This is a comprehensive outline of the basic certificate licensing course presented by the Bulkley Valley Amateur Radio Society in the Spring of 2019.
Questions may be directed by email to: ve7rbh@rac.ca
This webpage is a hierarchical document consisting of many small “cards”. It is too meandering to usefully read from beginning to end, so I recommend proceeding roughly top-left to bottom-right, as time and interest warrant.
Read cards left to right, to the level of detail desired, and then top to bottom. Use keyboard, mouse, or touch to navigate.
This document is a work in progress. It is available on the web at:
https://gingkoapp.com/principles-of-ham-radio
A printable version of this page may be useful if the default interactive presentation is incompatible with your web browser.
Quick Links
Listen live to Smithers amateur scanner — presently down :(
A convenient web-SDR for casual listening (see more far below)
For distraction, listen to local community broadcast station CICK 93.9 MHz (listen live)
This section includes links to the exam question bank, as well as other study aids provided by other courses.
This section includes the material covered in each class.
This section deals with course administration.
(to be organized later)
The Basic Qualification exam a is two-hour, closed-book, 100-question multiple-choice test. The exam requires a calculator, ideally a scientific calculator. (Smartphone calculators not permitted.)
A passing grade is 70%. Achieving 80% or greater grants additional “HF” operating privileges.
There are a few other freely-available online courses.
The Advanced Qualification Exam is a fifty-question exam, again with a 70% pass rate and the same restrictions.
Requires Basic, Advanced, and Morse Code qualifications. See here.
Everything Else
Introductory sessions are provided free. The long-form course fee is $60, with all materials provided including textbook. Also includes exam and BVARS membership.
The short course fee is $30, including the textbook.
There are two priominent licensing textbooks in Canada:
Excellent Pace training videos. This is how I learned.
There is a list of web SDRs that you can use to listen to the HF bands online. There is one in the netherlands that is rather good. Here is a map. Here is a different kind of map. Here is another credible list.
kjs crystal radio, big litz
http://www.lessmiths.com/~kjsmith/crystal/blitz.shtml
A Good Crystal Radio Design With Some Justification
http://www.interestingelectronics.com/old/henrys_interesting_electronics/loud_crystal_set_radio/loud_crystal_set_radio.htm
A Good Crystal Radio Design With Some Justification
http://www.interestingelectronics.com/old/henrys_interesting_electronics/crystal_radio_v2/crystal_set_radio_v2.htm
pretty good notes on a bunch of topics
http://spiff.rit.edu/classes/phys213/lectures/
To be deployed when I need to hand-wave something away: You can tell something is a tautology because of the way it is
If somebody buys me one of these I will be happy. My copy is missing a few key pages.
The following is the beginning of a history lesson that will continue throughout the course.
A list of contests ongoing at any time
Crystal radio design
feedlines [advanced]
Ham radio is a very old hobby.
Like many things that are very old, it is highly problematic when it comes to things like diversity, accessibility, and inclusivity. Therefore, there is lots of work to do to make it work better for everyone.
Each question pertains to one of a hundred different topics, organized into eight sections as follows.
The Campbell River Radio Club has a guide called “Hamwork“ that gives a condensed treatment of the entire exam. They also provide a Windows computer program called “ExHaminer” for practice exams.
The entire question bank is available online, in various forms.
The government exam site has some resources too, including
Eliminate one or two nonsensical answers
Focus on topics that are extensively covered (lots of questions and variations)
Memorize early what must be memorized (due to the absence of clear patterns and underlying structure): band limits, bandwidth limits, Q-codes, and the phonetic alphabet.
Emergency Communications of Ontario has a course. It has some pretty good slides.
The Yukon amateur radio society offers a very comprehensive course, broken down by topic, with lots of supplemental resources, and chapter references to the Coax study guide.
For a different treatment, the Delta Amateur Radio club also has a similar page of resources.
Amateur radio makes for a stronger community. Therefore, it is in everyone’s interest that there are more and better amateur operators in our community, and that is why we are putting on a course.
As I see it, radios are attractive for things that are useful, things that are fun, and for things that are in-between.
Here we get to know the class. Interests, education, background.
Start reading the book
Watch some videos
Read some links
Try a quiz
There is a chart that illustrates the spectrum allocations in Canada.
In the first class, we introduced the concept of the electromagnetic spectrum. So now it’s time to ask a question:
What are radio waves made from?
Read the book, watch some videos
Conclusion of basic electricity part 1:
DC power
Basic electricity, part 2:
AC power
Watch some videos, read the book.
In this class we’re going to talk more about the things that are done with AC signals, using two other components called inductors and capacitors.
