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4 of the September 2018 homepage archives. Friday 14
 I found yet another electronics quiz in a copy of
my vintage Popular Electronics magazine collection. Robert P. Balin published
scores of these quizzes over the span of a couple decades. Unless you have created a
few quizzes yourself, it might seem like there is nothing to it, but even relatively
simple ones like this requires the creator to think up the problems and then guarantee
that the answers given are correct. No, it's not rocket science, but try creating a dozen
quizzes with 8 to 10 questions; it could take a while. Anywho[sic], this
Electronic Switching Quiz requires you to consider the switch positions and
then determine which lamps will turn on...
 Axiom Test Equipment recently posted an article
on its company blog titled, "Pursuing
Power At its Purest." Axiom rents test equipment as well as buying and
selling used gear for analog, digital, RF and microwave, optical, audio, and
other specialty needs. This article discusses how to determine the quality of
power supply signals. "Power supplies are often taken for granted in electronic
system design, although the quality of the power supply is one of the most
important parameters for any electronic system. The power and its supply serve
as forms of heartbeats for an electronic system and have a great deal to do with
the ultimate performance and reliability of the system. The purity of the power
in a component or system..."
VidaRF is offering a line of
coaxial
isolators and circulators covering frequencies from 150 MHz to 40 GHz,
with reflected power levels up to 250 W. Coaxial (SMA, SMP, BNC, N, TNC, 7/16, and
more), drop-in, surface mount, and waveguide configurations are available. Low intermodulation
products (-80 dBc), low insertion loss, and high isolation are standard. Painted
and sealed to IP65 standards, and RoHS compliant. Contact VidaRF today to learn
how they can help your project succeed...
 If you believe this 1969
Sylvania General Telephone & Electronics advertisement, you needed only
to stock their specially-designed 60 components to be able to replace every
other component made anywhere in the world. Even in 1969 when semiconductors
were becoming the majority active devices in electronics (replacing vacuum
tubes), the claim is a bit of a stretch. I have my doubts. The ad probably got
posted on a few engineering lab bulletin boards (the physical kind of yore, not
computer BB's) to elicit a few laughs. It reminds me a little of the episode of
M.A.S.H. where a war correspondent asked Captain Hawkeye Pierce what he brought
with him from home, and he responded that he only brought...
 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...
 "Power electronics experts at two U.S. defense
companies are moving forward with a project to develop enabling technologies for
laser weapons
on future unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) to destroy enemy ballistic missiles in
boost phase. Officials of the U.S. Missile Defense Agency (MDA) in Albuquerque,
N.M., announced contract modifications Friday to General Atomics Electromagnetic
Systems in San Diego, and to the Boeing Defense, Space & Security segment in
Huntsville, Ala., to push forward with the Low Power Laser Demonstrator (LPLD)
project. LPLD seeks to develop enabling technologies in preparation for building
a future high-energy laser weapon..."
Thursday 13
 Part 1 of this "All About IC's" trilogy titled,
"What Makes Them Tick," author Bob Hibberd introduced the concept of semiconductor physics
and doped PN junctions. In Part 2, he discusses methods used to
fabricate monolithic, integrated circuits (IC's) on silicon chips.
Transistors, diodes, resistor, capacitors, and to some extent, inductors, can be
built using a combination of variously doped junction regions, metallization,
and oxidation (insulators). Technology has come a long way since 1969, including
mask techniques, 3-D structures, doping gradients, feature size, dielectric
breakdown strength, current leakage, circuit density, mixed analog, RF, and
digital circuitry, and other things. Part 3, covered in the August issue, goes
into more detail about how passive components are realized in silicon...
QuinStar Technology designs and manufactures
mm-wave products
for communication, scientific, and test applications along with providing microelectronic
assembly, rapid prototyping, and mass customization. Amplifiers, Oscillators, Switches,
Attenuators, Circulators, Isolators, Filters, Waveguide, Antennas, Phase Shifters, Transceivers,
Mixers, Detectors. QuinStar specializes in cryogenic amplifiers,
circulators, and isolators. Please visit QuinStar today to see how they can help
your project...
Electro-Photonics, a market leader in RF and Microwave components has released a
ProbePads 05, a coplanar waveguide-to-microstrip transition. Our
new ProbePads 05 (P/N: PPS-005-01) can be used for many on-wafer measurements, device
characterizations and microwave integrated circuits. This 5 mil thick CPWG to microstrip
transition is made from 99.6% Alumina with a total thin-film process. The ProbePads
05 are manufactured in the USA and are RoHS compliant...
