Build your own transistor radios : a hobbyist's guide to high-performance and low-powered radio circuits / Ronald Quan.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Quan, Ronald, author.

Series:

McGraw-Hill's AccessEngineering

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

Transistor radios--Design and construction--Amateurs' manuals.

Transistor radios.

Transistor radios--Design and construction.

Genre:

Electronic books.

Physical Description:

1 online resource

Edition:

First edition.

Place of Publication:

New York, N.Y. : McGraw-Hill Education, [2013]

Language Note:

In English.

Summary:

Provides a guide to designing and constructing transistor radios, including such topics as choosing components, troubleshooting, and sampling.

Contents:

A. About the author

B. Preface

C. Acknowledgments

1. Introduction

Tuned radio-frequency (TRF) radios

Regenerative radio

Reflex radio

Superheterodyne radio

Software-defined radio front-end circuits

Comparison of the types of radios

2. Calibration tools and generators for testing

Alignment tools

Test generators

Inductance meter

Capacitance meter

Oscilloscopes

Radio frequency (RF) spectrum analyzers

Where to buy the tools and test equipment

3. Components and hacking/modifying parts for radio circuits

Antenna coils

Variable capacitors

Transistors

Earphones

Speakers

Passive components

Vector and perforated boards

Hardware

Parts suppliers

4. Building simple test oscillators and modulators

The continuous-wave signal

The amplitude-modulated signal

First project: a CW RF test oscillator

Modulator circuit for the CW generator

Alternate circuits

5. Low-power tuned radio-frequency radios

Design considerations for TRF radios

Improving sensitivity and/or selectivity via antenna coils or circuits

First design of TRF radio

Variation of the design (alternate design of the TRF radio)

Author's earlier TRF designs

6. Transistor reflex radios

Motivation behind amplifying both radio-frequency and audio-frequency signals

One-transistor TRF reflex radio

Multiple-transistor reflex radio circuit

7. A low-power regenerative radio

Improving sensitivity by regeneration

Improving selectivity by Q multiplication via regeneration

Design considerations for a regenerative radio

8. Superheterodyne radios

Commercially made transistorized superheterodyne radios

A four-transistor radio schematic

An eight-transistor radio

Alternative oscillator and antenna coil circuit

An item to note

9. Low-power superheterodyne radios

Design goals for low power

Low-power oscillator, mixer, and intermediate-frequency circuits

Low-power detector and audio circuits

"First" design of a low-power superheterodyne radio

Alternative low-power superheterodyne radio design

Photos of low-power am superheterodyne radios

10. Exotic or "off the wall" superheterodyne radios

A one-transistor superheterodyne radio

Design considerations for a one-transistor superheterodyne radio

A two-transistor superheterodyne radio

11. Inductor-less circuits

Ceramic filters

Gyrators (aka simulated or active inductors)

Inductor-less (aka coil-less) superheterodyne radio

12. Introduction to software-defined radios (SDRS)

Sdr front-end circuits, filters, and mixers

Phasing circuits for 0- and 90-degree outputs for I and Q signals

Multipliers for generating 0- and 90-degree phases

Example radio circuits for software-defined radios

Second SDR front-end circuit for the 40-meter amateur radio band.

13. Oscillator circuits

One-transistor oscillator

Differential pair oscillator

References

14. Mixer circuits and harmonic mixers

Adding circuits versus mixing circuits

Distortion can be a good thing (for mixing)

Single-bipolar-transistor distortion

Simple transistor mixer and its conversion transconductance

Differential-pair mixer

Harmonic mixer circuits

Mixer oscillator circuits

Conversion gain

15. Sampling theory and sampling mixers

Sampling signals as a form of muliplication or mixing

Finite pulse-width signals

Aliasing is a mixing effect

Multiplexer circuits as balanced mixers

Tradeoffs in performance of the mixers

16. In-phase and quadrature (IQ) signals

Introduction to suppressed-carrier amplitude modulation

How i and q signals are generated

Demodulating i and q signals

I and q signals used in software-defined radios (SDRS)

17. Intermediate-frequency circuits

If amplifiers

Gain-controlled if amplifiers

Considerations of distortion effects on if amplifiers

18. Detector/automatic volume control circuits

Average envelope detectors

Power detectors

Synchronous detectors

Iq detectors for am broadcast signals

Measuring an average carrier or providing automatic volume control

19. Amplifier circuits

Introduction to operational amplifiers

Amplifier characteristics

Connecting multiple amplifiers for an amplifier system

Practical considerations for using amplifiers

20. Resonant circuits

Simple parallel and series resonant circuits

Resonant circuits in oscillators

Examples of band-pass and band-reject filters

21. Image rejection

What is an image signal?

Methods to reduce the amplitude of the image signal

Analysis of an image-rejection mixer using i and q signals

Analysis of the image-reject mixer

Consequences of an imperfect 90-degree phase shifter on reducing the image signal

22. Noise

Sources of random electronic noise and some basic noise theory

Paralleling transistors for lower noise

Differential-pair amplifier noise

Cascode amplifier noise

Selecting op amps

23. Learning by doing

Update on the one-transistor superheterodyne radio

Comments on sdr 40-meter front-end circuit

Experimenting with mixers and using the spectran spectrum analyzer program

Conducting experiments on op amps and amplifiers

Experiments with a resonant circuit

Thevenin-equivalent circuit

Analyzing a bridge circuit

Some final thoughts on the book

A. Appendix 1: parts suppliers

Oscillator coils, intermediate-frequency (if) transformers, audio transformers

Crystal earphones

Passive components, resistors, capacitors, fixed-valued inductors

Crystals

Ceramic resonators (~455 khz)

Ceramic filters (~455 khz)

Transistors, diodes, and integrated circuits

Low-noise transistors and JFETs

Loudspeakers

B. Appendix 2: inductance values of oscillator coils and intermediate-frequency (if) transformers

If transformer with internal capacitor removed

C. Appendix 3: short alignment procedure for superheterodyne radios

If transformer alignment

Oscillator coil and trimmer capacitor adjustments.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Electronic reproduction. New York, N.Y. : McGraw Hill, 2013. Mode of access: World Wide Web. System requirements: Web browser. Access may be restricted to users at subscribing institutions.

Description based on cover image and table of contents, viewed on Mar. 13, 2015.

Other Format:

Print version: Build your own transistor radios : a hobbyist's guide to high-performance and low-powered radio circuits.

ISBN:

9780071799706 (print-ISBN)

0071799702 (print-ISBN)

OCLC:

1021307849

Access Restriction:

Restricted for use by site license.