Fields and Electromagnetism:
Current in a wire, and consequences thereof
inductors, an introduction
capacitors, an introduction
The thing that distinguishes RF AC, that is, signals with high frequencies, from lower frequency line-frequency AC or (zero-frequency) DC is that RF tends to jump gaps.
The gaps are either in-line, that is, in series like capacitors, or in parallel, between pairs of wires, like inductors and transformers.
Electromagnetic waves
The electric and magnetic fields are not static, they are dynamic; that is, changing. They affect one another, causing waves to propagate.
The components that rely on the action of electromagnetic fields are readily adapted into systems that produce electromagnetic fields.
impedance, an introduction
Summary:
impedance
resonance
q-factor
filters
feedlines
standing waves
length of antennas, velocity factor
antennas
radio waves in free space, propagation, antennas
antennas
propagation
diodes, converting AC to DC
What if there is no audio signal? What if there’s just a carrier?
Modulation (continued)
Sensitivity and selectivity
Other types of receivers
Other types of modulation
Administrivia:
Homework
Self-study remainder of antenna chapter [Chapter n]
Watch various videos
Chapter 9 for next class
tubes, semiconductors, transistors
Deferred to later
digital stuff
The radiocommunications act is the applicable Canadian law.
The Radiocommunications Regulations define the amateur service.
The amateur service is described in an easyier-to-read document called RIC-3.
The operating rules are described in a document called RBR-4.
Safety (self-study)
Q-signals (pg 12-2)
Band limits
Various possibilities:
Classes held on rotating days of the week
Long-form classes are held weekly on Monday evening at Ranger Park building in Smithers. Expected duration eight weeks. Schedule determined in consultation with students.
Two introductory sessions: February 26 7-9 PM, and Saturday March 2 12-2 PM.
Textbooks available to loan, or purchase for $30.
Posters
Community Radio Station
Mailing LIsts
Education and training are eligible for funding by Community Gaming Grants.
Once upon a time the technology of radio was brand new, and exciting for all the same reasons that technology like virtual reality or genetic engineering are exciting.
Radios are powerful.
What follows is a not-so-brief digression into amateur radio history:
There are some radios that you use to listen, and some radios that you use to talk.
The big idea here is that governments have been sufficiently afraid of amateur radio operators that, at various times and places places in the world, there have been crackdowns to civilize the hobby, several outright bans, and restrictions to make sure that the government knew exactly where operatators were, and what they were doing. Directories of operators were published. (This partially still happens today.) Detailed logs had to be kept.
The way this continues today is that you’re not allowed to obscure who you are, and what you’re saying.
kjs crystal radio, big litz
http://www.lessmiths.com/~kjsmith/crystal/blitz.shtml
A Good Crystal Radio Design With Some Justification
http://www.interestingelectronics.com/old/henrys_interesting_electronics/loud_crystal_set_radio/loud_crystal_set_radio.htm
A Good Crystal Radio Design With Some Justification
http://www.interestingelectronics.com/old/henrys_interesting_electronics/crystal_radio_v2/crystal_set_radio_v2.htm
As an example, I quite like this summary of a conference presentation called A Future History of the Solarpunk Ham Radio Club, which is worth including in its entirety here:
The website Hack-A-Day has a couple of opinion pieces on the state of ham radio at the moment:
Here is another page from an academic at Concordia university, which includes an interesting question:
Regulations and Policies - 001
(25 Questions)
Operating and Procedures - 002
(9 questions)
Basic Electronics and Theory - 005
(13 questions)
Feedlines and Antenna Systems - 006
(13 questions)
Radio Wave Propagation - 007
(8 questions)
(Active) Circuit Components - 004
(6 questions)
Interference and Suppression - 008
(5 questions)
Station Assembly, Practice and Safety - 003
(21 questions)
Here is a university-level course on radio, including amateur radio: Experiential course in Ham Radio: Technics, Ecology and Culture of Amateur Radio in the 21st Century
There are lots of ways to teach. There are lots of ways to learn.
The intent is to facilitate a learning experience that is different from typical ham radio courses, in that it addresses (gently) shortcomings in the ham radio community, and prepares operators for the world to come.
Also, learning is not just about passing exams. Learning happens regardless of the outcome of an exam. Passing the exam does not demonstrate mastery of the content. Life is not about accumulating prestige and credentials. My intent is to help people learn, build relationships, and contribute to the community.
Although I very much enjoy it, I am not here just to lecture; we are here to have a discussion and facilitate an experience. If you want to watch a lecture, go on YouTube. They’re much better! (Narrator: He mostly lectured.)
Why am I harping on the fundametals so much? Because technology is not about applications.
I’ll say that again: Technology is not about applications. Applications are a side-effect. If all a person understands is the applications, then they won’t understand why they’re doing what they’re doing, and eventually, they’ll just be helpless.
