DIGESTS OF PAPERS: GENERAL where Co is the capacitance when the plates are z0 cm apart, and z0 > d\ Cl is the capacitance

when the plates are z cm apart and z > zQ; d is the diameter in cm of the metal cylinder; and a is a known constant.
=^ l()a(2, -zx)ld 'Us

and

Tn practice there is always some residual admittance across the terminals to which the unknown admittance is to be connected for measurement purposes. Thus before connecting the unknown it is necessary to connect a coil across the terminals and tune this coil with a condenser to give maximum voltage across it. If the Q-factor of the circuit is high the admittance across the terminals is then equivalent to a low conductance.

This conductance can be determined by comparing it with the standard admittance in the manner described above. The unknown admittance is then connected in parallel with the resonant circuit and the modulus of admittance of the combination is determined. With the unknown and the coil removed a condenser is put across the terminals and its admittance measured. Finally the unknown admittance is connected across the condenser and the modulus of admittance of the combination is determined. From the four values of admittance moduli the conductance and susceptance of the unknown can be calculated. This generalized method of determining an unknown impedance can be greatly simplified for particular and important cases such as the measurement of high and low resistances, interelectrode impedances of valves, inductances and capacitances; these methods are given in the paper. Details of experimental work using the impedance-measuring gear are discussed in the paper.

TWO NOTES ON THE PERFORMANCE OF RECTIFIER MODULATORS

621.396.619.27:621.3.011.21 Paper No. 1384 RADIO SECTION

D. G. TUCKER, D.Sc, Associate Member

(DIGEST of a paper published in November, 1952, in Part III of the PROCEEDINGS.) PART 1. THE INPUT IMPEDANCE OF RECTIFIER MODULATORS WITH FREQUENCY-SELECTIVE TERMINATIONS

500
Shunt (case 2)

The input impedance of a rectifier modulator is different in its circuit relationships from that of a passive linear network; for a given input frequency, it depends on the value of the load impedance at all the frequencies which can exist in the circuit and often also on the impedance of the signal source from which it is measured. The calculation of the input impedance appears to be impracticable in the general case, but in special cases where the terminating impedances can be restricted to values of zero or infinity or to pure resistance at the various frequencies which can exist in the circuit, and where the resistance/time function of the rectifier can be expanded as a Fourier series independent of the signal frequencies (i.e. controlled solely by the carrier), calculation is possible, and a selection of results is tabulated in the paper. An example of the dependence of the input impedance on the signal-source impedance is shown in Fig. 1.
PART 2. CARRIER-LEAK CONTROL IN RECTIFIER MODULATORS BY THE USE OF A D.C. METER

1000
Shunt s (ca.se 1)"

500

500

1000
.ohms

1500

Fig. 1.Example of variation of input impedance with the signal source impedance.
Rs is the signal source impedance, assumed purely resistive at all frequencies. Both curves are for a shunt modulator; Case 1 has an output termination of 1 200 ohms at all frequencies, and Case 2 has an output termination which is 1 200 ohms at the frequency of the wanted sideband, but is infinite at all other frequencies. The rectifiers are assumed to switch perfectly between a forward resistance of 250 ohms and a back resistance of SO 000 ohms.

Carrier-leak in rectifier modulators is usually monitored by a frequency-selective valve voltmeter; but provided balance is required only to the carrier and not to the input signal as well (i.e. as in the shunt, or Cowan, modulator but not the ring modulator) it is possible by suitable design to monitor the carrier-leak with a d.c. meter measuring the d.c. component of the leak. This effects a great reduction in maintenance effort and improves the chance of maintaining the carrier-leak at a low level.
Dr. Tucker is at H.M. Underwater Detection Establishment, and was formerly at the Post Office Research Station.

To obtain the close correlation between a.c. and d.c. components of the leak which is required for this method, it is necessary that the backward impedance of the rectifiers should be either very high or else well-balanced. In practice it should often prove feasible by this method to maintain leak voltages of the fundamental component of the carrier at a level 40 db below the carrier voltage across each rectifier.

276