2.4Ghz wifi antenna soldering

[Tyler Grey]

i'm trying to make the signal of my WIFI router go directional by using directional patch antennas.
But since my WIFI router does not have detachable antennas, I'm thinking of soldering SMA connectors to the board which look like the picture below.
So I'm planning to solder connectors which will go to the antennas like the picture below, but found out somebody saying that soldering might degrade the signal making them unreliable.

Q1. Would soldering antenna wires actually degrade WIFI signals?

Q2. If I don't stick with soldering, would putting two contact points together work?
Like just putting them together by a tape or hot glue.



Any help would be appreciated

 

[Mnt]

Routers that doesn't have sma connector have their antenna soldered to the board so its not a problem to solder it.
I've also know from somewhere that soldering degrades the signal but I dont believe this and think that its untrue.

If you dont want to solder it, there is no problem to use a tape or hot glue. The frequency is high and dont need a good connection.

 

[SLK001]

Q1. Would soldering antenna wires actually degrade WIFI signals?

Good soldering will have minimal effect. Bad soldering can completely render the signal useless. I've done this quite often with excellent results. Using only contact points will likely result in a very bad signal.

 

[Tyler Grey]

Good soldering will have minimal effect. Bad soldering can completely render the signal useless. I've done this quite often with excellent results. Using only contact points will likely result in a very bad signal.

Thanks, than I should probably just stick to soldering.

One more question please. What does frequency have to do with connection quality?
Mnt says higher frequencies don't require good connections and contact points alone also will get the job done.

 

[Mnt]

A contact point is half a capacitor between the board and the connector.
As we know, capacitors conduct more the high frequencyes. When the frequency is high, it gets out of the PCB board.

SLK001, I've seen routers that use a contact points instead soldering. Im new to RF and haven't tested that yet, so I prefer soldering.

 

[SLK001]

Thanks, than I should probably just stick to soldering.

That is a good idea.

One more question please. What does frequency have to do with connection quality?
Mnt says higher frequencies don't require good connections and contact points alone also will get the job done.

I my experience, the higher the frequency, the more precise the soldering has to be. By that I mean no solder peaks, no poorly wetted joints, no cold joints, no excess solder and not "lumpy" joints. A quality solder joint has smooth, continuous fillets on the joint and none of the above defects. Just be sure when you do solder, that you use a good quality flux (RMA type) on your joint.

 

[FvM]

Q1. No. Q2. No, no.

A SMA jack needs ground and signal for correct connection, making up a 50 ohms matched transmission line. Does the router expose 50 ohms antenna interfaces?

 

[Tyler Grey]

A SMA jack needs ground and signal for correct connection, making up a 50 ohms matched transmission line. Does the router expose 50 ohms antenna interfaces?

I do not think so. The antenna which is just a standard grey antenna cable only connected to the signal pin.
If I solder a SMA jack instead of the antenna cable, do you think I would need to connect it to the ground as well?

 

[SLK001]

If I solder a SMA jack instead of the antenna cable, do you think I would need to connect it to the ground as well?

The antenna will need a ground reference, so yes, you will need to connect it to ground as well.