HD-BLADE… it’s just that thin.

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How thin is HD-BLADE? Take three sheets of copier paper and put them together. It’s just that thin. If you’re a numbers type, the answer is: .0017 inches, or 43.18 microns. It’s about the thickness of a credit card without the bumped-up numbers. Yes, really.

How is this possible? There is no scientific reason why an antenna needs to be thick. The only thing that matters is the way it intersects oncoming electromagnetic waves. In theory, an antenna a couple of atoms thick would work. While we can’t get an antenna that thin yet, the actual antenna part of the HD-BLADE is even thinner…. the silver element is really like a film sandwiched between two pieces of plastic. The plastic is actually the thickest part of the antenna!

Why have a thicker antenna? Old “rabbit-ears” types or roof-mounted aerials need to stand up by themselves, so they need to have enough structural integrity, and that means thickness. Without the plastic covering, the thin antenna elements would flop over and be useless. Pressing them between plastic keeps the elements in the perfect position for digital TV reception!

About the Author

Stuart Sweet
Stuart Sweet is the editor-in-chief of The Solid Signal Blog and a "master plumber" at Signal Group, LLC. He is the author of over 10,000 articles and longform tutorials including many posted here. Reach him by clicking on "Contact the Editor" at the bottom of this page.