List Of Vacuum Tubes
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vacuum tube A vacuum tube, electron tube, valve (British usage), or tube (North America), is a device that controls electric current flow in a high vacuum between electrodes to which an electric potential difference has been applied. The type known as ...
s or ''thermionic valves'', and low-pressure
gas-filled tube A gas-filled tube, also commonly known as a discharge tube or formerly as a Plücker tube, is an arrangement of electrodes in a gas within an insulating, temperature-resistant envelope. Gas-filled tubes exploit phenomena related to electric ...
s, or ''discharge tubes''. Before the advent of
semiconductor A semiconductor is a material which has an electrical conductivity value falling between that of a conductor, such as copper, and an insulator, such as glass. Its resistivity falls as its temperature rises; metals behave in the opposite way. ...
devices, thousands of tube types were used in consumer electronics. Many industrial, military or otherwise professional tubes were also produced. Only a few types are still used today, mainly in high-power, high-frequency applications.


Heater or filament ratings

Receiving tubes have heaters or filaments intended for direct battery operation, parallel operation off a dedicated winding on a supply transformer, or series string operation on transformer-less sets. High-power RF power tubes are directly heated; the heater voltage must be much smaller than the signal voltage on the grid and is therefore in the 5...25 V range, drawing up to hundreds of amperes from a suitable heater transformer. In some valve part number series, the voltage class of the heater is given in the part number, and a similar valve might be available with several different heater voltage ratings.


Tube bases and envelopes


Abbreviations used in this list

*ST – Shouldered tube *GT – Glass tube *MT – Miniature tube, such as Noval B9A or Miniature 7-pin B7G *FL – Subminiature all-glass elliptical body and flat bases with long, inline "flying leads" (wire-ends) that are soldered into the circuit *SL – Subminiature all-glass elliptical body and flat bases with short inline leads that can be soldered or can be mated with a special socket. (Flying leads can be cut short to fit into inline sockets.) *R8 – Subminiature all-glass round body and base with 8 flying leads or stiff pins arranged in a circle


Numbering systems


North American systems


RETMA receiving tubes system

RETMA is the acronym for the ''Radio Electronic Television Manufacturers Association'' formed in 1953 - however the standard itself had already been in use since 1933, when RCA/Cunningham introduced the 1A6, 2A3, 2A5, etc. * The first character group is a number representing the heater voltage rounded to the nearest whole number; 0 indicates a cold-cathode tube. * One or two letters assigned to the devices in order of development. * A single numeral that represents the number of active elements in the tube. * Suffix letters distinguish revisions or variants: :*A, B, C – Improved backward compatible versions :*E – Export version :*G – Glass bulb, ST-12 to ST-16 size :*GT – Glass bulb, T-9 size :*GT/G – Glass bulb, T-9 size interchangeable with G and GT types :*L – Loctal :*LM – Loctal-metal :*LT – Locking base :*M – Metal envelope :*MG – Metal-glass :*ML – Metal-Loctal :*S – Spray shielded :*W – Ruggedised, or military grade :*WA, WB – Improved, backward compatible military/industrial variants :*X – Low loss ceramic base for RF use :*Y – Low loss mica-filled
phenolic resin Phenol formaldehyde resins (PF) or phenolic resins (also infrequently called phenoplasts) are synthetic polymers obtained by the reaction of phenol or substituted phenol with formaldehyde. Used as the basis for Bakelite, PFs were the first commerc ...
("Micanol") base for RF use * Lastly, manufacturers may decide to combine two type numbers into a single name, which their one device can replace, such as: 6DX8/ECL84 (6DX8 and ECL84 being identical devices under different naming schemes) or 6BC5/6CE5 (sufficiently identical devices within the RETMA naming system) and even 3A3/3B2, or 6AC5-GT/6AC5-G (where the single type number, 6AC5-GT/6AC5-G, supersedes both the 6AC5-G and the 6AC5-GT). Often designations that differed only in their initial numerals would be identical except for heater characteristics. For examples see below


RMA professional tubes system

The system was used in 1942–44 and assigned numbers with the base form "1A21", and is therefore also referred to as the "1A21 system". See "Decoding type numbers" ff. The first numeric character indicated the filament/heater power rating, the second alphabetic character was a code for the function, and the last 2 digits were sequentially assigned, beginning with 21 For examples see below.


EIA professional tubes system

A four-digit system was maintained by JETEC since 1944, then by
EIA Eia or EIA may refer to: Medicine * Enzyme immunoassay * Equine infectious anemia * Exercise-induced anaphylaxis * Exercise-induced asthma * External iliac artery Transport * Edmonton International Airport, in Alberta, Canada * Erbil Internation ...
since 1957 for special industrial, military and professional vacuum and gas-filled tubes, and all sorts of other devices requiring to be sealed off against the external atmosphere. Some manufacturers preceded the
EIA Eia or EIA may refer to: Medicine * Enzyme immunoassay * Equine infectious anemia * Exercise-induced anaphylaxis * Exercise-induced asthma * External iliac artery Transport * Edmonton International Airport, in Alberta, Canada * Erbil Internation ...
number with a manufacturer's code: *CK, RK –
Raytheon Raytheon Technologies Corporation is an American multinational aerospace and defense conglomerate headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. It is one of the largest aerospace and defense manufacturers in the world by revenue and market capitali ...
Company *ECG –
Philips Koninklijke Philips N.V. (), commonly shortened to Philips, is a Dutch multinational conglomerate corporation that was founded in Eindhoven in 1891. Since 1997, it has been mostly headquartered in Amsterdam, though the Benelux headquarters i ...
/ Sylvania *F – Federal Telephone and Radio ( ITT division) *GL –
General Electric General Electric Company (GE) is an American multinational conglomerate founded in 1892, and incorporated in New York state and headquartered in Boston. The company operated in sectors including healthcare, aviation, power, renewable en ...
Corp. (''not'' British General Electric Company) *ML –
Machlett Laboratories Machlett Laboratories was a Northeastern United States-based company that manufactured X-ray and high-power vacuum tubes. Machlett was a large producer of the tubes and developed accessories to be used with them as well. For its contributions to ...
, Inc. *NL – National Electronics, Inc. (Geneva, Illinois, USA) *NU – National Union Electric Corp. (Orange, New Jersey, USA) *PL – Philips N.V. *SV – Svetlana: :*formerly only '' PJSC " Svetlana/ПАО Светлана"'', St. Petersburg, Russia :*now also a brand of '' New Sensor Corp.'', Long Island City, New York, USA, manufacturing in Saratov, Russia *WL –
Westinghouse Electric The Westinghouse Electric Corporation was an American manufacturing company founded in 1886 by George Westinghouse. It was originally named "Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company" and was renamed "Westinghouse Electric Corporation" in ...
Corp. For examples see below.


Eimac transmitting tubes system

Eitel/McCullough and other manufacturers of high power RF tubes use the following code since 1945: *An initial digit denoting the number of electrodes: :*2 – Diode :*3 – Triode :*4 – Tetrode :*5 – Pentode *Up to 2 letters denoting the construction type and the cooling method: :*R or a dash ("-") – Glass envelope, radiation cooling :*C – Ceramic envelope :*K – (Reflex-)Klystron :*P – Primarily for pulse applications :*L – External anode, liquid convection cooling :*N – External anode, natural convection air cooling :*S – External anode, conduction cooling :*V – Vapor cooled (anode is immersed in boiling water, and the steam is collected, condensed and recycled) :*W – Water cooled (water is pumped through an outer metal jacket thermically connected to the anode) :*X – Forced-air cooled (air is blown through cooling fins thermally connected to the anode) *A number to indicate the maximum anode dissipation in watts. This can be exceeded for a short time, as long as the average is not exceeded over the anode's thermal time constant (typically 0.1 sec). In Class-C applications, the amplifier output power delivered to the load may be higher than the device dissipation *One or more manufacturer-proprietary letters denoting the construction variant *An optional digit denoting the gain group: :*1 – ≤10 :*2 – 11...20 :*3 – 21...30 :*4 – 31...50 :*5 – 51...100 :*6 – 101...200 :*7 – 201...500 :*8 – 501...1000 *Optionally a slash "/" followed by the RMA or EIA equivalent. Examples: *3CW5000A3 – 5 kW Ceramic triode, water cooled, variant 'A', gain group 3 *3CX100A5 – 100 W Ceramic UHF triode, forced-air cooled, variant 'A', gain group 5; often used by radio amateurs for 23cm-band microwave amplifiers. *3CX1500A7 (''8877'') – 1.5 kW Ceramic triode, forced air cooled, variant 'A', gain group 7 *3CX2500A3 – 2.5 kW Ceramic triode, forced air cooled, variant 'A', gain group 3 *4-65A (''8165'') – 65 W Glass
beam tetrode A beam tetrode, sometimes called a beam power tube, is a type of vacuum tube or thermionic valve that has two grids and forms the electron stream from the cathode into multiple partially collimated beams to produce a low potential space cha ...
*4-125A (''4D21'', ''6155'') – 125 W Glass beam tetrode *4-250A (''5D22'', ''6156'') – 110 MHz, 250 W Glass beam tetrode *4-400A – 400 W Glass beam tetrode *
4-1000A The 4-1000A/8166 is a radial-beam tetrode designed for use in radio transmitters. The 4-1000A is the largest of a series of tubes including the 4-65A, 4-125A, 4-250A, and the 4-400A. These tubes share a common naming convention in which the firs ...
(''8166'') – 1 kW Glass beam tetrode popular in broadcast and amateur transmitters. *4CX250B – 250 W Ceramic tetrode, forced-air cooled, version 'B', favored by radio amateurs as a final amplifier. *4CX250DC – 250 W Ceramic tetrode, forced-air cooled, version 'DC' *4CX35000 – Ceramic tetrode used in numerous 50-kW broadcast transmitters, forced-air cooled, often in a Doherty configuration as in the
Continental Electronics Continental Electronics is an American manufacturer of broadcast and military radio transmitters, based in Dallas, Texas. Although Continental today is best known for its FM, shortwave, and military VLF transmitters, Continental is most signific ...
317C series. *5-125B/4E27A – 75 MHz, 125 W Glass power pentode *5-500A – 500 W Glass radial-beam pentode *5CX1500A – 110 MHz, 1.5 kW Ceramic radial-beam pentode, forced air cooled *5CX3000A – 150 MHz, 4.0 kW Ceramic radial-beam pentode, forced air cooled *5K70SH – 30 kW S-band Klystron


West European systems


Mullard–Philips system

This system is very descriptive of what type of device (triode, diode, pentode etc.) it is applied to, as well as the heater/filament type and the base type (octal, noval, etc.). Adhering manufacturers include AEG (de), Amperex (us), CdL (1921, '' French Mazda'' brand), CIFTE (fr, '' Mazda-Belvu'' brand), EdiSwan (uk, '' British Mazda'' brand), Radiotechnique (fr, ''Coprim'', ''Miniwatt-Dario'' and ''RTC'' brands),
Lorenz Lorenz is an originally German name derived from the Roman surname Laurentius, which means "from Laurentum". Given name People with the given name Lorenz include: * Prince Lorenz of Belgium (born 1955), member of the Belgian royal family by h ...
 (de), MBLE( frnl) (be, ''Adzam'' brand),
Mullard Mullard Limited was a British manufacturer of electronic components. The Mullard Radio Valve Co. Ltd. of Southfields, London, was founded in 1920 by Captain Stanley R. Mullard, who had previously designed thermionic valves for the Admir ...
 (uk),
Philips Koninklijke Philips N.V. (), commonly shortened to Philips, is a Dutch multinational conglomerate corporation that was founded in Eindhoven in 1891. Since 1997, it has been mostly headquartered in Amsterdam, though the Benelux headquarters i ...
 (nl, ''Miniwatt'' brand),
RCA The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse, AT&T Corporation and United Fruit Comp ...
 (us), RFT( desv) (de), Siemens (de),
Telefunken Telefunken was a German radio and television apparatus company, founded in Berlin in 1903, as a joint venture of Siemens & Halske and the ''Allgemeine Elektrizitäts-Gesellschaft'' (AEG) ('General electricity company'). The name "Telefunken" ap ...
 (de), Tesla (cz),
Toshiba , commonly known as Toshiba and stylized as TOSHIBA, is a Japanese multinational conglomerate corporation headquartered in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. Its diversified products and services include power, industrial and social infrastructure systems, ...
 (ja),
Tungsram Tungsram was a manufacturing company located in Hungary and known for their light bulbs and electronics. Established in Újpest (today part of Budapest, Hungary) in 1896, it initially produced telephones, wires and switchboards. The name "Tungsra ...
 (hu),
Unitra UNITRA the Association of Polish consumer electronics manufacturers was established in 1961 and lasted in its original structure until 1989. After the systemic transformation, consumer products under the Unitra brand name reappeared on the market. ...
 (pl, ''Dolam'', ''Polam'' and ''Telam'' brands) and Valvo( deit) (de).