The thing about applications is that you can understand them in terms of what they do, and not understand why… The thing about fundamentals is that it’s all about understanding why.
If you only understand something in terms of applications without understanding the fundamentals, then it’s the machine that’s building you, and not the other way around.
So,
useful communications
fun communications
in-between
competitive direction-finding (AKA fox hunting)
building: receivers, transmitters, instruments, antennas, repeater networks, solar power, computer systems and networks…
In the Bulkley Valley:
Building:
Once upon a time, people commonly built radios out of household parts! Here is an old book that deals with that sort of thing.
It is still possible to build a radio out of common parts, and we will do this beginning roughly in class two or three.
Book: (to be confirmed)
Quiz:
Use the class Access Code to quiz themselves on Chapter 2.
Videos:
Some acceptable answers: electricity, magnetism
what is electricity made from?
what is magnetism made from?
so basically, part of the technical content of the course is about electromagnetism, which governs feedlines, antennas, propagation, etc
we have to talk about electricity first
two obvious places to start: wall outlets, and batteries
Okay, so we established that electricity has something to do with electrons and fields
electricity-water analogy
voltage
current
single resistors: Ohm’s law
resistors in parallel
resistors in series
voltage dividers
Book:
Videos
theory and definition of electric power
power = current * voltage
power in a resistor
(nope) demo: current and voltage through a lightbulb
(nope) demo:
power in resistors, using resistance and current measurements (in series and parallel?)
bicycle-chain model of current in a circuit: AC vs DC
Personal rant: Direct current should be called “unidirectional current” and alternating current should be called “bidirectional current.”
AC power: peak voltage, RMS voltage, peak current, RMS current
whistling into a mic and putting the result on a scope: Teasing what’s to come
Reading:
Everything up to chapter 3, thoroughly.
Chapter 4, skimmed.
Chapter 5, thoroughly.
Videos:
First, this excellent 50s training video with great animations. Can’t recommend highly enough. As one of the YouTube commenters said, “OLD IS GOLD.”
In the same vein, old training video on electric power (P=EI)
A decent video on RMS voltage and current
Entertaining video on practical differences between DC and AC power: A human perspective
For much more detail, this long video on basic electricity, and its long sequel. Both explain the same concepts dealt with in class 3.
electric fields
DC current in a wire
electric field around a wire, which leads to
magnetic field around a wire
(basis of inductors)
changing current in a wire
okay, the spark gap transmitter is based on inductors, so let’s talk about inductors.
inductors and fields
transformers
inductive reactance
The spark gap transmitter also includes some capacitors, so let’s talk about capacitors.
capacitors and fields
capacitive reactance
spark-gap transmitter
nature of electromagnetic waves
properties of waves
The quantity that describes the total opposition to (AC) current is called impedance. The root is the word impede, which means block.
Signals flow in inverse proportion to the impedance presented.
Impedance can be thought of as being like resistance, but more complicated.
Like resistance, a circuit with high impedance will have little current flow.
Like resistance, a circuit with low resistance will allow a lot of current to flow.
Impedance includes the effects of resistance and reactance.
The difference between resistance and reactance is that resistance is dissipative — it converts energy into heat, but reactance does not. Reactance sloshes power from one form to another, and pushes back losslessly.
As we saw, reactance varies with frequency, and consequently, impedance varies with frequency.
A circuit may present a low impedance at certain frequencies and admit them readily, but present a high impedance at other frequencies and admit them less readily. The difference between a circuit admitting signals a lot, a little, or not at all results in current flowing a lot, a little, or not at all.
The thing that makes radio interesting is that signals consists of many frequencies at once.
At this point we have to introduce the concept of the frequency domain, and it’s time to start whistling into microphones again.
Extra credit:
Reading:
TBD
Videos:
videos
Extra credit:
extra credit: we’ve talked about resistors, inductors, capacitors…. but have you heard about memristors?
Resonance occurs when there is just as much capacitive reactance as there is inductive reactance.
series resonant circuits pass the resonant frequency and block everything else.
parallel resonant circuits block the resonant frequency
see page 4-20
The concept of resonance is a bit fuzzy.
in the viciinty of the resonant frequency, the capcitive and uinductive reactance aren’t exactly the same — but they’re close.
Consequently, there is some selection (or filtering) effect — just not as much as at the resonance point. So, the phenomena of resonance has some “width” associated with it.
This width is referred to as bandwidth, and ratio of the bandwidth to some standard baseline is referred to as q-factor
The term q-factor refers to the width of the resonance.
see page 4-22 in the textbook
Basic resonant circuits can be combined to create filters.
A transmission line is a circuit that is specially designed to carry radio-frequency alternating currents.
(Feedlines are also called transmission lines.)
The impedance of most circuits changes with frequency. Transmission lines are special in that they present a constant impedance over a wide range of frequencies.
