 Friday the 7th
 If the
electronics-themed comic from page 35 of the February 1946 issue of Radio
News magazine was drawn today, you might think the face-diapered mother-in-law
was a Covid-19'er (although improperly worn). Then again, if that comic were published
today, the magazine and the artist would be cancelled on social media for daring
to poke fun at the lady. The page 48 comic reflected the love-hate relationship
the public had with electronic repair shops in the era. Peruse through the plethora
of comics as well as multiple stories in the vintage electronics industry magazines
here on RF cafe and you will find many examples of the same theme. Shop owners routinely
were accused of overcharging customers for labor and for needlessly replacing components
(and for charging for new parts when used or repaired parts were installed). In
truth, there was a lot of ripping-off of customers, but there was also a lot of
customers refusing to pay for honest repairs...
 Here is a brief article about implementing
over−the−horizon (OTH) transmissions for television and phone signals. It appeared
in a 1955 issue of Popular Electronics magazine, only a decade after the end of
World War II and at the tail end of the Korean War, when the majority of households
had at least one TV set. Being able to exploit OTH would eliminate numerous relay
towers in−between which are not only expensive, but often are difficult to locate
due to property acquisition issues. The article suggests the possibility 200 mile
spacing between towers. A transmission tower 1,000 feet tall looking out over flat
land sees the horizon at about 38 miles, so another 1,000-foot tower another 38.7
miles in line from the horizon would give 77.4 miles total between towers, but that
assumes perfect line-of-sight propagation without refraction, reflection...
 "The U.S. Federal Aviation Administration
(FAA) has contracted Raytheon to further refine the space-based precision navigation
system WAAS (Wide-Area
Augmentation System). Specifically, Raytheon Intelligence & Space will modernise
the system, in terms of system security, network architecture and adding dual frequency
service. WAAS was developed by the Federal Aviation Administration to augment GPS
services by increasing its accuracy and availability. The satellite-based augmentation
system (SBAS), which provides GPS corrections for critical navigation for aircraft,
first responders and other government agencies, helps ensure - for example - that
pilots can land safely in difficult environments and weather..."
 When I first saw an
Erie Resistor Corporation advertisement in the December 1958 issue of Popular
Electronics magazine, I decided to research its history here in Erie, Pennsylvania,
where I live. Click on the above hyperlink if you are interested in what I discovered
- including a note from a former Erie Resistor Corporation engineer. This particular
advertisement appeared in the January 1952 issue of Radio & Television News
magazine, so I figured I'd post it as well...
 With more than 1000
custom-built stencils, this has got to be the most comprehensive set of
Visio Stencils available for RF, analog, and digital system and schematic
drawings! Every stencil symbol has been built to fit proportionally on the included
A-, B-, and C-size drawing page templates (or use your own page if preferred). Components
are provided for system block diagrams, conceptual drawings, schematics, test equipment,
racks (EIA 19", ETSI 21"), and more. Test equipment and racks are built at a 1:1
scale so that measurements can be made directly using Visio built-in dimensioning
objects. Page templates are provided with a preset scale (changeable) for a good
presentation that can incorporate all provided symbols...
 Exodus Advanced Communications is a multinational
RF communication equipment and engineering service company serving both commercial
and government entities and their affiliates worldwide. Power amplifiers ranging
from 10 kHz to 51 GHz with various output power levels and noise figure
ranges, we fully support custom designs and manufacturing requirements for both
small and large volume levels. decades of combined experience in the RF field for
numerous applications including military jamming, communications, radar, EMI/EMC
and various commercial projects with all designing and manufacturing of our HPA,
MPA, and LNA products in-house.
Thursday the 6th
 Liquid Wrench, of which I have a can sitting
in my garage, has been around since 1941 per the company website. WD−40, of which
I also have a can, first appeared in 1958. That is surprising to me since I was
using WD−40 long before having heard of Liquid Wrench. Mac introduces side-kick
technician Barney to Liquid Wrench in this episode entitled, "Chemicals
for the Service Shop." It appeared in the September 1965 issue of Electronics
World magazine when both products had been widely available for quite a while.
