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    172 views36 pages

    PW Xtal Experimenters HDBK

    Uploaded by

    Jacob Bertrand

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    Attribution Non-Commercial (BY-NC)
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    of 36
    “DX Ww" [e CRYSTAL , serimenters A special ‘‘ Vade Mecum” for the sept owner, including contributions J. F. CORRIGAN, M.Sc., Aad, and SEXTON O'CONNOR. ; ~ Full details for building two crystal sets are also given in this book, Oso Sa SS SS SESS SST b ‘ E leads the way in Crystal: Detection OM? ent Sour te PRICE . ae \ ready to —— ert Scentine By the unique’ design, si Pes pout, the contlet premute porvem the ca the crystal is perfectly automatic. The usual defects of frie micrometer, setting are the exoesive care necessary to get maximum efficiency and the instability caused by of contact called for. These defects are completely by this unique design. "The setting of the Soa reoat on the actual contact point in additionan catswhisker container Sc Hence ‘crystal “ite ‘of-a plug-in ecor wots slog patter rm and pualy acer ot oes 6 Cmax Populss Crystal Detnpter 5 sited with Chine superb Ceyetai, WOU in © springegrip chucks Replnoem cate made with perce a ey suds seconds, CLIMAX Rabid ESTRIG LTD, adepneaie: ARADIO 4 ratte ctior 2500, % { 4 M { THE “P.W." HANDBOOK INFORMATION you’ CANNOT DO WITHOUT. | SPECIALLY WRITTEN ror’ ¥ PODULAR WIRELESS” . “By wr, CORRIGAN, MSc, ALG. ont Gontiritant to ethene Wireless”) A otlier “17 Ogee he book, price od. (but presented ‘of BOPULAR with every: WIRELESS week October 3rd, + SES cee a 9 used ition for Crystal users. ‘Writterby d “Master of Science and an acknowledged ‘authority on crystals, readers will find tl Mr. Corrigan and the other céntributors ..to, this. volume have compiled a really * up-to-date and invaluable book for J those who-owr ai typt of Crystal Set. 4 CRYSTAL EXPERIMENTER'S . | | i cd ae Af ! aa peepee cet eg aa 4 - Presented Free wit CHAPTER 1. ‘The Evolution of the Crystal. » by an effort of the imagination, the reader of this Look cas take his mind right back into the dim ages of the world, to an epoch of time Jong before the dawn of life on this planet, ho will arrive at that period of the earth's history in which most of the wodera radiosensitivo crystals and minerals were in the making. ‘Tho creation of the crystal took place when the earth was very young. Before the oceans canie into being, when thia globe on which we live was little more than @ plastic mass of semi-molten terial, when huge. etreams, of suiphurous Yanours. ond. gasce "were. belched forth from "in the interior furnaces ot the earth to pour gver and to react upon the rocky lava om ite suy- fave, the greater number of the metallig oree ard ‘minerals which are now found in the earth's crust were made. Early Investigations, : ‘Tho crystal has @ history which takes. us. back through countless ages almost to the beginning ot the world. Man learnt to make good use’ of the many varietios of crystalling minerals which exist a the earth's enefaeo at a Yory early stage of his mental develo ment, “but, curiously enough, tk ‘is only ‘within the’ Tast hun- dred and fifty yeare or so. that attempts to study the ‘properties and characteristics of 680 Mumerous varic- ties of crystalline mineral producis have. made in any really “accurate and Scientific manner. has. some species of minerals’. were capable of exhibiting mysterious and vet peculiar “electrical ienomena, however, ‘becn kriown, thore ‘or lesy, for some con: siderable tome. You may read, jn many of fhe seemingly Done spmiieal and. obscure writings of the. al- chemists, ‘of minerals whieh 2 . Known 10, shine ia the dark, and to give out flashes of light when they were gently rubbed in prises ith other substances, "Probably tho haracteristic, magnetic property of the lodertone in alveays pointing to the north when it is freely gugpended Was tho first electro-maguetic character. istio’ of cortain members of the mineral world whieh imprested itself on the mind of Man. It ia a far cry’ from the fret investigation of the magnetic properties of the lodestone™ down to the discovery of the rectifying power of certain “ Popular Wireless.” other minexals, but, noverthelesa, the history of mineral physica is @ vory fascinating one to etaco aut, showing as it does the fact that even, the Goad “and itarimato objects of Nature. are ea owed with many remarkable propertios which have for conturies vemained entitely vnsnspected. ‘The Discoveries of Braun. ‘Tho frst gorm of the discovery of erysial rect fication ia to be aeea ip the now assiea! invest: Bations of a certain Professor Berdinaad Braun, one of the pioneers in spark, telegraphy, atho, in the years 1983-4 exporimented wie otent kinds of contaoté ctisting bstiwoon 0 tala oatd minerals, Braun made, the di ‘thats although these faulty contact caused a vary high inipedance to tho, passage of an électrie current, they liad the remarkable property of allowing 3 ‘amount of current to flow through them - direction than in the other. The discovery. d&t slot cause very. much atten- tion to be drawn fy i at, tho time, Tt was daly i ‘the scientific journals of the period, a few other workers:conducted experiments in the subject, and then all interest in the matter seéma to have abated. - 5 Tn fect, it was not until nearly ton years after ‘ments of Marconi that the oxrsial A"for the purpoce of reatifying’ wire shea for onal nt let tuple of erborunf ea. this purpose, and, curfously enough, this material is not a natural product, hut it is manufactured ‘rlifciatly. In 19b6 General HL. Hi, G.'Dunveoody, of the United States’ Signal Corps, patented tho use of the now well-known carborunduin detector far the purpose of receiving wiveloss tolegraphy *The attractive of the lodestone malic oxide of Lyon) oblate btn al neon td erly Sines, Ing to Quich Htatle ho fot horoaghigtarenigtes he Dioner of tie minor the end of the Toon vent, “Popular Wireless” has the largest weekly cfrowlation. Week ending Oct-ber 3rd, 1925. 6 trancinigions, Dunwoody employed his dotector broadcasting services ia 1921 that popstar interest Wihrand ‘without the nad of 1s local potential Prvcrytal rectification was-again revived eit ethe begining of the practical applica: "Now, after a period of fame three yaar’ use, tion of crystalline minerals to wireless reception. the radiosensitive crystal has been given what fon of crystalline minerals to goof cacborimdam seem to be a permarent position, in the science for this purpose other crystals began to be emn- of amateur wireless reception, and, 33 I hope tu Ploped, dnd'aa interest in tho subject grew, tho chow later on, tho crystal. i¢ beginning to give Rumnber of crystals fosnd to be possessed of Fecti- evidence of ‘further electrical properties hich Tying. properties in like manner. increased. nay have many valuable applications attached to Tn'igo7 the now well-known **Perikon’” detector them at somo futuro time. Why has the humble crystal attained such 1 large measure of popularity. with at least seventy~ five per cent of wireless enthusiasts at the prescnt lay? "The reason is one which overs radio ex- perimenter knows. In the first, place, a radio- Fensitive crystal is not an expensive article like a walve is, nor docs it require any expense of up- Keep alicr it has beon installed in the eot. Tt gives pure reception, far better, in fact, than thas Shich is obtained with mast rectifying ‘valves. It Fe convenient.to use, and the circuits in which it is employed are of the very simplest type. An Honoured Place. “Thus a crystal set appeals fundamentally to the mrs Beton interested in whot he con get maa Sead, concert, and who does not want to be bothered with acquiring the skill necessary to be bothered ‘ipefation of a valve set. Further J oe er teccts the radio crgatal is of great Coa aie expertimenter who. foresces the ares tee ae itzvetfctive acope,, and. who, dogelopment. of adesrours 6 take’ bis own share 3, Quvaltslarent of that end. Of course, tho-erystal_is not thout its own : —— : inne dcaantagen. ie rnge i ory eel sd bot exighide onlay facie batore 1S at"the present Limo there 280 easy Biznly sizes of ead eulphide here tare Ofer ant gal ightforward way of appreciably extending tore seting, at wil be seea from the photogreph helow. "Sts porwors in: this disection. Despite this fact, Teen the crystal holds an, fit appeared. - Tt is, interesting, to. record the’ among wireless receiving instruments for amateit fra apponred. TE ie ipiereeTE uc sord wae tee an it wall continue fo occupy. that positon gvolution of he germ" Triton oly to a roctifge untit more simpler and more efficient device it Are Sontact comprising a crystal of fused rine ~ produced. wae and’ a bress point (USA. Patent, Be%bi di, Antovwardst Pickard applied the rae to ‘designates contact between natural wis end compen pyritese, Pickard also invest FRET eo cityind properties of slicon contacts Te Bhatand the quest for now rectifying com: bisatiom@pmoceeded apace. Molybdenite, various