This animation of a transmission line shows the wiggling electrons in the conductors of a transmission line, and the electric field set up between the bunches and gaps of electrons. You can see how there are waves in the electric field that move from one end to the other.
This excellent bell labs wave machine video clearly explains the wave phenomena in transmission lines.
First, the consequences of impedance mismatch:
wave machine demos:
Then
page 7-15 in the book
The fundamental relationship is:
v = f . l
More or less v = c, (where c is the speed of light)
However v = vf . c, where vf is the velocoty factor: Some fraction or percentage of the speed of light.
For the purposes of this course, the number to remember for the speed of light is 300 million meters per second
The T-antenna gives rise to the schematic symbol for an antenna.
Antennas are tuned circuits: They include resistance and reactance; where there are equal amounts of capacitive and inductive reactance.
To see where the capacitance comes from, look at this animation showing the transformation from a capacitor to antenna.
yagi antenna block diagram (exam)
extra credit:
antenna basics, part 1
antenna basics part 2
read the chapter on propagation
read chapter 7, on transmission lines
read chapter 8, on antennas
Extra credit:
video about microwaving grapes, in which grapes are the perfect size and shape to act as antennas in a microwave oven, and do interesting things as a result.
video: RCAF training video on directivity (very good)
video: RCAF training video on antenna bandwidth (very good)
Directive antennas work on the principle of interference, where waves add destructively or constructively. Here is an animation ofinterference.
Here is a very good army training video on ground wave and sky wave propagation. This basically teaches everything you need to know.
So called “sky-wave” propagation occurs because of the phenomenon of refraction, in which the speed of waves change depending on the medium. Here is an animation of refraction that shows waves changing direction as they cross a boundary between two media. In the ionosphere, the density of the ionosphere changes continuously, which causes a gentle curve rather than a sharp bend as shown here.
Extra credit: This video on so-called tropo scatter is mostly a waste of time.
In a previous class, we demonstrated a crude transmitter: A device that oscillated, and dumped energy into a propagating electromagnetic field in free space. We saw that in order to set up these oscillations, we used components that store energy in electric and magnetic fields.
In the next class, we learned about sending these waves over a cable, and then out through an antenna.
In this class, we will look at capturing waves, taking them apart, and turning them into intelligence.
This is a block diagram: It’s like a circuit, but….
Antenna (dealt with this already)
Tuned circuit, also called a selector
(dealt with this already)
Detector
This is the first of several block diagrams relevant to the exam.
First, the waves we’re receiving right now are amplitude modulated. That means the signal looks like this. (diagram) If we push that signal through a diode, then only some of it gets through. If we stuff that through an audio transducer, we hear the audio.
Video: cat’s whisker detector
Once again: There are conductors, semiconductors, dielectrics, insulators.
Semiconductors are interesting, in that by themselves they act like glass, but in the presence of an electric field, they act like conductors. The reasons for this are fascinating, technical, and too detailed to get into right now.
First, review what we are familiar with: Graphs of amplitude vs time
The Fourier transform, intuitively:
We demonstrate this with audio spectrograms: Whistling into microphones, running Baudline
Next we talk about graphs of amplitude vs frequency. This site shows the frequency spectrum of different types of signals (including an impulse, as in the spark-gap transmitter).
Deferred:
We choose not to do the following, for reasons of time (also the spectrum analyzer is broken)
(Advanced qualification) Signals can have a dc component as well as an AC component.
beats
image of beat phenomenon, showing superposition or interference of waves
video of beats using tuning forks
mixing an audio signal with a carrier
there is a similar phenomenon that occurs with radio signals, called mixing
beat frequency oscillator demo
Depiction of OOK, in the frequency domain and time domain
Depiction of AM, in the frequency domain
Depiction of FM, in the frequency domain
Sensitivity is a function of the detector. In the context of our crystal radios, some detectors are good. Other detectors are better.
Selectivity is a function of the tuned circuit (selector) and, in other types of receivers, the rest of the RF signal chain.
PSK - phase shift keying
FSK - frequency shift keying
compare and contrast with
OOK
Video: secret life of machines: radio This half-hour video is worth watching beginning to end.
Here is a study guide for the various block diagrams found in the exam. In a basic qualification exam, there will be one question about each block diagram.
This is a very good and very clear army training video on FM modulation.
Here is an animated video of how a crystal radio works.
(It also has a segment on how AM is modulated, then demodulated in the set)
Extra credit:
More on quartz oscillators [advanced]
filtering, in the context of mixing and transmitters
Triode tubes
tubes/valves vs transistors: it’s basically about power and heat. Vacuum tubes also require high voltages.
