What is a cantenna?

Cantenna stands for Can + Antenna. To increase the range of communication, an amateur radio enthusiast attempted to use a tin can of potato chips as a directional element in addition to a basic yagi antenna operating at 2.4 GHz frequency. This helped in directing more transmit power towards the receiver, thereby improving the communication range. As this method was cheap and required an easily available raw material, it became very popular. Later, a company called Heathkit produced it commercially and named it Cantenna.