=Standard tubes

= This part dates back to the joint valve code key (german: Röhren-
Gemeinschaft ''Gemeinschaft'' () and ''Gesellschaft'' (), generally translated as "community and society", are categories which were used by the German sociologist Ferdinand Tönnies in order to categorize social relationships into two types. The Gesellschaft ...
s schlüssel) negotiated between Philips and Telefunken in 1933–34. Like the North American system the first symbol describes the heater voltage, in this case, a Roman letter rather than a number. Further Roman letters, up to three, describe the device followed by one to four numerals assigned in a semi-chronological order of type development within number ranges assigned to different base types. If two devices share the same type designation other than the first letter (e.g. ECL82, PCL82, UCL82) they will usually be identical except for heater specifications; however there are exceptions, particularly with output types (for example, both the PL84 and UL84 differ significantly from the EL84 in certain major characteristics, although they have the same pinout and similar power rating). However, device numbers do not reveal any similarity between different type families; e.g. the triode section of an ECL82 is not related to either triode of an ECC82, whereas the triode section of an ECL86 does happen to be similar to those of an ECC83. ''
Pro Electron Pro Electron or EECA is the European type designation and registration system for active components (such as semiconductors, liquid crystal displays, sensor devices, electronic tubes and cathode ray tubes). Pro Electron was set up in 1966 in Bru ...
'' maintained a subset of the M-P system after their establishment in 1966, with only the first letters E, P for the heater, only the second letters A, B, C, D, E, F, H, K, L, M, Y, Z for the type, and issuing only three-digit numbers starting with 1, 2, 3, 5, 8, 9 for the base. Notes:
Tungsram Tungsram was a manufacturing company located in Hungary and known for their light bulbs and electronics. Established in Újpest (today part of Budapest, Hungary) in 1896, it initially produced telephones, wires and switchboards. The name "Tungsra ...
preceded the M-P designation with the letter T, as in TAD1 for AD1; '' VATEA Rádiótechnikai és Villamossági Rt.-t.'' (VATEA Radio Technology and Electric Co. Ltd., Budapest, Hungary) preceded the M-P designation with the letter V, as in VEL5 for EL5. *First letter: heater/filament type :Heater ratings for series-string, AC/DC tubes are given in milliamperes; heater ratings for parallel-string tubes are given in volts :*A – 4 V heater for 2-cell lead-acid batteries and for AC mains transformers :*B – 180 mA DC series heater :*C – 200 mA AC/DC series heater :*D – 1.4 V DC filament for
Leclanché cell The Leclanché cell is a battery invented and patented by the French scientist Georges Leclanché in 1866. The battery contained a conducting solution (electrolyte) of ammonium chloride, a cathode (positive terminal) of carbon, a depolarizer of ...
s, later low-voltage/low power filament/heater: ::*0.625 V DC directly heated for NiCd battery, series-heated two-tube designs such as
hearing aid A hearing aid is a device designed to improve hearing by making sound audible to a person with hearing loss. Hearing aids are classified as medical devices in most countries, and regulated by the respective regulations. Small audio amplifiers s ...
s. If either filament breaks, further draining of all batteries stops ::*Wide range 0.9 V to 1.55 V DC directly heated for dry cells ::*1.25 V DC directly heated for NiCd batteries ::*1.25 V or 1.4 V AC from a separate heater winding on CRT horizontal-output transformers, in half-indirectly heated EHT rectifiers :*E – 6.3 V parallel heater; for 3-cell lead-acid vehicle crank batteries (mobile equipment) and for AC mains or horizontal-output transformers :*F – 12.6 V DC parallel heater for 6-cell lead-acid vehicle crank batteries :*G – Various heaters between 2.5 and 5.0 V AC (except 4 V) from a separate heater winding on a mains or horizontal-output transformer for the anode voltage rectifier :*H – 150 mA AC/DC series heater ::*Until at least 1938: 4 V battery (as opposed to A for "4 V AC"; no known examples assigned) :*I – 20 V heater :*K – 2.0 V filament for 1-cell lead-acid batteries, later for AC transformers :*L – 450 mA AC/DC series heater; was shifted here from Y :*M – 1.9 V, directly heated :*N – 12.6 V, indirectly heated :*O –
Cold cathode A cold cathode is a cathode that is not electrically heated by a filament.A negatively charged electrode emits electrons or is the positively charged terminal. For more, see field emission. A cathode may be considered "cold" if it emits more el ...
::*by 1955 this also included
semiconductor A semiconductor is a material which has an electrical conductivity value falling between that of a conductor, such as copper, and an insulator, such as glass. Its resistivity falls as its temperature rises; metals behave in the opposite way. ...
s as these had no heater ::*Philips sold a family of 150mA series heater tubes under this letter in South America :*P – 300 mA AC/DC series heater :*Q – 2.4 V, indirectly heated :*R – Not assigned to avoid any confusion with the olde
Telefunken "R" system
:*S – 1.9 V, indirectly heated :*T – Custom heater :*U – 100 mA AC/DC series heater :*V – 50 mA AC/DC series heater :*X – 600 mA AC/DC series heater :*Y – 450 mA AC/DC series heater, shifted to L to avoid conflicts with the '' professional tubes'' system :*Z –
Cold cathode A cold cathode is a cathode that is not electrically heated by a filament.A negatively charged electrode emits electrons or is the positively charged terminal. For more, see field emission. A cathode may be considered "cold" if it emits more el ...
tube; was shifted here from O after the advent of semiconductors *Second and subsequent letters: system type :* or R – Resistive element ( ballast tube, barretter,
photoresistor A photoresistor (also known as a photocell, or light-dependent resistor, LDR, or photo-conductive cell) is a passive component that decreases resistance with respect to receiving luminosity (light) on the component's sensitive surface. The resi ...
) :*A – Small signal diode :*B – Dual small signal diode :*C – Small signal
triode A triode is an electronic amplifying vacuum tube (or ''valve'' in British English) consisting of three electrodes inside an evacuated glass envelope: a heated filament or cathode, a grid, and a plate (anode). Developed from Lee De Forest's ...
:*D – Power output triode :*E – Small signal
tetrode A tetrode is a vacuum tube (called ''valve'' in British English) having four active electrodes. The four electrodes in order from the centre are: a thermionic cathode, first and second grids and a plate (called ''anode'' in British English). ...
:*F – Small signal pentode :*H – Mixer hexode, special purpose heptode :*K – Mixer heptode or
octode The pentagrid converter is a type of radio receiving valve (vacuum tube) with five grids used as the frequency mixer stage of a superheterodyne radio receiver. The pentagrid was part of a line of development of valves that were able to take an ...
:*L – Power output,
beam tetrode A beam tetrode, sometimes called a beam power tube, is a type of vacuum tube or thermionic valve that has two grids and forms the electron stream from the cathode into multiple partially collimated beams to produce a low potential space cha ...
or pentode :*M – Optical tuning/level indicator :*N – Noble-gas
Thyratron A thyratron is a type of gas-filled tube used as a high-power electrical switch and controlled rectifier. Thyratrons can handle much greater currents than similar hard-vacuum tubes. Electron multiplication occurs when the gas becomes ionized, p ...
:*P – Secondary emission tube – mostly used as third letter :*Q – Nonode :*S – Special tube (german: Sonder röhre) :*T –
Beam deflection tube Beam deflection tubes, sometimes known as sheet beam tubes, are vacuum tubes with an electron gun, a beam intensity control grid, a screen grid, sometimes a suppressor grid, and two electrostatic deflection electrodes on opposite sides of the ...
, or misc. :*W – Gas-filled half-wave rectifier :*X – Gas-filled full-wave rectifier :*Y – Vacuum half-wave rectifier (power diode) :*Z – Vacuum full-wave rectifier (dual power diode with common cathode) *Following digits: model number and base type :For signal pentodes, an odd model number most often identified a variable-mu (remote- cutoff) tube, whereas an even number identified a 'high slope' (sharp-cutoff) tube :For power pentodes and triode-pentode combinations, even numbers usually indicate linear (audio power amplifier) devices while odd numbers were more suited to video signals or situations where more distortion could be tolerated. :*1–9 – Pinch-type construction tubes, mostly P8A side-contact 8-pin bases (P base) or V5A side-contact 5-pin (V base) and various other European pre-octal designs :*10–19 – Y8A 8-pin ''steel tube'' base, aka "German metal octal" :*20–29 – Loctal B8G; some octal; some 8-way side contact (exceptions are DAC21, DBC21, DCH21, DF21, DF22, DL21, DLL21, DM21 which have octal bases) :*30–39 – International Octal (IEC 67-I-5a), also known as IO or K8A :*40–49 – Rimlok (Rimlock) B8A All-glass miniature tubes ::*41w – Battery-heated ''bowl'' tube (german:
Press Press may refer to: Media * Print media or news media, commonly called "the press" * Printing press, commonly called "the press" * Press (newspaper), a list of newspapers * Press TV, an Iranian television network People * Press (surname), a fam ...
napf The Napf is a mountain on the border between the Swiss cantons of Bern and Lucerne. With an altitude of , it is the summit of the Napfgebiet (Napf region), the hilly region lying between Bern and Lucerne. It is counted geologically as part o ...
röhre) :*50–59 – "Special construction types fitted with bases applicable to design features used"; mostly locking bases: "9-pin Loctal" (B9G) or 8-pin Loctal (B8G); but also used for Octal and others (3-pin glass; ''Disk-
seal Seal may refer to any of the following: Common uses * Pinniped, a diverse group of semi-aquatic marine mammals, many of which are commonly called seals, particularly: ** Earless seal, or "true seal" ** Fur seal * Seal (emblem), a device to imp ...
'' incl. ''Lighthouse'' tubes; German 10-pin with spigot; min. 4-pin; B26A; Magnoval B9D) :*60–69 – ''Pencil tubes'' – sub-miniature all-glass tubes, wire-ended (inline fly-leads in place of pins) ::—Before the 1950s: ::*60–64 – All-glass tubes fitted with 9-pin Loctal (B9G) bases :*70–79 – ''Pencil tubes'' with circular pins or fly-leads ::—Before the 1950s: ::*70–79 – 8-pin Loctal (Lorenz) :*80–89 – Noval B9A (9-pin; IEC 67-I-12a) :*90–99 – "Button" B7G (miniature 7-pin; IEC 67-I-10a) :*100–109 – B7G; Wehrmacht base; German PTT base :*110–119 – Y8A 8-pin ''steel tube'' base; Rimlock B8A :*130–139 – Octal :*150–159 – German 10-pin with spigot; 10-pin glass with one big pin; Octal :*160–169 – Inline wire-ended ''Pencil tubes''; Y8A 8-pin ''steel tube'' base :*170–179 – RFT 8-pin; RFT 11-pin all-glass ''gnome tube'' with one offset pin :*180–189 – Noval B9A :*190–199 – Miniature 7-pin B7G :*200–209 – Decal B10B :*230–239 – Octal :*270–279 – RFT 11-pin all glass with one offset pin :*280–289 – Noval B9A :*300–399 – Octal :*400–499 – Rimlock B8A :*500–529 – Magnoval B9D :*600–699 – Inline wire-ended ''Pencil tubes'' :*700–799 – Circular wire-ended ''Pencil tubes'' :*800–899 – Noval B9A :*900–999 – Miniature 7-pin B7G —'' Special quality'': :*1000– Round wire-ended; special ''
Nuvistor The nuvistor is a type of vacuum tube announced by RCA in 1959. Nuvistors were made to compete with the then-new bipolar junction transistors, and were much smaller than conventional tubes of the day, almost approaching the compactness of ea ...
'' base :*2000– Decal B10B :*3000– Octal :*5000– Magnoval B9D :*8000– Noval B9A For examples see below


=Special quality tubes

= Vacuum tubes which had special qualities of some sort, very often long-life designs, particularly for computer and
telecommunication Telecommunication is the transmission of information by various types of technologies over wire, radio, optical, or other electromagnetic systems. It has its origin in the desire of humans for communication over a distance greater than that fe ...
s use, had the numeric part of the designation placed immediately after the first letter. They were usually special-quality versions of standard types. Thus the E82CC was a long-life version of the ECC82 intended for computer and general signal use, and the E88CC a high quality version of the ECC88/6DJ8. While the E80F pentode was a high quality development of the EF80, they were not pin-compatible and could not be interchanged without rewiring the socket (the E80F is commonly sought after as a high quality replacement for the similar EF86 type in guitar amplifiers). The letters "CC" indicated the two triodes and the "F", the single pentode inside these types. A few special-quality tubes did not have a standard equivalent, e.g. the E55L, a broadband power pentode used as the output stage of oscilloscope amplifiers and the E90CC, a dual triode with a common cathode connection and seven pin base for use in cathode-coupled
Flip-flops Flip-flops are a type of light sandal, typically worn as a form of casual footwear. They consist of a flat sole held loosely on the foot by a Y-shaped strap known as a toe thong that passes between the first and second toes and around both side ...
in early computers. The E91H is a special heptode with a passivated third grid designed to reduce secondary emission; this device was used as a "gate", allowing or blocking pulses applied to the first, (
control Control may refer to: Basic meanings Economics and business * Control (management), an element of management * Control, an element of management accounting * Comptroller (or controller), a senior financial officer in an organization * Controllin ...
) grid by changing the voltage on the third grid, in early computer circuits (similar in function to the U.S. 6AS6). Many of these types had gold-plated base pins and special heater configurations inside the nickel cathode tube designed to reduce hum pickup from the A.C. heater supply, and also had improved oxide insulation between the heater and cathode so the cathode could be elevated to a greater voltage above the heater supply. (Note that ''elevating'' the cathode voltage ''above'' the average heater voltage, which in well-designed equipment was supplied from a transformer with an earthed center-tapped secondary, was less detrimental to the oxide insulation between heater and cathode than ''lowering'' the cathode voltage ''below'' the heater voltage, helping to prevent pyrometallurgical electrolytic chemical reactions where the oxide touched the nickel cathode that could form conductive aluminium tungstate and which could ultimately develop into a heater-cathode short circuit.) Better, often dual,
getter A getter is a deposit of reactive material that is placed inside a vacuum system to complete and maintain the vacuum. When gas molecules strike the getter material, they combine with it chemically or by . Thus the getter removes small amounts of ...
s were implemented to maintain a better vacuum, and more-rigid electrode supports introduced to reduce
microphonics Microphonics, microphony, or microphonism describes the phenomenon wherein certain components in electronic devices transform mechanical vibrations into an undesired electrical signal (noise). The term comes from analogy with a microphone, which ...
and improve vibration and shock resistance. The mica spacers used in "SQ" and "PQ" types did not possess sharp protrusions which could flake off and become loose inside the bulb, possibly lodging between the grids and thus changing the characteristics of the device. Some types, particularly the E80F, E88CC and E90CC, had a constricted section of bulb to firmly hold specially shaped flakeless mica spacers. For examples see below, starting at DC Later special-quality tubes had not base and function swapped but were assigned a 4-digit number, such as ECC2000 or ED8000, the first digit of which again denoting the base: *1 – Miscellaneous *2 – 10-pin Decal base (
JEDEC The JEDEC Solid State Technology Association is an independent semiconductor engineering trade organization and standardization body headquartered in Arlington County, Virginia, United States. JEDEC has over 300 members, including some of the w ...
E10-61) *3 – Octal base ( IEC 67-1-5a) *5 – Magnoval base (JEDEC E9-23) *8 – Noval base (IEC 67-1-12a) *9 – Miniature 7-pin base (IEC 67-1-10a) For examples see below, starting at EC "Z"
Cold-cathode A cold cathode is a cathode that is not electrically heated by a filament.A negatively charged electrode emits electrons or is the positively charged terminal. For more, see field emission. A cathode may be considered "cold" if it emits more ele ...
SQ tubes had a different function letter scheme: *A –
Arc discharge An electric arc, or arc discharge, is an electrical breakdown of a gas that produces a prolonged electrical discharge. The current through a normally nonconductive medium such as air produces a plasma; the plasma may produce visible light. An ...
tube *B – Binary counter or switching tube *C – Common-cathode ''Counter
Dekatron In electronics, a Dekatron (or Decatron, or generically three-phase gas counting tube or glow-transfer counting tube or cold cathode tube) is a gas-filled decade counting tube. Dekatrons were used in computers, calculators, and other counti ...
'' that makes only carry/borrow cathodes separately available for cascading *E –
Electrometer An electrometer is an electrical instrument for measuring electric charge or electrical potential difference. There are many different types, ranging from historical handmade mechanical instruments to high-precision electronic devices. Modern ...
tube *G – Gating tube *M – Optical indicator *S – Separate-cathode ''Counter/Selector Dekatron'' that makes all cathodes available on individual pins for displaying, divide-by-n counter/timer/prescalers, etc. *T – ''Relay triode'', a low-power triode
thyratron A thyratron is a type of gas-filled tube used as a high-power electrical switch and controlled rectifier. Thyratrons can handle much greater currents than similar hard-vacuum tubes. Electron multiplication occurs when the gas becomes ionized, p ...
, one starter electrode, may need illumination for proper operation if not radioactively primed *U – Low-power tetrode thyratron, may mean: :*''Trigger tetrode'', one starter electrode and a primer (keep-alive) electrode for ion availability to keep the ignition voltage constant, for analog RC timers, voltage triggers, etc. :*''Relay tetrode'', two starter electrodes to make counters bidirectional or resettable *W – ''Trigger pentode'', two starter electrodes and a primer electrode *X – Shielded ''Trigger pentode'', two starter electrodes, a primer electrode and a conductive coating of the glass envelope inside connected to a separate pin For examples, see below under Z