pyrites, anatase, the rare mineral, hessite, tin. sent Gomter and a how of others, srere examined Wea" ound to “ponsss, good rectiving. properties then cused dn fonjunetion, with suitable” contacts Rees tite names whieh’ may be mentioned 10 ‘cantiection’ with these discoveries are those of Protesior Pierce, Dr. Eccles, &. K. Coursey, ond Fee lin The. radio experimenter who ts Thecaily: terested in tho details of erystal Te caeere ail Bnd all the data which he requires TE Cafect inthe electrical and scienbife journals St the period, cay rom 1906 to 1612. Why Crystal Sets are Popular. ‘Tho introduction of the three-electrode valve, ani the "application of te highly” walable Toperties, ‘hewever, almost completely caused a rretion of the intefest which had uni tuntil then been taken in the rectifying properties of tho crystal: fand, in fect, it was not until the advent of the ino i, owe Aches, ty at Dea tth So «Popular Wireless”? is on sale every Thursday, price 3d. ‘ 6 Presented Free with 1b is nok within the scope of this little booktet to go with any. decail into the many suggested reaions ae to Wy certalt eyatale nd ahora “hould. rectify “wireless high-trequcney. currents However, most of the main theories which have from tins fo time been put forward to explain tho Urystal’s action may be brielly gove over withia tie spnee at our disposal An Unsolved Problem. ‘Tho main characteristic of a rectifying mineral or grystal contact is its property af unilateral conductivity, a phenomenon, which, as every radio amateur knows, consists in the passing by the erystal contact of a current in one direction, but of the almost completo stoppage of it when it i made to Bow in the opposite direction. ‘The great dilhiculiy js, of course, to understand tho ‘veason why cerlain’ contacts of mineral and other materials should exhibit this property. Does the rectifying action take place entirely at the sar~ face point of contact only, or does it take place in the interior of the erysial? Is i¢a phenomenon ADJUSTING SCREW | CRYSTAL (MOL YBOEN/TE) { heat effects at the point of contact, can it be xplained on an electrolytic bacis, of does it rest, after all, on some peculiar cherieal or miolecalat Structure ‘Of the crystal itsclt? ‘To bo briof, those points haye not beon settled, and, despite wiany now suggestions, we seem as far ae ever from the compleicly satisfactory ‘lution of the problem. Theories of crystal rectification may roughly be Livided into sonie four or five wilietent categories, hho firat of these is conocrned with the electrolytic heories which have been put forward to explain {hol enatals action, Electelytio theories vot sivetal rectification would explain the preno- Denon, 9p the: aseumptin, tha the presence of cxygen i necessary for the rectifying abtion, ‘Ailhorents of these theories assume that a film of Side (or sulphide) is always procent at the point Gi contact, and that ionisation aud polarisation Popular Wireless.” of the oxide film produces the rectification by causing a sort of electra-motive force to be set up at the point of contact, this opposing the electron flow in one direction very greatly, whilst a com paratively frse passage is iuade for the current Howing in the other direction, Thermal theories to explain, the effect of the crystal are usually based on the fact that local heating elfects ave aeb up when & current paseo tween a junction of two dissimilar metals.” Tho heating effect between a ergstal or mineral and ils contact is, in general, supposed to alter the Fesistance to the eurrent owing in one dizsction more than it docs to curvent Hovving the.ggponite way. Latet Theories. Furthor still, thoro axe a number of theorioe extant whieh attemmpr to explain the problem by sastining that the avea of contact aud its stato of inperfeeiness allows the passoue of minute cur ents smelt sora in one direction than it does in the other. These theories afe perhaps the oldest ff the bot, birt they ave ery few good ports to Fecoumend then, Most of the tater theories of minoral rect fication ate of a. physica chettealy or” an “atoms nature, Tt has boen aug: seated, on the one hand, that ab “a perfectly. pure hineyal or" erystal coal be obtained (that is, one swhich doesnot conta the stightest trace of chemieal impurity), ‘it ‘vould. probably. be found to be a nomrestifier, We ay cali th the ““chemle cal theory’ of crystal Sectibeation, for it is one whieh suggests that the Teetitying “action of the tnineral Is duo to tho ups setiing of its regular pattorn by the intetsion Sfsinathdnaputs. of in ieities, and. of therefore Felting ip im the interior (or on the virface) of the erzatal areas of varsiug Finally, some orystal voctifeation theorics ex- plain the’ effect_upon a physical basis only. Wo now infinitely mere about erystal architecture at the present tine than wo did even ton seats ago, find “underlying” all those modern theoties is tho toa that some peculiarity of the atone pattern of the eryotal Ww rosponsible, ‘not only” for the Feetifying “action of the erystal, bit also for its Fonction as a generator of ovcillacory currents, and for other electrical properties which i exhibits. Many DiMeutties. Those, in brief, are the themes upon which the theories of crystal rectification are basod. Neatly every one of them lias some goad points to recam- iond it; om the other band, they all have mauy dilficulties which ‘are not to be overcome, practice. It is obviously impossible to enter, into 2 discussion of these thvories in. this book. ‘They Consult the “P.W.” Technical Dept. if you are in trouble. Week ending October rd, 1025. are all of a highly technical nature, and, as such, Would pot be of very great interest to the practical-minded radio amatenr. Nevertheless, if Any. of iny readers are spocially interested in the subject "alt the esential Jetals and) reasoning connected with these varying and opposing ‘Stones may. be found in the Journals of various selentifie eocieties up to this date, Tie Crysta’s Discovered Prominence. ‘Thus the essgntial cause of the crystal's recti- fying and oscillating action remains one. of the Back gpobioms. wijeh ‘seience hae "not. yet been mney Boolver a tack for many. years the aub- feet aa ‘rogarded as being ‘fe importance Bis ‘nmatege wireless. enthusiast, howe iseed ‘ie ergetal upon a new bass PiseReedey tip crystal has come. into. pro gaine ho fasctating occupant of the BE0"%, ones again receiving some mesnure of the fete satenion whch iC deserve” he Snngatety "ofthe efystal Was not. yek been golved, but, after all, the scientife etudy of the fetal mice lar architecture of crystals fs one of the'youngest of the selences, Tt is barely ten Soure olde Who knows, therefore, ‘what further 2ipabiltfes the ertal will reveal after it has been itdled for another ten years? ‘The Crystal Classified. 7% HEN one comes to consider the question, ‘there is really more difficulty in formulating fa classification of radiowensitive crystals than is us ‘one thing, no scheme of eryst i ‘nto account all. the many varied properties which, crystal ‘and, again, many of theso schemes technical in nature, and aro not of, very great aesistance to, the radio crystal enthusiast and ex- perinienter in his endeavours to determine the Pature of the crystal with which ho is experiment- Tug. and the degree of rectification whieh it may Ue expected to afford. ‘A Simple Scheme. Minoralogists,, and crystallographers generally, havea very elaborate and complicated schemo of Cryetal clawtfication. Thess indiiguats donot Glusify ‘a erystal according to its chemical com- portion, and so on, but they tako one particular physi istic which all erystals exhibit, Perit that of ts angular form or shape, and they base their syatem of classification on. that “Gt “course, for most purposes this schome of clnsifeation {found to be very desirable and elficient, but for wireless, purposes it Tp of very {ttle use indeed. ‘Lo say that a crystal belongs to Subieal or tho hexagonal class of crystals con- ‘no practical information to tho wire- Jee experimenter. Therefore, it is evident that ofore we can proceed very far with ou study of ado rectifying crystals, we must have some simple wind practicable scheme of our own, by means of Shick, the propertics and exact uses of a crystal Tor wireless purposes may be readily deduced. Let us therefore consider a few simple schemes of ‘classifestion in an cndeavour to determine which of them is of the greatest use to the Woreles experimenter nthe sphero of ergot Tin the first place, for general amateur crystals may very conveniently be divided up into two large eategories—viz., “cat's-whisker” ery- Stals “and Perikon erystsls ‘The former class ineludes, of course, all thoso crystals and Gilvium,”” in ehorcalcompenition, sa ‘Bornite es prrites has an almost uniform sensitivity over. the Shole of its surface, Te can withstand the effects of heat fairly well. Tt is not easily depreciated by Randiing, and it retains ite sensitivity for a much longer period thar galena. In- addition to the above facts, iron pyrites gives reception of a tonal parity which cannot be surpassed by any other means. Silicon.