CHAPTER 1

COMPANY PROFILE

1.1 Introduction

Fig 1.1

Central Electronics Engineering Research Institute, popularly known as CEERI, is a constitute

establishment of the Council of Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR), New Delhi. The first
Indian Prime Minister Pt. Jawaharlal Nehru laid the foundation stone of the institute on 21 st
September 1953. The actual R and D work started towards the end of the 1958. The institute has
since then blossomed into a center for development of technology and for advanced research in
electronics. Over the years the institute has developed a number of products and processes and
has established facilities to meet the emerging needs of electronics industry.
CEERI Pilani is a pioneer research institute in the country. Since its inception it has been
working for the growth of electronics in the country and has establish the required infrastructure
and well experienced men power for undertaking R and D in the following three major areas:
 Electronics System Area
Semiconductor Devices Area
Microwave Tubes Area

There are over 12 groups working on the various fields, on the frontiers of knowledge in these
thrust areas:
ELECTRONICS SYSTEM AREA:
for industrial, agriculture and transportation applications.
SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES AREA:
for power devices, microelectronics devices, millimeter devices and hybrid microcircuits.
MICROWAVE TUBES AREA:
for defense and communication.
ELECTRONICS SYSTEM AREA
Agri Electronics Group (AEG)
Digital System Group (DSG)
Information Technology Group (IFC)
SEMICONDUCTOR DEVICES AREA
Devices group devices processing
Hybrid Microcircuits Group (HMG)
IC Design Group (IDG)
Microwave Devices Group (MDG)
Opto Electronics Group (ODG)
Semiconductor Material Group (SMG)
MICROWAVE TUBES AREA
Communication Tubes group (CTG)
Industrial Tubes Group (ITG)
The main thrust of the R&D efforts traditionally carried out by CEERI has been directed towards
the collaborative or grant-in-aid research projects. These projects are funded by Government
Departments and Government funded user agencies and to a lesser extent, towards in-house
development projects resulting in technological know-how, which can be transferred to Indian
industries. With dwindling support for capital resources needed for state-of-the-art research, it
has now become much more difficult to find the support for developmental activities, which can
lead to competitive products or process of interest to industry. In this way CEERI has under one
roof, an advanced comprehensive program of development for power semiconductor devices as
well as specific integrated circuits and electronic systems for various applications.

CEERI achievements have contributed significantly towards important substitution and self-
reliance. Advanced training programs, seminars, symposia, workshops etc. are being organized
by CEERI, Pilani regularly. CEERI has also put a lot of emphasis in the development of and
efficient software packages.

Currently the Director of CEERI, Pilani is Dr. Chandra Shekhar who has to his credentials
numerous achievements including the design of Motorola 68010- our countrys first general
purpose microprocessor chip. He has been a proud recipient of the CEERI Foundation Reward
for designing of Application Specific Integrated Circuit (ASIC).
 CHAPTER 2

MICROWAVE

What is MICROWAVE

Microwave is electromagnetic wave whose frequency range is from 1 GHz -300GHz

Microwave frequency Band

L Band 1 to 2 GHz

S Band 2 to 4 GHz

C Band 4 to 8 GHz

X Band 8 to 12 GHz

Ku Band 12 to 18 GHz

K band 18 to 27 GHz

Ka Band 27 to 40 GHz

Advantages of Microwave

Increased bandwidth

Improved directive properties

Fading effect and reliability

Power requirement

Transparency property of microwave

Limitations of conventional tubes/transistors

 Inter electrode capacitance effect

Lead inductance effect

Transit time effect
Gain bandwidth limitation
Effect due to RF losses
Effect due to radiations

Microwave Tubes

Basic principle

The basic principle of operation of the microwave tubes involves transfer of power from a source
of DC voltage to a source of AC voltage by means of current density modulated electron beam.
The same is achieved by accelerating electron in a static electric field and retarding them in AC
field. The density modulation of the electron beam allow more electron to be retarded by a AC
field than accelerated by field which therefore makes possible a net energy to be delivered to
the AC electric field . Microwave tube make use of transit time effect rather than fight it.

Classification of Microwave Tube

Microwave tube

O type (linear field ) M type (cross field )

Klystron, TWT, Gyrotron Magnetron

Linear field (O type)

In linear beam tube a magnetic field whose axis coincides with that of the electron beam. The
magnetic field is used to hold the beam together as it travel the length of the tube.