(Advanced)
amplifier characteristic curve, non-linearity
types of amplifiers (RF signal, audio, power)
frequency range - RF vs AF
voltage vs current vs power amplifers
gain
linearity
distortion
Videos:
mixing
HF station block diagram
digital station block diagram
(advanced) the following page shows that harmonic distortion comes from non-linearity in RF amps
ISED produces several separate documents concerning Amateur Radio:
1) RBR-4, a regulatory document which establishes the operational and technical standards for stations in the Amateur Radio Service
2) RIC-1, a policy document which sets standards for the conduct of examinations for Amateur Radio Certificates and standards for Accredited Examiners (AEs)
3) RIC-3, which provides general information about the Amateur Radio Service and the privileges of each qualification
4) RIC-9, a policy document which details the call sign policy for Amateur Radio
There is a chart that illustrates the spectrum allocations in Canada.
Here is a chart that shows the whole world.. Note the different between ITU regions.
Regulatory stuff can and should be self-studied throughout the course.
Currently, under the Radiocommunication Act, while listening is not prohibited, it is an offence to divulge or use information obtained from non-broadcast radio signals without the permission of the people who sent the messages.
Operating procedures
Getting started on HF
Crystal Receiver
Audio Amplifier
Transistor Radio
Transmitter
Reference Information
electronics, etc, following the map I have drawn out on paper. Major sections so far are
The Frequency Domain, audio frequencies
Modulation and things, more complicated radios
We need:
CW is no longer a requirement but in the event that one wants to learn it after qualifying the following is a good program. Go the following site and download Version 9, a “freebie”. One caveat - it only works on the WINDOWS platform.
FYI, another way to acquire the equivalent of Basic with Honours is to to qualify with CW at 5 wpm. Details at:
CW Skimmer software works on Windows to reliably decode CW.
create a group
List of bulletin boards
music: radar rider
conversation stack (interesting, but not for now)
Here is a chart of technology adoption, which helps to explain why radios are what they are today. Here is a different kind of chart, which speaks to some of the same things.
(I got the chart from an interesting article on the microwave oven.)
For example, the Nazis loved radio.
For the community radio station CICK in the train car, the orientation manual effectively says, “you may not use the radio to overthrow of government.” (Specifically, the wording prohibits “Any remark which advocates or teaches the use of force to change the Government of Canada.”)
As this course progresses, you will see how simple it is to construct a radio. Because it is so relatively straightforward, in the early twentieth century (prior to the first world war) there were a large number of people operating home-built radios who were literally amateurs — enthusiastic non-professionals having fun.
The nature of early radio transmitters was such that every station could hear every other station nearby, simultaneously, all the time. The result was a form of chaos, or anarchy.
However, transmissions did not propagate more than a few hundred kilometers, meaning that people had to figure out how to relay messages in an organized fashion.
US govt passed the Radio act of 1912 in response to the confusion that was involved in the sinking of the Titanic. There was also the international ratdiotelegraph conference of 1912.
Amateurs were restricted to wavelengths less than 200 m, which at the time were thought to be useless.
The American Radio Relay League was founded in 1914, but war broke out a few months later and fully three quarters of American radio operators were sent to war. Non-military radio transmissions banned 1914-1919 in USA.
Amateur operators advocated that politicians direct the US navy to relinquish control…
So there was a great deal of technical development during the first world war. We get things like vacuum tubes, better receivers, better transmitters. Armed with this surplus military technology, amateur operators figured out that you could, using these formerly “useless” shorter wavelengths, communicate across the Atlantic. (We will learn why this is in a later class, on radio propagation.)
With vacuum tubes, you also get oscillators, and the possibility of voice practical voice transmission. So after 1918, the adoption of radios among the general population starts to begin. (See the technology adoption chart.)
Then the roaring twenties happen…
And then the depressing thirties… Nobody’s got any money, so the people who are experimenting with radio are, well, well-off.
FM invented and used by amateur radio experimenters at this time.
In USA, foreign communication banned 1940. All operation banned again during the second world war.
FM used extensively in the war.
Single sideband invented in the fifties, allowing more efficient use of spectrum and power.
Canadian Amateur Radio Federation founded in 1967. Precursior to RAC.
And so on.
The radios that you use to listen are, effectievly, unregulated.
The radios that you use to talk are tightly regulated.
The radios that anybody can talk on, are, frankly, kind of lame.
The radios that are more exclusive are more versatile.
How versatile? Well.
In 2016 a disaster response network of trained radio users sporting an ideal budget of $0 per person was born. While amateur radio existed through most of the 20th Century, by the 21st century it had become a bourgeois hobby for older white men. The established purpose of amateur radio in the regulations of the FCC had always been to set up a voluntary interest in radios for use in emergency (both environmental and military), but with the rise of commercial Internet radio networks (Wi-Fi) and cheap long-haul telecommunications networks, ham radio shacks became a collection of exclusive and fetishized gadgets. Younger people drifted towards the Internet.
