Western Electric type VT2 radio tube
date: label: Date made
content: C. 1918
label: date made
content: ca 1917
name: label: maker
content: Western Electric
notes: label: Description (Brief)
content: Vacuum tubes are specialized light bulbs that control the flow of electric current and were commonly used in 20th century radios, televisions, and other electronic equipment. This example from World War I was made in large numbers by Western Electric for the US Army Signal Corps. Just like incandescent light bulbs, fragile vacuum tubes consumed a lot of electricity, generated heat, and ultimately burned out. The invention of transistors at Bell Labs in 1947 gave engineers a more reliable alternative that needed very little power to function.
label: Description (Brief)
content: Brass 4-pin base (gold tips on tines) with bakelite insulator, two plates and grids with one emitter. Tipped G-shaped envelope. Stamped: "C.W.931" on the side; on the shell: "Signal Corps / VT2 / Western / Electric Co. Inc. / Pat. in U.S.A. / 1-15-07 Two patents / 2-18-03 4-27-15 / 12-19-16 / Pat. Applied For". Reference: Tyne, "Saga of the Vacuum Tube" 100-103, 286-287; https://www.radiomuseum.org/tubes/tube_vt2.html.
label: Location
content: Currently not on view
setName: label: See more items in
content: Work and Industry: Electricity
label: See more items in
content: Communications
dataSource: label: Data Source
content: National Museum of American History
identifier: label: ID Number
content: EM.322906
label: accession number
content: 250988
label: catalog number
content: 322906
objectType: label: Object Name
content: Triode
label: Object Name
content: electron tube
label: Other Terms
content: Triode; Electron Tubes
physicalDescription: label: Measurements
content: overall: 4 1/2 in x 2 3/8 in; 11.43 cm x 6.0325 cm