Cross field (M type)

In cross field tube DC magnetic field that is in parallel with the DC electric field is used merely
to focus the electron beam .

KLYSTRON
A klystron is a specialized linear-beam vacuum tube, invented in 1937 by American electrical
engineers Russel and Sigurd Varian, which is used as an amplifier for high frequencies, from
UHF radio frequencies up into the microwave range. Low-power klystrons are used as local
oscillators in superheterodyne radar receivers, while high-power klystrons are used as output
tubes in UHF television transmitters, microwave relay, satellite communication,
and radar transmitters, and to generate the drive power for modern particle accelerators.

Klystron amplifiers have the advantage (over the magnetron) of coherently amplifying a
reference signal so its output may be precisely controlled in amplitude, frequency and phase.
Many klystrons use waveguides for coupling microwave energy into and out of the device,
although it is also quite common for lower power and lower frequency klystrons to use coaxial
cable couplings instead. In some cases a coupling probe is used to couple the microwave energy
from a klystron into a separate external waveguide.

Types of Klystron

Klystron can be classified on the basic of working principle:

1. as an oscillator (reflex klystron )

2. as an amplifier (klystron amplifier)

Klystron amplifier can be classified on the basis of beam profile:

1. Single beam klystron amplifier

2. Multi beam klystron amplifier

3. Sheet beam klystron

Main parts of klystron amplifier

The klystron amplifier consist of three parts:

1. Electron Gun

An electron gun (also called electron emitter) is an electrical component that produces an
electron beam that has a precise kinetic energy.
It has main three parts :

Cathode

Cathodes are generally of two types:

Dispenser Cathode

Cathode which consisted of a thin porous tungsten plug over a cup or reservoir of barium
carbonate. The object was to dispense barium to the emitting surface through the pores of this
tungsten plug. In order to generate free barium it was required to decompose or convert the
carbonate during tube processing similar to oxide cathode conversion which was the common
cathode prior to this time. This resulted in exceedingly long tube processing since the by-product
carbon dioxide (CO2) had to come out through the tungsten pores. The cathode work function
was a relatively low 2.0 eV.

Oxide Coated Cathode

Oxide-coated cathodes operate at about 800-1000 C, orange-hot. They are used in most small
glass vacuum tubes, but are rarely used in high-power tubes since they are vulnerable to high
voltages and oxygen ions, and undergo rapid degradation under such conditions

2. RF section

RF section is responsible for the RF wave amplification. It made up of RF cavity including input
cavity, output cavity, and intermediate cavities and drift section.
3. Collector

Collector is a single electrode at the voltage of the body of the tube (usually ground) and is
designed to dissipate as heat all of the power in the spent beam (that is, the beam leaving the RF
interaction structure of the tube). These collectors are usually used on very large devices in
applications where power consumption is not a critical consideration
OPERATION OF KLYSTRON

The klystron was the first embodiment of the velocity modulation principle. After being accelerated
by a DC voltage, electrons from the cathode initially drift with constant velocity. When they
traverse a pair of closely spaced grids, their velocity is modulated by a sinusoidal RF signal.
Following that, the electrons drift and form bunches, centered at the electrons which transited the
grids at the time the RF field was zero and was increasing. The electron bunches constitute an RF
current, which induces a voltage across a second pair of grids downstream. That voltage can impart
additional velocity modulation to the beam. The process can be repeated by including more cavities,
until considerable amplification takes place, or until the increased space charge within the bunches
prevents tighter bunching. This places an upper limit on the efficiency of the device. The beam
eventually traverses an output cavity which is connected to a load. That cavity is designed so that
the voltage induced across it slows the beam down. In the process, the electrons give up their
kinetic energy to the cavity RF fields. Klystrons are the most efficient of linear beam microwave
tubes. Their efficiency increases as the space charge in the beam decreases. Beam space charge is
measured by a quantity called perveance, useful in the design of electron guns, and defined as the
ratio of the beam current to the 3/2-power of the voltage. For most klystrons, the perveance chosen
is between 0.5X10-6 and 2.5x10-6 , but in certain cases, lower perveances may be useful, despite
the higher beam voltages that they imply. The gain of multi-cavity klystrons is very high. Gains of
60 dB, or even higher, are not unusual. On the other hand, klystrons are narrow-band devices,
compared with travelling-wave tubes. For most applications, including communications, this is not
a serious disadvantage because some klystron broad banding is possible, at the expense of gain.
However, for many radar applications and for electronic countermeasures (against radar), only
TWTs are suitable. In addition to the TWT competition, low-power klystrons, particularly reflex
oscillators, lost the battle to solid-state replacements in radar and communication equipment some
time ago.

