Electronics World articles Popular Electronics articles QST articles Radio & TV News articles Radio-Craft articles Radio-Electronics articles Short Wave Craft articles Wireless World articles Google Search of RF Cafe website Sitemap Electronics Equations Mathematics Equations Equations physics Manufacturers & distributors LinkedIn Crosswords Engineering Humor Kirt's Cogitations RF Engineering Quizzes Notable Quotes Calculators Education Engineering Magazine Articles Engineering software RF Cafe Archives Magazine Sponsor RF Cafe Sponsor Links Saturday Evening Post NEETS EW Radar Handbook Microwave Museum About RF Cafe Aegis Power Systems Alliance Test Equipment Centric RF Empower RF ISOTEC Reactel RF Connector Technology San Francisco Circuits Anritsu Amplifier Solutions Anatech Electronics Axiom Test Equipment Conduct RF Copper Mountain Technologies Exodus Advanced Communications Innovative Power Products KR Filters LadyBug Technologies Rigol TotalTemp Technologies Werbel Microwave Windfreak Technologies Wireless Telecom Group Withwave RF Cafe Software Resources Vintage Magazines RF Cafe Software WhoIs entry for RF Cafe.com Thank you for visiting RF Cafe!
Amplifier Solutions Corporation (ASC) - RF Cafe

everythingRF RF & Microwave Parts Database (h1)

Innovative Power Products Passive RF Products - RF Cafe

Please Support RF Cafe by purchasing my  ridiculously low−priced products, all of which I created.

RF Cascade Workbook for Excel

RF & Electronics Symbols for Visio

RF & Electronics Symbols for Office

RF & Electronics Stencils for Visio

RF Workbench

T-Shirts, Mugs, Cups, Ball Caps, Mouse Pads

These Are Available for Free

Espresso Engineering Workbook™

Smith Chart™ for Excel
TotalTemp Technologies (Thermal Platforms) - RF Cafe

"-Tron" Teasers - An Electronic Quiz
October 1963 Electronics World

October 1963 Electronics World

October 1963 Electronics World Cover - RF Cafe  Table of Contents 

Wax nostalgic about and learn from the history of early electronics. See articles from Electronics World, published May 1959 - December 1971. All copyrights hereby acknowledged.

"-Tron" Teasers - An Electronic Quiz, October 1963 Electronics World - RF CafeThyratrons, klystrons, and magnetrons I've heard of, but trochotrons, charactrons, tonotrons I ain't heard of. That made this quiz more of a learning exercise for me than a test of any sort of knowledge possessed. Heck, I thought an 'ignitron' was a pejorative term for a really dumb techie wannabe. In all there are 17 types of '-tron' devices given for which to match from a list of descriptions. You'll probably do better than I did on this quiz that appeared in the October 1963 issue of Electronics World magazine.

"-Tron" Teasers - An Electronic Quiz

By Robert K. Re

How many electronic devices do you know that end with the suffix "-tron"? Check your knowledge of the field with this quiz.

Quite a few devices used in electronics today were named using the suffix "-tron" (electron, cyclotron, etc.).

Out of the many words with this ending, can you match each

A. Thyratron G. Charactron M. Strobotron
B. Klystron H. Phantastron N. Trochotron
C. Cryotron I. Ignitron O. Monotron
D. Tonotron J. Magnetron P. Parametron
E. Megatron K. Chromatron Q. Compactron
F. Dekatron L. Dynatron  

  1. This special tube is used to generate TV test signals when stations are off the air.

  2. A gas-filled device, this counting tube is widely used in digital circuits.

  3. High currents are rectified in the electroplating industry with this mercury-cathode diode.

  4. Much older than a tunnel diode, this four-electrode tube exhibits negative resistance in oscillator circuits.

  5. Widely used in r.f. circuits, this u.h.f. transit-time triode is called a "lighthouse" tube because of its shape.

  6. Once fired, the grid in this gas-filled tube ceases to have control over plate current until plate voltage is removed.

  7. This is the general name for beam-switching tubes. It describes the path of the electron in the tube.

  8. Operating near absolute zero temperature, this super-conducting switching element shows great promise for

      new computers.

  9. This linear sweep generator, once triggered, will keep itself turned on until the sweep is completed. 

10. Crossed magnetic and electric fields are the key to the operation of this high-power, high-frequency oscillator.

11. A new device, this special CRT is a direct-viewing storage tube. Information can be stored for long periods, yet

     quickly erased.

12. This new class of computer circuits uses multiple phase "clock" signals to perform majority logic operations.

13. Having one or more tunable cavities, this high-frequency tube "bunches" the electrons to produce oscillations.

14. This neon lamp is capable of generating short bursts of high-intensity light.

15. A special color CRT, this tube has only one gun and uses phosphor strips in place of phosphor dots.

16. Using a special mask and beam-shaping plate, this CRT can generate symbols on its face.

17. This new 12-pin subminiature, multi-function vacuum tube is finding wide use in electronic equipment.

Quizzes from vintage electronics magazines such as Popular Electronics, Electronics-World, QST, and Radio News were published over the years - some really simple and others not so simple. Robert P. Balin created most of the quizzes for Popular Electronics. This is a listing of all I have posted thus far.

RF Cafe Quizzes

Vintage Electronics Magazine Quizzes

Vintage Electronics Magazine Quizzes

Answers to "-tron" Teasers

  1.  O

  2.  F

  3.  I

  4.  L

  5.  E

  6.  A 

  7.  N

  8.  C

  9.  H

10.  J

11.  D

12.  P

13.  B

14  M

15  K

16.  G

17.  Q

 

 

Posted September 15, 2020
(updated from original post on 4/14/2015)
Werbel Microwave (power dividers, couplers)

About RF Cafe

Kirt Blattenberger - RF Cafe Webmaster

Copyright: 1996 - 2024

Webmaster:

    Kirt Blattenberger,

    BSEE - KB3UON

RF Cafe began life in 1996 as "RF Tools" in an AOL screen name web space totaling 2 MB. Its primary purpose was to provide me with ready access to commonly needed formulas and reference material while performing my work as an RF system and circuit design engineer. The World Wide Web (Internet) was largely an unknown entity at the time and bandwidth was a scarce commodity. Dial-up modems blazed along at 14.4 kbps while tying up your telephone line, and a nice lady's voice announced "You've Got Mail" when a new message arrived...

Copyright  1996 - 2026

All trademarks, copyrights, patents, and other rights of ownership to images and text used on the RF Cafe website are hereby acknowledged.

All trademarks, copyrights, patents, and other rights of ownership to images and text used on the RF Cafe website are hereby acknowledged.

My Hobby Website: AirplanesAndRockets.com

My Daughter's Website: EquineKingdom
Rigol DHO1000 Oscilloscope - RF Cafe

Anatech Electronics RF Microwave Filters - RF Cafe

Noisecom