Strange that WD−40 was not mentioned, too. Also discussed in the technodrama are
liquid protective coatings like spray-on insulation and electrical connection weatherproofing
coatings, cleaners (as replacements for the dreaded carbon tetrachloride, aka "carbon
tet"), adhesives, lubricants, and some products like component cooling sprays and
paints/stains for repairing cabinets...
 Frederik
Dostal has a useful article on the Electronic Design website entitled, "Easy
Galvanic Isolation, which suggests a method for achieving isolation without
the use of a separate feedback transformer or an optocoupler by building a feedback
circuit on the primary side. It is an infomercial for Analog Devices, but that's
OK. He begins, "Transformers are generally used to create this electrical separation.
Presented here are two flyback-converter options that can be applied to facilitate
the design process. Many electronic circuits require galvanic isolation, which typically
involves the use of transformers. Numerous different topologies are employed to
transmit electrical energy via a transformer. One widely used circuit type, especially
for low power of approximately 50 W or less, is the flyback converter. Figure
1 shows a schematic of a simple flyback converter. While switch S1 is on, a flyback
converter stores energy in the transformer core T1..."
 "Mr. Scott, prepare to load the
promethium batteries into the dilithium crystal chamber." OK, I made up the
promethium batteries part, but you might not have suspected it. Back in the mid
to late 1950s, atomic batteries were seriously thought to potentially (no pun intended)
be a futuristic source of energy storage and generation. The concept worked by having
beta particles from promethium decay impinge on silicon photodetectors, and having
that be the source of power. That's almost as Rube Goldberg−ish as having a gasoline
engine drive an electric generator to power a motor for automotive locomotion. Oh,
wait, that describes the Chevy Volt. Note that in 1959, nickel cadmium (NiCad) batteries
were just coming into commercial use, and the author envisions a day when they might
be used for portable power tools and flashlights. At least he was right about that
one...
 Axiom Test Equipment, Inc., an electronic
test equipment rental and sales company has published a new blog post entitled,
"Teaming
Amplifiers and Signal Generators," that explains how connecting a suitable amplifier
to a signal generator can be boosted to the power levels needed in a project. Signal
generators serve as sources of analog, digital, and even RF/microwave signals for
test purposes. They may not always deliver enough output power for some tests, such
as characterizing filters and antennas, and help may be needed. By connecting a
suitable amplifier, a signal generator can be boosted to the required power levels.
Finding the right combination comes down to knowing the key specifications for both
units. Laboratory amplifiers can be specified by frequency range, bandwidth, output
power, and gain or input power required to reach the rated output power...
 By 1953,
General
Electric had already been in business for 75 years, according to this full-page
advertisement that ran in the American Radio Relay League's (ARRL) QST
magazine. It highlights a few key electronics-related accomplishments by the company
since Thomas Edison in 1883 built the first electronic tube as the result of a discovery
that came to be termed the "Edison effect." Interestingly, the terminology "a founder
of G.E." is used to describe Edison. Upon researching the company's origin, I found
this on Wikipedia: "In 1889, Drexel, Morgan & Co., a company founded by J.P.
Morgan and Anthony J. Drexel, financed Edison's research and helped merge those
companies under one corporation to form Edison General Electric Company, which was
incorporated in New York on April 24, 1889..."
RF Cascade Workbook is the next phase in the evolution of
RF Cafe's long-running series, RF Cascade Workbook. Chances are you have
never used a spreadsheet quite like this (click here for screen capture). It is a full-featured RF system
cascade parameter and frequency planner that includes filters and mixers for a mere
$45. Built in MS Excel, using RF Cascade Workbook 2018 is a cinch
and the format is entirely customizable. It is significantly easier and faster than
using a multi-thousand dollar simulator when a high level system analysis is all
that is needed. An intro video takes you through the main features...
 Withwave manufactures an extensive line of
metrology quality coaxial test cable assemblies, connectors (wave-, end-, vertical-launch,
board edge, panel mount), calibration kits (SOLT), a
fully automated
4-port vector network analyzer (VNA) calibrator, between- and in-series connector
adaptors, attenuators, terminations, DC blocks, torque wrenches, test probes &
probe positioner. Special test fixtures for calibration and multicoax cable assemblies.