Klystron as Microwave
Generator

Klystrons amplify RF signals by

converting the kinetic energy in DC electron beam into radio frequency power. A beam of
electrons is produced by a thermionic cathode (a heated pellet of low work function material),
and accelerated by high voltage electrodes. (typically in the tens of kilovolts). This beam is then
passed through an input cavity. RF energy is fed into the input cavity at, or near, its natural
frequency to produce a voltage which acts on the electron beam. The electric field causes the
electrons to bunch: electrons that pass through during an opposing electric field are accelerated
and later electrons are slowed, causing the previously continuous electron beam to form bunches
at the input frequency. To reinforce the bunching, a klystron may contain additional "buncher"
cavities. The electron bunches increase in magnitude, as the overall drift velocity of the beam
decreases, and this in effect represents the sum of an RF current in the beam along with the the
DC component. An RF current of course will produce a magnetic field, and this will in turn
excite a voltage across the gap of the output cavity, thus allowing the transfer of RF energy
developed flows out through a waveguide. The spent electron beam, which now contains less
energy than it started with, is captured in a collector.

Fabrication of parts

Parts are fabricated in the workshop according to the engineering drawings

Dimensions measurement

Dimensions of the parts which are fabricated in workshop are measured and ensure that their
dimensions should be according to the engineering drawing .

Cold test

To find the S parameter of a cavity and RF section we do cold test. This is done by VNA

( vector network analyzer), SNA ( scalar network analyzer).

Brazing And Assemblies

Brazing is a metal-joining process whereby a filler metal is heated above melting point and
distributed between two or more close-fitting parts by capillary action. The filler metal is brought
slightly above its melting (liquidus) temperature while protected by a suitable atmosphere,
usually a flux. It then flows over the base metal (known as wetting) and is then cooled to join the
work pieces together.
Different furnaces in CEERI
Leak test

The Helium leak test, The leak detection method uses helium (the lightest inert gas) as a tracer
gas and detects it in concentrations as small as one part in 10 million. The helium is selected
primarily because it penetrates small leaks readily.

Final Tube Integration

Vacuum Processing

1. Vacuum process

2. Cathode activation

3. Beam testing
Applications of Klystron

Klystron is used in following systems:

Radar

Satellite and wideband high-power communication (very common in television

broadcast and EHF satellite terminals)

Medicine (radiation oncology)

High energy physics (particle accelerators and experimental reactors)

Travelling Wave Tube

A TWT is a vacuum tube used as an amplifier. It is a broad band devices in which there is no
cavity resonator. The interaction space in a TWT is extended and the electron beam exchanges
energy with the RF wave over the full length of the tube.

To prolong the interaction between an electron beam and RF field it is necessary to ensure that
they are both travelling with nearly the same velocity . Thus it differ from klystron in which the
electron beam travels and the RF field remains stationary .

A TWTA consists of a traveling-wave tube coupled with its protection circuits (as in klystron)
and regulated power supply Electronic Power Conditioner (EPC), which may be supplied and
integrated by a different manufacturer. The main difference between most power supplies and
those for vacuum tubes is that efficient vacuum tubes have depressed collectors to recycle kinetic
energy of the electrons, so the secondary winding of the power supply needs up to 6 taps of
which the helix voltage needs precise regulation. The subsequent addition of a liberalizer (as for
inductive output tube) can, by complementary compensation, improve the gain compression and
other characteristics of the TWTA; this combination is called a liberalized TWTA (LTWTA, "EL-
tweet-uh").

Broadband TWTAs generally use a helix TWT, and achieve less than 2.5 kW output power.
TWTAs using a coupled cavity TWT can achieve 15 kW output power, but at the expense of
bandwidth.
Applications of TWT

TWTAs are commonly used as amplifiers in satellite transponders, where the input signal is very
weak and the output needs to be high power.

