WaveWatcher,
I'll address some of your comments while I'm here and have the time. I'm getting ready to research and rewrite some information I had on a lower priority basis for future presentation to supervisors. This will take up more of my time in the next few weeks.
Lee,
I'm not sure why great detail is needed to discuss these devices. After all, they are all just variations on what are known as 'Tesla coils'.
Right, the Tesla coil is the underlying basis of the Lakhovsky coil radiator.
"Will a solid wire instead of Lakhovsky radiator arcs radiate EMI the same way as Lakhovsky's coil?" ... Provided your mention of 'solid wire' refers to a piece of wire or a coil with fewer turns...... the answer would be 'no'. ... The output coil on these devices is not only the radiating or antenna part but a major contributor to the operation of the spark gap. ... That spark gap is the source of all those high frequency energies.
Yes, I agree with that. No argument.
Okay, a couple of questions to ponder: 1) The highly charged Lakhovsky coil has mutual capacitance between coils closely enough spaced, right? Then, arcs between the cut-out sections will cause a lot of EMI without a proper spark gap to the right side of a schematic, coming off the step-up transformer as in a typical Tesla coil, right?
2) Assuming a contained spark gap from a xenon tube or a burned-out light bulb works as well as in a Tesla coil, do you think from your experience, that a wider-spaced set of coil arcs in a Lakhovsky coil would work as well as a more conventional coil?
I doubt there will be much spark without a fair amount of inductance where the coil should be.
I didn't know that inductance, by itself, had a part in spark gap arc formation. Is that what you mean?
Personally, I consider the therapeutic use of these systems to be a farce. To each his own
Yes, you're right, but then Lakhovsky or coworkers/competitors(?) did work that they say helped people's illnesses:
http://www.rexresearch.com/lakhov/lakhusps.htmThat was what I was thinking of.
This past September I had the chance to see an original and working system. It was offered for sale at a local hamfest. The price was too high The demonstration included looking at the transmitted signal with a spectrum analyzer. What a mess!
The EMI radiated was seen from under 100kHz to 2gHz (the limits of the equipment)
And I agree. Spark gaps can be used to ignite gas stove burners (my Dad had such a stove), and they just make a popping or snapping sound for a few seconds at most.
When you have it working keep an eye out for the FCC mobile and the local constabulary
Yep, that's right. Spark gaps are illegal in the US and quite possibly in European countries as well. They drown out the commercial radio spectrum with static. Wide sections of it. I said I was getting a job. I think eventually have a chance to work in an environment where radio reception is attenuated. A steel frame building, for instance. In the basement. In a lab. I
will indeed be better prepared by knowledgeable workers with more experience that I have before I begin.
--Lee