Frequency ranges from DC through 110 GHz. Please contact Withwave today to
see how they can help your project succeed.
Wednesday the 5th
 Radio-Electronics magazine for
a long time ran a "Radio-Electronics Monthly Review" column which reported on some
the major happenings in the industry. At the time, editors did not have instant
news availability like we have today via the Internet, so discovering items like
those included in this August 1946 issue required subscribing to news wire services,
receiving tips from readers and industry communications departments, reading multiple
newspapers and magazines, etc. Notable here is the recognition that amateur radio
hobbyists - aka
"Hams" - pioneered operation in the microwave realm of the electromagnetic spectrum.
Probably the most relevant story here, however, is the passing of John L. Baird,
aka "the father of television," who died on June 14th at his home in Sussex, England.
He was a relatively young 58 years old. In 1946, most people probably were familiar
with the names Marconi as" the father of radio," Morse as the inventor of his eponymous
code, Bell as the inventor of the telephone, Goddard as "the father of rocketry,"
etc., but I'm guessing not many associated the name "Baird" - or any other for that
matter - with television...
 Berkeley Nucleonics Corporation (BNC) is
a leading manufacturer of precision electronic instrumentation for test, measurement,
and nuclear research. Founded in 1963, BNC initially developed custom pulse generators.
We became known for meeting the most stringent requirements for high precision and
stability, and for producing instruments of unsurpassed reliability and performance.
We continue to maintain a leadership position as a developer of custom pulse, signal,
light, and function generators. Our designs incorporate the latest innovations in
software and hardware engineering, surface mount production, and automated testing
procedures.
 Author Saunder Harris wrote in this 1959
of edition Popular Electronics magazine that the concept of atoms has been
around for more than 2,500 years since Greek philosopher Democritus suggested that
a particle existed which was basic to all matter. It has only been in the last century
and a half that we have learned that even the atom itself is made up of even more
basic particles - the electron, proton, and neutron (J.J. Thompson found the electron
in 1897, which was postulated by G. Johnstone Stoney in 1947). It wasn't until the
1930s that even those three entities were thought to be constructed of yet more
fundamental particles - quarks, bosons, and leptons. Modern science believes it
has fully defined the set of
subatomic particles, particularly with the Higgs boson having been finally seen
in the Large Hadron Collider (well, maybe). Does anyone really believe this is the
final word on fundamental particles after...
 I have
to admit to not remembering ever having heard of the term "biristor." It appears
in this Semiconductor Today news item entitled, "InGaAs
Biristor for High-Density DRAM." "Researchers in Korea have demonstrated capacitor-less
4F2 2-terminal indium gallium arsenide (InGaAs) npn junction dynamic random access
memory (DRAM) with a view to highly compact 3D structures. Standard DRAM cells tend
to have areas 6-8F2 relative to the process feature size (F) that incorporate 1
transistor and 1 capacitor (1T1C). By removing the need for capacitor storage of
the memory state, the cell area can be reduced. The device designed and fabricated
by Korea Advanced Institute of Science and Technology (KAIST) and Korea Advanced
Nano Fab Center (KANC) used a bistable resistor (biristor) structure (1R0C)...
 An old electrician's saying goes "Ground
is ground the world around," implying that every point on Earth's surface is
at the same potential - specifically 0 volts. We know, of course, that it is not
so. Maybe on average such a claim could be made, but just as "sea level" is not
the same at all points on the ocean's surface (hence we speak of "mean sea level"),
neither is the voltage potential the same everywhere. Further, just as the salinity
of all points on the ocean surface do not have the same salinity (and thereby conductivity),
the conductivity of various places on dry land vary - often significantly. Electric
power systems are very concerned with soil electrical conductivity in the vicinity
of power generation (source), distribution stations (transmission lines) and end
users (load). Soil conductivity measurements are made in critical installations
and if necessary, multiple ground rods and/or even chemical enhancements to the
soil are used to achieve the required values. Antennas likewise rely on a specific
ground potential value to operate according to theoretical calculations (if a "perfect"
ground is assumed). When a Yagi antenna...
