[Laser] Laser and contesting above 50MHz

[Zack Widup]

On Mon, 14 Mar 2005 TWOSIG at aol.com wrote:

> My thanks to Zack, W9SZ, for his input on contesting.  There are some  high 
> contesters and experimenters around here (Wichita, Kansas) that have  
> demonstrated their equipment and activities.  I still don't understand much  of what 
> they are doing, but I think I understand them a little better now.
>  
> One comment they made does stick with me now.  I forget the band  (maybe it 
> was 10 GHZ), but the comment was that it was difficult to point the  equipment 
> because the transmitted beam was so narrow.
>  
> Now the beam was probably ten times wider than the non-laser systems that  
> have been discussed recently, which would make them even wider than a laser  
> system.  I thought at the time that if you had a laser communication system  
> mounted on dish, or antenna of a lower frequency system, and made a laser  
> contact, then there would be no need to hunt for the other station for the lower  
> band contact.  In essence the other station would already be centered in  your 
> gunsights!.

Yes, the laser is definitely more difficult to align than the 10 GHz dish.  
Most of the people working on 10 GHz haven't yet had the experience of 
trying to align a laser path.

If you have the laser and a dish mounted together, once the laser is 
aligned the dish is aligned too.  Some people use dishes with 
multiple-band feeds (e.g. the WA3RMX triband feed, which covers 2304, 3456 
and 5760 MHz). Once you have one band aligned, all three are aligned.

One advantage of the laser is that if you're using a visible laser, you 
can see it at the receive end. You can then align your receiver after 
you've peaked the laser visibly.  You can't do that at microwave 
frequencies; both dishes have to be aligned at the same time.

>  
> I think the contest rules prohibit you calling up another station on a cell  
> phone to arrange a contact.   That may also apply to the use of other  ham 
> radio frequencies.  But surely it is not against the rules to establish  a 
> contact on one band that also aligns your antenna for another band.
>  

No, you can't use cell phones in contests but it is perfectly OK to use 
ham radio means to schedule or assist contacts on other bands during a 
contest. 144 MHz is often used as the liaison frequency while trying to 
align microwave paths. "Hold up, I heard you!"

Outside of contests, the same rules do not apply.  The new record long 
distance contacts on 211 GHz and up were achieved with the help of cell 
phones.

> The usefulness of this idea does assume that you can make a light  
> communications contact easier and faster than for the other band, or bands that  you are 
> trying to make.  Probably not below 10 GHz.  Another one of  those 
> laser-brained ideas.  If it works, use it.  If not, try  something else.
>  
>  
> James
> N5GUI

Thanks James!

73, Zack W9SZ