Speaker

November 24, 2020: Matt Bennett, AC6X, and Jean-Pierre de la Croix, KN6DVC: Small magnetic loop antennas: Theory, design, assembly, RESULTS

PLEASE NOTE: Because our meeting location is unavailable due to the coronavirus situation, this presentation will be webcast on the internet. See the IMPORTANT NOTE at the top of this page.

Looking for impressive DX capability, but don't have the dough, yard space, or permissions to put up a large antenna? Look no further than the small magnetic loop! Jean Pierre de la Croix (KN6DVC) and Matt Bennett (AC6X) talk about the theory, design, and performance of their home-built magnetic loop antennas using WSPR and FT8

Matt Bennett AC6X has been a ham since 1999. He was primarily involved with amateur satellites in the mid-to-late 2000s, building ground stations at several universities and high schools to support small satellite missions and ARISS contacts. He also managed two university CubeSat projects, designing and manufacturing the antennas for both missions. His experience helped him get his dream job at JPL in 2010 where he has been designing instruments to study elements of climate change from the International Space Station. Matt's main interest for the last five years has been HF contesting and finding new ways to be more competitive through experimenting with indoor, outdoor, and mobile antenna designs. Matt is a regular at Field Day, CQ WW SSB, and CA QSO Party contests.

Jean-Pierre de la Croix KN6DVC is new to amateur radio having received his license in August 2019. He enjoys building radio gear in his garage starting with the QRP Labs QCX and QCX+ kits, as well as a speaker wire dipole and magnetic loop antenna. J.-P. is a member of the JPL Amateur Radio Club.