=Professional tubes

= In use since at least 1961, this system was maintained by ''
Pro Electron Pro Electron or EECA is the European type designation and registration system for active components (such as semiconductors, liquid crystal displays, sensor devices, electronic tubes and cathode ray tubes). Pro Electron was set up in 1966 in Bru ...
'' after their establishment in 1966. Both letters together indicate the type: *X – High vacuum electro-optical devices :*XA –
Phototube A phototube or photoelectric cell is a type of gas-filled or vacuum tube that is sensitive to light. Such a tube is more correctly called a 'photoemissive cell' to distinguish it from photovoltaic or photoconductive cells. Phototubes were previ ...
:*XG – Miscellaneous :*XM – Character generating cathode ray tube :*XP –
Photomultiplier A photomultiplier is a device that converts incident photons into an electrical signal. Kinds of photomultiplier include: * Photomultiplier tube, a vacuum tube converting incident photons into an electric signal. Photomultiplier tubes (PMTs for sh ...
:*XQ –
Camera tube Video camera tubes were devices based on the cathode ray tube that were used in television cameras to capture television images, prior to the introduction of charge-coupled device (CCD) image sensors in the 1980s. Several different types of tub ...
:*XR – Monoscope :*XS – Cathode ray charge storage tube :*XT – Memory display tube :*XV – Infrared detector :*XW – Infrared imaging device :*XX – Image intensifier or image converter *Y –
Vacuum tube A vacuum tube, electron tube, valve (British usage), or tube (North America), is a device that controls electric current flow in a high vacuum between electrodes to which an electric potential difference has been applied. The type known as ...
s :*YA – Diode :*YD – Transmitting or industrial, single or dual triode :*YG –
Electrometer An electrometer is an electrical instrument for measuring electric charge or electrical potential difference. There are many different types, ranging from historical handmade mechanical instruments to high-precision electronic devices. Modern ...
tube,
vacuum gauge {{Cat main, Vacuum system Vacuum Systems A system is a group of interacting or interrelated elements that act according to a set of rules to form a unified whole. A system, surrounded and influenced by its environment, is described by its boun ...
:*YH –
Traveling-wave tube A traveling-wave tube (TWT, pronounced "twit") or traveling-wave tube amplifier (TWTA, pronounced "tweeta") is a specialized vacuum tube that is used in electronics to amplify radio frequency (RF) signals in the microwave range. The TWT belongs t ...
:*YJ –
Magnetron The cavity magnetron is a high-power vacuum tube used in early radar systems and currently in microwave ovens and linear particle accelerators. It generates microwaves using the interaction of a stream of electrons with a magnetic field while ...
:*YK –
Klystron A klystron is a specialized linear-beam vacuum tube, invented in 1937 by American electrical engineers Russell and Sigurd Varian,Pond, Norman H. "The Tube Guys". Russ Cochran, 2008 p.31-40 which is used as an amplifier for high radio frequen ...
:*YL – Transmitting or industrial, single or dual tetrode or pentode :*YN –
Backward-wave oscillator A backward wave oscillator (BWO), also called carcinotron or backward wave tube, is a vacuum tube that is used to generate microwaves up to the terahertz range. Belonging to the traveling-wave tube family, it is an oscillator with a wide elect ...
:*YP –
Electron multiplier An electron multiplier is a vacuum-tube structure that multiplies incident charges. In a process called secondary emission, a single electron can, when bombarded on secondary-emissive material, induce emission of roughly 1 to 3 electrons. If an el ...
:*YR –
Crossed-field amplifier A crossed-field amplifier (CFA) is a specialized vacuum tube, first introduced in the mid-1950s and frequently used as a microwave amplifier in very-high-power transmitters. Raytheon engineer William C. Brown's work to adapt magnetron principles ...
:*YT – Pulse modulator tube :*YY – High vacuum rectifier *Z –
Gas-filled tube A gas-filled tube, also commonly known as a discharge tube or formerly as a Plücker tube, is an arrangement of electrodes in a gas within an insulating, temperature-resistant envelope. Gas-filled tubes exploit phenomena related to electric ...
s not employing photosensitive materials :*ZA – Cold cathode indicator tube :*ZB – Microwave switching tube ( TR/ATR cells, etc.) :*ZC – Trigger tube :*ZD – Surge arrester :*ZE – ''Glow modulator tube'', a linear light source for rotating-drum
FAX Fax (short for facsimile), sometimes called telecopying or telefax (the latter short for telefacsimile), is the telephonic transmission of scanned printed material (both text and images), normally to a telephone number connected to a printer o ...
receivers,
film soundtrack A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack o ...
recording, etc. :*ZF –
Flash tube Flash, flashes, or FLASH may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional aliases * Flash (DC Comics character), several DC Comics superheroes with super speed: ** Flash (Barry Allen) ** Flash (Jay Garrick) ** Wally West, the first Kid ...
:*ZL –
Gas laser A gas laser is a laser in which an electric current is discharged through a gas to produce coherent light. The gas laser was the first continuous-light laser and the first laser to operate on the principle of converting electrical energy to a lase ...
:*ZM – Cold cathode character display tube or counter display tube :*ZP – Radiation counter tube ( Geiger-Müller counter tube or proportional counter tube) :*ZQ – Mixed analogue and digital display :*ZR –
Plasma display A plasma display panel (PDP) is a type of flat panel display that uses small cells containing plasma: ionized gas that responds to electric fields. Plasma televisions were the first large (over 32 inches diagonal) flat panel displays to be releas ...
panel :*ZS – Bar graph :*ZT –
Thyratron A thyratron is a type of gas-filled tube used as a high-power electrical switch and controlled rectifier. Thyratrons can handle much greater currents than similar hard-vacuum tubes. Electron multiplication occurs when the gas becomes ionized, p ...
:*ZX –
Ignitron An ignitron is a type of gas-filled tube used as a controlled rectifier and dating from the 1930s. Invented by Joseph Slepian while employed by Westinghouse, Westinghouse was the original manufacturer and owned trademark rights to the name "Ignit ...
:*ZY – Mercury-vapor rectifier :*ZZ – Voltage stabilizer or corona discharge tube Then follows a 4-digit sequentially assigned number. Optional suffixes for camera tubes: Version letter: *B – Blue *G – Green *L – Luminance *R – Red *T – Reticule *X – Medical
X-ray An X-ray, or, much less commonly, X-radiation, is a penetrating form of high-energy electromagnetic radiation. Most X-rays have a wavelength ranging from 10  picometers to 10  nanometers, corresponding to frequencies in the range 30&nb ...
Letter for variants derived by selection: *D – High resolution *M – Blemish standard For examples see below


=Transmitting tubes

= The first letter (or letter pair, in the case of a dual-system device) indicates the general type: *B – Backward-wave amplifier *D – Rectifier, including grid-controlled types *J –
Magnetron The cavity magnetron is a high-power vacuum tube used in early radar systems and currently in microwave ovens and linear particle accelerators. It generates microwaves using the interaction of a stream of electrons with a magnetic field while ...
*K –
Klystron A klystron is a specialized linear-beam vacuum tube, invented in 1937 by American electrical engineers Russell and Sigurd Varian,Pond, Norman H. "The Tube Guys". Russ Cochran, 2008 p.31-40 which is used as an amplifier for high radio frequen ...
*L –
Traveling-wave tube A traveling-wave tube (TWT, pronounced "twit") or traveling-wave tube amplifier (TWTA, pronounced "tweeta") is a specialized vacuum tube that is used in electronics to amplify radio frequency (RF) signals in the microwave range. The TWT belongs t ...
*M – Triode (AF amplifier or modulator) *P – Pentode *Q – Tetrode *R – Rectifier, including grid-controlled types *T – Triode (RF, oscillator) *X – Large
thyratron A thyratron is a type of gas-filled tube used as a high-power electrical switch and controlled rectifier. Thyratrons can handle much greater currents than similar hard-vacuum tubes. Electron multiplication occurs when the gas becomes ionized, p ...
(including all hydrogen thyratrons and high-current types) The following letter indicates the filament or cathode type, or the fill gas or other construction detail. The coding for vacuum devices differs between Philips (and other Continental European manufacturers) on the one hand and its Mullard subsidiary on the other. :Philips vacuum devices: :*A ::*Microwave tubes: Output power <1W ::*Other tubes: Directly heated
tungsten Tungsten, or wolfram, is a chemical element with the symbol W and atomic number 74. Tungsten is a rare metal found naturally on Earth almost exclusively as compounds with other elements. It was identified as a new element in 1781 and first isol ...
filament :*B ::*Microwave tubes: Output power ≥1W ::*Other tubes: Directly heated thoriated tungsten filament :*C – Directly heated oxide-coated filament :*D – Disk-seal construction :*E – Indirectly heated oxide-coated cathode :Mullard vacuum devices: :*G – Directly heated oxide-coated filament (only mercury-vapor rectifiers) :*N – External magnet required (magnetrons) :*P – Packaged construction (magnetrons) :*S – Reflex klystron :*T – Multiple resonator (klystrons) :*V – Indirectly heated oxide-coated cathode :*X – Directly heated tungsten filament :*Y – Directly heated thoriated tungsten filament :*Z – Directly heated oxide-coated filament (except mercury-vapor rectifiers) :Gas-filled devices: :*G – Mercury-vapor filling :*H – Hydrogen filling :*R – Rare-gas filling :*X – Xenon filling The next letter indicates the cooling method or other significant characteristic: *H – Helix or other integral cooler *L – Forced-air cooling *Q – Shield-grid (tetrode) thyratron (thyratrons only) *S –
Silica Silicon dioxide, also known as silica, is an oxide of silicon with the chemical formula , most commonly found in nature as quartz and in various living organisms. In many parts of the world, silica is the major constituent of sand. Silica is ...
envelope, to allow for a
glowing anode When a vacuum tube circuit malfunctions and draws excessive current, the anode ("plate") may overheat, sometimes causing a visible red or orange glow. In consumer electronics, this is universally indicative that the tube is experiencing an overlo ...
*T – Tunable microwave device *W – Water cooling The following group of digits indicate: *Microwave tubes: Frequency in GHz *Rectifying tubes: DC output voltage in kV in a three-phase half-wave configuration *Thyratrons:
Peak inverse voltage The peak inverse voltage is either the specified maximum voltage that a diode rectifier can block, or, alternatively, the maximum voltage that a rectifier needs to block in a given circuit. The peak inverse voltage increases with an increase in te ...
in kV *Transmitting tubes: Maximum anode voltage in kV The following group of digits indicate the power: *Backward-wave amplifier or Traveling-wave tube: Output power :*2nd letter: A – in mW :*2nd letter: B – in W *Klystrons: Output power in W *Reflex Klystrons: Output power in mW *Magnetrons: Pulse output power in kW *Continuously transmitting tubes: Maximum anode dissipation in W or kW in Class-C amplifier telegraphy *Pulsed transmitting tubes: Maximum peak anode current in A (number preceded by "P") *Rectifiers: Maximum average anode current in mA *Thyratrons: Maximum average anode current: :*Less than 3 digits: in mA :*3 or more digits: ::*1st digit: =0 – in mA ::*1st digit: >0 – in A An optional following letter indicates the base or connection method: *B – Cables *E – Medium 7-pin base *ED – Edison screw lamp base *EG – Goliath lamp base *F – Medium 8-pin base *G – Medium 4-pin base *GB – Jumbo 4-pin base *GS – Super jumbo 4-pin base *N – Medium 5-pin base *P – Side-contact 8-pin base For examples see below


=

Phototube A phototube or photoelectric cell is a type of gas-filled or vacuum tube that is sensitive to light. Such a tube is more correctly called a 'photoemissive cell' to distinguish it from photovoltaic or photoconductive cells. Phototubes were previ ...
s and photomultipliers

= The first digit indicates the tube base: *2 – Loctal 8-pin base *3 – Octal base *5, 6 – Special base or flying leads *8 – Noval base *9 – Miniature 7-pin base The second digit is a sequentially assigned number. The following letter indicates the
photocathode A photocathode is a surface engineered to convert light ( photons) into electrons using the photoelectric effect. Photocathodes are important in accelerator physics where they are utilised in a photoinjector to generate high brightness electron ...
type: *A – Caesium-activated
antimony Antimony is a chemical element with the symbol Sb (from la, stibium) and atomic number 51. A lustrous gray metalloid, it is found in nature mainly as the sulfide mineral stibnite (Sb2S3). Antimony compounds have been known since ancient t ...
cathode. Used for reflective-mode photocathodes. Response range from ultraviolet to visible. Widely used. *C – Caesium-on-oxidated-silver cathode, also called S1. Transmission-mode, sensitive from 300...1200 nm. High dark current; used mainly in near-infrared, with the photocathode cooled. *T – ''Trialkali''
sodium Sodium is a chemical element with the symbol Na (from Latin ''natrium'') and atomic number 11. It is a soft, silvery-white, highly reactive metal. Sodium is an alkali metal, being in group 1 of the periodic table. Its only stable ...
-
potassium Potassium is the chemical element with the symbol K (from Neo-Latin ''kalium'') and atomic number19. Potassium is a silvery-white metal that is soft enough to be cut with a knife with little force. Potassium metal reacts rapidly with atmosph ...
-antimony-caesium cathode, wide spectral response from ultraviolet to near-infrared; special cathode processing can extend range to 930 nm. Used in broadband spectrophotometers. *U – Caesium-antimony cathode with a quartz window The following letter indicates the filling: *G – Gas-filled *V – High-vacuum A following letter P indicates a photomultiplier. Examples: *50AVP – 11-stage photomultiplier for scintillation counters, duodecal base *51UVP – 11-stage photomultiplier, duodecal base *52AVP/XP1180 – 10-stage photomultiplier, 13-pin base *53AVP, 153AVP – 10-stage photomultiplier, diheptal 14-pin base *53UVP – 11-stage photomultiplier, diheptal 14-pin base *54AVP – 11-stage photomultiplier, diheptal 14-pin base *55AVP – 15-stage photomultiplier, bidecal 20-pin base *56AVP – 14-stage photomultiplier, bidecal 20-pin base *56UVP – 14-stage photomultiplier, duodecal base *57AVP – 11-stage photomultiplier, bidecal 20-pin base *58AVP – 14-stage photomultiplier, bidecal 20-pin base *150AVP – 10-stage photomultiplier, bidecal 20-pin base *150CVP – 10-stage photomultiplier, bidecal 20-pin base *57CV – Photometric cell *58CG – Gas-filled phototube, Red/IR sensitive, all-glass wire-ended *58CV – Vacuum phototube, Red/IR sensitive, all-glass wire-ended *90AG – Gas-filled phototube, daylight/blue sensitive, miniature 7-pin base *90AV – Vacuum phototube, blue sensitive, miniature 7-pin base *90CG – Gas-filled phototube, Red/IR sensitive, miniature 7-pin base *90CV – Vacuum phototube, Red/IR sensitive, miniature 7-pin base *92AG – Gas-filled phototube, blue sensitive, miniature 7-pin base *92AV – Vacuum phototube, blue sensitive, miniature 7-pin base *61SV/7634 –
PbS The Public Broadcasting Service (PBS) is an American public broadcaster and non-commercial, free-to-air television network based in Arlington, Virginia. PBS is a publicly funded nonprofit organization and the most prominent provider of educat ...
infrared Infrared (IR), sometimes called infrared light, is electromagnetic radiation (EMR) with wavelengths longer than those of visible light. It is therefore invisible to the human eye. IR is generally understood to encompass wavelengths from around ...
(300...3500 nm)
photoresistor A photoresistor (also known as a photocell, or light-dependent resistor, LDR, or photo-conductive cell) is a passive component that decreases resistance with respect to receiving luminosity (light) on the component's sensitive surface. The resi ...
, 2-pin all-glass wire-ended


= Voltage stabilizers

= The first number indicates the burning voltage The following letter indicates the current range: *A – max. 10mA *B – max. 22mA *C – max. 40mA *D – max. 100mA *E – max. 200mA The following digit is a sequentially assigned number. An optional, following letter indicates the base: *E – Edison screw lamp base *K – Octal base *P – Side-contact 8-pin base Examples: *75B1 – Voltage reference tube, miniature 7-pin base *75C1 – Voltage reference tube, miniature 7-pin base *83A1 – Voltage reference tube, miniature 7-pin base *85A1/0E3 – Voltage reference tube, B8G Loctal base *85A2/0G3 – Voltage reference tube, miniature 7-pin base *90C1 – Voltage reference tube, miniature 7-pin base *95A1 – Voltage reference tube, miniature 7-pin base *100E1 – Voltage reference tube, A4A European 4-pin Base *108C1/0B2 – Voltage reference tube, miniature 7-pin base *150A1 – Voltage reference tube, P8A side-contact 8 base *150B2 – Voltage reference tube, miniature 7-pin base *150B3 – Voltage reference tube, miniature 7-pin base *150C1 – Voltage reference tube, P8A side-contact 8 base *150C2/0A2 – Voltage reference tube, miniature 7-pin base *150C4 – Voltage reference tube, miniature 7-pin base


Compagnie des Lampes (1888, "Métal") system

The first (1888) incarnation of ''
La Compagnie des Lampes La Compagnie des Lampes ("The Lamp Company") was a name used by several French companies all in the area of electrical products particularly lighting. La Compagnie des Lampes (1888) The original ''Compagnie des Lampes'' was set up at Ivry-sur-Se ...
'' produced the TM tube since 1915 and defined one of the first French systems; not to be confused with Compagnie des Lampes (1921, "French Mazda", see below). First letter: Heater or filament voltage *A – 1 V *B – 2 V *D – 4 V *E – 5 V *F – 6 V *G – 7 V Second letter: Heater or filament current *W – ≥200 mA *X – 150 mA *Y – 100...140 mA *Z – 50 mA Next number: Gain Next number:
Internal resistance A practical electrical power source which is a linear electric circuit may, according to Thévenin's theorem, be represented as an ideal voltage source in series with an impedance. This impedance is termed the internal resistance of the source. ...
in kΩ Examples: *BW604 – ''Métal secteur'' indirectly AC-heated AF power triode *BW1010 – ''Métal secteur'' indirectly AC-heated AF triode


EdiSwan ("British

Mazda , commonly referred to as simply Mazda, is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Fuchū, Hiroshima, Japan. In 2015, Mazda produced 1.5 million vehicles for global sales, the majority of which (nearly one m ...
") systems

Note: EdiSwan also used the Mullard–Philips scheme.