 Note the byline in this 1953 Radio-Electronics
magazine article - Juliette Drut (she's on the cover). Not often were articles in electronics
trade magazines penned by a dame or damsel back in the day. For that matter, it's still
pretty rare today... hmmm... but I digress. If you thumb through any electronics magazines
from the middle of the last century, you find that the pages are filled with advertisements
offering courses to train prospects in the field of
television and radio repair, with promises of a potential to make big money.
Both institutional and home-study courses abounded. The costs never appeared,
but hey, with the money a fellow would be making soon, surely the price would be
inconsequential. Interestingly, in those same issues would be articles such as
this one addressing the reality of electronics servicing...
 Anatech Electronics (AEI) proudly announces that it has received ISO
9001:2015 Certification! We are also officially ITAR Registered with The
Office of Defense Trade Controls Compliance. manufactures and supplies RF and
microwave filters for military and commercial communication systems, providing
standard, custom RF filters, and RF products. Our standard RF filters are based
on previously designed RF filters, drawn from our technical database, and
published on our website for ease of procurement. Custom RF filters designs are
used when a standard cannot be found, or the requirements are such that a custom
approach is necessary. Our products include all types of RF filters, and
microwave filters...
 "Researchers have developed a way to fabricate
nano-scale metal components for next-generation electronics in a similar way to how newspapers
are printed. Though printed newspapers may one day become a thing of the past, researchers
are taking inspiration from the process used to print them to create a new product: electronic
devices. Researchers at Purdue University have developed a manufacturing technique that
uses a process akin to
newspaper printing
for the formation of smoother and more flexible metals. They believe the
low-cost process can form the basis for fabricating ultra-fast electronic
devices, said Ramses Martinez, assistant professor of industrial engineering and
biomedical engineering at the university, in a Purdue news release..."
Wednesday 12
 These three
electronics-themed comics appeared in the February 1953 issue of Radio-Electronics
magazine. The first one showing the television repairman employing contortionist
technique in order to tweak the picture is pretty good. I have seen an
advertisement in one of these magazines that offered a deflection coil alignment
signal generator box that had a mirror mounted inside the cover specifically for
doing the job that tech is doing in the comic. Another comic no doubt hit home
with in-home servicemen of the day; at least the owner was honest. The other
plays off a brand of humor common in the day that demonstrated the public's
fascination with all the newfangled technology showing up every day...
 Res-Net
Microwave has a complete line of precision
RF &
microwave components including attenuators, terminations, resistors, and
diode detectors for commercial, military, and space applications. Products range
from the small flange type to large 2,000 watt connectorized power attenuators
and/or terminations at frequencies up to 26.5 GHz. In-house photo etch and laser
trim capability. Please check out Res-Net Microwave's website to see how they
can help with your current project...
 J.R. Wilson has an article titled, "Electronic Warfare Technology: Heading-up the Battlefield," in the
August issue of Military & Aerospace Electronics magazine. In it,
he provides a good summary for the current state of the art of EW and what its
place is in the modern theater of operations. Nowadays electronics warfare goes
beyond jamming enemy receivers over the air, but also thwarting attempts to
interfere with cyber communications. Artificial intelligence (AI) can mimic the
actions of humans to "fool" countermeasure methods. Keeping a step ahead of our
adversaries is getting harder all the time - as it always has...
 National Instrument and Microwave Journal is hosting
a free webinar, presented by Allen Podell, titled, "Mixers and Frequency Conversion."
It runs from 11:00 am through noon on Thursday, September 13th. "Frequency
conversion is a critical function in all wireless systems. A key component used
to accomplish this is the mixer. Designers need to understand different mixer
topologies and specifications in order to meet their system requirements. This
webinar provides a brief overview of frequency conversion and introduces the
mixer as the component used to accomplish this function. Registration is
required..."
Rohde & Schwarz develops, produces and markets
test & measurement,
information and communications technology. Focus is on test and measurement,
broadcast and media, cybersecurity, secure communications, monitoring and
network testing. Markets serviced are wireless, the automotive industry,
aerospace and defense, industrial electronics, research and education, broadcast
and media network operations, consumer electronics, cybersecurity for business
and governments, communications and security solutions for critical
infrastructures and the armed forces, reconnaissance equipment for homeland and
external security, and much more...