A TWTA whose output drives an antenna is a type of transmitter. TWTA transmitters are used
extensively in radar, particularly in airborne fire-control radar systems, and in electronic warfare
and self-protection systems. In such applications, a control grid is typically introduced between
the TWT's electron gun and slow-wave structure to allow pulsed operation. The circuit that
drives the control grid is usually referred to as a grid modulator.

Another major use of TWTAs is for the electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) testing industry for
immunity testing of electronic devices.

TWTAs can often be found in older (pre-1995) aviation SSR microwave transponders.
MAGNETRON

The cavity magnetron is a high-powered vacuum tube that generates microwaves using the
interaction of a stream of electrons with a magnetic field. The first form of magnetron tube, the
split-anode magnetron, was invented by Albert Hull in 1920, but it wasn't capable of high
frequencies and was little used. The modern 'resonant' cavity magnetron tube was invented by
John Randall and Harry Boot in 1940 at the University of Birmingham, England. The high power
of pulses from the cavity magnetron made centimeter-band radar practical, with shorter
wavelength radars allowing detection of smaller objects. The compact cavity magnetron tube
drastically reduced the size of radar sets so that they could be installed in anti-submarine
aircraft.and escort ships. At present, cavity magnetrons are commonly used in microwave ovens
and in various radar applications.

Construction and operation

All cavity magnetrons consist of a hot cathode with a high (continuous or pulsed) negative
potential created by a high-voltage, direct-current power supply. The cathode is built into the
center of an evacuated, lobed, circular chamber. A magnetic field parallel to the filament is
imposed by a permanent magnet. The magnetic field causes the electrons, attracted to the
(relatively) positive outer part of the chamber, to spiral outward in a circular path, a consequence
of the Lorentz force. Spaced around the rim of the chamber are cylindrical cavities. The cavities
are open along their length and connect the common cavity space. As electrons sweep past these
openings, they induce a resonant, high-frequency radio field in the cavity, which in turn causes
the electrons to bunch into groups. (This principle of cavity resonator is very similar to blowing a
stream of air across the open top of a glass pop bottle.) A portion of the field is extracted with a
short antenna that is connected to a waveguide (a metal tube usually of rectangular cross
section). The waveguide directs the extracted RF energy to the load, which may be a cooking
chamber in a microwave oven or a high-gain antenna in the case of radar.

A cross-sectional diagram of a resonant cavity magnetron. Magnetic lines of force are parallel to
the geometric axis of this structure. The sizes of the cavities determine the resonant frequency,
and thereby the frequency of emitted microwaves. However, the frequency is not precisely
controllable. The operating frequency varies with changes in load impedance, with changes in
the supply current, and with the temperature of the tube. [5] This is not a problem in uses such as
heating, or in some forms of radar where the receiver can be synchronized with an imprecise
magnetron frequency. Where precise frequencies are needed, other devices such as the klystron
are used.

The magnetron is a self-oscillating device requiring no external elements other than a power
supply. A well-defined threshold anode voltage must be applied before oscillation will build up;
this voltage is a function of the dimensions of the resonant cavity, and the applied magnetic field.
In pulsed applications there is a delay of several cycles before the oscillator achieves full peak
power, and the build-up of anode voltage must be coordinated with the build-up of oscillator
output. Where there are an even number of cavities, two concentric rings can connect alternate
cavity walls to prevent inefficient modes of oscillation. This is called Pi strapping because the
two straps lock the phase difference between adjacent cavities at Pi radians (180).
The magnetron is a fairly efficient device. In a microwave oven, for instance, a 1.1 kilowatt input
will generally create about 700 watts of microwave power, an efficiency of around 65%. (The
high-voltage and the properties of the cathode determine the power of a magnetron.) Large S
band magnetrons can produce up to 2.5 megawatts peak power with an average power of
3.75 kW.[5] Large magnetrons can be water cooled. The magnetron remains in widespread use in
roles which require high power, but where precise.

Applications of Magnetron

Magnetron from a microwave oven with magnet in its mounting box. The horizontal plates
form a heat sink, cooled by airflow from a fan

Radar
RADAR is an acronym for Radio Detection And Ranging. In radar devices, the waveguide is
connected to an antenna. The magnetron is operated with very short pulses of applied voltage,
resulting in a short pulse of high power microwave energy being radiated. As in all primary radar
systems, the radiation reflected off a target is analyzed to produce a radar map on a screen.

