MATH’S NOTES

While researching materials for this column, I came across information indicating how transistors gradually replaced vacuum tubes in electronic gear, but how similar (and different) they are from each other as well as some hybrid attempts. As you all well know, before the transistor, vacuum tubes were the mainstay of radio technology. Amplifiers, oscillators, switches, etc., were all designed with these devices and all of the communications technology of the mid 20th century employed them. At the time that transistors first came on the scene, there were several attempts offered to convert vacuum tube equipment directly with plug-in devices called “solid-state tubes.” This got me thinking that perhaps some of you might actually consider “upgrading” older devices. I think this is an interesting topic for the technologically-inclined among us and would like to share some thoughts along those lines with you this month.

Vacuum Tube Basics

To understand the thinking at the time, we must first look. In operation, the filament heats the cathode, which then gives off electrons. The red lines show the path of these electrons from the heated cathode to the positively charged plate. In between the two is the grid, which serves to control the amount of electrons flowing between the two. By varying the voltage on the grid, the electron flow can be varied from maximum to none. Now let us see how this works.