 New Scheme rotates
all Banners in all locations on the page! RF Cafe typically receives 8,000-15,000
website visits each weekday.
RF Cafe is a favorite
of engineers, technicians, hobbyists, and students all over the world. With more
than 12,000 pages in the Google search index, RF Cafe returns in favorable
positions on many types of key searches, both for text and images. New content is
added on a daily basis, which keeps the major search engines interested enough to
spider it multiple times each day. Items added on the homepage often can be found
in a Google search within a few hours of being posted. I also re-broadcast homepage
items on LinkedIn. If you need your company news to be seen, RF Cafe is the
place to be.
 PCB Directory is the largest directory of
Printed Circuit
Board (PCB) Manufacturers, Assembly houses, and Design Services on the Internet.
We have listed the leading printed circuit board manufacturers around the world
and made them searchable by their capabilities - Number of laminates used, Board
thicknesses supported, Number of layers supported, Types of substrates (FR-4, Rogers,
flexible, rigid), Geographical location (U.S., China), kinds of services (manufacturing,
fabrication, assembly, prototype), and more. Fast turn-around on quotations for
PCB fabrication and assembly.
Tuesday the 4th
 When this "Clandestine
Broadcasters" article appeared in a 1967 issue of Popular Electronics
magazine, we were at the height of the Cold War era with Communist forces spreading
all over the globe and inching closer to the U.S. mainland with moves in the West,
north of the Equator. The Cuban Missile Crisis occurred just five years earlier,
and the spy game kept all sides busy trying to hide their own secrets and discover
the secrets of others. Mysterious radio broadcasts were routinely picked up and
reported by Amateur Radio operators and Short Wave Listeners. Their elusive broadcast
content and station location enhanced the intrigue for people. Of those, it was
the "numbers stations" that garnered the most attention because they issued a string
of numbers, then ceased transmission. It was believed to be a means of sending encoded
messages to spies. The practice continues to a lesser extent to this day...
 "Keeping IoT applications across the world
connected is a challenge, yet imperative. The term 'ubiquitous
coverage' is often thrown around in the supply chain and logistics industry
- and for a good reason. Breaks in the chain of visibility leave logistics vulnerable,
especially as businesses scramble to keep up with the introduction of new technologies
and services. This is why the challenge lies in finding a universal solution that
connects IoT applications all over the world, providing a continuous view no matter
where assets are. The first step to improving the deployment of IoT applications
is to understand the common obstacles within the industry, like internal operations.
Supply chain and logistics have long struggled to streamline internal processes
to monitor the flow of goods and services from supplier to customer. And supply
chain demands have only exacerbated this challenge..."
 As in the past, I am posting these Radio
Service Data Sheets as a service to someone who might be doing research on vintage
radios and/or restoring one. Roamio is not producing automobile radios anymore,
but they did until recently make TiVo recorders and streaming media players. The
Crosley Roamio Automotive T.R.F. Receiver Models 90, 91 and 92 was made in the
early 1930's at a time when cars and trucks were just starting to experience such
luxury. Crosley did not begin manufacturing its own line of cars until 1939, so
none of these radios made it into Crosley autos...
 Here
is Part 2 of the InCompliance article "Getting
the Best EMC from Shielded Cables up to 2.8 GHz." Every day the electromagnetic
noise in our environment intensifies as the world goes more and more wireless. Just
as PCB layout needed to adopt distributed element methods for successful operation
at higher speeds (digital and analog), interconnect cabling has been forced to accommodate
frequencies with wavelengths near to or less than the cable length. At high frequencies,
cables and shields begin to act like antennas for both emission and absorption.
This installment reviews empirical testing done on cable configurations previously
discussed. Note: Use this
Part 1 link because the one on the page is bad...
 Don't let the title fool you. This "Ultrafax"
system developed by RCA in the late 1940s was essentially the first attempt at video
on demand, or streaming video. Rather than piping the signal over cable or local
broadcast frequency towers, a microwave link was used. While initial system equipment
space and financial requirements meant only corporations, universities, and governments
could procure an Ultrafax, engineers who developed the system envisioned an eventual
culmination of equivalent systems in every home. Even at the end of the last century
it was still not possible for program providers to personalize broadcasts to individuals.