=Signal tubes

= First number: Heater or filament rating *0 – Misc. higher voltages *1 – 1.4 V *6 – 6.3 V *10 – 100 mA *20 – 200 mA *30 – 300 mA Following letter or letter sequence: Type *C –
Frequency changer A frequency changer or frequency converter is an electronic or electromechanical device that converts alternating current ( AC) of one frequency to alternating current of another frequency. The device may also change the voltage, but if it does, ...
with special oscillator section *D – Signal diode(s) *F – Tetrode or pentode *FD – Tetrode or pentode and diode(s) *FL – Tetrode or pentode, and triode *K – Small gas triode or tetrode
thyratron A thyratron is a type of gas-filled tube used as a high-power electrical switch and controlled rectifier. Thyratrons can handle much greater currents than similar hard-vacuum tubes. Electron multiplication occurs when the gas becomes ionized, p ...
*L – Single or dual triode, including oscillator triode *LD – Triode and diode(s) *M – Optical tuning/level indicator *P – Power tetrode or pentode *PL – Power tetrode or pentode, and signal triode Final number: Sequentially assigned number


=Power tubes

= Letter(s): Type *U – High-vacuum half-wave rectifier *UU – High-vacuum full-wave rectifier Number: Sequentially assigned number Examples: Note: "AC/"-series receiver tubes are listed under '' other letter tubes - AC/'' *6C10 (6CU7/ECH42) – Triode/hexode frequency converter, Rimlock base *6F22 (6267/EF86) – Low-noise A.F. pentode, noval base *6F33 – Shielded pentode, Miniature 7-pin base *6L12 (6AQ8/ECC85) – Dual triode, noval base *6L19 – Dual triode, Rimlock base *6M2 (6CD7/EM34) – Dual-sensitivity tuning indicator, octal base *6P9 (6BM5) – Power pentode, Miniature 7-pin base *6P15 (6BQ5/
EL84 The EL84 is a vacuum tube of the power pentode type. It is used in the power-output-stages of audio-amplifiers, most commonly now in guitar amplifiers, but originally in radios. The EL84 is smaller and more sensitive than the octal 6V6 that was ...
) – Power pentode, noval base *10PL12 (50BM8/UCL82) – Triode/power pentode, noval base *U381 (38A3/UY85) – Half-wave rectifier, noval base *UU9 (6BT4/EZ40) – Full-wave rectifier, rimlock base


EEV system

This system consists of one or more letters followed by a sequentially assigned number *A – High vacuum rectifier *AFX – Rare-gas filled triode
thyratron A thyratron is a type of gas-filled tube used as a high-power electrical switch and controlled rectifier. Thyratrons can handle much greater currents than similar hard-vacuum tubes. Electron multiplication occurs when the gas becomes ionized, p ...
*AH – Mercury-vapor rectifier *AX – Xenon filled rectifier *B – Radiation-cooled triode *BD – Mercury vapor rectifier *BK –
Ignitron An ignitron is a type of gas-filled tube used as a controlled rectifier and dating from the 1930s. Invented by Joseph Slepian while employed by Westinghouse, Westinghouse was the original manufacturer and owned trademark rights to the name "Ignit ...
*BM –
Magnetron The cavity magnetron is a high-power vacuum tube used in early radar systems and currently in microwave ovens and linear particle accelerators. It generates microwaves using the interaction of a stream of electrons with a magnetic field while ...
*BR – Forced air cooled triode *BS – TR (Transmit/receive) cell, TB cell, Solid-state microwave device *BT – Mercury vapor or xenon filled thyratron *BW – Water cooled triode *BY – Vapor cooled triode *C – Radiation-cooled tetrode *CR – Forced air cooled tetrode *CW – Water cooled tetrode *CX – Hydrogen tetrode thyratron *E –
Storage tube Storage tubes are a class of cathode-ray tubes (CRTs) that are designed to hold an image for a long period of time, typically as long as power is supplied to the tube. A specialized type of storage tube, the Williams tube, was used as a main mem ...
*FX – Hydrogen triode thyratron *GX –
Spark gap A spark gap consists of an arrangement of two conducting electrodes separated by a gap usually filled with a gas such as air, designed to allow an electric spark to pass between the conductors. When the potential difference between the conduct ...
*K –
Klystron A klystron is a specialized linear-beam vacuum tube, invented in 1937 by American electrical engineers Russell and Sigurd Varian,Pond, Norman H. "The Tube Guys". Russ Cochran, 2008 p.31-40 which is used as an amplifier for high radio frequen ...
*M – Magnetron *NFT – Nernst filament, a source of mid-infrared radiation *P –
Video camera tube Video camera tubes were devices based on the cathode ray tube that were used in television cameras to capture television images, prior to the introduction of charge-coupled device (CCD) image sensors in the 1980s. Several different types of tubes ...
*QS –
Voltage-regulator tube A voltage-regulator tube (VR tube) is an electronic component used as a shunt regulator to hold a voltage constant at a pre-determined level. Physically, these devices resemble vacuum tubes, but there are two main differences: * Their glass env ...
*QT –
Cold-cathode A cold cathode is a cathode that is not electrically heated by a filament.A negatively charged electrode emits electrons or is the positively charged terminal. For more, see field emission. A cathode may be considered "cold" if it emits more ele ...
trigger tube *T – CRT *U – Vacuum capacitor *XL – ''Glow modulator tube'',
flash tube Flash, flashes, or FLASH may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Fictional aliases * Flash (DC Comics character), several DC Comics superheroes with super speed: ** Flash (Barry Allen) ** Flash (Jay Garrick) ** Wally West, the first Kid ...
,
gas laser A gas laser is a laser in which an electric current is discharged through a gas to produce coherent light. The gas laser was the first continuous-light laser and the first laser to operate on the principle of converting electrical energy to a lase ...
Examples: *B142 – 400 W RF power triode up to 50 MHz similar to 833A *B1109 = 3C24 – 25 W VHF power triode up to 60 MHz *B1135 = 5867 = CV1350 – VHF power triode up to 100 MHz *B1152 – 500W RF power triode up to 50 MHz *QT1257 – ''Touch button tube'', an illuminated capacitance
touch switch A touch switch is a type of switch that only has to be touched by an object to operate. It is used in many lamps and wall switches that have a metal exterior as well as on public computer terminals. A touchscreen includes an array of touch switches ...
; a cold-cathode DC ''relay tube'', external (capacitive) starter activated by touching; then the cathode glow is visible. 6-pin octal base *XL601, XL602, XL603, XL627, XL628, XL631 and XL632 – Cold-cathode, linear light source (''glow modulator tube''), gas diode with a blue-violet glow, modulation up to 1 MHz, 2-pin Octal base, for rotating-drum
FAX Fax (short for facsimile), sometimes called telecopying or telefax (the latter short for telefacsimile), is the telephonic transmission of scanned printed material (both text and images), normally to a telephone number connected to a printer o ...
receivers, etc.


ETL computing tubes system

The British '' Ericsson Telephones Limited'' (ETL), of Beeston, Nottingham (not to be confused with the Swedish ''TelefonAB Ericsson''), original holder of the now-generic trademark ''
Dekatron In electronics, a Dekatron (or Decatron, or generically three-phase gas counting tube or glow-transfer counting tube or cold cathode tube) is a gas-filled decade counting tube. Dekatrons were used in computers, calculators, and other counti ...
'', used the following system: *An initial letter denoting the filling: :*G – Noble gas-filled :*V – Vacuum *One letter denoting the type: :*C – Common-cathode ''Counter
Dekatron In electronics, a Dekatron (or Decatron, or generically three-phase gas counting tube or glow-transfer counting tube or cold cathode tube) is a gas-filled decade counting tube. Dekatrons were used in computers, calculators, and other counti ...
'' that makes only carry/borrow cathodes separately available for cascading :*D – Diode,
voltage reference A voltage reference is an electronic device that ideally produces a fixed (constant) voltage irrespective of the loading on the device, power supply variations, temperature changes, and the passage of time. Voltage references are used in power sup ...
, etc. :*R – Register (Readout) – Digital indicator :*S –
Trochotron A Nixie tube ( ), or cold cathode display, is an electronic device used for displaying numerals or other information using glow discharge. The glass tube contains a wire-mesh anode and multiple cathodes, shaped like numerals or other symbols ...
or Separate-cathode ''Counter/Selector Dekatron'' that makes all cathodes available on individual pins for displaying, divide-by-n counter/timer/prescalers, etc. :*TE – Trigger tetrode, one starter electrode and a keep-alive (primer) electrode for ion availability :*TR – Trigger triode, one starter electrode only *A digit group: :*Dekatrons: Stage count :*Digital indicators: Display cathode count :*Diodes, voltage references: Nominal voltage :*Trigger tubes: Ignition voltage *An optional digit group after a slash: Pin count *One letter denoting the type: :*A – Plastic base :*B – Plastic base :*C – Plastic base :*D – Plastic base :*E – Plastic base :*G – 26-pin B26A base :*H – 27-pin B27A base :*M – B7G base :*P – B7G base :*Q – B7G base :*W – Wire-ends :*X – Wire-ends :*Y – Wire-ends Examples: *GC10/2P – Neon-filled, 1 kHz Miniature decade ''Counter
Dekatron In electronics, a Dekatron (or Decatron, or generically three-phase gas counting tube or glow-transfer counting tube or cold cathode tube) is a gas-filled decade counting tube. Dekatrons were used in computers, calculators, and other counti ...
'', a gas-filled, bidirecional decade counter tube *GC10A – Helium-filled, decade ''Counter Dekatron'' *GC10B – Neon-filled, 4 kHz Long life, decade ''Counter Dekatron'' :*GC10/4B – 4 kHz Decade ''Computing Counter Dekatron'' with carry/borrow cathodes "0" and "9" and intermediate cathodes "3" and "5" wired to separate pins *GC10D – 20 kHz Decade ''Counter Dekatron'', for single-pulse operation *GC12/4B – 4 kHz Duodecimal ''Counter Dekatron'' with carry/borrow cathodes 11 and 12 and intermediate cathodes 6 and 8 wired to separate pins *GCA10G – 10 kHz max. Decade ''Counter Dekatron'' with routing guides and aux anodes to directly drive
Nixie tube A Nixie tube ( ), or cold cathode display, is an electronic device used for displaying numerals or other information using glow discharge. The glass tube contains a wire-mesh anode and multiple cathodes, shaped like numerals or other symbo ...
s, B27A base without the inner pin ring *GD2V – 2 kV, 16  J discharge tube, all-glass studded *GD75P – 75 V
Voltage reference A voltage reference is an electronic device that ideally produces a fixed (constant) voltage irrespective of the loading on the device, power supply variations, temperature changes, and the passage of time. Voltage references are used in power sup ...
, miniature 7-pin base *GD90M – 90 V Voltage reference, miniature 7-pin base *GD340X – 345 V/3...200 μA Corona voltage reference, all-glass wire-ended *GD350X, GD350Y – 350 V/3...200 μA Corona voltage reference, all-glass wire-ended *GD550W – 550 V, 1.5 J Discharge tube, e.g. for power
relaxation oscillator In electronics a relaxation oscillator is a nonlinear electronic oscillator circuit that produces a nonsinusoidal repetitive output signal, such as a triangle wave or square wave. on Peter Millet'Tubebookswebsite The circuit consists of a feedb ...
s, all-glass wire-ended *GDT120M – 9 mA Gas-filled cold-cathode DC triode, one starter and a separate glow diode acting as an optical primer, miniature 7-pin base *GR2G –  ''+ -''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 18 x 18 mm characters, side-viewing *GR2H –  ''+ -''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 20 x 20 mm characters, top-viewing *GR4G –  '' 1''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 18 x 30 mm characters, side-viewing *GR7M –  ''+ - V A Ω % ~''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 15.5 mm character height, top-viewing *GR10A – Gas-filled digital indicator tube with a
dekatron In electronics, a Dekatron (or Decatron, or generically three-phase gas counting tube or glow-transfer counting tube or cold cathode tube) is a gas-filled decade counting tube. Dekatrons were used in computers, calculators, and other counti ...
-type readout *GR10G –  ''0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 16.86 x 30 mm characters, side-viewing *GR10H –  ''0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 12 x 19 mm characters, top-viewing *GR10J –  ''0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 16.86 x 30 mm characters, side-viewing *GR10K –  ''0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 12 x 19 mm characters, top-viewing *GR10M –  ''0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 10 x 15.5 mm characters, top-viewing *GR10W –  ''0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 8.42 x 15 mm characters, side-viewing, all-glass wire-ended *GR12G –  ''A B C D E F G H I J K L''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 16 x 30 mm characters, side-viewing *GR12H –  ''E L M N P R S T U V W X''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 16 x 30 mm characters, side-viewing Note: More Nixie tubes under '' standard - ZM'' and '' professional - ZM'' *GS10C – 4 kHz max. Decade ''Counter/Selector
Dekatron In electronics, a Dekatron (or Decatron, or generically three-phase gas counting tube or glow-transfer counting tube or cold cathode tube) is a gas-filled decade counting tube. Dekatrons were used in computers, calculators, and other counti ...
'', top-viewing, duodecal base *GS10D – Hydrogen-filled, 20 kHz max. Decade ''Counter/Selector Dekatron'', duodecal base *GS10H – 4 kHz max. Decade ''Counter/Selector Dekatron'' with routing guides, B17A base *GS12C – 4 kHz max. Duodecimal ''Counter/Selector Dekatron'', with solder lugs *GS12D – Neon-filled, 4 kHz max. duodecimal ''Counter/Selector Dekatron'', duodecal base with two additional wire-ends for the guide electrodes *GSA10G – 10 kHz max. Decade ''Counter/Selector Dekatron'' with routing guides and aux anodes to directly drive
Nixie tube A Nixie tube ( ), or cold cathode display, is an electronic device used for displaying numerals or other information using glow discharge. The glass tube contains a wire-mesh anode and multiple cathodes, shaped like numerals or other symbo ...
s, B27A base *GTE120Y – 5 mA Subminiature DC trigger tetrode, one starter and one primer, all-glass wire-ended *GTE130T – 8 mApeak DC trigger tetrode, one starter and one primer, close tolerance, low aging, quadrant I operation only, noval base *GTE175M – 3.5 mAavg, 50 mApeak DC Trigger tetrode, one starter and one primer, miniature 7-pin base, for
Dekatron In electronics, a Dekatron (or Decatron, or generically three-phase gas counting tube or glow-transfer counting tube or cold cathode tube) is a gas-filled decade counting tube. Dekatrons were used in computers, calculators, and other counti ...
coupling circuits *GTR120W – 9 mA Subminiature DC trigger triode, 3-pin all-glass wire-ended, for computer applications *GTR75M – 75 V
Voltage reference A voltage reference is an electronic device that ideally produces a fixed (constant) voltage irrespective of the loading on the device, power supply variations, temperature changes, and the passage of time. Voltage references are used in power sup ...
, Miniature 7-pin *GTR95M/S – 95 V Voltage reference, Miniature 7-pin *GTR150 – Subminiature, primed 150 V voltage reference, all-glass wire-ended *VS10G – ''
Trochotron A Nixie tube ( ), or cold cathode display, is an electronic device used for displaying numerals or other information using glow discharge. The glass tube contains a wire-mesh anode and multiple cathodes, shaped like numerals or other symbols ...
'', an electron-beam decade counter tube *VS10G-M – VS10G with a magnetic shield *VS10H – High-current ''trochotron'' *VS10K – Low-voltage ''trochotron''