—Silicon was atone time @ véry much favoured crystal, but at the present day. its popularity has almost entirely waned. It is a Evuthetic product consisting of the element silicon, which, as\many readers. will be, no doubt, aware, is one of the most abundant and widely distributed clements in the world. ‘The best contact to employ with ailfeon isa fine wire made of brass or phos: Phor bronze. ‘The best grades of silicon for wireless purposes are those which possess alight steel- Brey colour. The sensitivity of silicon is almost entirely unaffected : ‘Tellurium.—Telh erties it is hal metal snd a non- metal, and on that account it is often referred to a: being a “metalloid.” It gives excellent results Shen used ‘with zincite, and especially with artificial incite. Ik may, however, be us almost equally a3_well in conjunction with oth crystals, such as silicon, galena, iron pyrites, and copper pyrites. ‘Tellurium melts, at a tems of 452 degrees centigrade, and therefore it fon no account be fixed to its cup by the use of Crdinary solder, Fusible metal should always be Used for the purpose of attaching this valuable and most useful erystal to its detector cup. Molybdenite.—This is ¢ natural sulphide of the metal molybdenum. It is not very greatly used now for crystal Gf the fact th ; that _purpo iy constructed detector, Nevertheless, good specimens of the mineral will function well with an ordinary cagwhinkor contac ay falybdenite im very like galena in appearance, although it exbibite a fatter and more laminated ‘a sometimes it has a. greeni . Most specimens of the mineral give their best results “when they are used ina detector similar fe the one shown in the diagram, Fig. 1 (page 6). ‘The ewontial part of this dotector is that it consists of a fiat silver spring, which is made to press Sipon, the eryetal Surface with @ varying pressure which is adjusted by means of a screw. Carborundum.—To: -carborundum belongs the honour of being the first crystal put to practical luge’ in wireless. reception. Carborundum consists of a compound. of carbon and. silicon (silicon carbide), and crystals of this material for wireless purposes’ shotild show a light, stecl-blue colour. Darker coloured varieties aro almost weele ‘arborandum will very often, work without applied potential, but for the most effective reception itis necessary to employ a. small local potential across the crystal of the order of some TS ‘to 18 volt "The great point aboot the carborindum detector is, of course, ite great stability. A carborandum crystal can be heated to redness without suffering Guy detrimental effects, so far as its, sensitivity Tt can also be handled in any way at all Knd, as the steel contact with which it is emplosed must, be applied with «vers firm and decided preaeure, ‘the contact is nob easily put out of Rdjustaient. In fact, onco properly’ adjusted, the In pro « p.W.” pays 10/6 for every amateur photo used. u ee A Fe ™ contact wih romain in_good reaiifying ¢ondition fog many weeks, aid in some cases months ery serious. experiincater in the sphete “of radio Grystale should ‘have in. his “posession a carborundum detector unit. It i vory useful for employment in portable sets, and also as a standard against which many other crystal combinations may bo tested. The contact possesses .a. fair average sensitivity to signals of medium strength. ‘A sketch of a typical, earborundum detector and the, details of @ crystal receiving circuit employing tuch a detector are illustrated in the diagrams, Figs, 2 and & (pages 6 and 11). CHAPTER IV. Some Interesting Characteristics of ‘Crystals. we of the many difficulties which beset the exystal enthusiast, especially if he be only inner in the sabject, is the conception of hat is known, and it so oftéa referred to, aa tho “characteristic’ curve” of a crzstel. However, the matter is not very difficult to understand when ‘once the main fundamentals of the subject have been grasped. Snppose: vou take « piece of metal, such as an grdinary bit of gopper Wire, and after connecting up in a suitable cirevit, you pase varying potentials of current through it in alternate direc- Presented Free with Popular Wireless. tions, noting with each varying potential the amount of actual current (in amperes) which is passed by the ‘wire. IE will bo found that the grester the potential which is applied to the wire, the greater will be the curent which will past through it, "Moreover, ‘the current will pasa through the wite equally es efficiently ix ‘ono direction as i will in’ tho other The current passing through the length of wire, thereforo, will Uopend upen the potential which is applied to it. Properties of Carberundum. Now, suppose, instead of the length of wire, you place ip the circuit a crystal detector consisting: ‘Of a carborundum erystal provided with an ordinar metallic contact. fn tie case, the crystal offer a very. great resistance to the passage of the current, and the latter will have to-be measured in fractions of an ampere. However, if we apply known voltaxes across tlie crystal contact, end in sarying directions (by means of one or two local calls and bly connected), and ing current passing through the crystal ‘contact, subsequently plotting the results grantor chart, "we shall find that tho current jows tauch more eatily through the crystal contac in one direction than it does in the-other. | Thus the crystal iz said fo have a unilateral conductivity. “The” graph obtained: from such an experiment would be of the type illustrated at Fig 4 (gage 14), and the cwve obtained i said to be the charic- teristic curve of the crystal when that particular contact is employed with it. ‘a early but ofcieat ty7e of etyrtal set emloring & lose couplet dat perikon detettor, Sir Oliver Lodge hends “'P.W.'s ” Technical Consulting staf. Week ending October 3rd, 192: nu _ When the voltage across the crystal contact is increased (in ‘the direction in which the. largest amount of current’ flows) the current flowing. also increases, that is to say the conductivity increases with ‘the applied potential. Now, in the case of an ordinary metallic conductor, such as the length of copper wire mentioned above, wwe could go.on inereasing the voltage, and the enrrent, Bowing Mould show ‘a constantly proportional. increase, within wide linnits oa : ‘Thus, the characteristic curve of the piece of copper wire would be a straight line, similar to the dotted ine indicated im the diagram, Fig. 4 ‘The Critical Potontis!. : ‘Tho erystq), howover, produces a different effect. Aftor a cerlain voltage has been applied across ‘the contact, ‘there isa sudden’ change in its behaviour. ‘The current passed is no longer pro- portional to the voltage applied, nnd therefore 6 POTENTIOMETER ABOUT 250~300 OHMS sharp: bend is fyrmed’in the curve. This is tho “eritical ” potential, and it is the potential which should be applied agross a crystal contact if it is to. give ite bost rectifying results. This point is bromght out in the diagram, Fig. 4, in which it will bo seen that, whilst the critical potential of earborindum erystal is approximately, 2-3 volts, ‘the critical potential of an ordinary galena erystal is practically zoro. Which means to soy. that, in orto afford its maximum degreo of rectification, a carborundum crystal must have. the, necossary {ocal potential of about 1-5 -volts’ applied to. ih wilson the gther hand, galona is able to Function ‘well without any applied. potential at, all, son for this may not be obvious at first, but alter a little thought it, will become quite plain. Ail radio rectifiers must, in order to sct as Jetectors, ether have a strongly: marked unilateral conductivity, oF velse their conductivitios should Yary a8 differant voltages are applied to them. In the case of » erystal which is used with a locally the incoming curconts Howitg in a large increase of current When no. external at the ‘critical currents are impressed tipon the crystal, the cur: rent Value drops to the normal, and, as this nosmal ‘potent value is constant, Phones, Bs. inspecting the characteristic curve of a ceryetal, it is an easy matter to determine whether Stich a crystal can be employed without an applicd Potential or not. If the curve has a zero vali to no sound is produced in the Bho lett of the point of zero vatiages and iti rises inmodiately’ to tho right of this, point, the Crystal an be tied without’ an mpplied poteatie, Hf on the other bands the. curve foes Hot begin fo rie jmmediatelyy or neatly so, at zero potent Same lccallyappvied potential is neccasary for it 1 afford its matiniarh, weet cation, ‘The question as to why the ersatal should exhibit, och peculiar properties not Know ara tit Tele the real natire! of erystal_ rectification will ronal asmysterys Ae T Have’ previously pointed out, such “rectifying Paction ‘ray been ascribed to purely level Influences taking place: at the int of contact only. Eivctro- [sic and. therinalyexpietn: ions have beear got fovseard to explain the