Loop antennas may be constructed in many forms including horizontal full wave loops in square, rectangle or triangle (delta) shapes. They can also be in the vertical plane and are most often in the same shapes with the delta being very popular as it has both vertical and horizontal polarization. The impedance at the loop resonant frequency is approximately 100 ohms but will very slightly on harmonics. Loops are “quiet” antennas compared to verticals and dipoles and are omni-directional. The also exhibit gain on harmonic bands. Once you try a loop antenna you will know why they are so popular with old timers but still a secret to newcomers. Shown below are some typical designs:
Full Wave Horizontal Loop Antenna (a.k.a Skyloop)
This antenna is horizontally polarized and should be mounted as high as possible but works well at low heights of 10-30 feet. They are quieter than a dipole or a vertical, have a broader bandwidth and will usually out perform a dipole antenna.To determine the approximate circumference in feet of a full wave loop antenna use the formula:
1005/Freq in Mhz = length in feet.
The feed point impedance of a full wave loop antenna is theoretically in the vicinity of 120 ohms and requires a 2:1 impedance transformer (for single band loops or a 4:1 balun to match on multiple bands) with 50 ohm line. You will also need a feed line choke or better yet, just get the Hybrid 4:1+1:1 in a single box.
Vertical Delta Loops
Vertical delta loops can be oriented several way but the most popular is to have the “pointy” end at the top (usually a single support) and the lower horizontal ends just out of reach of humans and animals. Best feed point is 1/4 wavelength (246/f(mhz)) from the top point down one side. Vertical delta loops use the same 2:1 baluns as the horizontal loops or 4:1 for multi-band operation.
The Ferrite Ring Combo Pack is a convenient solution for troubleshooting RFI/EMI from unknown frequencies or multiple frequencies that require multiple suppression mixes. Included in this combo pack are ten 1.4″ OD/.9″ ID ring toroids as follows:
Mix 77 effective from .1-50 MHz including AM Broadcast band – quantity: 5
Mix 43 effective from 25-250 MHz for general purpose – quantity: 5
Mix 61 effective from 200-2000 MHz for cell phone, WIFI, HDTV, Cable TV interference – quantity: 5
The ring toroids are useful for AC/DC common mode choking with multiple turns as shown below
AC Cable on F-240 Toroid – 7 turns |
DC Cable on F240 – 4 turns |
The ring toroids can also be used on coax or signal lines as shown below:
RG58 12 turns on FT240 |
Ethernet Cable on F-240 Toroid – 7 turns |
For RFI/EMI wrap as many turns as possible for higher choking (under 30 MHz). For over 30 MHz, 1-3 turns is usually sufficient due the to capacitive effect of multiple turns reducing choking effect.