Scanning in the Ghz ranges

[chaz0426]

Is it possible to build a Scanner that scans in the Ghz ranges? Is it possible to acquire microwave equipment and antenna's to build it? How much would it cost? How would you go about doing such a thing? I couldn't find any resources on google. Just curious.

 

[gewecke]

Many scanners will go to 1300 mhz. and a few will go to 3 ghz. There's the 1.2ghz. ham band and 2.4ghz. wireless camera spectrum but not much else other than data.
n9zas

 

[SCPD]

Check out the Icom area here on RR. You will find people talking about different Icom receivers.

ICOM Receivers - The RadioReference.com Forums

Or check out Icoms receivers website ...

Receiver Products - Icom America

 

[canav844]

Many scanners will go to 1300 mhz. and a few will go to 3 ghz. There's the 1.2ghz. ham band and 2.4ghz. wireless camera spectrum but not much else other than data.
n9zas

Many HS and NCAA football teams are moving to 2.4GHz radios, no license needed.

 

[SCPD]

Many HS and NCAA football teams are moving to 2.4GHz radios, no license needed.

Question about transmitting on such a high frequency: doesn't it admit harmful levels of radiation? I seem to remember reading about something similiar when the 900 MHz radios first came out. People would key up on a 900 MHz HT and have a lovely stream of radiation in their face.

Dave
KA6TJF

 

[davidgcet]

no more than a 2.4ghz cordless phone. the actual power limitations are the same be it unlicensed 2way radio, cordless home phone, wireless internet,etc..

 

[SCPD]

no more than a 2.4ghz cordless phone. the actual power limitations are the same be it unlicensed 2way radio, cordless home phone, wireless internet,etc..

What does a cordless phone emit? 100 MW? Would it be about the same for football helmet radios? I can't imagine it would be much more, because of the radiation hazard.

Just looked through my latest HRO catalog and didn't see an HT above the 440 band. Probably because at 500 MW or more an HT at higher frequencies would emit harmful radiation.

Dumb thing is, I couldn't find a 1.2 GHz tranceiver in the HRO catalog. Which might explain why I never hear any traffic when I search that band.

Dave
KA6TJF

 

[n5ims]

Dumb thing is, I couldn't find a 1.2 GHz tranceiver in the HRO catalog. Which might explain why I never hear any traffic when I search that band.

Icom makes one. It's in the Texas Towers catalog here --> Texas Towers, Icom ID-1 Page

 

[SCPD]

Icom makes one. It's in the Texas Towers catalog here --> Texas Towers, Icom ID-1 Page

A 10 watt mobile. I would imagine it's safe because the radiation is coming out through the mobile antenna.

Dave
KA6TJF

 

[poltergeisty]

FTV anyone?

http://forums.radioreference.com/icom-receivers/42324-ic-r3-report.html

The second type of signals are called ATV signals which can be tuned between 900 - 1300 and 2250 - 2450 MHz. These types of TV signals are basically anything other than broadcast TV signals mentioned above and include amateur radio, surveillance cameras, video cameras, etc. While these ranges for such signals are relegated to the frequencies mentioned above for European and Canadian models, it will be interesting to see what ranges are available on the US model. There is a separate bank (FtV) which provides for the storage of up to 50 ATV frequencies.

Strong Signals - Icom IC-R3 Review

 

[mitaux8030]

You *could* build a receiver for GHz ranges... hams have been doing this for a while now. I'm building some 24 GHz transcievers right now in fact. Remember the Gemini & Apollo space missions? Hams were building receivers and dish antennae to listen to the (IIRC) 2.2 GHz signals from the space craft, even back then.

Today, very few analogue narrowband signals remain in the GHz range, so 'scanners' as you know them wouldn't translate all that well to the GHz ranges. Most signals up there are now wideband, very wideband! From a few hundred kHz wide to even tens or hundreds of MHz wide. Pretty much everything is digital modulation too. This means that, to a large degree, custom built receivers & demodulators are needed to receive anything. Another complication is that signals are generally transmitted with highly directional antennae, and you'd need to pretty close to directly in line of the transmitted signal to receive much.

Its radio scanning, Jim, but not as we know it.

 

[poltergeisty]

...and the cableing you need looks like duct work.

 

[Dude111]

I wonder if there is anything WAY UP THERE! (Higher than they have scanned)

 

[poltergeisty]

A nurse showed me once, but I shouldn't say things like that. :twisted:

 

[zz0468]

I wonder if there is anything WAY UP THERE! (Higher than they have scanned)

The microwave spectrum is LOADED with signals. There's just nothing to listen to.

 

[W2NJS]

What does a cordless phone emit? 100 MW? Would it be about the same for football helmet radios? I can't imagine it would be much more, because of the radiation hazard.

Dave
KA6TJF

Football helmet radios are receivers ONLY; they don't put transmitters in the helmets. The sideline transmitters are encrypted digital and run between 10 and 50 MW.

As far as radiation damage is concerned, I thought all of that scare stuff had been put to bed by competent engineering studies, meaning that the hazard, if indeed there is one, is between very low and none. I have friends, one of whom is an engineer and a good one, who absolutely, positively, all evidence to the contrary, are convinced that RF radiation is a dangerous killer, and no amount of studies and reasoning will ever convince him otherwise, but that's the just way some people are.

 

[iMONITOR]

Most anything up there is encrypted.

 

[zz0468]

Most anything up there is encrypted.

Depends... most of the wireless lan type stuff is encrypted, or should be. Point to point digital links are 'scrambled', but not necessarily for security purposes. It's done to make a constant emissions mask, regardless of traffic loading. It could be possible, for example, to purchase a microwave link radio on eBay, and set up the receiver to demux traffic, because the radios of a particular make and model generally use the same scrambling algorithm.

In larger metropolitan areas, there is a great deal of amateur traffic, including television, that's not encrypted, so that could make for some interesting listening.

So, while my previous post said there's nothing to listen to, I should have clarified that the vast majority is out of reach of the casual "appliance operator" type hobbyist.

 

[Dude111]

The microwave spectrum is LOADED with signals. There's just nothing to listen to.

I wonder what the highest ANALOGUE TRAFFIC there is... (Could be higher than the microwave stuff for all we know)

 

[nd5y]

I wonder what the highest ANALOGUE TRAFFIC there is... (Could be higher than the microwave stuff for all we know)

Up until the late 60's or so microwave systems commonly used FM subcarriers to multiplex many voice channels. I don't know if any systems like that still exists.

Frequencies above 300 GHz in the US are not regulated by the FCC and don't require a license. Lots of hams and others have built experimental systems using analog AM infrared and lasers.