there are several advantages to using a balun:

• Elemination of radiation from the feeder cable


• Makes the antenna radiation pattern predictable.
• Dramatically reduces QRM, TVI to neighbours.
• Helps to keep RF out of the shack.

Many amateurs simply connect the two ends of a co-axial cable to a center-fed
ballanced antenna. The problem with this is that the co-ax braid current must be equal
to the co-ax center conductor current. The co-ax braid therefore radiates "cocking up"
the radiation pattern of the antenna, as well as bringing RF back into the shack (past
the neighbours telly) and on to the shack earth. This is when you burn your lips on the
microphone if using much RF power. So what are we going to do about it?

Here you see two methods, the first is a simple AUTO-TRANSFORMER. The RF
voltage is doubled and ballanced about a center point. This method will increase the
antenna feed impedance by four so with a 50 ohm feeder it is suitable for driving 200
ohm impedance antennas, such as folded dipoles. The second method is simple
transformer isolator - crude but effective.
By tapping the coil it is possible to achieve a 1:1 impedance ratio and improve the
effect of the second crude method. In practice each winding will be identical to all the
others and this can be achieved by twisting together two insulated wires and wrapping
a few turns round a bit of ferrite.

Here we see three pieces of wire twisted together and coiled upon a ferrite ring. This
method enables you to have a 1:1 impedance ratio for feeding low impedance
antennas such as half-wave HF antennas. This transformer balun has a very wide
bandwidth and is suitable throughout the complete HF spectrum. The transformer may
be almost any ferrite ring for up to 50 watts or so.
Here we see the same balun wound on a bit of ferrite from an old transistor radio set.
This will also work well but the power handling capacity may be reduced a little.

For VHF work the most common ballanced antenna is the folded dipole and has an
impedance somewhat higher than 50 ohms. A 4:1 balun is the most suitable for
feeding balanced antennas at VHF. Ferrites do no t perforn so well at VHF but a half-
wave co-axial cable will do the job. The correct length of the cable loop is cable
velocity-factor multiplied by a calculated 1/2 wavelength. This type of balun is quite
frequency conscious but the VHF and UHF bands are very narrow, expressed as a
percentage of frequency.

A practical example for 145 MHz using URM75 (velocity factor = 0.66): calculated
1/2 wavelength = 1035mm. 1035 multiplied by 0.66 = 683mm.

It is better to cut the cable a couple of centimeters too long and trim it to the correct
length using a Grid Dip Oscillator. Short-circuit the co-ax cable inner to outer at both
ends, forming one of them into a small loop. Check the dip occurs at the center
frequency you are interested in. If you have difficulty with the GDO at (for example
433 MHz) then open-circuit one end of the balun and check the dip at 1/2 the
operating frequency (example = 216.5 MHz). This co-axial balun works equally well
at HF but the bandwidth may be a bit narrow and a balun for 1.8MHz would use half
a 100 meter roll of cable!!.
Well, this is about enough to get you started playing with baluns. There are many
books on the subject, by far the best I have seen is the trusty ARRL Radio Amateurs
Handbook. So, have fun and don't get your lips burned.!!

You might also like

pFad - Phonifier reborn

Pfad - The Proxy pFad of © 2024 Garber Painting. All rights reserved.

Note: This service is not intended for secure transactions such as banking, social media, email, or purchasing. Use at your own risk. We assume no liability whatsoever for broken pages.


Alternative Proxies:

Alternative Proxy

pFad Proxy

pFad v3 Proxy

pFad v4 Proxy