Marconi-Osram system

The British GECMarconi–Osram designation from the 1920s uses one or two letter(s) followed by two numerals and sometimes by a second letter identifying different versions of a particular type. The letter(s) generally denote the type or use: :Note: A preceding letter M indicates a 4-volts AC indirectly heated tube *A – General professional tube *B – Dual triode *D –
Detector A sensor is a device that produces an output signal for the purpose of sensing a physical phenomenon. In the broadest definition, a sensor is a device, module, machine, or subsystem that detects events or changes in its environment and sends ...
diode *GT – Gas-filled triode *GU – Gas-filled rectifier *H – High-impedance signal triode *KT – Kinkless Tetrode - beam power tube *L – Low-impedance signal triode *N – Power pentode *P – Power triode up to 3 W :*PT – Power pentode :*PX – 3...25 W Power triode *QP – Dual pentode *S – Tetrode *U – Rectifier *VS – Remote- cutoff tetrode *W – Remote-cutoff pentode *X – Triode/hexode frequency-changer *Y – Optical tuning/level indicator *Z – Sharp-cutoff RF pentode The following numbers are sequentially assigned for each new device. Examples: *A1834 = 6AS7G/ECC230 = CV2523 – Dual power triode (series regulator), octal base. *B309 =
12AT7 12AT7 (also known in Europe by the Mullard–Philips tube designation of ECC81) is a miniature 9-pin medium-gain (60) dual-triode vacuum tube popular in guitar amplifiers. It belongs to a large family of dual triode vacuum tubes which share th ...
/ECC81 – High- mu dual triode. Commonly used as R.F. amplifier/mixer in VHF circuits. *B719 = 6AQ8/ECC85 – Dual RF triode, RF Amp & Mixer in FM receivers, noval base. *D41 = V914 – Indirectly heated, Dual Detector Diode, British 5-pin base. *D42 – Indirectly heated, Single Detector Diode, British 4-pin base. *GU21 = AH221 = RG4-1250 – Half-wave mercury-vapor rectifier, Edison screw lamp base. *H63 = 6F5 – High-mu triode, octal base. *H610 – Directly heated, high-mu AF triode, British 4-pin base. *KT32 (''25L6, 25L6G, 25L6GT'' and ''25W6GT'') *KT33 (''25A6GT'') *KT41 *KT61 (''6M6G'') in parallel filament circuits *KT63 (''6F6, 6F6G, 6F6GT'') *
KT66 KT66 is the designator for a beam power tube introduced by Marconi-Osram Valve Co. Ltd. (M-OV) of Britain in 1937 and marketed for application as a power amplifier for audio frequencies and driver for radio frequencies.Editors "The New Valves" ''W ...
(''
6L6GC 6L6 is the designator for a beam power tube introduced by Radio Corporation of America in April 1936 and marketed for application as a power amplifier for audio frequencies.J. F. Dreyer Jr."The Beam Power Output Tube" New York: McGraw-Hill, ''Ele ...
'') *KT67 – Small transmitting valve *KT71 (''50L6GT'') *KT77 – Similar to
EL34 The EL34 is a thermionic vacuum tube of the power pentode type. The EL34 was introduced in 1955 by Mullard, who were owned by Philips. The EL34 has an octal base (indicated by the '3' in the part number) and is found mainly in the final output s ...
, 6CA7 *KT81 *
KT88 The KT88 is a beam tetrode/kinkless tetrode (hence "KT") vacuum tube for audio amplification. Features The KT88 fits a standard eight-pin octal socket and has similar pinout and applications as the 6L6 and EL34. Specifically designed for audio ...
= 6550A = CV5220 (''12E13, 7D11'') – AF beam power tube, two tubes are capable of providing 100W output, Class-AB1, octal base *L63 = 6J5 – Low-mu triode, octal base. *L610 – Directly heated, Low-mu RF triode, British 4-pin base. *MT7A, MT7B – Large radiation-cooled transmitting triodes used in the 1920s and 1930s. *MU14 = UU5 = IW4-500 – Indirectly heated full-wave rectifier, British 4-pin base. *N77 = 6AM5/EL91 – Power pentode, 7-pin miniature base. *P425 = PM254 – Power triode with a 4 V/200 mA battery heater and a British 4-pin base *P610 – Directly heated, AF power triode, British 4-pin base. *P625 – AF power triode. *PX4 – AF power triode designed in the 1930s. Capable of providing about 4.5 W of audio. *QP21 – Directly heated, dual AF (push-pull) power pentode, British 7-pin base. *QP240 – Directly heated, dual AF (push-pull) power pentode, British 9-pin base. *S610 – Directly heated, Sharp-cutoff RF tetrode, British 4-pin base. *U52 = 5U4G = 5AS4A/5U4GB – Full-wave rectifier, octal base. *VS24 – Directly heated, Remote-cutoff RF tetrode, British 4-pin base. *W727 = 6BA6/EF93 = 5749 – Remote-cutoff RF pentode, 7-pin miniature base. *X41 – Triode/hexode mixer designed to be a direct plug-in replacement for the MX40
pentagrid converter The pentagrid converter is a type of radio receiving valve (vacuum tube) with five grids used as the frequency mixer stage of a superheterodyne radio receiver. The pentagrid was part of a line of development of valves that were able to take an ...
. *X61, X61M = 6J8G – British triode/heptode mixer, octal based. *X63 = 6A8 – Heptode pentagrid converter, octal based. *X727 = 6BE6/EK90 = 5750 – Pentagrid converter, 7-pin miniature base. *Y61, Y63 = 6U5G = VI103 – Optical tuning/level indicator, octal base, similar to 6G5. *Z77 = 6AM6/EF91 – Sharp-cutoff RF pentode, 7-pin miniature base.


Mullard designations before 1934

Older
Mullard Mullard Limited was a British manufacturer of electronic components. The Mullard Radio Valve Co. Ltd. of Southfields, London, was founded in 1920 by Captain Stanley R. Mullard, who had previously designed thermionic valves for the Admir ...
tubes were mostly designated PM, followed by a number containing the filament voltage. Many later tubes were designated one to three semi-intuitive letters, followed by a number containing the heater voltage. This was phased out after 1934 when Mullard adopted the Mullard–Philips scheme. Examples: *2D4 – Dual Diode with a 4 V/650 mA heater and a British 5-pin base *AP4 = 4676 – '' Acorn'' UHF pentode up to 430 MHz, 4 Volts heater *AT4 = 4675 – ''Acorn'' UHF triode up to 430 MHz, 4 Volts heater *FC4 = MX40 – Octode Frequency Converter with a 4 V/650 mA heater and a British 7-pin base *Pen20 – Power Pentode with a 20 V/180 mA heater and a British 5- or 7-pin base *PM254 = P425 – "Super Power" triode with a 4 V/200 mA battery heater and a British 4-pin base *TDD4 = MHD4 = AC/HLDD – Triode, dual Diode with a 4 V/550 mA heater and a British 7-pin base *TH21C – Triode/Hexode frequency converter with a 21 V/200 mA series heater and a British 7-pin base *TP4 = AC/TP – Triode, Pentode with a 4 V/1.25 A heater and a British 7-pin base *VP2 = VP21 = VP215 – Variable-mu Pentode with a 2 V/180 mA heater and a British 7-pin base


Philips system before 1934

The system consisted of one letter followed by 3 or 4 digits. It was phased out after 1934 when
Philips Koninklijke Philips N.V. (), commonly shortened to Philips, is a Dutch multinational conglomerate corporation that was founded in Eindhoven in 1891. Since 1997, it has been mostly headquartered in Amsterdam, though the Benelux headquarters i ...
adopted the Mullard–Philips scheme. 1st letter: Heater current *A – 60...90 mA *B – 100...190 mA (This designation lived on as the "B" ( 180 mA) in the Mullard–Philips system) *C – 200...390 mA (This designation lived on as the "C" (200 mA) in the Mullard–Philips system) *D – 400...690 mA *E – 700...990 mA *F – 1...2 A 1 or 2 digit(s): Heater voltage Last 2 digits: Type *00–40, 99: Triode amplification factor *41–98: :*second-last digit: sequentially assigned, starting at 4 :*last digit: ::*1 – Tetrode with a space charge grid (the 2nd grid is the control grid) ::*2 – Tetrode with a screen grid (the 1st grid is the control grid) ::*3 – Power pentode ::*4 – ''Binode'', a diode/triode or diode/tetrode ::*5 – Remote-cutoff RF tetrode ::*6 – Signal pentode ::*7 – Remote-cutoff RF pentode ::*8 – Sharp-cutoff hexode frequency changer ::*9 – Remote-cutoff hexode Examples: *A106 – Directly heated triode, 1 V, 60 mA filament, amplification factor = 6 *A425 = RE034 = HR406 – RF triode, 4 V, 60 mA filament *A435 – Directly heated triode, 4 V, 60 mA filament, amplification factor = 35 *A441 – Directly heated tetrode with a space charge grid, 4 V, 60 mA filament *A442 = RES094 = S406 – Directly heated tetrode with a screen grid, 4 V, 60 mA filament *B409 = RE134 = L414 – Triode, 4 Volt, 140 mA filament *B2038 = REN1821 = R2018 = A2118 – Triode, 180 mA heater *B2043 = RENS1823D = PP2018D = L2318D – Indirectly heated power pentode, 20 V, 180 mA DC series heater *B2044 = RENS1854 = DS2218 – Indirectly heated diode/tetrode, 20 V, 180 mA DC series heater :*B2044S = REN1826 – Indirectly heated diode/triode, 20 V, 180 mA DC series heater *B2045 = RENS1819 – Indirectly heated remote-cutoff RF tetrode, 20 V, 180 mA DC series heater *B2048 = RENS1824 = MH2018 – Hexode mixer, 20 V, 180 mA heater *B2099 = REN1814 – Indirectly heated triode, 20 V, 180 mA DC series heater, amplification factor = 99 *E443H = RES964 = PP4101 = L496D – Power pentode, 4 V heater *E446 = RENS1284 = HP4101 – Indirectly heated RF pentode, 4 V, 1.1 A heater *E447 = RENS1294 = HP4106 – Indirectly heated remote-cutoff RF pentode, 4 V, 1.1 A heater *E448 = RENS1224 = MH4100 – Indirectly heated sharp-cutoff hexode frequency changer, 4 V, 1.2 A heater *E449 = RENS1234 = FH4105 – Indirectly heated remote-cutoff hexode, 4 V, 1.2 A heater *F215 – Indirectly heated triode, 2.5 V, 1.5 A heater, amplification factor = 15


STC/Brimar receiving tubes system

First number: Type *1 – Half-wave rectifier *2 – Diode *3 – Power triode *4 – High-mu triode *5 – Sharp- cutoff tetrode *6 – Vari-mu tetrode *7 – Power or video pentode *8 – Sharp-cutoff RF pentode *9 – Vari-mu RF pentode *10 – Dual diode *11 – Triode and dual diode *12 – AF Pentode and dual diode *13 – Dual high-mu triode *14 – Dual Class-B power triode *15 – Heptode *16 – DC-coupled power triode *17 – RF pentode and dual diode *18 – Pentode and triode *20 – Hexode/heptode and triode Next letter: Heater rating *A – 3.6 to 4.4 V Indirectly heated *B – 2 V Directly heated *C – Directly heated other than 2 or 4 V *D – All other heater ratings, indirectly heated other than 4 V Number: Sequentially assigned number Examples: *1D6 – Indirectly heated, half-wave rectifier, British 5-pin base *4D1 – Indirectly heated triode, British 7-pin base *7A3 – Indirectly heated power pentode, British 7-pin base *8A1 – Indirectly heated RF sharp-cutoff pentode, British 5-pin base with anode top cap *9A1 – Indirectly heated RF/IF remote-cutoff pentode, British 5-pin base with anode top cap *10D1 – Indirectly heated, common-cathode dual diode, British 5-pin base *11A2 – Indirectly heated, common-cathode dual diode and triode, British 7-pin base *13D3 – Indirectly heated, common-cathode dual triode, Noval base *15A2 – Indirectly heated, heptode
pentagrid converter The pentagrid converter is a type of radio receiving valve (vacuum tube) with five grids used as the frequency mixer stage of a superheterodyne radio receiver. The pentagrid was part of a line of development of valves that were able to take an ...
, British 7-pin base *20D4 – Indirectly heated, triode/heptode
frequency mixer In electronics, a mixer, or frequency mixer, is an electrical circuit that creates new frequencies from two signals applied to it. In its most common application, two signals are applied to a mixer, and it produces new signals at the sum and di ...
, Noval base


Valvo system before 1934

Valvo( de, it) was a major German electronic components manufacturer from 1924 to 1989; a Philips subsidiary since 1927, Valvo was one of the predecessors of NXP Semiconductors. The system consisted of one or two letters followed by 3 or 4 digits. It was phased out after 1934 when Valvo adopted the Mullard–Philips scheme. First letter(s): Type *A – Triode *AN – ''Binode'', a diode/triode or diode/tetrode *G – Rectifier *H – RF tube *L – Power tube *LK – Power amplifier *U – Triode with a space charge grid *W – Triode for resistor-coupled amplifiers *X – Hexode Number: *If the first digit is 4, the tube has a 4 V heater *Otherwise, the last two digits give the heater current in tens of mA. A following letter D indicates more than one grid, not counting a space charge grid Examples: *A2118 = B2038 = REN1821 = R2018 – Triode, 180 mA (=18×10 mA) heater *H2018D = B2042 = RENS1820 = S2018 – RF Tetrode, 180 mA heater *L496D = E443H = RES964 = PP4101 – Power pentode, 4 V heater *L2318D = B2043 = RENS1823D = PP2018D – Power pentode, 180 mA heater


East European systems


Lamina transmitting tubes system

Polish
Lamina Lamina may refer to: Science and technology * Planar lamina, a two-dimensional planar closed surface with mass and density, in mathematics * Laminar flow, (or streamline flow) occurs when a fluid flows in parallel layers, with no disruption betwee ...
( pl) transmitting tube designations consist of one or two letters, a group of digits and an optional letter and/or two digits preceded by a "/" sign. The first letter indicates the tube type, two equal letters denoting a dual tube: *P – Pentode *Q – Tetrode *T – Triode A group of digits represents the maximum anode power dissipation in kW An optional letter specifies the cooling method: * – Radiation *P – Forced air *W – Water The first of the two digits after the "/" sign means: *1 – Tube for radio broadcasting and radiocommunication equipment *2 – Tube for industrial equipment *3 – Tube used in TV broadcasting equipment *4 – Tube for radiocommunication equipment with unbalanced modulation *5 – Modulator or pulse tube The second digit after the "/" is sequentially assigned. Examples: *Q01 – Power tetrode up to 125 MHz, 0.1 kW (=100 W) *Q3.5 – Power tetrode up to 220 MHz, 3.5 kW *QQ-004/11 – Dual beam power tetrode up to 500 MHz, 0.04 kW (=40 W) *T01 – Power triode up to 200 MHz, 135 W *T015/21 – Power triode up to 150 MHz, 150 W *T02 – Power triode up to 60 MHz, 200 W *T05P/31 – Forced air cooled power triode up to 1 GHz, 1 kW *T2/22 – Power triode up to 60 MHz, 3 kW *T6 – Power triode up to 30 MHz, 6 kW *T8P/21 – Forced air cooled power triode up to 120 MHz, 8 kW *T10P/22 – Power triode up to 30 MHz, 10 kW *T-25P – Forced air cooled power triode up to 30 MHz, 25 kW *T60W/21 – Water cooled power triode up to 30 MHz, 6 kW


RFT transmitting tubes system

Rundfunk- und Fernmelde-Technik( de, sv) was the brand of a group of telecommunications manufacturers in the German Democratic Republic. The designation consists of a group of three letters and a group of three or four digits. The first two letters determine the tube type: *GR – Rectifier tube *SR – Transmitter tube *VR – Amplifier tube The third letter specifies the cooling method: *L – Forced air *S – Radiation *V – Vapor (the anode is immersed in evaporating water, and the steam is collected, condensed and recycled) *W – Water The first digit (or the first two digits in double tubes) indicates the number of electrodes: *2 – Diode *3 – Triode *4 – Tetrode *5 – Pentode The last two digits are sequentially assigned. Examples: *SRS301 – Radiation-cooled triode up to 40 MHz, 900 W *SRS464 – Radiation-cooled, vibration-resistant pulse tetrode up to 300 kW *SRS4451 – Radiation-cooled dual tetrode up to 500 MHz, 60 W *SRS4452 = QQE03/20 = 6252 – Radiation-cooled dual tetrode up to 600 MHz, 20 W *SRS4452 – Radiation-cooled dual tetrode up to 600 MHz, 20 W *SRS501 – Radiation-cooled pentode up to 50 MHz, 100 W *SRS552N = ГУ-50 – Radiation-cooled pentode up to 120 MHz, 50 W *VRS303 – Radiation-cooled AF triode, 1 kW *VRS328 – Radiation-cooled AF triode, 150 W *VRS331 – Radiation-cooled AF triode, 450 W Note: RFT used the Mullard–Philips and RETMA schemes for their low-power tubes.