Several characteristics of the magnetron's power output conspire to make radar use of the device
somewhat problematic. The first of these factors is the magnetron's inherent instability in its
transmitter frequency. This instability is noted not only as a frequency shift from one pulse to the
next, but also a frequency shift within an individual transmitted pulse. The second factor is that
the energy of the transmitted pulse is spread over a wide frequency spectrum, which makes
necessary its receiver to have a corresponding wide selectivity. This wide selectivity allows
ambient electrical noise to be accepted into the receiver, thus obscuring somewhat the received
radar echoes, thereby reducing overall radar performance. The third factor, depending on
application, is the radiation hazard caused by the use of high power electromagnetic radiation. In
some applications, for example a marine radar mounted on a recreational vessel, a radar with a
magnetron output of 2 to 4 kilowatts is often found mounted very near an area occupied by crew
or passengers. In practical use, these factors have been overcome, or merely accepted, and there
are today thousands of magnetron aviation and marine radar units in service. Recent advances in
aviation weather avoidance radar and in marine radar have successfully implemented
semiconductor transmitters that eliminate the magnetron entirely.

Heating
In microwave ovens, the waveguide leads to a radio frequency-transparent port into the cooking
chamber.

Lighting
In microwave-excited lighting systems, such as a sulfur lamp, a magnetron provides the
microwave field that is passed through a waveguide to the lighting cavity containing the light-
emitting substance (e.g., sulfur, metal halides, etc.)

GYROTRON
A Gyrotron is a high powered vacuum tube which generates millimeter-wave electromagnetic
waves by bunching electrons with cyclotron motion in a strong magnetic field. Output
frequencies range from about 20 to 250 GHz, covering wavelengths from microwave to the edge
of the terahertz gap. Typical output powers range from tens of kilowatts to 1-2 megawatts.
Gyrotrons can be designed for pulsed or continuous operation.

Principle of operation

High power 84 - 118 GHz gyrotron tubes for plasma heating in the TCV to kamak fusion reactor,
Switzerland. The colored cylinders are the tops of the gyrotron tubes.

The gyrotron is a type of free electron maser (microwave amplification by stimulated emission of
radiation). It has high power at millimeter wavelengths because its dimensions can be much
larger than the wavelength, unlike conventional vacuum tubes, and it is not dependent on
material properties, as are conventional masers. The bunching depends on a relativistic effect
called the Cyclotron Resonance Maser instability. The electron speed in a gyrotron is slightly
relativistic (comparable to but not close to the speed of light). This contrasts to the free electron
laser (and xaser) that work on different principles and which electrons are highly relativistic.
Applications of Gyrotron
Gyrotrons are used for many industrial and high technology heating applications. For
example, gyrotrons are used in nuclear fusion research experiments to heat plasmas, and
also in manufacturing industry as a rapid heating tool in processing glass, composites, and
ceramics, as well as for annealing (solar and semiconductors). Military applications
include the Active Denial System.

Microwave Tubes Group: Facilities

Equipment Capabilities Specifications Photographs

Thermal Brazing and firing of Operating

: 1800C
Technology parts / sub- Temp.
Astro-Furnace assemblies in : 4" Dia 8"
vacuum Hot Zone
Long

Input : 220 Volts, 1

Supply , 10 kVA

Water :3
cooling GMP@55psi

Electrical Brazing and Firing of Temp.

Resistance parts / sub- Controlling : 3
Heated assemblies in Vertical Zone
Vertical Retort Position (Dia: 500 Overall
Furnace mm, Height: 1530 height of : 1730 mm
mm) in inert gas Retort
atmosphere
Max.
Working : 1100C
Temp.
 Capacity of
: 3 Tonne
Hoist

Input : 415 5%
Supply V, 3 , 50
Hz

Controlled Brazing and firing of Max. Temp. 1200 C

Atmosphere Microwave tube parts 1. Hot : 3" 5"
Muffle in horizontal position Zone length
Furnaces in the wet/dry H2 gas,
2. Hot : 5" 10"
N2 gas and Mixture
Zone length
atmosphere
3. Hot : 3" 15"
Zone length

Input : 220 V, 1 ,
Supply 50Hz

Ultra High Processing of MW Working pressure range :

Vacuum Tubes in Ultra High 10-10 to 10-11 torr
System Vacuum
Electric Air Firing and Annealing Max.
: 1400C
Furnace at Atmosphere Temperature