It wasn't until broadband Internet came on the scene in the 2000s that such services
were possible. Now, a decade later, people watch any video they want on cellphones
while riding in a car. We've come a long way, baby...
New Scheme rotates
all Banners in all locations on the page! RF Cafe typically receives 8,000-15,000
website visits each weekday.
RF Cafe is a favorite
of engineers, technicians, hobbyists, and students all over the world. With more
than 12,000 pages in the Google search index, RF Cafe returns in favorable
positions on many types of key searches, both for text and images. New content is
added on a daily basis, which keeps the major search engines interested enough to
spider it multiple times each day. Items added on the homepage often can be found
in a Google search within a few hours of being posted. I also re-broadcast homepage
items on LinkedIn. If you need your company news to be seen, RF Cafe is the
place to be.
 Empower RF Systems is a global leader in
power amplifier solutions. Empower RF Systems is an established and technologically
superior supplier of high power solid state RF & microwave amplifiers. Our offerings
include modules, intelligent rack-mount amplifiers, and multi-function RF Power
Amplifier solutions to 6 GHz in broadband and band specific designs. Output
power combinations range from tens of watts to multi-kilowatts. Unprecedented size,
weight and power reduction of our amplifiers is superior to anything in the market
at similar frequencies and power levels.
Monday the 3rd
 Even those of us old enough to remember
the days when nearly all
electronic components had identification markers on them find it challenging
to correctly interpret color codes on resistors, capacitors, and inductors. The
numbers are easy enough to remember, but getting tolerances and temperature coefficients
correct is not guaranteed. Usually the color bands on a component are biased toward
one end so there is no ambiguity as to where to begin decoding, but I have seen
plenty where getting the right interpretation is a crap shoot unless the last band
happens to be gold or silver. Gold and silver have no numbers associated with them,
but brown and red are also used for tolerance (brown:±1%, red:±1%, respectively).
Reading capacitor dots can also be a little tricky, but after you've read a few,
it's a piece of cake...
 Here is a fairly major treatise on
folded
and loaded antennas that appeared in a 1953 issue of QST magazine,
with "Suggestions for Mobile and Restricted-Space Radiators." It is not for the
faint of heart or anyone with math phobia or math anxiety. Integral calculus is
part of the presentation, although an understanding of calculus is not required
to get the gist of the article. Equations for calculating the antenna configuration
radiation resistances are given for the 3λ/4-wave folded dipole, the λ/8-wave folded
monopole, the bottom-, center- and top-loaded λ/8-wave monopole, the bottom-loaded
λ/16-wave monopole, and the λ/4-wave monopole folded twice, to name a few...
 Triad RF Systems designs and manufactures
RF power amplifiers
and systems. Triad RF Systems comprises three partners (hence 'Triad') with
over 40 years of accumulated knowledge of what is required to design, manufacture,
market, sell and service RF/Microwave amplifiers and amplifier systems. PA, LNA,
bi-directional, and frequency translating amplifiers are available, in formats including
tower mount, benchtop, rack mount, and chassis mount. "We view Triad more as a technology
partner than a vendor for our line-of-sight communications product line." Please
check to see how they can help your project.
 This is kind of weird. It's either a phenomenal
discovery or bad news for the Ingenuity coaxial helicopter making the airborne rounds
on Mars. The video clip shows the 'copter descending without anything hanging from
its landing gear leg, and then there is a wispy object dangling from it after taking
off again. It looks like a weak water flow from an aerated faucet - which obviously
it cannot be - or maybe a piece of Saran Wrap - which it also cannot be (... or
could it be litter from a Martian's sandwich?). NASA has designated it as
Foreign Object Debris (FOD). It'll be interesting to learn of NASA's conclusion.