Tesla systems (

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)


=Signal tubes

= Besides the genuine Mullard–Philips system, Tesla also used an M-P/ RETMA hybrid scheme: First number: Heater voltage, as in the RETMA system Next letter(s): Type, subset of the Mullard–Philips system Next digit: Base *1 – Octal K8A *2 – Loctal B8G *3 – Miniature 7-pin B7G *4 – Noval B9A *5 – Special, mostly 9 out of 10 1.25mm pins on a 25mm-diameter circle *6 – Submagnal B11A *7 – Duodecal B12A *8 – Diheptal B14A *9 – Wire-ends Last digit: Sequentially assigned number Examples: *1M90 (DM70/1M3) – Subminiature indicator tube, 1.4V/25 mA filament, all-glass wire-ended *1Y32 – Miniature 7-pin High-voltage directly heated rectifier with 1.4 V/265 mA WTh filament. Type 1Y32T has oxide cathode. *4L20 – Directly heated RF power pentode; center-tapped 4.2 V/325 mA filament; Soviet 4P1L (4П1Л), German RL4,2P6 with Loctal base *6B31 – Dual diode up to 700 MHz; 6.3V/300mA heater, miniature 7-pin base *6BC32 (6AV6, EBC91) – Dual diode and triode; 6.3V/300mA heater, miniature 7-pin base *6CC31 (6J6, ECC91) – 600 MHz dual triode; 6.3V/450mA heater, miniature 7-pin base *6CC42 (2C51) – VHF dual triode; 6.3V/350mA heater, noval base *6F24 – Telecom pentode, 6.3V/450mA heater, Loctal base *6F36 (6AH6) – Sharp-cutoff IF/video pentode, 6.3V/450mA heater, miniature 7-pin base *6H31 (6BE6, EK90) – Heptode mixer; 6.3V/300mA heater, miniature 7-pin base *6L36 (6AQ5, EL90) – Power pentode, 6.3V/450mA heater, miniature 7-pin base *6L41 (5763) – Beam tetrode, 6.3V/750mA heater, noval base *35Y31 – Half-wave rectifier, 35V/150mA series heater; UY1N with miniature 7-pin base


=Power tubes

= First letter: *R – Rectifier or RF tube *U – Gas-filled power rectifier *Z – Modulator tube Next letter(s): Type, subset of the Mullard–Philips scheme Next number: Anode dissipation in W (if radiation cooled) or kW (otherwise) The next letter specifies the cooling method: * – Radiation *V – Vapor *X – Forced air *Y – Water Examples: *RA0007B – Directly heated ''saturated-emission'' ballast diode. Acts as a heating current-controlled, variable series resistor in voltage/current stabilizer circuits; UAmax 600 V IAmax 700 μA, noval base *RA100A – 40 kV, 100 mA Half-wave rectifier with an E40 ''Goliath'' Edison screw lamp base and an anode top cap *RC5B – ''Bowl''-type UHF power triode up to 5 W *RD27AS – Radiation-cooled power triode up to 25 MHz, 27 W *RD200B – Radiation-cooled power triode up to 60 MHz, 200 W *RD300S – Radiation-cooled power triode up to 200 MHz, 300 W *RD150YA – Water-cooled power triode up to 3 MHz, 150 kW *RE40AK =
KT88 The KT88 is a beam tetrode/kinkless tetrode (hence "KT") vacuum tube for audio amplification. Features The KT88 fits a standard eight-pin octal socket and has similar pinout and applications as the 6L6 and EL34. Specifically designed for audio ...
*RE65A – Radiation-cooled beam tetrode up to 260 MHz, 65 W *RE125C – Radiation-cooled beam tetrode up to 235 MHz, 125 W *RE400C – Radiation-cooled beam tetrode up to 235 MHz, 400 W *RE20XL – Air-cooled beam tetrode up to 220 MHz, 20 kW *REE30A – Radiation-cooled dual beam tetrode up to 250 MHz, 20 W *RL15A – Radiation-cooled power pentode up to 60 MHz, 20 W *RL40A – Radiation-cooled power pentode up to 120 MHz, 40 W *RL65A – Radiation-cooled power pentode up to 15 MHz, 65 W *UA025A – 10 kV, 250 mA Argon-filled, half-wave rectifier with an E27 Edison screw lamp base and an anode screw top cap *UA5A – 11 kV, 5 A Half-wave mercury-vapor rectifier with a 2-pin base and an anode screw top cap *ZD1000F – Radiation-cooled power triode up to 60 MHz, 1 kW *ZD1XB – Air-cooled AF power triode up to 1.2 kW *ZD3XH – Air-cooled power triode up to 60 MHz, 3 kW *ZD8XA – Air-cooled power triode up to 20 MHz, 8 kW *ZD12YA – Air-cooled AF power triode up to 20 MHz, 12 kW *ZE025XS – Air-cooled beam tetrode up to 400 MHz, 250 W


Tungsram receiving tubes system before 1934

The
Tungsram Tungsram was a manufacturing company located in Hungary and known for their light bulbs and electronics. Established in Újpest (today part of Budapest, Hungary) in 1896, it initially produced telephones, wires and switchboards. The name "Tungsra ...
system was composed of a maximum of three letters and three or four digits. It was phased out after 1934 when Tungsram adopted the Mullard–Philips scheme, frequently preceding it with the letter T, as in TAD1 for AD1. Letter: System type: :Note: A preceding letter A indicates an indirectly heated tube *D – Detector diode *DD – Dual diode *DG – Tetrode with a space charge grid (the 2nd grid is the control grid) *DS – Diode-tetrode *FH – Remote-cutoff hexode
pentagrid converter The pentagrid converter is a type of radio receiving valve (vacuum tube) with five grids used as the frequency mixer stage of a superheterodyne radio receiver. The pentagrid was part of a line of development of valves that were able to take an ...
*G – Preamplifier triode *H – Voltage amplifier triode or
grid-leak detector A grid leak detector is an electronic circuit that demodulates an amplitude modulated alternating current and amplifies the recovered modulating voltage. The circuit utilizes the non-linear cathode to control grid conduction characteristic and ...
*HP – RF pentode *HR – RF triode *L – AF power triode *MH – Hexode pentagrid converter *MO – Octode pentagrid converter *O – Transmitting tube *P – Power triode *PP – Power pentode *PV – Full-wave rectifier *R – High-Mu triode *S – Tetrode *V – Half-wave rectifier *X – US-licensed tube Number: *First digit (or the first two digits): Heater voltage *Remaining digits: Heater current in tens of mA, but the last digit is sequentially assigned Examples: *AS4100 – Tetrode, 4 V, 1 A (=100×10 mA) indirect heater *FH4105 = E449 = RENS1234 – Indirectly heated remote-cutoff hexode, 4 V, 1.2 A heater *HP4101 = E446 = RENS1284 – RF pentode, 4 V, 1 A filament *HP4106 = E447 = RENS1294 – Indirectly heated remote-cutoff RF pentode, 4 V, 1.1 A heater *HR406 = A425 = RE034 – RF triode, 4 V, 60 mA (=6×10 mA) filament *L414 = B409 = RE134 – Triode, 4 Volt, 140 mA (=14×10 mA) filament *MH2018 = B2048 = RENS1824 – Hexode mixer, 20 V, 180 mA (=18×10 mA) heater *MH4100 = E448 = RENS1224 – Indirectly heated sharp-cutoff hexode frequency changer, 4 V, 1.2 A heater *PP2018D = B2043 = RENS1823D = L2318D – Indirectly heated power pentode, 20 V, 180 mA DC series heater *PP4101 = E443H = RES964 = L496D – Power pentode, 4 V heater *PV4200 – Full-wave rectifier, 4 V, 2 A (=200×10 mA) filament *R2018 = B2038 = REN1821 = A2118 – Triode, 180 mA heater *S406 = A442 = RES094 – Directly heated tetrode with a screen grid, 4 V, 60 mA filament *S2018 = B2042 = RENS1820 = H2018D – RF Tetrode, 180 mA heater


Russian systems

Vacuum tubes produced in the former Soviet Union and in present-day Russia are designated in Cyrillic. Some confusion has been created in transliterating these designations to Latin. The first system was introduced in 1929. It consisted of one or two letters (designating system type and, optionally, type of cathode), a dash, then a sequentially assigned number with up to 3 digits. In 1937, the Soviet Union purchased a tube assembly line from
RCA The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse, AT&T Corporation and United Fruit Comp ...
(who at the time had difficulties raising funds for their basic operations), including production licenses and initial staff training, and installed it on the Svetlana/Светлана plant in St. Petersburg, Russia. US-licensed tubes were produced since then under an adapted RETMA scheme. Examples: *6Ф5 = 6F5 – High-mu triode *6Ф6 = 6F6 – Power pentode *6Х6 = 6H6 – Dual diode *6Ж7 = 6J7/EF37 – Sharp-cutoff pentode *6Л6 = 6L6 –
Beam tetrode A beam tetrode, sometimes called a beam power tube, is a type of vacuum tube or thermionic valve that has two grids and forms the electron stream from the cathode into multiple partially collimated beams to produce a low potential space cha ...
*6Л7 = 6L7 –
Pentagrid converter The pentagrid converter is a type of radio receiving valve (vacuum tube) with five grids used as the frequency mixer stage of a superheterodyne radio receiver. The pentagrid was part of a line of development of valves that were able to take an ...
*6Н7 = 6N7 – Dual power triode


GOST standard tubes system

In the 1950s a 5-element system (russian: Государственный Стандарт "State standard" ГОСТ/
GOST GOST (russian: ГОСТ) refers to a set of International standard, international Technical standard, technical Standardization, standards maintained by the ''Euro-Asian Council for Standardization, Metrology and Certification (EASC)'', a region ...
5461–59, later 13393–76) was adopted in the (then) Soviet Union for designating receiver vacuum tubes. The first element is a number specifying filament voltage. The second element is a Cyrillic letter specifying the type of device. The third element is a sequentially assigned number that distinguishes between different devices of the same type. The fourth element denotes the type of envelope. An optional fifth element consists of a dash followed by one or more characters to designate special characteristics of the tube. This usually implies construction differences, not just selection from regular quality production.


Professional tubes system

There is another designation system for professional tubes such as transmitter ones. The first element designates function. The next elements varies in interpretation. For ignitrons, rectifiers, and thyratrons, there is a digit, then a dash, then the anode current in amperes, a slash, anode voltage in kV. A letter may be attached to designate water cooling (no letter designates a radiation cooled device). For transmitting tubes in this system, the second element starts with a dash, a sequentially assigned number, then an optional letter specifying cooling method. For phototubes and photomultipliers, the second element is a sequential number and then a letter code identifying vacuum or gas fill and the type of cathode.


Japanese systems


Older numbering system 1930s–40s

A letter: Structure and usage *E – Electron ray tube *K –
Kenotron A rectifier is an electrical device that converts alternating current (AC), which periodically reverses direction, to direct current (DC), which flows in only one direction. The reverse operation (converting DC to AC) is performed by an inver ...
(rectifier) *U – General-purpose tube Then a letter: Base and outline *N – Wire-ended ( Acorn tubes, etc.) *S – Octal *T – ST large 7-pin *t – ST small 7-pin *V – 4-pin *X – S/ST 4-pin *x – Peanut 4-pin *Y – S/ST 5-pin *y – Peanut 5-pin *Z – S/ST 6-pin U6A Then a dash, followed by a sequentially assigned number or the designation of the American original Then an optional dash, followed by a letter: Version Examples: *EZ-6G5 = 6G5 – Variable-mu "Magic Eye"-type tuning indicator *KX-80-B – Kenotron *UN-954 = 954 – Acorn sharp-cutoff pentode *UN-955 =
955 Year 955 ( CMLV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * August 10 – Battle of Lechfeld: King Otto I ("the Great") defeats the Hungarians (also ...
– Acorn triode *US-6A8 = 6A8 –
Pentagrid converter The pentagrid converter is a type of radio receiving valve (vacuum tube) with five grids used as the frequency mixer stage of a superheterodyne radio receiver. The pentagrid was part of a line of development of valves that were able to take an ...
*US-6L7G = 6L7G – Pentagrid converter *UX-26-B – Medium-mu RF triode *UX-167 – Sharp-cutoff RF pentode *UY-47B – Pentode *UZ-58-A – Remote-cutoff RF/IF pentode


JIS C 7001 system

JIS C 7001 was published in 1951 and modified in 1965 and 1970 A number: Heater voltage range, as in the RETMA scheme *1 – 1 V ≤ Uf < 2 V *2 – 2 V ≤ Uf < 2.5 V *3 – 2.5 V ≤ Uf < 4 V *4 – 4 V ≤ Uf < 5 V *5 – 5 V ≤ Uf < 6 V *6 – 6 V ≤ Uf < 7 V etc. Then a letter: Base and Outline *A – Special base *B – Other *C – Compactron (Duodecar) *D – Subminiature button base *E – Subminiature flat base *F – European 4-pin ST *G – Octal base glass tube (GT) *H – Magnoval *K – Ceramic *L – Loctal *M – Miniature 7-pin *N – ''
Nuvistor The nuvistor is a type of vacuum tube announced by RCA in 1959. Nuvistors were made to compete with the then-new bipolar junction transistors, and were much smaller than conventional tubes of the day, almost approaching the compactness of ea ...
'' *Q – '' Acorn tube'' *R – Noval or Neonoval *S – Octal *T – Large 7-pin ST *W – 7-pin ST *X – 4-pin ST *Y – 5-pin ST *Z – 6-pin ST Then a dash, followed by a letter: Structure and usage *A – Power triode *B – Beam power tube *C –
Pentagrid converter The pentagrid converter is a type of radio receiving valve (vacuum tube) with five grids used as the frequency mixer stage of a superheterodyne radio receiver. The pentagrid was part of a line of development of valves that were able to take an ...
*D – Diode *E – Optical tuning/level indicator *G – Gas-filled rectifier *H – High-mu triode (μ>30) *K –
Kenotron A rectifier is an electrical device that converts alternating current (AC), which periodically reverses direction, to direct current (DC), which flows in only one direction. The reverse operation (converting DC to AC) is performed by an inver ...
(rectifier) :*Even number after K: Full-wave rectifier :*Odd number after K: Half-wave rectifier *L – Low-mu triode (μ<30) *P – Power tetrode or pentode *R – Sharp-cutoff tetrode or pentode *S – Tetrode with a space charge grid (the 2nd grid is the control grid) *T – Gas-filled, grid-controlled *V – Variable-mu (remote-cutoff) tetrode and pentode *X – Other Then a sequentially assigned number Then an optional letter: Version Examples: *2N-H12 – ''
Nuvistor The nuvistor is a type of vacuum tube announced by RCA in 1959. Nuvistors were made to compete with the then-new bipolar junction transistors, and were much smaller than conventional tubes of the day, almost approaching the compactness of ea ...
'' *2X-L2A – Low-mu triode *6C-A10 – Power triode *6G-A4 – Power triode *6G-B8 – Beam power tube *6G-E12A – 2-channel "Magic Eye"-type tuning indicator, rectangular target *6H-B26 – Beam power tube *6M-DE1 – Diode and "Magic Eye"-type tuning indicator, miniature 7-pin base *6M-E4 – "Magic Finger"-type tuning indicator, miniature 7-pin base *6M-E5 = 6ME5 – "Magic Eye"-type tuning indicator, miniature 7-pin base *6M-E10 – "Magic Eye"-type tuning indicator, miniature 7-pin base *6N-H10 – ''Nuvistor'' *6R-A8 – Power triode *6R-B10 – Beam power tube *6R-B11 – Beam power tube