enue of crystal rectiHeation, but thoy are not Shelly satisiactory. “Crystal Cleavage.” Another intoresting ph property of crystals Narlous’ modes” of cleavaze whieh” thes, show. "This property. of erystals is Especiatly of interest to. the erystal experimenter. Suppose you take. an or- diaaty pices of eubleal galena, and bring into violent, contaok with the mineral the business end ofa domestic com'- jammer." What happens? ‘The galena is smashed into a thousand fragments. Bul, on the other hand, if you lay’ the blunt edge of & knife lightly ‘on the surface of tho crystal, parallel to ics straightest edge, and then lightly tap. the, knife ‘with & sinall_ hammer, the, crystal will break into two smaller fragments, cach of which will retain the same characteristic as. the original , erystal. Thie Srocturing of the crsstal is-known as “crystal cleavage,” and the typeof cleavage which a crystal exhibits is one of the most characteristic Physical properties of a mineral of crystalline substance, oe ‘the Definite Atomic Structure. “Crystal cleavage may seem at.first to bea very teivial_ matter to claim any aitention from, the telentist, but, as a matter of fact, it isa profierts of the crystal which hes been very catefully studied The reason why a crystal cleaves in such a Sheracioitie ‘manner is simply due, fo the fact that iis sloms are not jumbled together any old ‘The best radio authorities write in “Popular Wireless,’* “a2 Presented Free with “ Popular Wireless. how. They have on orderly arrangement, and the leaving ot tho” crystal: represents merely the splitting up ‘of the crystal along definite planes, planes which represent the wi eakest points in the Exystal structure, lena, iron pyrities, molybdenite all what is known aes regular cleavage.” That fo any; when a largo ergstal of the mineral carefully broke oughly tho s ie new suri ‘cleaved crystal have cnually «high Imporste of erste sre well anaro ‘of this fact, end tmost of the patural ergeal products which’ come to the ise "alst ae” acon of need hichy ndergoing ¢ prulisunary cleaning operation, been carefully’ cleaved, in orderto intemify thelt enstive proportion Curved Suttaces, Crystals suck as rincite, cerussite, and so on, have what is koown as 2 “‘conchoidal,’’ or shell- Hk, dleavaga. “On splitting, these rata break seutllee cryetme, poscssing curved aurfazcs, Matar tush oo ass, coment cles which are srprpos a, ronarealing tn Characins pot cleavage af all, On breaking, th Peel solit “up ihto large number of arvall Fragments, no mather how carefully the Breaking ‘operation is carried out, and each of the broken Fiegmenta "bears 00” -zolation whatever. to. the origiaal substance. ‘The reason Jor this is, of course, because. the atoms in an amorphous sub- stance have no tegular arrangement. ‘The atoms inva crystal may “be very "aplly ‘compared’ to. paredo of soldi. ‘They are wall ditejplined and Etranged in orderly array, but the stoms ins aon-cryetalline material ate like the individuals comping aa ordinary cond: They: have" 80 “regular rangement, whatever, provers? of vcaavage, which is | =—sti<—O—siC eee, eign imparant ‘abe, t0 conider when. dealing von hes rectification, for it is very paobably orderly atrengement of the individual: atoms in, a ergetal that che fundamentally depends, Interesting Expesiments Possible. Je hes very recently been shown that some crystals are extraordinarily sensitive to the effects of ligt, ‘and that, by scene process a5 yet un: Known, ‘they aro able to convert. the ethereal vibrations which constitute light into electricitr, ‘Thus the crystal, besides acting ass rectifier of high-frequency | currents ‘and. a generator of ‘escillations, is also able to effect the conversion of light waves into electrical energy. ‘The conversion ‘a very mysterious one indeed, but it is, nevor- theless, & phenomenon which sats prove to be of rectifying action rerest to every crystal enthusiast,” apen- te. farther scien ing as it, does a fresh’ pat research in the Very probs grystal—to. wit, its rectifying action, its function ings ass gonetator of high-frequency oscillations and. Hs conversion of light into electrical energy 0, all interoonnected. Galena is fo some extent affected by light. ‘The reception obtained by many grades of lena can Ep very agprecbly eootheked if « etlong bear ‘of sunlight is focused upon. the point of contact by meana of a powerful lons: That i an experi: ment which {easly within tho snbore of even the-very beginner in crystal HC the Right of an arclarop i eibwtitted for the focused suniight, there is no farther efert.‘The irene ibs jstotan Uh obtained cop 8 Yapour_ lamp. has ‘mot. apparently. beom fnventgatedy although sundry cbmrration, whch Rave Been toade from time to time indicate that a'pencil of Says plaging upon the polos of erestal contact can very rent the. reception. The infience of these factors upon the distance: Geositvity "ot “the crystal hase aot "yet, boon Investigated, and. thereiore_ a frutful eld, for qescrch for the inerated-amatent opened "ip cre. ‘American workers, however, using silver eulphids cryatalg instend of Ordinary, galena, have boon Soccetfal causing tho cryalais 10. produce = rressarable quantity of exrront under-the idence of intense fight, That is to say, tho crystal Beem mae £0. transform a” portion of the. lia energy inion electrical” curtgnty which it “an extromoly” interesting iscovery indeed, and “one ‘that openis up vast possibilities for the humble and very often despised crystal. Crystals tor Reflex Sets, Another interesting point about eryatalline galena. js that when the taterial is fused up with the addition of ‘definite amounts. of puro, silver subi ands then ariically erste’ the resulling. prodiict posecsscs greater -sonsiti than thet of the. original material as the silver fulphige ia" the galeoa is incressed, the sensitivity increases, ‘until, with a. gelene crystal. containing something Iiko thirty or forty. por cent. of silver Sulphide the increased sensitivity teaches @ max: ruim, ‘and if begins fo deoreaso if « greater amount of silver sulphide is added. Tin sulphide acts. in ® similar manor, but in this case the amount of the ‘added ‘material should not exceed” five. per cent. “There it « very interesting sphere of action for crystal exporimentore to discover the affects of ather materiale when added fo gelens, sd ito fo ther eryetal. For a reflex set, galena is undoubtedly the best exyatal” to employ. It” combines the” valuable erties of eaionable Sistancesenativty and ood clear rectifestion:” But. por all gafenss fSiablefer"vaire work, ‘Tho fine graly of the mineral give the best reulta, and she once sthich are the most free from distortion, A crystal Df really good iron pyrites will often work wonders in curing’ noiey valve-crvstal set. Perikon detectors. are not 0. sictessful - when employed. in valve sete, the reason being. th Berikon combination of ‘crsatala usually ‘req strong signals in the dret placo in order to fy and well: Given strong, clearcut sign: place, the Perikon ‘detector bas many culiarly its own, -but on it does ‘not do so’ well as 8 pisce of consitiva galens. Careful Adjustment Essential, ‘Now; a vaive set, eapecially when it.is employed for fairly long-distance work, deals’ with weak ind to deal with those effectively a je-grain galena sbould gives purity of tone, and the weferably be a micro-adjustment etector should ‘The “ P.W.” Technical Dept, will test your set for you. eo 2 7 The Pilot Service helps you build up . “P.W.” Sets Other famous “PW.” Sets— Other famous "P.w.” Sets— ‘Poe ‘Bastway” 1-Valve Utes hy eficient_ Kile to help the amateu? build any of the well-known Receiving Sets (both valve and crystal) with the assurance that it will work correctly from the commence- ment. "All Pilot. Receivers are, based on the actual Receiving Sets described in the Vale Set actual Magazine” Constructional article. | Se'tin GCcompared with ‘They come to you with panel ready drilled, | 10 yo rely want to bogs tapped, and engraved. wi with every comp Teens ee ee aka nent exaclly as specified by the autho Gir certain minor instances we reserve the right to. substitute those of our own make very). In addition there ize wiring diagram, Dow fo the ery last screw they are complete, and there Enathing more to buy. All you have to Seakee” “eens do is to. assemble as instructed, and wire te eequied urder up the Set. Failure is impossible, the Bilt Syutems yd The “Popular Wireless” Te Pilot Service is «peat new scheme me aie ‘Se 0 Low Loss Crystal Set 76 ceo BS 0 0 | (described in this booklet) | | git! ae a gzndemer OO § % | 4 Peto-Scott Standard Square Law at Mouning. af § treet eae Condenser, 0005 mid... ...0°8 0 | !GrdCondenser “0002 5 Boerd Mounting; 5 6 | { Panel Mounting Plug Socket... 0 1 2 Beis 5 au 2 | !Gevwal Detector O19 | BR Hai Boug-mounting Coil I Petocite Crystal .. a. Sad wih 2 ete yg 16 | 7 Mark IIL. Terminals 012] ane "peg and «|. 4ft. Square Tinned Copper Wire 0 0. 2 52 Cain 6 1°02 Fixed Grvdeunee 1 Panel of ‘Red Triangle’ guaranteed inned_ . . 16 | ‘ebonite, dled and engraved. 