: 220 V, 1
Input Supply
, 50 Hz

Digital Leak Measuring : 10-12 to Operating : Vacuum/

Detector Range 1 mbar l/s Mode Sniffing

: 4He < 5 Input : 230 10%

Detectable
10- Supply V, 50 Hz
leak rate 12
mbar l/s Current < 10A
smallest : 3He <5
10-
10
mbar
l/s

Detectable : 4He < 1

leak rate mbar l/s

greatest : 3He < 1

10-
2
mbar l/s

RF Induction Firing and Brazing RF output

: 20 kW
Heater through RF heating power
Furnace : 160-400
Frequency
kHz

Filament : 7.5 0.19 V

voltage (AC)
 DC Plate
: 3.5 A
Current

Electrical Brazing Furnace Hot Power : 415 V (A.C.),

Resistance Zone: 300 mm Dia. Supply 3 , 50Hz
Vacuum 400 mm Ht. Position : Vertical
Brazing
Furnace

Hydrogen To fulfill the : 96 cu.

Capacity
Plant requirement of Pure feet/hour
Hydrogen in the Purity : 99.99%
institute
Storage
: 5 cu. meter
Vessel

Glass Blowing For glass, Quartz and Input : 220 V, 1 , 50

Lathe glass-to-metal sealing Supply Hz
Machine
High Voltage Break down testing Highest Break
: 220 kV
Break Down of sub-assemblies of Down Voltage
Tester Microwave Tubes

Real Time X- For internal X-Ray of Operating

: 320kV
Ray Machine Microwave Devices Voltage
(for finding of Input : 415 Volts, 3
internal cracks and voltage , 50 Hz
alignment of sub
Assemblies)

Fabrication Facilities

Microwave Tubes Division of CEERI has almost all the facilities for fabricating
Microwave Tubes for R&D purpose. The development of Microwave Tubes involves
establishment of several critical technologies, such as fabrication of large diameter
ceramic-to-metal seals for high voltage feed through, development of jigs and fixtures for
accurate alignment of subassemblies of a large sized tube, precision piece-parts & jigs /
fixtures for small tubes. Other major facilities available with the division that are useful
for Microwave Tubes development are given below:
 Mechanical Fabrication of Precision Components of Microwave Tubes

Chemical Cleaning, Plating & Treatment of Components

Glass Technology Unit

Microwave Testing Bench including VNA

Limited Environmental Testing

RO Water Plant

Laser Welding, Tig Welding, Arc Welding & Spot Welding Units

Honing Machine

Attenuator Coating System

Sputter Ion Coating Unit

Sand Blasting Unit

Bore scope

DC/ RF Testing Facility for Microwave Tubes

Common Scientific Facility (CSF) Team:

 Er. R. K. Gupta, Chief Scientist (In-charge)

Sh. Mahendra Singh (Soni) Technical Assistant

Sh. Kulbir Singh Technical Assistant

Sh. Rajesh Kr. Meena, Technical Assistant

Sh. Ghanshyam Saini, Technical Assistant

Sh. Mahindra Singh, Senior Technician II

Sh. Jai Prakash Meena, Senior Technician II

Sh. Jeganathan M, Technician I

Sh. Gajraj, Lab Assistant

Sh. R. K. Panday, Lab Assistant

Sh. Ravi Kumar, Lab Assistant

Vacuum tube

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article is about the electronic device. For experiments in an evacuated pipe, see free fall.
For the transport system, see pneumatic tube.

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Modern vacuum tubes, mostly miniature style

In electronics, a vacuum tube, an electron tube,[1][2][3] or just a tube (North America),

or valve (Britain and some other regions), is a device that controls electric
current between electrodes in an evacuated container. Vacuum tubes mostly rely on thermionic
emission of electrons from a hot filament or a cathode heated by the filament. This type is called
a thermionic tube or thermionic valve. A phototube, however, achieves electron emission
through the photoelectric effect. Not all electronic circuit valves/electron tubes are vacuum tubes
(evacuated); gas-filled tubes are similar devices containing a gas, typically at low pressure,
which exploit phenomena related to electric discharge in gases, usually without a heater.

