Chapter 8. Wiring for Wireless Radio
All the tasks in this chapter involve putting connectors on a piece of coaxial cable to be used with some kind of radiofrequency (RF) signal — TV, citizens band (CB), or amateur (ham) radio, or a scanning receiver. These connectors and the cable are a bit special because they have to carry signals that are far higher in frequency than audio and power. Radio receivers have to work with signals that are incredibly weak — a billionth-of-a-watt signal is considered very strong! CB and amateur transmitters depend on the connector being just right so they can deliver all that precious radio power to the antenna. A short bit of background on coaxial cable will help you understand why special care is needed for radio frequency connectors.
The Case for Coaxial Cable
Coaxial cable (or just "coax" for short) has two conductors that share a common central axis; they are co-axial. You can see this for yourself by looking at the end of a piece of coaxial cable. (Go ahead, I'll wait!) See? Figure 8-1 shows the parts of the cable a little more clearly. The signal carried by coaxial cable flows on the center conductor and on the inside of the outer shield. None of the internal signal is intended to flow on the outside of the shield; here the flow is ...
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