0 4 0 | Wood Sere fot 8 | 1 Polished Mahogany Cabinet ... 0 3 6 | Packet Pane! Tra 7 a1) 3 | Beeeit ag ol. Pipa Bloc Cot 8 0 | aaa Ret sie: 6 yas. Lee 0 ° Heavy Rubber Covered Wire ; Plain Pare of ¢ | 2 Shell and 2 Egg Insulato, Tgengiey E : Guerra 1 Simpler Lead we 0B 0+} gilt Benitd a 6 Mabogeny ys. tt 0 | Pair of M.E.L. ‘Phones i 015 0 Enaraved errs) 2 0 Or 1 Pair of Lightweight Adjust- ® — _._=ita.:.C. a Pilot Chart Fato-Scott Bet lls ityaed | Delivery per return | pen eT the" Home‘ Coonrcier 3 Satisfaction Guaranteed | Biig.crge™ PETO-SCOTT cCO., LTD. Head Office & Mail Order BRANCHES , Hich Helbgrn, Landon, WiC Wath 77, CITY ROAD, E.C.1. Hcy Pa Gee Fics j Bite Sc Manchester Stree, FST 14 ong; in order that the most sensitive degres of adjistment say be obtained and maintained. ‘For portabla valve sels, a carborundum detector has'many exvellent points'to recommend it, despite the fact-that its uso calls for additional apparatus in'the way of potentiometer end batteries, and f0,-40 some extent, complicates the working of the CHAPTER V. How to Make and Test Crystals. x +e riz home manufacture of vations types of Teckifsing. materials. is. an occupation “not “without -s very considerable interest and practical uso attached to it. Quite a number of paturally occuring minerals can be imitated in tho (SOWVITIIN YO) !SA WY MUALUSTRATING THE MEANING OF CHARACTERISTIC CURVES. FIG. F. hhome workshep, and, if the necessary procestes are carefully carried out, the resulting products. will be'found to. mako very excellent tel fers, ethaps the simplest seca “crystal to make in x substitute of bornite, ot copper pyrites, Tn order to obtamm tuch a cryéal substitute, procure quantity of orainary common rock sulphty and tnelt it up over e alow fre ia an iron ean.” The Presented. Free with “ Popular Wireless.” sulphur should be hested until tho liquid ‘has Any fumes attained a thin black appearance. which may escape from the up the chimney of the fireplace, escape into the room. “Care, however, should bo faken not to allow ihe molten sulphur to take ‘Having obtaiced the sulphur at its necessary. stago of liquefaction, a number of- short,_ thick copper rods, which have previously been brightenod pith emery-paper, are, immersed hall-way ints liquid sulpbur, aud held thero for two or.threo minutes, Afterwards, they are withdrawn, and a shied match i applied to theron. it order to Dur off the sipertuous sulphur; ‘The ertiicial copper pyres will now be complete, and the sulphurised to¢s, if qne may’ be allowed. to use that term, will bo found to give extremely good yosults when used in‘ placa of copper pyrites,'or bornite, ins Perikon' detector, in--contact with zincite or ono of its substitutes. tan ordinary er; “apptied Higtitly ested. surince of > the copper rods, will. bo found to. produce, effective fication. In feat, one. experimenter I know. has? treated the whole of “his 1 brass exsstal “capi this _ Tashion, and now he, pighily , in with a “orystal- crystal set! Making Zincite: ‘Any: amateur cen make! artificial’ zincite, provided he is able to obiain a su able furnace, or high: femperature heating appar tus for that purpose. Synthetic zincito is made by heating ordinary zinc oxide (the "zine white” of the paint, shops), sith or with- ‘out ‘tho addition of very small traces of manganese oxide 18 touoperatare of something like, 1. res centigrade. Which means to say that in order to procure aynthetio zincite, the crystal experimenter must’ have rome means at his disposal for heating his materials to a cherry-red heat. At, this temperate the zincite melts, and, if it is allowed to. cool slowly, he. will: fi #8 yollow-looking lasey mi fs "produced. And if this is ‘carefully broken up and tested, a large portion ‘of it will be noticed to be Yery sensitive to radio signals. ‘The use of a small earthenware crucible ‘Anda hot blowpipe is about the best :-cans of attaining the necessary temperature for the purpose, although, doubtless, by pl the ‘Crucible of zine oxide, carefully luted cver with clay, in & bot, “clean” fro, and by directing upon it a current of air, a suitable substitute for the blowpipe could bo contrived. For 1/- “‘ P.W."" will answer three technical queries. s ITUNGSTALITE’S TRIUMPH Creat Tribute from ‘Popular Wi lees senting as it does o ee “Advance ‘Ober Other Types TUNGSTALITE is the Finest Crystal in existence ‘Seoure your specimen to-day from all dealers or direct trom, 1/6 TUNGSTALITE,LTD., 2/- BLUE 47, FARRINGDON ROAD, 7 oNDON, op ee or 41, GALL LANE, LEEDS. ee ‘HE aim of the BEST WAY Buy the “BEST WAY T' ic. Sth OG a sasanesee= the new constructor details for the Sally PISS SE components in such an explicit and minute way that there can be no possible chance for even a. beginner to Go wrong. All articles, diagrams and Photographs are of the highest possible standard, and the books represent the biggest value ever offered in wireless publicadons. FOUR NUMBERS Ask for “BESTWAY” NOW ‘ON SALE . CRYSTAL SETS VALVE SETS WIRELESS COILS SPECIAL’ SETS D. On Sale at all Newsagents and Bookstalls EACH ‘ Awana anne aetna anh iol nel nel netrlnel art nel nen 16 Presented Free with * Popular Wireless.” Galena ig another crystal which can be mado artificialy ‘by the aroateur, althowgh in this caso cca hot fo adil aliainod, The slaxting point of artificial galena is lead-sulphide, obtained Cither by vorushing up scrap pieces of gale ergstal or Ey precipitating © strong solution of load ‘salt. (such as lead acetate or nitrate) with sulphureited hydrogen or ammonium sulphide, “Phe galona is finely powdered and placed in a small rite age te net lena in the erueible is a lever of litherge, fh order to provent the ‘oxidation of the galena. ‘The crucible is then covered with clay, placed in the middle of a very hot fire for four or fire hours, and, if at all possible, an air blast should bbe directed upon the crucible. ‘After tho elapeo of this time, the fire i allowed to die out overnight, and in’ the morning the rucible is removed. ‘It is then broken open, and, if the operation has been carried out succestfully, the iniddie of the mass will be found to be com: posed of fively crystalline gale cent of silver sulphide, together with 2 per cent of tin sulphide, are added to the galeza before it is heated up, the resulting product will be found to bo greatly increased in sensitivity. About 40 per cent of the fused mass will be sensitive. Ordinary waste galena crystals may very often be converted into Rood sensitive material by mix- ing them with an equal weight of powdered’ rack gulphus, and by heating them in a luted ervcible in an ordinary kitchen fire for half an hour or so. Alter this time, the clay should be remoted from the top of tho’ crucible, and tho sulphur allowed to burn away before’ the mass of crystals is broken up and tested. Artificial Iron Pyrites. Sometimes a rectifying product can be success- fully mede by heating, in am iron can, a mixture ‘of rather more than one part of powdered rock ‘A neat crystal receiver of the portable type. wo basket coils are used for tuning om the vrtiometer piiaeiole, sulphur ard ore part of jron filings, preduct is an artifical forin of irom pyriics. ever, this method must not be taken as being an invariably “successful one. Nevertheless, 1 giving i here, because it iss very fon to carey out, and thero will be amateurs who Will bo able to improve on the process. imple oper ‘Testing the Home-made Crystals. ‘The manufacture of erystals such as silicon and carborundum, both of which are essentially artificial products, is beyond the scope of the ordinary Experimenter, for to, obtain the dogzee of heat hevessary for the fusion of the materials used, it i ceury to cnpoy a hightemperature eleciio furnace Having obtained a erystal, the next thing to do is to fest out ils. powers of rectiBeation.. ‘Tho Subject of crystal tenting is an important one, not Only to the ‘commercith' treder, but aizo to the crystal experimenter. ‘The ordinary and. well- Known buzser test for ersstals is quite a good one for determining the. felative sensitiveness of crystal proditets, and it has the- advantage that it can be tised anywhere and at any time, However, the uazor tert is not able to give the experimenter ‘any iden of the,tonal properties of the reception which the crystal gives. Some experimenters endeavour to form an estimate of the erystal's rectifying properties. by measuring its electrical resistance, and then by comparing the result 4 obtained with — the average resistance exhibited by a number of standard crystals. However, this forms no real test of a crystal’s capabilities; nor does an mation of the amount of current, in milliamperes which @ mineral pases enable the experimenter to determine the tonal parity of reception which is obtained from any particular batch of erystals, Ciccults and lay-outs are supplied, price 1/- each. Week ending October 8rd, 10! Where the experimenter is dealing with erystal testing in fairly small quantitics only, he cannot do better than make use of some apparatus similar to the one shown