 "A new fabrication method enables
electronic stickers
that can be attached to any devices to enable a streamlined, expanded Internet
of Things. Researchers have been working tirelessly in recent years to come up
with smaller and flexible sensors for myriad Internet of Things (IoT) devices.
Such devices are beginning to flood the market on their way to becoming
ubiquitous throughout businesses, people's homes, and even public locations. A
team at Purdue University and the University of Virginia has come up with a
solution in the development of electronic stickers that could allow these
devices to sense their environment and eventually connect with other devices..."
Tuesday 11
 "Squegging" - Now there's a word you don't hear
every day. It is a shortened version of "self-quenching." As is often the case in these
"Mac's
Service Shop" sagas, we get a primer on certain circuit functions and how to
troubleshoot and resolve the issue. You can also usually count on learning more
than one lesson per reading. After replacing the failed component in Barney's
exasperatingly elusive receiver, Mac turns to record changer mechanisms and
their bewildering nature, but the real message being given is the value of
well-written troubleshooting guides from manufacturers. Even with today's
no-user-serviceable-parts-inside products, there are many times a
troubleshooting guide is included as part of the user's manual. That goes for
both electronic and mechanical products. You might laugh at the first step that
tells the owner to check to make sure the electric cord is plugged in or
batteries are installed with the proper polarity...
 ConductRF offers D38999 RF coaxial cable assemblies
for D38999
Mil-Spec applications including military, aerospace, automotive, and harsh
environment up to 65 GHz. Let us apply our vast experience to quickly build your
custom harnesses and assemblies for RF and mixed signal technologies. Custom
configurations, lengths and markings, flexible phase stable and low loss
solutions, phase matching capabilities, high power cable options with broad
insert connector choices (BMA, SMPM, Sizes #8, #12, & #16). Contact ConductRF
today...
everything RF is now offering
website development services! Get a new website or upgrade your existing
website - All for only $99/month (can go up to $299/month based on the
number of products). There is no design or development charge, nor is there a
lock-in or contract. There is a simple monthly cost which includes everything -
design, development, hosting, backups, data porting and anything else. You do
not need to hire an agency and spend thousands of dollars to create a website...
 The monthly "Solid State" column in Popular
Electronics reported on all the wonderful new germanium- and silicon-based devices
being prepared for the brave new world of electronics. It is a good resource for historical
research. For instance, did you know that the unijunction transistor was originally going
be called a "double-base
diode?" How about a feeble attempt to integrate solid state and vacuum tubes by incorporating
a "semiconductor cold cathode" to replace the standard 6.3 V or 12.6 V heated
cathode for supplying an electron source? Have you ever heard of a "spacistor?" A 1957
edition of "Proceedings of the IRE" published a paper by Pucel and Statz titled, "The
Spacistor, A New Class of High-Frequency Semiconductor Devices." The summary
statement says..."
 Axiom Test Equipment allows
you to rent
or buy test
equipment, repair test
equipment, or sell or trade
test equipment. They are committed to providing superior customer service and
high quality electronic test equipment. Axiom offers customers several
practical, efficient, and cost effective solutions for their projects' TE needs
and is committed to providing superior customer service and high quality
electronic test equipment. Please check out Axiom Test Equipment today!...
 "Bonding scheme and shape of the occupied valence
orbitals of M(CO)8 (M = Ca, Sr, or Ba). Splitting of the spd valence orbitals of an atom
M with the configuration (n-1)d2ns0np0 in the
octacoordinate cubic (Oh) field of eight CO ligands is also given.
Only the occupied valence orbitals that are relevant for the M-CO interactions are shown.
Up and down arrows indicate electrons with opposite spin. A team of researchers from
Fudan University and Nanjing Tech University, both in China, has demonstrated that the
18-electron principle is not limited to transition metals. In their paper published in
the journal Science, the group describes their work with calcium, strontium and barium
atoms and what they found. P. B. Armentrout with the University of Utah offers a
Perspective piece..."
   Incredibly, 17 years has passed since the extremist
Islamic attack on American soil on the morning of
September 11, 2001. Nearly 3,000 citizens died that day. World leaders
have embarked on a path of colonizing our homelands with groups of
people that are known to harbor sympathies for the terrorists. They dwell among us now
and mean to do us harm when opportunity presents itself - which it has on numerous occasions
in the past many years. Never forget the people who died in the burning towers, the Pentagon,
and the airplanes, and those left behind to grieve and get on with life. Never forget
the police and military members who fought - and some died - to keep us safe and free.
Never forget the rotten politicians who imperil our existence with their selfish agendas.
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