Copasetic Flow

The 12 year-old and I built a QRP Labs QCX+ 20 meter ham radio tranciever over the weekend, and then we destroyed the ATMega328p controller chip. Which is a bummer since we can't ue the radio without it. Key takeway really, really, really check super-careful for possible solder bridges. I ordered a replacement controller, but here's the really cool things. We have Arduino's sitting around the house, and per  N5BGZ's blog you can use them to program ATMega328 p controller chips! Even cooler, our (multiple) Arduino's contain ATMega328ps! So, we're going to canablaize one, and use another one to hopefully program it! Finger's crossed! The Once and Future??? QCX+ Controller References: QCX+ Tranciever Kit Mikes' Blog Post

 Based on comments from the RSGB dipole antenna notes , I'm back to thinking I should try the ' radio in the middle ' dipole configuration for the Rockmite. The page mentions that the coax leading to a dipole can pick up a noticeable amount of noise without a balun. I have a Rockmite board already wired up this way. The issues with the radio in the middle mode of operation are: Biggest of all in this climate: moisture! I currently house the radio bare between the antenna wires. It's very, very foggy here on occasion. That, I suspect may also kill propagation though, so in its own way may not be an issue. Obtaining the necessary length of CAT-5 wire to carry power, audio, and keyer signals Tension relief for the antenna leads that hook directly into the board. (Especially important since the tree suspension system uses tree branches in conjunction with twine to support the antenna as close to horizontal as possible using increasing amounts of tension. On a pragmatic note...

Lab Book 2014_05_21     Hamilton Carter Summary Reviewed the theory that’s being tested by the experiment.  Looked into digitizing the data with an Arduino and did more cleaning and organizing. QVT 3001 Looked into how hard it would be to build an Arduino interface to get the detector data out of our QVT 3001.  The QVT 3001 assembles the hits detected by the NaI photomultiplier tube combination into an energy spectrum. There is an interface that allows external reading and writing of data. The reading interface is summarized in the following two figures. Since the QVT requires a 16 bit bus, I’m going to need a bigger Arduino. Hirsch Theory Articles Reading through Dr. Hirsch’s theory articles again.  They seem to layout the following path: 1.  High temp suerpcodnctors may be explained by the theory of hole superconductivity. 2.  Hole superconductivity fits with BCS but ...