 Synzen Precision Technology has unveiled
ALCOR and ATRIA - two new
low-profile antennas which are perfect for the wearable market or any IoT devices
which require an ultra-slim design. Both designs deliver excellent performance at
a limbo-defying height of only 1.6 mm. ALCOR is a 5G low-profile surface mount
antenna that has been developed to be compact but still cover bands from 617-6000 MHz.
It has a small footprint of 40 x 10 x 1.6 (mm) and a fallback to 4G/3G/2G. ATRIA
is even more compact but still covers bands from 698-2690 MHz (also falls back
to 3G/2G). It measures only 30.0 x 7.0 x 1.6 (mm) and requires a small clearance
area (don't be fooled by claims of small antennas which often need a much bigger
clearance area)...
 This schematic and parts lists for the
Arvin model 444 and 444A tabletop radio were scanned and OCR'ed from the November
1946 issue of Radio News magazine. It was a compact, stylish, and affordable radio
for the early post-World War II era. From what I can find, it was built in
the 1945-1946 timeframe, so it was one of the first having been newly made radios
after the three to four year suspension of domestic electronics production while
the War Powers Act allowed the government to mandate companies dedicate capacity
to wartime products. There are still many people who restore and service these vintage
radios, and often it can be difficult or impossible to find schematics and/or tuning
information. This is an abbreviated version of the very informational Radio Service
Data Sheets usually printed...
/jobs.htm" target="_top">
 RF
Cafe's raison d'être is and always has been to provide useful, quality content for
engineers, technicians, engineering managers, students, and hobbyists. Part of that
mission is offering to post applicable /jobs.htm"
target="_top">job openings. HR department employees and/or managers of hiring
companies are welcome to submit opportunities for posting at no charge. 3rd party
recruiters and temp agencies are not included so as to assure a high quality of
listings. Please read through the easy procedure to benefit from RF Cafe's high
quality visitors...
 Anatech Electronics (AEI) manufactures and
supplies RF and microwave filters for military and commercial communication
systems, providing standard LP, HP, BP, BS, notch, diplexer, and custom RF filters,
and RF products. Standard RF filter and cable assembly products are published in
our website database for ease of procurement. Custom RF filters designs are used
when a standard cannot be found, or the requirements dictate a custom approach for
your military and commercial communications needs. Sam Benzacar's monthly newsletters
address contemporary wireless subjects. Please visit Anatech today to see how they
can help your project succeed.
Sunday the 2nd
 Here is your custom made
RF-themed
crossword puzzle for October 2nd, 2022. There are at least 16 instances of this
puzzle's theme included. All RF Cafe crossword puzzles are custom made by me, Kirt
Blattenberger, and have only words and clues related to RF, microwave, and mm-wave
engineering, optics, mathematics, chemistry, physics, and other technical subjects.
As always, this crossword contains no names of politicians, mountain ranges, exotic
foods or plants, movie stars, or anything of the sort unless it/he/she is related
to this puzzle's technology theme (e.g., Reginald Denny or the Tunguska event in
Siberia). The technically inclined cruciverbalists amongst us will appreciate the
effort. Enjoy!
 This assortment of custom-designed themes
by RF Cafe includes T-Shirts, Mouse Pads, Clocks, Tote Bags, Coffee Mugs and Steins,
Purses, Sweatshirts, and Baseball Caps. Choose from amazingly clever "We Are the World's
Matchmakers" Smith chart design or the "Engineer's Troubleshooting Flow Chart."
My "Matchmaker's" design has been ripped off by other people and used on their products,
so please be sure to purchase only official RF Cafe gear. My markup is only a paltry
50¢ per item - Cafe Press gets the rest of your purchase price. These would make
excellent gifts for husbands, wives, kids, significant others, and for handing out
at company events or as rewards for excellent service. It's a great way to help
support RF Cafe. Thanks...
 ConductRF is continually innovating and
developing new and improved solutions for RF Interconnect needs. See the latest
TESTeCON RF Test
Cables for labs. ConductRF makes production and test coax cable assemblies for
amplitude and phased matched VNA applications as well as standard & precision
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iBwave component library. They also provide custom coax solutions for applications
where some standard just won't do. A partnership with Newark assures fast, reliable
access. Please visit ConductRF today to see how they can help your project!
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