But in 2016, emergency came calling. A group of three coastal superstorms flooded most of the West Coast, and left the population without infrastructure for weeks. A small, previously unknown group calling themselves “Solarpunks” sprang up, to fill the communication gap. Using a number of levels of financial commitment—10, and $40—they began training a culture of youth hungry for the basic skills of radio and electronics, and then letting them train others. They descended upon the rubble to pull out bits of aluminum for antennas, drying out coaxial cable, and rescuing batteries and stereo speakers from stranded vehicles. Using the disabled tech of a failed infrastructure, they began connecting themselves into a network of learning and doing. The old-guard hams had all fled to high grounds weeks ago, but the Solarpunks remained, continued their modifications and grew in numbers.
We will detail the speculative future-history of the Solarpunk Ham Radio Club and its method of spreading the use of radio with no financial investment. It took amateur radio back from a toxic commodity culture, just when it was needed most. The Solarpunks couldn’t duplicate the permanent infrastructure that needs billions of dollars in funding. But with a foothold based on a resilient jugaad rather than expensive gadgets, they were able to find a way of teaching each other, that made their network resilient in a way that money could not.
Q: The first question is usually “Why use amateur radio when you can use the phone and/or Internet”?
A: This question is almost impossible to answer. Why do some people ride a motorcycle if they can drive a car? Why read books if there is TV? And so on…
licenses
nature of amateur communications
Operating Privileges
Basically, the topics pertaining to operating privileges boil down to:
legal operation
playing nice with others
international stuff
interference
Basic electricity (all covered in class 2&3)
Electromagnetism (class 4)
misc
feedlines (class 5)
antennas (class 5, beginning)
types of propagation &
the ionosphere
practical considerations
4-4 field-effect transistor fundamentals
4-2 diode fundamentals
modulation
block diagrams
digital stuff (also some block diagrams)
power stuff
safety
What are the shortcomings?
What might be the world to come?
For example, here are some selections from an article on emergency preparedness.
Continuing:
Then, there’s backup. Take the European HAMNET, for example. That’s a four-thousand-node high speed data network covering a large part of continental Europe and providing full IP connectivity at megabit speeds. It connects to the Internet—-ham radio owns 16 million IPV4 addresses, believe it or not—-but is independent of it, doing its own robust and flexible routing.
If the Internet was to go away, HAMNET would still be running. The same’s true of nearly all ham radio infrastructure. When everything else fails (power, comms, roads), ham radio is still there.
Here is an overview of the northern BC repeater network.
Here is a video of somebody operating using morse code
Notice how there’s almost no plastic in that book. So insulators, for example, are made of glass and ceramic.
Try as many chapter quizzes as you wish
Make a note of any questions that caused problems, and:
both are correct
acceptable answers: electrons, electric fields
seriously though, we’ll get to magnetics later
but it’s too early to talk much about electromagnetism right now
analogy between voltage and static pressure
analogy between speed and current
analogy between resistance and friction
analogy between power and flow rate
Watch this video on Ohm’s Law, or another like it.
Optional: waste lot of time by watching videos from this channel about physics
units of energy (work-energy theorem)
1 joule = 1 coulomb volt
1 joule = 1 newton meter
units of power
joules / second
units of current
coulomb / second
units of voltage
potential energy per charge
analogy between masses in gravitational field, and charges in an electric field
(advanced) This site talks about electrical-mechanical analogies in quite a lot of detail, far too much detail to be of use really. See also electrical-mechanical-acoustical analogies.
If the current goes back and forth, how does energy get transferred from one end to another? It’s at thing point where we have to stop thinking about current flow in single wires and start thinking about energy transfer in feedlines. This is a useful concept, because that’s what we’re doing with radio systems anyway.
If we have a bicycle chain with a crank on one hand and a flappy paddle on the other, and a person deserving of a few slaps in the path of the flappy paddle, well, then, whether you turn the crank continuously in one direction or whether you turn it back and forth well, then, that person is going to get what’s coming to them either way.
See also better names for things
why 60 Hz? wikipedia
Of interest is the 400 Hz hum of aircraft. Transformer hum video
(See also tone generators)
A bit of calculus for the high-school students: How much power is contained in an AC waveform with a given peak votlage compared to a DC waveform at the same voltage?
RMS voltage, current, power
Simply put, the RMS voltage is the DC voltage that would carry an equivalent power.
why? Why not. Let’s talk about what’s happening.
The concept of a field refers to a tendency of a particle to experience a force that varies with position.
In a gravitational field, the field acts on particles with mass. In an electric field, it acts on particles with electric charge.
The presence of a voltage between two points creates an electric field.
Static charges create static fields.