The simplest vacuum tube, the diode, contains only a heater, a heated electron-emitting cathode
(the filament itself acts as the cathode in some diodes), and a plate (anode). Current can only
flow in one direction through the device between the two electrodes, as electrons emitted by the
cathode travel through the tube and are collected by the anode. Adding one or more control
grids within the tube allows the current between the cathode and anode to be controlled by the
 voltage on the grid or grids.[4] Tubes with grids can be used for many purposes,
including amplification, rectification, switching, oscillation, and display.

Invented in 1904 by John Ambrose Fleming, vacuum tubes were a basic component for
electronics throughout the first half of the twentieth century, which saw the diffusion of radio,
television, radar, sound reinforcement, sound recording and reproduction,
large telephone networks, analog and digital computers, and industrial process control. Although
some applications had counterparts using earlier technologies such as the spark gap
transmitter or mechanical computers, it was the invention of the vacuum tube that made these
technologies widespread and practical. In the 1940s the invention of semiconductor devices
made it possible to produce solid-state devices, which are smaller, more efficient, more reliable,
more durable, and cheaper than tubes. Hence, from the mid-1950s solid-state devices such
as transistors gradually replaced tubes. The cathode-ray tube(CRT) remained the basis for
televisions and video monitors until superseded in the 21st century. However, there are still a few
applications for which tubes are preferred to semiconductors; for example, the magnetron used in
microwave ovens, and certain high-frequency amplifiers.

Contents
[hide]

1Classifications

2Description

3History and development

o 3.1Diodes

o 3.2Triodes

o 3.3Tetrodes and pentodes

o 3.4Multifunction and multisection tubes

 o 3.5Beam power tubes

o 3.6Gas-filled tubes

o 3.7Miniature tubes

o 3.8Improvements in construction and performance

o 3.9Indirectly heated cathodes

o 3.10Use in electronic computers

4Heat generation and cooling

5Tube packages

6Names

7Special-purpose tubes

8Powering the tube

o 8.1Batteries

o 8.2AC power

9Reliability

o 9.1Vacuum

o 9.2Transmitting tubes

o 9.3Receiving tubes

o 9.4Failure modes
 10Testing

11Other vacuum tube devices

o 11.1Cathode ray tubes

o 11.2Electron multipliers

12Vacuum tubes in the 21st century

o 12.1Niche applications

o 12.2Vacuum fluorescent display

o 12.3Vacuum tubes using field electron emitters

13See also

14Patents

15References

16Further reading

17External links

Classifications[edit]

One classification of vacuum tubes is by the number of active electrodes, (neglecting the
filament or heater). A device with two active elements is a diode, usually used for rectification.
Devices with three elements are triodes used for amplification and switching. Additional
electrodes create tetrodes, pentodes, and so forth, which have multiple additional functions made
possible by the additional controllable electrodes.

Other classifications are:

 by frequency range (audio, radio, VHF, UHF, microwave)

by power rating (small-signal, audio power, high-power radio transmitting)

by cathode/filament type (indirectly heated, directly heated) and Warm-up

time (including "bright-emitter" or "dull-emitter")

by characteristic curves design (e.g., sharp- versus remote-cutoff in some pentodes)

by application (receiving tubes, transmitting tubes, amplifying or switching, rectification,

mixing)

specialized parameters (long life, very low microphonic sensitivity and low-noise audio
amplification, rugged/military versions

specialized functions (light or radiation detectors, video imaging tubes)

tubes used to display information (Nixie tubes, "magic eye" tubes, Vacuum fluorescent
displays, CRTs)

Multiple classifications may apply to a device; for example similar dual triodes can be used for
audio preamplification and as flip-flops in computers, although linearity is important in the
former case and long life in the latter.

Tubes have different functions, such as cathode ray tubes which create a beam of electrons for
display purposes (such as the television picture tube) in addition to more specialized functions
such as electron microscopy and electron beam lithography. X-ray tubes are also vacuum
tubes. Phototubes and photomultipliers rely on electron flow through a vacuum, though in those
cases electron emission from the cathode depends on energy from photons rather than thermionic
emission. Since these sorts of "vacuum tubes" have functions other than electronic amplification
and rectification they are described in their own articles.
Description[edit]

Diode: electrons from the hot cathode flow towards the positive anode, but not vice versa

Triode: voltage applied to the grid controls plate (anode) current.