Military naming systems


British CV and M8000s naming systems

This system prefixes a three- or four-digit number with the letters "CV", meaning "civilian valve" i.e. common to all three armed services. It was introduced during the Second World War to rationalise the previous nomenclatures maintained separately by the War Office/Ministry of Supply, Admiralty and Air Ministry/Ministry of Aircraft Production on behalf of the three armed services (e.g. "ACR~", "AR~", "AT~", etc. for CRTs, receiving and transmitting valves used in army equipments, "NC~", "NR~" and "NT~" similarly for navy equipments and "VCR~", "VR~" and "VT~" etc. for air force equipments), in which three separate designations could in principle apply to the same valve (which often had at least one prototype commercial designation as well). These numbers generally have identical equivalents in both the North American, RETMA, and West European, Mullard–Philips, systems but they bear no resemblance to the assigned "CV" number. Examples: *CV1988 = 6SN7GT = ECC32 (not a direct equivalent as heater current is different and bulb is larger) *CV2729 = E80F – An SQ version of EF80 but with revised pin-out and a base screen substituted for the RF screen The "4000" numbers identify special-quality valves though SQ valves CV numbered before that rule came in retain their original CV number: *CV4007 = E91AA – SQ version of 6AL5 *CV4010 = E95F – SQ version of 6AK5 or EF95 *CV4014 = M8083 The "M" in the part number denotes that it was developed by the military: *M8083 – Sharp-cutoff pentode, miniature 7-pin base (SQ version of EF91 = 6AM6 = Z77) *M8162 = 6060 – High-mu dual triode, for use as RF amplifier/mixer in VHF circuits, Noval base (SQ versions of ECC81 =
12AT7 12AT7 (also known in Europe by the Mullard–Philips tube designation of ECC81) is a miniature 9-pin medium-gain (60) dual-triode vacuum tube popular in guitar amplifiers. It belongs to a large family of dual triode vacuum tubes which share th ...
= B309) The principle behind the CV numbering scheme was also adopted by the US Joint Army-Navy JAN numbering scheme which was later considerably expanded into the US Federal and then
NATO Stock Number A NATO Stock Number, or National Stock Number (NSN) as it is known in the US, is a 13-digit numeric code used by the NATO military alliance, identifying all the 'standardized material items of supply' as they have been recognized by all member s ...
system used by all NATO countries. This part-identification system ensures that every particular spare part (not merely thermionic valves) receives a unique stock number across the whole of NATO irrespective of the source, and hence is not held inefficiently as separate stores. In the case of CV valves, the stock number is always of the format 5960-99-000-XXXX where XXXX is the CV number (with a leading 0 if the CV number only has 3 digits).


U.S. naming systems

One system prefixes a three-digit number with the letters "VT", presumably meaning "Vacuum Tube". Other systems prefix the number with the letters "JHS" or "JAN". The numbers following these prefixes can be "special" four-digit numbers, or domestic two- or three-digit numbers or simply the domestic North American "RETMA" numbering system. Like the British military system, these have many direct equivalents in the civilian types. Confusingly, the British also had two entirely different "VT" nomenclatures, one used by the Royal Air Force (see the preceding section) and the other used by the General Post Office, responsible for post and telecommunications at the time, where it may have stood for "valve, telephone"; none of these schemes corresponded in any way with each other. Examples: *"VT" numbering systems :*North American VT90 = 6H6 :*British (RAF) VT90 – VHF Transmitting triode :*British (GPO) VT90 = ML4 = CV1732 – Power triode :*VT104 – RF pentode :*VT105 – RF triode


Other numeral-only systems

Various numeral-only systems exist. These tend to be used for devices used in commercial or industrial equipment. The oldest numbering systems date back to the early 1920s, such as a two-digit numbering system, starting with the ''UV-201A'', which was considered as "type 01", and extended almost continuously up into the 1980s. Three- and four-digit numeral-only systems were maintained by R.C.A., but also adopted by many other manufacturers, and typically encompassed rectifiers and radio transmitter output devices. Devices in the low 800s tend to be transmitter output types, those in the higher 800s are not vacuum tubes, but gas-filled rectifiers and
thyratron A thyratron is a type of gas-filled tube used as a high-power electrical switch and controlled rectifier. Thyratrons can handle much greater currents than similar hard-vacuum tubes. Electron multiplication occurs when the gas becomes ionized, p ...
s, and those in the 900s tend to be special-purpose and high-frequency devices. Use was not rigorously systematic: the
807 __NOTOC__ Year 807 ( DCCCVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Abbasid Empire and Byzantine Empire * Emperor Nikephoros I is forced to sue for peace, ...
had variants 1624, 1625, and 807W.


Other letter followed by numerals

There are quite a number of these systems from different geographical realms, such as those used on devices from contemporary Russian and Chinese production. Other compound numbering systems were used to mark higher-reliability types used in industrial or commercial applications. Computers and telecommunication equipment also required tubes of greater quality and reliability than for domestic and consumer equipment. Some letter prefixes are manufacturer's codes: *C –
RCA The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse, AT&T Corporation and United Fruit Comp ...
/
Cunningham Cunningham is a surname of Scottish origin, see Clan Cunningham. Notable people sharing this surname A–C * Aaron Cunningham (born 1986), American baseball player *Abe Cunningham, American drummer * Adrian Cunningham (born 1960), Australian ...
*CK, QK, RK –
Raytheon Raytheon Technologies Corporation is an American multinational aerospace and defense conglomerate headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. It is one of the largest aerospace and defense manufacturers in the world by revenue and market capitali ...
Company *ECG –
Philips Koninklijke Philips N.V. (), commonly shortened to Philips, is a Dutch multinational conglomerate corporation that was founded in Eindhoven in 1891. Since 1997, it has been mostly headquartered in Amsterdam, though the Benelux headquarters i ...
/ Sylvania *EM – Eitel McCullough *F – Federal Telephone and Radio *GE, GL –
General Electric General Electric Company (GE) is an American multinational conglomerate founded in 1892, and incorporated in New York state and headquartered in Boston. The company operated in sectors including healthcare, aviation, power, renewable en ...
Corp. (''not'' British General Electric Company) *HK – Heintz & Kaufman, Ltd. (San Francisco, California, USA) *HY –
CBS CBS Broadcasting Inc., commonly shortened to CBS, the abbreviation of its former legal name Columbia Broadcasting System, is an American commercial broadcast television and radio network serving as the flagship property of the CBS Entertainm ...
/Hytron *ML –
Machlett Laboratories Machlett Laboratories was a Northeastern United States-based company that manufactured X-ray and high-power vacuum tubes. Machlett was a large producer of the tubes and developed accessories to be used with them as well. For its contributions to ...
, Inc. *NL – National Electronics, Inc. *NU – National Union Electric Corp. *PL – Philips N.V. *RCA – RCA/Radiotron *SV – Svetlana/Светлана *SY –
Standard Telephones and Cables Standard Telephones and Cables Ltd (later STC plc) was a British manufacturer of telephone, telegraph, radio, telecommunications, and related equipment. During its history, STC invented and developed several groundbreaking new technologies incl ...
Ltd./Brimar *TH – Compagnie Française Thomson-Houston *WE – Western Electric Company *WL –
Westinghouse Electric The Westinghouse Electric Corporation was an American manufacturing company founded in 1886 by George Westinghouse. It was originally named "Westinghouse Electric & Manufacturing Company" and was renamed "Westinghouse Electric Corporation" in ...
Corp. *XD – Central Electronic Manufacturers (Denville, New Jersey, USA) For examples, see below Some designations are derived from the behavior of devices considered to be exceptional. * Mazda/EdiSwan sold their first tubes for 4-volts AC mains transformer (as opposed to home storage battery) heating with the prefix AC/ (for examples see below). *The first
beam tetrode A beam tetrode, sometimes called a beam power tube, is a type of vacuum tube or thermionic valve that has two grids and forms the electron stream from the cathode into multiple partially collimated beams to produce a low potential space cha ...
s manufactured in the UK in the late 1930s by M-OV, carried a "KT" prefix meaning ''Kinkless Tetrode'' (for examples see above).


List of American ''RETMA'' tubes

Note: Typecode explained above. See also
RETMA tube designation The Radio Electronics Television Manufacturers' Association was formed in 1953, as a result of mergers with other trade standards organisations, such as the RMA. It was principally responsible for the standardised nomenclature for American vacuum ...


"0 volt" gas-filled

cold cathode A cold cathode is a cathode that is not electrically heated by a filament.A negatively charged electrode emits electrons or is the positively charged terminal. For more, see field emission. A cathode may be considered "cold" if it emits more el ...
tubes

First character is numeric zero, not letter O.


Voltage stabilisers and references

Function in a similar way to a
Zener diode A Zener diode is a special type of diode designed to reliably allow current to flow "backwards" (inverted polarity) when a certain set reverse voltage, known as the ''Zener voltage'', is reached. Zener diodes are manufactured with a great var ...
, at higher voltages. Letter order (A-B-C) indicates increasing voltage ratings on octal-based regulators and decreasing voltage ratings on miniature-based regulators. *0A2 – 150 volt regulator, 7-pin miniature base *0A3 – 75 volt regulator, octal base, aka VR75 *0B2 – 105 volt regulator, 7-pin miniature base *0B3 – 90 volt regulator, octal base, aka VR90 *0C2 – 75 volt regulator, 7-pin miniature base *0C3 – 105 volt regulator, octal base, aka VR105 *0D3 – 150 volt regulator, octal base, aka VR150


Other cold-cathode tubes

*0A4G – 25 mAavg, 100mApeak Gas triode designed for use as a ripple control receiver; with the cathode tied to the midpoint of a series-resonance LC circuit across live mains, it would activate a
relay A relay Electromechanical relay schematic showing a control coil, four pairs of normally open and one pair of normally closed contacts An automotive-style miniature relay with the dust cover taken off A relay is an electrically operated switch ...
in its anode circuit while fres is present *0Y4 – 40 ≤ I ≤ 75 mA Half-wave gas rectifier with a starter anode, 5-pin octal base *0Z4 – 30 ≤ I ≤ 90 mA Argon-filled, full-wave gas rectifier, octal base. Widely used in vibrator power supplies in early automobile radio receivers.


1 volt heater/filament tubes


1.25 volt DC filament subminiature tubes

The following tubes were used in post-World War II
walkie-talkie A walkie-talkie, more formally known as a handheld transceiver (HT), is a hand-held, portable, two-way radio transceiver. Its development during the Second World War has been variously credited to Donald Hings, radio engineer Alfred J. Gross, ...
s and pocket-sized portable radios. All have 1.25 volt DC filaments and directly heated cathodes. Some specify which end of the filament is to be powered by the positive side of the filament power supply (usually a battery). All have glass bodies that measure from wide, and from in overall length. *1AC5 – Power pentode, FL *1AD4 – Sharp- cutoff pentode, FL *1AD5 – Sharp-cutoff pentode, R8 *1AE5 – Heptode mixer, FL *1AG4 – Power pentode, FL *1AG5 – Diode, pentode, FL *1AH4 – RF pentode, FL *1AJ5 – Diode, sharp-cutoff pentode, FL *1AK4 – Sharp-cutoff pentode, FL *1AK5 – Diode, sharp-cutoff pentode, FL *1C8 –
Pentagrid converter The pentagrid converter is a type of radio receiving valve (vacuum tube) with five grids used as the frequency mixer stage of a superheterodyne radio receiver. The pentagrid was part of a line of development of valves that were able to take an ...
, R8 *1D3 – Low-mu high-frequency triode, R8 *1E8 – Pentagrid converter, R8 *1Q6 – Diode, pentode, R8 *1S6 – Diode, pentode, R8 *1T6 – Diode, pentode, R8 *1V5 – Power pentode, R8 *1V6 – Triode-pentode converter, FL *1W5 – Sharp-cutoff pentode, R8


1.4 volt DC filament tubes

*1A3 – High frequency diode with indirectly heated cathode. Used as a detector in some portable AM/FM receivers. *1A7GT/DK32 –
Pentagrid converter The pentagrid converter is a type of radio receiving valve (vacuum tube) with five grids used as the frequency mixer stage of a superheterodyne radio receiver. The pentagrid was part of a line of development of valves that were able to take an ...
, re-engineered version of types 1A6 and 1D7-G, designed for use in portable AC/DC/Dry-cell battery radios introduced in 1938. Has 1.4 V/50 mA filament. *1B7-GT – Re-engineered version of types 1C6 and 1C7-G, designed for use in dry-cell battery radios with shortwave bands. Has 1.4 V/100 mA filament *1G6-G – Dual power triode. "GT" version also available. *
1L6 The 1L6 is a 7 pin miniature vacuum tube of the pentagrid converter type. It was developed in the United States by Sylvania. It is very similar electrically to its predecessors, the Loktal-based 1LA6 and 1LC6. Released in 1949 for the Zenith Trans ...
– Pentagrid frequency changer for battery radios with 50 mA filament *1LA6 (Loctal) and later 1L6 (7-pin miniature) – Battery pentagrid converter for Zenith Trans-Oceanic shortwave radio, 50 mA filament *1LB6 – Superheterodyne mixer for battery-operated radios *1LC6 – Similar to type 1LA6, but with higher conversion
transconductance Transconductance (for transfer conductance), also infrequently called mutual conductance, is the electrical characteristic relating the current through the output of a device to the voltage across the input of a device. Conductance is the reciproc ...
*1R5/DK91 –
Pentagrid converter The pentagrid converter is a type of radio receiving valve (vacuum tube) with five grids used as the frequency mixer stage of a superheterodyne radio receiver. The pentagrid was part of a line of development of valves that were able to take an ...
, anode voltage in the 45...90 volt range. *1S4 – Power output pentode Class-A amplifier, anode voltage in the 45...90 volt range. *1S5 – Sharp- cutoff pentode Class-A amplifier, and diode, used as detector and first A.F. stage in battery radio receivers. Anode voltage in the 67...90 volt range. *1T4/DF91 – Remote-cutoff R.F. Pentode Class-A amplifier, Miniature 7-pin base, used as R.F. and I.F. amplifier in battery radio receivers. *1U4 – Sharp-cutoff R.F. Pentode Class-A amplifier, Miniature 7-pin base, used as R.F. and I.F. amplifier in battery radio receivers, similar characteristics to 6BA6. *1U6 – Nearly identical to type 1L6, but with a 1.4 V/25 mA filament


"1" prefix for home receivers

These tubes were made for home storage battery receivers manufactured during the early to mid-1930s; all have 2.0 volt DC filaments despite the 1-prefix, intended to distinguish them from the 2.5 volt AC heated tubes listed below *1A4-p – Remote-cutoff pentode *1A4-t – Remote-cutoff tetrode *1A6 –
Pentagrid converter The pentagrid converter is a type of radio receiving valve (vacuum tube) with five grids used as the frequency mixer stage of a superheterodyne radio receiver. The pentagrid was part of a line of development of valves that were able to take an ...
up to only 10 MHz due to low heater power (2 V/60 mA) and consequent low emission in the oscillator section; also occasionally used as a grid-leak detector *1B4-p – Sharp-cutoff pentode *1B4-t – Sharp-cutoff tetrode *1B5 – Dual detector diode, medium-mu triode. Usually numbered 1B5/25S *1C5 – Power pentode (similar to 3Q5 except for filament) *1C6 – Pentagrid converter; 1A6, with double the heater power and double the frequency range *1C7-G – Octal version of type 1C6. *1D5-Gp – Octal version of type 1A4-p. *1D5-Gt – Octal version of type 1A4-t. (Note: This is a shouldered "G" octal, not a cylindrical "GT" octal.) *1D7-G – Octal version of type 1A6. *1E5-Gp – Octal version of type 1B4-p. *1E5-Gt – Octal version of type 1B4-t. (Note: This is a shouldered "G" octal, not a cylindrical "GT" octal.) *1E7-G – Dual power pentode for use as a driver when parallel-connected, or as a push-pull output. "GT" version also available *1F4 – Power pentode *1F5-G – Octal version of 1F4. *1F6 – Duplex diode, sharp-cutoff pentode *1F7-G – Octal version of type 1F6 *1G5-G – Power pentode *1H4-G – Medium-mu triode, can be used as a power triode. Octal version of type 30, which is an upgraded version of type 01-A. "GT" version also available. *1H6-G – Octal version of type 1B5/25S. "GT" version also available. *1J5-G (950) – AF Power pentode *1J6-G – Dual power triode, octal version of type 19. "GT" version also available.