Steadily moving charges create static fields, and static magnetic fields.
Between static charges and moving charges, the charge must accelerate. Accelerating charges create changing fields.
There’s a comparison to be made here to accelerating mass: Whether moving stopped, you don’t feel any force, but when you accelerate or decelerate, you do.
Anyway, don’t dwell on this; just show the video:
changing field from a charge
Steady current in a wire creates a magnetic field.
steady currents are boring
What happens when we go from no current to some current? That is, what happens when the current changes?
etc
electric field between two plates (basis of capacitors)
accelerating electrons, consequences thereof
switched dc current, consequences thereof
an inductor is a component that stores energy in a magnetic field.
the magnetic field is set up as a result of. When the current slows, the magnetic field shrinks. The shrinking magnetic field sets up an electric field, and this electric field causes some current in nearby conductors.
In the case of a lone inductor, this is called back-EMF…
A transformer consists of two inductors side by side. The magnetic fields of both coils affect the current in the other.
In the case of a second inductor next to the first one, the diminishing field in the first coil causes a current to flow in the second.
The magnetic field in an inductor is due to the current in the coils. The more coils, the more the field you get for a given amount of current.
The quantity that describes “how much” inductor you have is named inductance.
The larger inductor you have, the more energy you can store…. at AC. At steady DC, it looks just like a wire.
More detail: You can think of the magnetic field in an inductor as a ball held aloft by a stream of air.
Actually, a feather is a better analogy; because balls fall quickly when the gust is removed, but feathers fall slowly.
The slow descent of the feather is caused by interaction with the surrounding air; the slow decline of the current is caused by the EMF created when the magnetic field diminishes.
Like the quantity resistance describes the opposition to current flow in a resistor, there is a quantity that describes the opposition to current flow in an inductor. That quantity is called reactance. Specifically, inductive reactance.
The reason we care about reactance, for the purpose of a basic amateur radio course, is because it’s neccesary to calculate a quantity called impedance.
The quantity impedance is important because, as we will see later, it determines how much signal can get from point A to point B.
for now, suffice to say that inductive reactance is dependent on frequency. We can show this with a scope and function generator.
the formula for inductive reactance is […]
the formula for inductance is…
more inductance… more reactance
more inductance…. less (AC) current
inductance tends to block (AC) current
The reason that showing the frequency-dependent behaviour is important is because frequency-dependent behaviour is how filters accept or block certain frequencies, and antennas resonate to preferentially pick certain signals out of the air.
If the scope demos don’t work, we can always show some excellent illustrations of current and voltage in inductors
(advanced) detailed page about inductive reactance
Talking about the field in a capacitor is important when it comes to antennas, so let’s talk about the field in a capacitor.
Same as inductors offer an opposition to AC currents, capacitors offer an opposition to AC current too.
capacitance is the quantity that determines “how much” capacitor you have. More capacitance can store more energy…….. at DC.
More capacitance looks more like a wire at AC
more capacitance… more (AC) current
[dielectric breakdown strength of air]
Air breaks down at about 30 kV/cm,[5] depending on humidity,
this page shows the frequency spectrum of an impulse. The sharper the pulse, the broader the spectrum. The spark gap arcs only when once it reaches a certain voltage, and then the current begins to flow very quickly, and quickly stops. see also this page
sound is a wave that propagates in a physical medium
em waves are a means of describing how energy propagates through the pervasive medium of the electric and magnetic fields
These fields can be thought of as separate, but they’re really manifestations of the same thing seen from different directions.
em waves are said to “self-propagate”
in free space, the waves diminish as they disperse, as a consequence of this self-propagation
(you’ll notice there are a lot of synonyms like that in EE.)
The reciprocal of impedance is admittance, and if it helps, you can say that signals flow in proportion to admittance.
Correctly, resistance is a component of impedance, along with reactance. Impedance is measured in Ohms, and so are resistance and reactance. They can be thought of as impedance in specific directions, like height and width are just length in specific directions.
In antennas, the apparent “radiation resistance” dissipates electric power as RF power.
(see also Laithwaite on Magnets)
On capacitors: exploding wire video
It’s the radio frequency that’s important. Household wiring also carries alternating current, but at low frequencies such that the inductance and capacitance presented is insignificant.
This playlist of animations shows the electric field in the vicinity of various antennas.
We all remember what a sinusoidal waveform looks like.
We can also create other shapes of waveforms.
takeaway: a time-domain waveform (may) consist of multiple frequency-domain signals
animation: Fourier transform animation
a not very intuitive sound synthesis toy
The thing to remember is that any signal can be broken up into sine waves, and sine-waves self-propagate.
spectrum analyzer and non-sinusoidal waves
Advanced: mixers
Advanced: “mixing” is due to non-linearity in the response of RF components, but it also happens in ears, too.