in the diegram, Fig. 5 (page 18). Here the crystal is readily inserted between two motal jaws, aud the nocossary metal contact is brought into play upon the surface of the erystal by means of being suitably mounted on a wooden Randle, Use may be made of a buzzer for testing the orystals, but generally it is better to carry ont the ‘test during the actual hours of broadcast transmission. Before beginning the test, it is best to de- tune the receiver, so that the signals with the standard detector (which should always be used for ‘ecomparison) are only faintly audible. ‘The varia- tions in audibility of “the reception, which is obtained from the crystals under test will then be much moro easily apparent ‘Sn audibility meter connected across the "phone terminals is alto another practical and convenient method of testing out the performance of various erystals and crystal contacts. ‘The Best Detector. ‘The radio ergstal experiinenter is vary, often requested to recommend a good type of detector for oversday use, This is a question which is not s0. simple ait looks at first sight. ‘The perfect detector, in the opinion of the writer, has not yet been invented, or, at any.rate, put upon the market. Most commercial detectors have thei ‘Special advantages; thoy also have their fau ‘But, for the average listener-in who is not very much ‘concerned with the technicalities of wireless, T would recommend the uso of either a good Perikon detector, fitted with some device for vary- ing tho pressure’ of the crystal contact, or else, if i ‘employed in the set, a det cer is held in should be dit los. to the expense of a gold or be composed of some nomcorrodible is no necessity, to a platinum cat’s-whisker for the best work. ‘The main point isto have the cat’s-whisker made out of some metal which does not readily oxidise, or even tarnish. * Perikon or Galena ? The detector should, if, possible, be glass enclosed, and it jo now possible to secixe enclosed detectors in which the cate whisker i held i @ ‘rertical position. For erystal-valve work, only the yery best detector should be: employed. One hav- Jog a fine micro-adjustment is the best to use. ‘Finally, you eannot get the best work out of & Perikon’ detector unless there. is some adjusting devige present by which the pressure of the contact fean be varied, ‘This is a point which some manu- factarers seem to forget. ‘The adjustment of Porikon detector is not so critical as that of the ordinary eat's-whisker type of instrument, but, still there certainly exis a certain definite pressure of contact reach combination of erystals which ‘will give rise to:the best results in the "phones. Given a good Perikon detector, employing a combination of zincite, or one of ite substitutes, and. -tellurium, and’'working with signals of moderately strong initial intensity, tho results willl be equally as satisfactory as those obtained by the ‘use of an ordinary cat’s-whisker crystal, and, what 7 is more, the detector will hold its sensitive contact for much longer periods. It will not be heif so Hable to be affected by dust and other atmospheric impurities, anda good measure of the reliability of a carborundum detector will be obtained with it ‘But, of course, if you are out for extreme range in erystal reception, a good synthotic or naturel medium-coarse grain galena crystal, together with 4B. micro-adjustment dotector, are ihe things you require. Cleaning Dirty Crystals. ‘Just one further word. If your crystal suddenly begins to give bad results, it is possible that it surface has bocomie oxidised. Remove the crystal from its cup, and allow it to soak in a sinall bottle which is filled with a saturated solution of alum or Rypo._Aftor half an hors time, put & quantity of ery elean sand into the bottle, replace the cork, find slake well for five minttes or so. Filly rinse. the crystal woll in clean, water, and dry + quickly. ‘This: trestment will give the crystal a flew surface, and in very many cases the original Sensitivity of the mineral will be entirely renewed. ie CHAPTER VI. ‘The Oscillating Crystal. peer ee ei ‘ue, oscillating erystal itself is mb new discovery, ithgugh, motto the cists in which it it employed represent new lines of experimental ‘The credit for tho discovery of the first 1 goes to Dr. W. H. Eccles, the lish scientist, who was one of the lors of the properties of radio: before the Physical Society of 1910, Dr. -Eecles showed. that an srystal could'be used asm generator ions. De, G. W, Pickford, who is “wolt known for his early’ erystal conducted experiments on the oscillating in 8 London, in ordinary gal facts, however, we must give the snters” their due, particularly ‘M. Loseev, for it is through the labours of these researel: workers that a very great deal of renewed Interest has been taken in this aspect of radio ‘crystal research, ‘There is hardly enough space left in this book to enter into a full doscription of the precise mechanism of crystal ovcillation, and. therefore T propose to set forth some details regarding the practical side of oscillating crystal work, rather Than go into the theoretical aspect of the subject. A Crystal Transmitter. ‘The great interest which hes been taken in the Ito generate generating crystal transmitter of continuous these, course, may be modulated in the usual roanner. Tn fect, Lostey has employed an oscillating crystal ‘a5 a transmitter for short distances of appr mately a mile and a quarter. Interviews may be had with the Technical Staff. 18 ‘Then, again, a crystal which is capsble of goneraling tsianedelations can bo thed 8 8 Mghirequency amplifer, and. also, as a low- Frequency one, although in this laticr iostance there are many practical difficulties which have yet to be overconte before such a crystal can be worked icoessfully and reliab is Tet us, however, in the first place, deal with the practical’ methods ‘by means of which « suitable nal cam. bo enused to set "up ‘oxilations Suppose ‘we rig up a simple circuit, such asthe fone which is depicted in the diagram, Fig. 6. Gnusual Cireuit Employed. The ersttal contact is indicated in the usual manner, whilst the local supply of energy for the ‘oscillations is derived from an H.T. battery of between 15 and 25 volts E.M.F. In ceries with tho battery is a fixed resistance of about 1,500 ohms, and the bat- tery itself should be ‘ded with by. | SPRING ‘be. ied carefully controlled. can In. very simple -ci cuits, however, the Often be dispensed with, provided the HLT. battery is provided with a number of tapings. "The coil indicated jn the diagram can be practically of any make or type. It Should be capable of ming up to’at leas 1,000 ‘metres, and it should’. have the minimus smount of self-capacity. Gener- ally % is better to make use of a series of plug-in coils for ‘this purpose, so that the effects of diff ent sized coils can be instantly determined. Cylindrical coils may ato "bo employed, Bue care shotld be taken to avoid dead-end losses Hn series with the coll it placed a large-capacity fixed ‘condenser (1/or 2 mid, and sometimes & le condenser, "powesing maximum eapacity of -0005 mid, is placed in parallel wish the erystal contact, in’ the manner’ Indicated’ by the dotted lines in the diagram, Good Crystals Necessary. Buch an arrangement of apparatus forms aver reliabio crystal oscillators ‘device. ‘The oscillator itself must consist of a sicel-zincite contact, although, of course, other contacts may be experi: mented with after success has firtt been obtained with tbe steelaincite contact. A tuitable form of cecillstor for this purpose is shown in the lower portion of the dia ‘The incite employ A USEFUL “aust be the real material, BRASS STRIP Presented Free with “ Popular Wireless.” Artificial brands of zincit yellow oxide,” will not oscillate has been my own personal experience, although, ‘of course, Iam open to correction on’ this state- ment. Zincite which is for the most part black in appearances, and which merely possesses a fow reddish streaks over its urface, 8 also practically Straight Cat’s-whisker Used. In order to obtain any degree of stccess with the ersatal osilntor, the zinc used, must have & leep tuby-red glassy appearance. Very often, the erystal is fractured, one of the broken surfaces will be found to give excellent renutts, ‘The contact should take the form of straight piece of steel wire, or, at the most, the wire:thould ‘only have one turn in it. ‘The wire contact is best held in a vertieal position, as shown in the diagram, BRASS TAWS CRYSTAL WOODEN HANDLE WITH) MOUNTED CATSWHISKER WCE FOR CRYSTAL TESTING. and arranged so that, its contact pressure can be varied bys tara of the screw. Starting the Oselllations. In order to obtain tho required oscillations, the Tocal H.T. should be first of all adjusted (by means of the potentiometer or tapings), until a current of about 15 volts is passed. It is @ good plan to sharply tap the panel of the apparatus with the finger at this stage, and, if the necessary adjust- meni been inate correctly, the characteristio oscillatory hum will be heard very plainly in the "phones. : “If. bowever, no oscillations are apparent, and ‘it that the erystal in use 18 8 good slightly increase, or decrease, the pressure of th eontact, and at ‘the same time var fof the’ local current. Somo aryst If your, set goes wrong, write to “ P.W.’