A vacuum tube consists of two or more electrodes in a vacuum inside an airtight enclosure. Most
tubes have glass envelopes, though ceramic and metal envelopes (atop insulating bases) have
been used. The electrodes are attached to leads which pass through the envelope via an airtight
seal. Most vacuum tubes have a limited lifetime, due to the filament or heater burning out or
other failure modes, so they are made as replaceable units; the electrode leads connect to pins on
the tube's base which plug into a tube socket. Tubes were a frequent cause of failure in electronic
equipment, and consumers were expected to be able to replace tubes themselves. In addition to
the base terminals, some tubes had an electrode terminating at a top cap. The principal reason for
doing this was to avoid leakage resistance through the tube base, particularly for the high
impedance grid input.[5][6] The bases were commonly made with phenolic insulation which
performs poorly as an insulator in humid conditions. Other reasons for using a top cap include
improving stability by reducing grid-to-anode capacitance,[7] improved high-frequency
performance, keeping a very high plate voltage away from lower voltages, and accommodating
one more electrode than allowed by the base. There was even an occasional design that had two
top cap connections.

The earliest vacuum tubes evolved from incandescent light bulbs, containing a filament sealed in
an evacuated glass envelope. When hot, the filament releases electrons into the vacuum, a
process called thermionic emission, originally known as the "Edison Effect". A second electrode,
the anode or plate, will attract those electrons if it is at a more positive voltage. The result is a net
flow of electrons from the filament to plate. However, electrons cannot flow in the reverse
direction because the plate is not heated and does not emit electrons. The filament (cathode) has
a dual function: it emits electrons when heated; and, together with the plate, it creates an electric
field due to the potential difference between them. Such a tube with only two electrodes is
termed a diode, and is used for rectification. Since current can only pass in one direction, such a
diode (or rectifier) will convert alternating current (AC) to pulsating DC. Diodes can therefore be
used in a DC power supply, as a demodulator of amplitude modulated (AM) radio signals and for
similar functions.

Early tubes used the filament as the cathode, this is called a "directly heated" tube. Most modern
tubes are "indirectly heated" by a "heater" element inside a metal tube that is the cathode. The
heater is electrically isolated from the surrounding cathode and simply serves to heat the cathode
sufficiently for thermionic emission of electrons. The electrical isolation allows all the tubes'
heaters to be supplied from a common circuit (which can be AC without inducing hum) while
allowing the cathodes in different tubes to operate at different voltages. H. J. Round invented the
indirectly heated tube around 1913.[8]
The filaments require constant and often considerable power, even when amplifying signals at
the microwatt level. Power is also dissipated when the electrons from the cathode slam into the
anode (plate) and heat it; this can occur even in an idle amplifier due to quiescent currents
necessary to ensure linearity and low distortion. In a power amplifier, this heating can be
considerable and can destroy the tube if driven beyond its safe limits. Since the tube contains a
vacuum, the anodes in most small and medium power tubes are cooled by radiation through the
glass envelope. In some special high power applications, the anode forms part of the vacuum
envelope to conduct heat to an external heat sink, usually cooled by a blower, or water-jacket.

Klystrons and magnetrons often operate their anodes (called collectors in klystrons) at ground
potential to facilitate cooling, particularly with water, without high-voltage insulation. These
tubes instead operate with high negative voltages on the filament and cathode.

Except for diodes, additional electrodes are positioned between the cathode and the plate
(anode). These electrodes are referred to as grids as they are not solid electrodes but sparse
elements through which electrons can pass on their way to the plate. The vacuum tube is then
known as a triode, tetrode, pentode, etc., depending on the number of grids. A triode has three
electrodes: the anode, cathode, and one grid, and so on. The first grid, known as the control grid,
(and sometimes other grids) transforms the diode into a voltage-controlled device: the voltage
applied to the control grid affects the current between the cathode and the plate. When held
negative with respect to the cathode, the control grid creates an electric field which repels
electrons emitted by the cathode, thus reducing or even stopping the current between cathode and
anode. As long as the control grid is negative relative to the cathode, essentially no current flows
into it, yet a change of several volts on the control grid is sufficient to make a large difference in
the plate current, possibly changing the output by hundreds of volts (depending on the circuit).
The solid-state device which operates most like the pentode tube is the junction field-effect
transistor (JFET), although vacuum tubes typically operate at over a hundred volts, unlike most
semiconductors in most applications.