Clarification: distinction between “continuous wave” and “damped wave” (rememebr when I said that ham radi ois very old? The abbreviation CW is a holdover from the spark-gap days, when it stood in distinction to “damped waves”)
FM signal on signal ID wiki
The sensitivity of these point-contact diode detectors is pretty decent.
The sensitivity of these PN junction diodes is not as good.
In class 5, we learned about the so-called Q-factor. The Q of these tuned circuits in our crystal receiver is low.
See also:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xn6lzrMJUDs (via VE7MHW)
an amazing endless rant on how transistors work
Can we hear the function generator on the radio? Yes we can. (Well, we can hear the silence.) Can we mix with the signal? Yes.
The chart is based on the 2018 table of allocations, which is quite long. In fact it is so long it is divided into many different sections.
irony of AM radio (content warning)
Basic Certificate
For the basic certificate, it is sufficient to study a simple single-transistor power amplifier.
We use the term power amplifier here as distinct from, say, a signal amplifer, or a voltage amplifier, or a current amplifier. To achieve power amplification, power amplifier must amplify both the voltage and power.
Advanced Certificate
Two-stage power amplifier
Any discussion of transistor amplifers inevitably ends up being a discussion on Biasing Transistors, discussed in the links that follow.
Here is an article from hackaday about a book on making a transistor radio. Here is the whole book in a web viwer, and here is the PDF.
The electromagnetic specrum
DC power
AC power
The Time Domain
Amplifiers
(For a technical explanation, this wikipedia article is a start.)
Effectively, what happened was that the Titanic was transmitting superfluously when it should have been monitoring local traffic. It might have heard the warnings of icebergs from surrounding ships.
There is a very long presentation that contains more than you would ever want to know about radios on the titanic
Just take a look at the pictures and prices this old handbook.
I’m talking about walkie talkies, FRS radios, CB radio. Also cell phones, WiFi.
They are made to do only one thing, and you can’t adjust them.
(At least you’re allowed to use encryption over WiFi…)
bush radios, marine radios, radars, amateur radars…
Types of Waves
The Sun and the Ionosphere
Propagation
pg 11-11
Well, the demographics are problematic. Depending on how you look at it, it’s either a bunch of old white men who talk too much, and a bunch of younger computer nerds who don’t like to talk much.
The world to come is… Well, let’s just say that a lot of ham radio people are preppers, and a lot of preppers want ham radio licenses.
Radio amateurs get a sweet deal, with effectively free access to many gigahertz of the same radio spectrum that companies pay billions for.
(Note that’s free as in beer, not free as in freedom.)
The current exhibits beats because each side is connected to a resonant circuit.
Energy is being transferred from one side of the transformer to the other, but also on each side of the transformer, energy is sloshing back and forth between components.
Impedance is a concept that shows up in any area of physics concerning waves. In transmission lines, impedance is the ratio of voltage to current. In optics, index of refraction plays a role similar to impedance. Mechanical impedance is the ratio of force to velocity.
A general, qualitative answer in David Blackstock’s book Physical Acoustics, on page 46:
Impedance is often described as the ratio of a “push” variable qp (such as voltage or pressure) to a corresponding “flow” variable qf (such as current or particle velocity).
Mechanical impedance is force over velocity and along the cable it is equal to tension over wave speed. The discontinuity may be either an elastic support (with damping properties), or a change unit weight of the cable (bigger cross section) which changes the wave speed.
Mechanical impedance is a measure of how much a structure resists motion when subjected to a harmonic force.
Again, how mush push is required for a given quantity of flow.
Compare to the simpler concept of stiffness, which is force per deflection. The difference is that deflection is static, and motion (or flow) is dynamic; therefore, things like mass and damping matter.
uses GDO, HT, signal generator
The following links serve as background for the in-class exercise (to be described elsewhere):
This amplifier’s output will be connected to a high impedance, so we consider this current to be zero. Notably, a speaker is not a high impedance (8Ω is typical). If you want to connect this circuit to a speaker, you need a buffer amplifier.
Another person with the same problem: Why can’t class A amp drive 8 ohm speaker with just one BJT?
The propoer way to do it is described at this page about
biasing transistors in excruciating detail
But after some some hand-wringing about basic electronics, from hackaday some folks had the bright idea to write about it in a bit more accessble way…
So here we have a discussion about common-emitter amplifers, from hackaday that includes some helpful rules of thumb:
See also this discussion about biasing common-base transistor amplifers.
For example:
- Pick a collector resistor using Ohm’s Law to deliver the desired maximum current when the transistor is saturated,
- then make a few guesses with the bias resistors by making their total value over 10 times the collector resistor and
- the ratio of upper bias resistor to lower one being about 2 to 1.