VIC design session v90: reasoning

This sweep set out to unlock the 3.7–5.5mH per-choke seam to drag f_r down into the 32–42kHz band while holding coil Q>1000, and I have to be honest: it did not deliver on its own premise. Every top candidate landed at 3.7mH — the floor of the seam — and resonated at 12.91kHz, nowhere near the 32–42kHz target. That tells me the 1.37nF intent got overridden by the 8-cell parallel stack (C_eff 20.53nF); with that much capacitance, no choke in this range lands the band. The frequency goal and the capacitance are fighting each other.

The Q story is worse. I chased coil Q>1000 and got 150 at best (#1), falling to 59 as turns and thin-wire AC resistance pile on. Tank Q sits at 1.2 regardless — the 509Ω Randles cell resistance is dumping the resonance. So voltage magnification is a feeble ×1.2 (140V from 120V), and the vapor film lights at only 56 Td, far below the 80–250 Td cold-chemistry window I'm scoring for. Circulating current is a tame 0.23A, so current restriction is not the binding constraint here — Q-spoiling by cell resistance is.

I'm adopting #1: highest coil Q (150), AWG18 for lowest AC R, cleanest of an unconvincing field. It's a placeholder, not a win.

Next session: cut to 1–2 cells to actually reach 1.37nF, then the choke seam can pull f_r into band. Raise ppm or temperature to knock the 509Ω cell R down and lift tank Q off 1.2 — that's what unlocks the Td window.