? Week ending October 3rd, 1925. to be somewhat difficult to start the generation. of escillations .with. Te ss atten a good tip to give the erystal wire contact a slight touch with a rate stick after the final adjusrment has been made with it, Sometimes the ‘switching on of the full strength of the local battery very suddenly, and then as suddenly decreasing it to the normal yoltage found necessary, helps ta indice a re fractory crystal to commence tho oscillations. With a good crystal. the beginning of the oscillation business is not any mote difficult, than the act of startivg a car or a motor-eyele on a cold morning. Ibis a matter of knack and the obtain LARGE CO/L, VAR:COND: -OOS APPROX: 10 VOLTS 4500 OHMS ¥ CIRCUIT FOR GENERATING OSCILLATIONS. —— _| 7 SUITABLE FORM OF CRYSTAL OSCILLATOR FIG E. rn) ing of the right adjustments more than anything else a matter t which the time-honoured adage to tho olfect thut “practice makes perfect” apphes very closely, Need for Research, Tt must be pointed out, however, that because a incite crystal will rectify’ well, it must not by any means be taken as a foregone conclusion that it will oscillate well. It is really impossible to tell at sight whether any given zincite crystal will or will not oseillato.” ‘The erucial test of the crys: tale behaviour nthe oscillator isn; tirely a practical one, and, therefore, i the amateur is only just beginning his experiments in this fascinating Geld of erystal resoareh, he will be well advised to purchase a’ specially tested zineite crystal. Several dealers, I notice, are now supplying these ‘erystals, and for tho beginner’ in this ‘line of work the crystal will be found to bo well worth the extra price asked for it, particu: Jarly as it can be kept as a standard for the purpose of comparing the behaviour of other cxystals and eryetal combinay tions, Tho above arc, of course, merely a few practical notes on the subject of set- ting the erystal to generate sustained oscillations in tho firet place. The «ili sation of these oscillations is a matter which require; more complicated ap- paratus, and which at the present tine Cannot exactly be said to have heen put fn a simple, practical, and. workabla A crystal oscillator can he made to amplify at high-freqs Frequeney, but the best p are obtained when the orcilla is caused to act as a high-frequency amplifier. LF. Amplification, Ono of the simplest circuits for this purpose is shown in the diagrai, Fig. 7. Hero it will be seon that the crystal ig placed in parallel with the aerial and earth, but, apart from this arrangement, tho, circuit in practically’ tho sao as that employed for the simple generation of oscillations only. ‘The variable condenser, which has a maxinwun eapacity of “0008 or -002 mid may often be replaced by a fixed, co denser 9f those appreximate eapacitie It niet be remembered, of course, that this circuit is purely’ an experit mental one, und, as such, it will only bo likely to prov of interest to the serious crystal experimenter. Nevertheless, it fgriaing the fundamental germ” of "tho idoa of éxystal high-frequency amplif- Cation, and, of course, it is capablo of considerable modifieation and, incident- ally, improvement. ‘The main difficulty “PW.” pays the highest rate for good radio articles, 2 Presented Free with “ Popular Wireless." with the circuit would appear to be EXPERIMENTAL CIRCUIT FOR H.F fie at getting ele YSTAL AMPLIFICATION Hable, rhe vant able ‘condenser, or of the ‘orrsely and, fe any “difielty obtained” with. the seth orton of fine” Tapparates should rocetve. the ft attention: Bometines thd Srallest adjustment ofthis “condenser Sril “entiele eure the Sty Not reveption. is interesting t0 wat Wb the fiver ‘when ie dis Been detuned very considerably. Hese fovvegndle a2 weakened, a'n d small adjustments ot the verlous. por, fons of the, eireut tan" be carried ou, ‘A trvial example of an amatour-constrited eel rotieralliing “lowest ” cok ‘The Progressive Polley——“ P.W.'s ” slogan, cA {NALA 2LO Heard at Brussels D> DX, on a czy ‘DAYZITE:. 7 sls at on BavairE cay SHE SOLD “ONLY BOXED | WITH SILVER SKE DONO WILL DAY, LID, ert , USLE STREET, LEICESTER SQUARE, LONDON, : rc The Brightest and Best Wireless Weekly | pew LAR WIRELESS siands fst in popilar favour. Week ‘week it caters: for every clase of wireless’ amateur, mad oniy the best and: most authentic information is supplied. No constructional article. “appears in’ Popurar Winnuess until, the. set! described iis been built and’ ex, haustively tested. Everyone interested in wireless shoult sead this aplendia paper Tegularly. Poruran. Wirxtess will ‘eves, never "et you down "—it will hélp and keep you well informed. POPULAR. WIRELESS _ Every Phurstay ¥ Buy regularly 2 and their effects noticed instantly. Very interest ing experiments can also be carried out, with the sof if an audiometer is placed across the *phones, ‘Zincito-graphite contacts may mented with, as also may tellu zincitessilicon’ conibidations. m-galena end A Difficult Problem. oblon of erystl,amplicati yy lea more qifhenlt one, and. vei has been done on” fein ‘The most interesting cireutt ordinary ‘crystal pectily- ing eireuit, which is 8 transformer coupled t0_an oveillatory circuit. ‘The oscillatory eireuit js frst ofall catefully adjusted, and sibsequently. the Crystal eetifier ja browght into play. However, even at ils best, the citeait ig not by any means’ a practical one. "In the first place, the transformer hes to be apecially designed tor the tion at low- ttle POTENTIONETER RF ¥RESISTANCE, EXPERIMENTAL CIRCUIT FOR 4.6 AMPLIFICATION. Send your good Ideas to “ P.W.”* Presented Free with “ Popular Wireless.” purpose. Then thore is @ tremendovs amount of distortion set up, and; finally, the ct of adju:ting the crystal rectifier will very often completely “pset the adjustment of the amplifier, ‘These i= brief, ‘are tho difficulties which have yei co be overcome, ‘and which aro at the present ‘time engaging tne attentions of many a radio experimente:. ‘Tha: they will be completely solved in the course of time, and that the crystal amplifier will come into its own as @ practical instrument, is not likely to be doubted. Interesting Subject for Investigation. And here this little book crystals and theie radio uses conclusion. ‘Tho crystal is indeed a wonderful exeniple of Nature's architecture, and at the present day scientists are beginning to learn thi about it which were never dreamt of in times gone by the subject of t be drawn to a It is now possible to look into the | very. heart of the erystal, and to see exactly how’ it 33 built up, how the. atoms which compose, it a arranged, and how the can be replaced, in pro- gressive stages, by other tatorne, without upsetting structure, the ctystal’s ‘The investi crystal. provides. us atiother "path by roach the that ever- present riddle—she ‘con- Stitulion of mation Nevertheless, the interest of the purely practical tadio éxperimenter will he more or less confined to the investigation ot the erystal’s uses in wize- less Feception argh in allied topics . ‘The Future, °= There in store for the crys Probably the triple f tionings'of radiossenai mlsersis mes ultimately bo found "to, bo inter eganucted, Beran, on the other hand, they "ma not.” ‘The lines af re. search into the heart of the crystal are varied, but al are extremely in: tereating and. well worth ZINCITE following. At any ‘rate, the mystery of the er etal is being vigorously investigated in * various parts of the world, and we may await Jurther Sereiotket wis ie terest, for it ia the task of every ecientist “To search thro’ all, And reach the lew within the Taw.” We buy them, great future. “THAT YOU— “Why not make your Wireless knowledge pay” your Wire- less Bills ? * Wireless is a boon and a bless- ing—but it’s EXPENSIVE ! “Why not. make ‘it less so by service to your wireless friends ? “A few shillings outlay on tools and a Licence fee of Two Guineas will place you in a position to mgnufacture—in your own home—a patchted component with a certain sale among users of Wireless Sets... .. if you can't sell the goods yourself the com- pany will Parchace your out put . “What's that ?—why, write the England-Richards €o., 5x, King's Lynn, Norfolk— enclose tid. Stamp far post- age — full particulars will reach you in plain cover by return, Just the thing for you, old man— BYE-EE!” A Splendid Guide for Wireless Constructors HIS book contains incid aia explicit instructions for the building of a nuinber of efficient ceivers, including a simple set costin, under Tag,, a Two-Circuit Crystal Receiver such as has been recommended by Capt. P. P. Eckersley. . Details are given for making One and Two-Valve ‘Low-Frequency Amplifiers, which can be connected to any crystal set. There will prove invaluable’ to everyone possessing or about to make a crystal receiver, ‘Bast.wAy” CRYSTAL SETS Of alt Buy a Booksellers & Copy Newsagents TO-DAY ' a | a Presented Vree with “ Popular’ Wireless.” pie estan esses ene sea eases Bh A LIST OF RADIO-SENSITIVE CRYSTALS, 4 MINERALS, AND OTHER SUBSTANCES , FOR GENERAL AND EXPERIMENTAL USE. Sep Hini a steps Chomical Chemical ] Crystal : Mineral, connie Fermin, | ceizattl. | Soitable Contacts, Anatase vee os ‘Ttapium oxide TO Oxide | Metals and rincite Antimany 222 Blement Sh? | Elementary | Zincite, silicon, ets, Argentite (silver glance)..| Silver sulphide Agys | "Sulphide” | Meta? “grate,” tet Arsenio oo Element As _ | Blementery | Metals, zinc Bornite 311] supnide of copper and | Cog Fos, | Sulphide” | Zincte, alioon, Boron a Blement B_ | Blomentary | Zincite, tllurium Bourmonite 1] Sulphide of coppor, anti- | 3(P5Cuq)S| Sulphide” | Zincite, ya Shy Se ‘mony, bi farborundum .... «| lien embide ste ~~ | sede Bacite, rsleepyr 12] see Copper pyrites, Cobaithe ss! 11] ‘Cobat@arwente sulphide | co Ass | Sulphide Gaanterie:: ‘Tn onde Sn Op shaleocite (copper glance! Copper sulphide Cug S Copper pyres fe {Sulphide of ron end | Coats, Corundum ‘Atuminiim oxide Ano. Oxide Gevellito ss Copper sulphide es Sulphide prt Capper oxide iy 0 ide Srrubescite’’ | Seo Borne, : Hiicobenito 1! 11 11] Sulphide. st antimoay, | Composition | Sulphide iver and lead varies Gana... “Load sulphide Ps Sulphide (Natural or artiseial Graphite 2 Svs «| Bloment (carbon) | Btementary alona, imotyb- " "denite, silicon” Hematite 0. Tron oxide Fo 0; | Oxide ito est sulphide ‘minerals. IMimonite .-] Oxido of fron and titanium | FeO, | Oxide | atotals, silicon {oa pyrttes : ‘ron sulphide Poa? |. Sulphtde | Mota, "aticcn, xincite, Mognotite «| | Maunetio iron oxido | FeO, | Oxide | sition, exe: Marcasite .. 1] rom suiphide (containing | FoSs | Sulphide | Similar to irom pysitos, arsenic) Mispickel .. 2 .. «| Sulphide “of iron and] Fedss | Sulphide ditto, Holrodentte Molybdenum sulphide | MoS, | Sulphide | Sitver, graphite Octabodste see Anatase, q a we Pailomelane Manganose oxide | MMng0gH,0 | Oxide | Zincito, motate Pyrclonte Mangianoizowdo | Maite? | Oxide Pyrehotive Form of iron pysitom silicon. Element Si | Blementary | Metals, xincito, iron py rites ete Stannite .. .. +... Mixturp of irom, copper, | Composition | Sulphide | zincte, ote. : ‘and tin sulphides ‘varies Beibnito | Antimony sulphide SiS, | Sulphide | Zincite, ote Btromeyerite 2] sulphide of copper and | CupAgs8; -| Sulphide | Zincite and some metals, silver ; Element To | Elementary | Zincite, oto Seo Stennite. Zine oxide, containing. | 2 0 Oxide | Almost any contact ‘manganose oe Element ze | Elemontaty | Can be. used. in place of tellesiumy or antimony” Besides the contacts given in the last column, many other contacts of @ varying nature may bo employed. It should also be noted ¢hat several of the minerals in the above list aro very rare, and aro therefore extremely dificult to obtain in sensitive condition, ‘They are givon here, however, for the sake of interest and complete- ness, Week ending October 3rd, 1925. ™ 25 This reoviver je Se wc of Daoing vceroi in probebly the simi oraabe rece, ot, ning. ove eandigariasty on shee foe chested, The detector used,.one of the new RJ. P.M. detectors, is duel wed ar are ter, a9 well os the detector, are mounted as plugin unite, a form of Tmounting favoured by mane, oo. this rable tho unit to bo vied fang eat at wil, ‘The detector jn vory simply mounted by screwing it down co an ordinary woil Iount and connecting 10 the comet ferent, eithor wih, we ar a Se Casey by. pieces of ‘bra or Coppa =p screwed down tnder the contacts, ‘An ordinary tat e-whisker detector can easily be ‘mounted on a. plug in © Sta ote aw hows Fi. he iagrin type of mount enabling & au Somparison to ‘be made of” diferent types of dotoctor- Construction of Variometer. ‘Tho variomoter ig mado up Apioce of cardboard tube, 8 in. diameter, igvcut to a of If in, and wall Sshellacked and thoroaghly baked. This forma the outer tube of the variomoter. Another piece af tatbe, 2 in, in diameter and 1} im. long, forms the inner tubo oF cotor, nad is similarly treated. ‘When thoroughly dry-the smaller tube is fitted with pivot mounts made mp from }-in, brass rod, fitted with two nuts, nod tho ond of each formed into @ point which: beats in holes in the follows sesesesesbadesiegagealsdtadetesefeseseseseat sada HOW TO MAKE A VARIOMETER CRYSTAL SET. : By the “PW.” Technical Staff, ey to make and easy to aperate, A glance at the photo and diagrams will 1ow tne Treader that it lo @ neat and extremely compact set. ite eMclency we guarantee. eae aneeshatti tatbeabateaee a terminals fitted to tho outer tube in a manner to bo, doceribed. ‘Theso two points aro carefully fitted one on each side of the Smaller tube by boring a small hole through the cardboard, exactly central both with tho diameter and width’ of the tube, and secured, mith one of the Tuts on both inside and outside of tol Winding the Stator and Rotor. ‘Tho larger tube has two holes modo jn a similar manner, if each of which are fitted small terminals, ‘oourod’seith-a wut on the inside ; a emell holo is to be drilled ‘up tho shank of these terminals, and these. when. secured in position form the fof the inner tube, and into which the pointed en Of tho pivots of "rotor Mt The“ spaing” of tho cardboard tube is sufficient to make good contact, enabling the Totor to be easily sprung inte, postion, nd olated. “A litte. caro is required fa Stting these pivots and terminals, aud it may bo necessary tovrhorten tho screwed ends of termiusls to enable & good mounting to be made, Fig. 2 clearly shows the method of conétric. sion “The winding of both stator and rotor is done with "No. 22 D.0.C. wire, 2 oz of which sbould Bo ample. ‘Send Your Queries to “Popular Wireless, . 26 Presented Pree with “ Popular Wireless." ‘The winding of the larger tube is started by ‘phones, midway between each of which are fitted « making 8 smail hole in the tube at the edgo near plug socket, to take tho variometer and crystal the point whore it is to be mounted on its plug, detector. ‘These are spaced ye in. apart, to fit the Jeaving & short longth of wire for connection, aiid standard coil plug (seo Fig. 3). winding on 20 tums, 10 on each side of the centre "The wiring is very simple and is carried out in the finish of this winding is to be secnred under gro wire, which will ho extremely short. ‘one of the terminal nuts (the one on the samo side ‘The abonite “* panc!™ is mounted on any suitable 3 stare of winding). wood hago, in sucht a manner that the wiring and Lerminals do not touch “the wood mounting; and which suitably: raises the set off the table. ‘Tuning is simply performed by rotating the rotor of variometor with the finger. For tho benefit of those to whom diagrams are net t09 cloar, the details of the sriring are given ia words in the pointstospoint method familiae to readers of Pororan Wintiess, ‘Commencing at the serial terminsl, a short length of wire is tain, to tho variometer plug connection fon “the ebonite’ baseboard. and thence, without breaking, to the socket sie of the detector, Anothor wire i taken, retfining its, continuity, fforn th socket of the variometer to the earth terminal and theneo to ‘one telephone terminal (the ane on thd ‘of the baseboard). ‘The remsining telophono tarminal is now eonnected bye third pisco of ite to tho. plug connection of the dotector, ond. this completes tho wiring ‘There is no noud to solder the coneetions, thoush thi snk fo gente an parmenoney if eared Ot proporlyy ifthe mires are tigitly clamped to their torinals BY nute and washors, the wire being placed tiderncath the washers to obviato sipping. ‘Tho smaller “tnbe is wound io 8 different inannor, the starting tend being soldered ‘to ono of the pivots and tho finishing end to the other. Thirty-two turns are put on this tube, 18 om each Bide of the contre, ‘These aro wound on in two layers—io, 8 turns are laid on ono side and then another layer of 8 turns wound on top of this, then, erossing over to the ‘other sido of contre, two layers of 8 tums fare again wound on this side. ‘Completing the Set. ‘The inner whe enn, now be sprung inte. portion in it mount Uy aightly squeezing the larger titbe on tho sides opposite “to torminals, ond when wansod wilt ho Hound "to ‘nisoly’ hold. the fotor. “Tho whole unit, ia mounted fon coil plug by making a smatl fle through tha cubo anderen tag it to the plan with @ sl ibmmet sorew, Finally, poco of wire, ‘which may bo. forercd ith systorior, we cectred dae tha terminal st apponte fhe tarting point ot ontor_ winding, find taken down. to tho contact rerew on the coll plog, ‘This Compiles tha vaivheet, ‘ase “of the. et ia very iy made, and consists of tall piece of Hsin. obonite, which has-been properly ‘Tabbed down . where nedhssaey,” and. in which are fitted four terminals, one eaclt for aerial sad earth, and two for ‘The ished vartomieter cesstal sot wbich forms an exteemely nsat and . mr

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