CRT anode rectifiers

*1AD2 – Compactron High-voltage rectifier with 1.25 V/200 mA filament. Type 1AD2A has X-Radiation Shielding. *1AJ2 – Compactron High-voltage rectifier with 1.25 V/200 mA filament *1AY2 – 2-pin "Duopin" base High-voltage rectifier. Has similar electrical characteristics as 1B3GT. *1B3GT – Octal High-voltage rectifier diode with 1.25 V filament common in monochrome TV receivers of the 1950s and early 1960s. Peak inverse voltage of 30 kV. Anode current 2 mA average, 17 mA peak. Derived from the earlier industrial type 8016. Many listed and labeled as 1B3GT/1G3GT. *1BC2 – Noval High-voltage rectifier with 1.25 V/200 mA filament. Types 1BC2A and 1BC2B have X-Radiation Shielding. *1BG2 – Subminiature High-voltage rectifier with 1.4 V/575 mA filament. Has flexible leads. *1BQ2 – Noval High-voltage rectifier with 1.4 V/600 mA filament *1BY2 – Compactron High-voltage rectifier with 1.25 V/200 mA filament. Type 1BY2A has X-Radiation Shielding. *1G3GT – Octal High-voltage rectifier. Same Characteristics as 1B3GT. Many listed and labeled as 1B3GT/1G3GT. *1H2 – Noval High-voltage rectifier with 1.4 V/550 mA filament *1J3GT – Octal High-voltage rectifier. Same Characteristics as 1B3GT. Has filament-plate shorting protection. Many listed and labeled as 1J3GT/1K3GT. *1K3GT – Octal High-voltage rectifier. Same Characteristics as 1B3GT. Has filament-plate shorting protection. Many listed and labeled as 1J3GT/1K3GT. *1S2A – Noval High-voltage rectifier with 1.4 V/550 mA filament. Similar to DY86, DY87, DY802, 1R10, and 1R12. *1T2 = R16 – Subminiature High-voltage rectifier with 1.4 V/140 mA filament. Has flexible leads. *1V2 – High-voltage rectifier with 0.625 V/300 mA filament, Miniature 7-pin base *1X2 – Noval High-voltage rectifier with 1.25 V/200 mA filament. 1X2A, 1X2B and 1X2C have X-Radiation Shielding. Similar to DY80 and R19. *1Y2 – 4 pin High-voltage rectifier with 1.5 V/290 mA filament. 50KV max PIV, 10mA peak, 2mA average. Usable up to 1 MHz. *1Z1 – Octal High-voltage rectifier with 0.7 V/180 mA filament. *1Z2 – Noval High-voltage rectifier with 1.25 V/265 mA filament.


2 volt heater/filament tubes


2.5 volt AC heater tubes

Tubes used in AC-powered radio receivers of the early 1930s *2A3 – Directly heated power triode, used for AF output stages in 1930s–1940s audio amplifiers and radios. *2A5 – Power Pentode (Except for heater, electronically identical to types 42 and 6F6) *2A6 – Dual diode, high-mu triode (Except for heater, electronically identical to type 75) *2A7 – Dual-tetrode-style
pentagrid converter The pentagrid converter is a type of radio receiving valve (vacuum tube) with five grids used as the frequency mixer stage of a superheterodyne radio receiver. The pentagrid was part of a line of development of valves that were able to take an ...
(Except for heater, electronically identical to types 6A7, 6A8 and 12A8) *2B7 – Dual diode and remote-cutoff pentode (Except for heater, electronically identical to type 6B7) *2E5 and 2G5 – Electron-ray indicators ("Eye tube") with integrated control triode. (Except for heater, electronically identical to types 6E5 and 6G5)


CRT anode rectifiers

*2X2 – High Vacuum High Peak inverse voltage diode, used as rectifier in CRT EHT supplies. Similar to 1B3 and 1S2 except for heater voltage.


3 volt heater/filament tubes

*3A3/3B2/3AW3 - High Voltage rectifier. An octal type used in color television sets. The heater power is 3.15 volts and 0.22 amps. *3CA3 - High Voltage rectifier. An octal type used in color television sets. The heater power is 3.6 volts and 0.225 amps. *3CN3 - High Voltage rectifier. An octal type used in color television sets. The heater power is 3.15 volts and 0.48 amps. The large current is for the advantage of fast warm-up. *3CU3 - High Voltage rectifier. An octal type used in color television sets. The heater power is 3.15 volts and 0.28 amps. *3CZ3 - High Voltage rectifier. An octal type used in color television sets. The heater power is 3.15 volts and 0.48 amps. The large current is for the advantage of fast warm-up. *3AT2 - High Voltage rectifier. A compactron used in television sets to supply power to the anode of the picture tube. It comes in the variation as the 3AT2B, mainly for color television sets with a large picture tube. The 3AT2B comes with X-radiation shielding on the inside. The heater power is 3.15 volts and 0.22 amps. *3AW2 - High Voltage rectifier. A compactron used for color and black and white television sets. It comes in the variation as the 3AW2A as a replacement for the 3AW2 after the 1967 General Electric X-radiation scandal. The 3AW2A comes with X-radiation shielding on the inside. The heater power is 3.15 volts and 0.22 amps. *3BF2 - High Voltage rectifier. A compactron used in television sets to supply power to the anode of the picture tube. This tube is very rare, and very special, because it implements an indirectly heated cathode, not connected to the filament. No data is found on this tube, except for the filament power (which is 3.6 volts, 0.225 amps) and the base (which is the 12GQ type). The only reason why we know it is a high voltage rectifier is that the base tells us so. *3BL2 - High Voltage rectifier. A compactron used in television sets to supply power to the anode of the picture tube. It comes in the variation as the 3BL2A as a replacement for the 3BL2 after the 1967 General Electric X-radiation scandal. The 3BL2A comes with X-radiation shielding on the inside. The heater power is 3.3 volts and 0.285 amps. *3BM2 - High Voltage rectifier. A compactron used in television sets to supply power to the anode of the picture tube. It comes in the variation as the 3BM2A as a replacement for the 3BM2 after the 1967 General Electric X-radiation scandal. The 3BM2A comes with X-radiation shielding on the inside. The heater power is 3 volts and 0.3 amps. *3BN2 - High Voltage rectifier. A compactron used for color television sets. It comes in the variation as the 3BN2A as a replacement for the 3BN2 after the 1967 General Electric X-radiation scandal. The 3BN2A comes with X-radiation shielding on the inside. The heater power is 3.15 volts and 0.22 amps. *3BS2 - High Voltage rectifier. A compactron used for color television sets. It comes in the variation as the 3BS2A and 3BS2B as a replacement for the 3BN2 after the 1967 General Electric X-radiation scandal. The 3BS2A and 3BS2B tubes are identical, maybe a small difference in ratings and characteristics. We do not know these differences as the 3BS2B tube data is not available. The 3BS2A and 3BS2B comes with X-radiation shielding on the inside. The heater power is 3.15 volts and 0.48 amps. The large current is for the advantage of fast warm-up. *3BT2 - High Voltage rectifier. A compactron used for color television sets. It comes in the variation as the 3BT2A as a replacement for the 3BT2 after the 1967 General Electric X-radiation scandal. The 3BT2A comes with X-radiation shielding on the inside. The heater power is 3.15 volts and 0.48 amps. The large current is for the advantage of fast warm-up. *3BW2 - High Voltage rectifier. A compactron used for color and black and white television sets. The 3BW2 comes with X-radiation shielding on the inside. It also comes with diffusion bonded cathode (a type of cathode that prevents the back-emission of the anode). This tube was designed in December 1970, after the 1967 General Electric X-radiation scandal. All high voltage rectifier tube types that were designed before 1967 had no X-radiation protection internally. That is why all these tubes made during and after 1967 have a suffix showing they had internal X-radiation protection. This is why there is no '3BW2A' type since it was made after 1967. The heater power is 3.15 volts and 0.22 amps.


5 volt heater/filament tubes

*5AR4, GZ34 – Full wave rectifier *5AS4 – Full wave rectifier *5R4 – Full wave rectifier *5U4 – Full wave rectifier *5V4, GZ32 – Full wave rectifier * 5Y3 – Full-wave rectifier, octal base version of type 80


6 volt heater tubes

*6A6 – Dual Power Triode, used as a Class-A audio driver or a Class-B audio output. U7B base. 6.3 volt heater version of type 53 which had a 2.5 volt heater. Octal version – 6N7. *6A7 and 6A8 (''PH4'', ''X63'') –
Pentagrid converter The pentagrid converter is a type of radio receiving valve (vacuum tube) with five grids used as the frequency mixer stage of a superheterodyne radio receiver. The pentagrid was part of a line of development of valves that were able to take an ...
– dual tetrode style. Based on type 2A7, which had a 2.5 volt heater. 6A7 has a UX7 base with top cap connection for
control grid The control grid is an electrode used in amplifying thermionic valves (vacuum tubes) such as the triode, tetrode and pentode, used to control the flow of electrons from the cathode to the anode (plate) electrode. The control grid usually consist ...
(grid 4). 6A8 is octal version with top cap connection for control grid. Loctal version: type 7B8. *6AB4/EC92 – High-mu triode (Pinout same as 6C4 except for pin 5 not having a connection) *6AB5/6N5 – "Magic Eye" cathode ray tuning indicator *6AC5-G – High-mu Power Triode *6AC7, 1852 – TV sharp- cutoff R.F. Pentode. (Often encountered in a black metal envelope, not to be confused with the 6CA7.) *6AC10 – ''
Compactron Compactrons are a type of vacuum tube, thermionic valve, or vacuum tube, which contain multiple electrode structures packed into a single enclosure. They were designed to compete with early transistor electronics and were used in televisions, radi ...
'' High-mu triple triode for use as
NTSC The first American standard for analog television broadcast was developed by National Television System Committee (NTSC)National Television System Committee (1951–1953), Report and Reports of Panel No. 11, 11-A, 12–19, with Some supplement ...
chroma signal demodulator matrix in analog color TV receivers, 12-pin base *6AD6-G and 6AF6-G – "Magic Eye" tuning indicators. Both have two "pie wedge" shadow indicators, one each on opposite sides of a single circular indicator target. Both shadows may be used in tandem or may be driven by two different signal sources. Type 6AE6-G is specifically made to drive each indicator with different signals. May also be driven by separate pentodes with different characteristics. E.g., a sharp-cutoff pentode like a 6J7 – which would be hyper-sensitive to any signal change – would drive one shadow, while a remote-cutoff pentode like a 6K7 – which would only react to stronger signals – would drive the other shadow. Both tubes have octal bases. Type 6AD6-G, with a target voltage rated from 100 to 150 volt, is designed for AC/DC radios. Type 6AF6-G, with a target voltage rated at 250 volt, is designed for larger AC radios. *6AE6-G – A driver triode specially designed for "Magic Eye" tuning indicator types 6AD6-G and 6AF6-G. Has a common heater and indirectly heated cathode, two internally connected triode grids – one with sharp-cutoff characteristics, one with remote-cutoff characteristics – and two anodes, one for each grid. The sharp-cutoff grid reacts to any signal change, while the remote-cutoff grid reacts only to stronger signal changes. *6AE7-GT – Dual Triode with a common, single anode, for use as a power triode driver *6AF4 – UHF Medium-mu Triode, commonly found in TV UHF tuners and converters. *6AF11 – ''Compactron'' High-mu dual triode and sharp-cutoff pentode *6AG11 – ''Compactron'' High-mu dual triode and dual diode *6AH5-G – Beam power tube for early TV use. Same as type 6L6-G, but with scrambled pinout. Used in some
Philco Philco (an acronym for Philadelphia Battery Company) is an American electronics industry, electronics manufacturer headquartered in Philadelphia. Philco was a pioneer in battery, radio, and television production. In 1961, the company was purchased ...
receivers. * 6AK5, ''EF95'', 5654, CV4010, 6J1P (6Ж1П) – Miniature V.H.F. Sharp-cutoff pentode (Used in old ''
Radiosonde A radiosonde is a battery-powered telemetry instrument carried into the atmosphere usually by a weather balloon that measures various atmospheric parameters and transmits them by radio to a ground receiver. Modern radiosondes measure or calcula ...
'' weather balloon transmitters, receiver front ends and contemporary audio equipment), Miniature 7-pin base *6AK6 – Power pentode. 7-pin miniature version of type 6G6-G. Unusual low-power consumption output tube with 150 mA heater. */EABC80 – Triple Diode, High-mu Triode. Diodes have identical characteristics – two have cathodes connected to the triode's cathode, one has a separate cathode. Used as a combination AM detector/AVC rectifier/FM ratio detector/A.F. amplifier in AM/FM radios manufactured outside of North America. Triode amplification factor: 70. North American type 6T8 is identical (but for a shorter glass envelope) and may be used as a substitute. *6AK9 – ''Compactron'' 1x high-mu + 1x medium-mu dual triode and beam power pentode, 12-pin base *6AK10 – ''Compactron'' High-mu triple triode for use as NTSC chroma signal demodulator matrix in analog color TV receivers, 12-pin base *6AL3, ''EY88'' – TV "Damper/Efficiency" Diode *6AL5, ''EAA91'', ''D77'' – Dual Diode, Detector. Often used in vacuum tube volt meters (VTVMs). Miniature version of type 6H6. *6AL6-G – Beam power tube for early TV use. Same as type 6L6-G, but with scrambled pinout and anode connected to top cap. *6AL7-GT – Tuning indicator used in many early AM/FM Hi-Fi radios. Similar in function to "Magic Eye" tubes. Has two bar-shaped shadows; one grows to indicate signal strength, the other moves to indicate center tuning on FM. *6AM6, ''EF91'', Z77 – Sharp-cutoff R.F. pentode used in receiver front ends and test gear such as VTVMs and TV broadcast modulation monitors. *6AN7, – Triode-Hexode Oscillator/Mixer (radio) *6AN8, – Triode-Pentode used in frame timebase circuits for television. Electrically fairly similar to ECL80 but with a different pinout. *
6AQ5 The 6AQ5 ( Mullard–Philips tube designation EL90) is a miniature 7-pin (B7G) audio power output beam tetrode vacuum tube with ratings virtually identical to the 6V6 at 250 V. It was commonly used as an output audio amplifier in tube TVs and radi ...
– Beam-power pentode, 7-pin miniature similar of type 6V6. *6AQ8/ECC85 – Dual triode with internal shield. Designed for use as oscillator and mixer in FM receivers. The heater to cathode insulation is inadequate for use in
cascode The cascode is a two-stage amplifier that consists of a common-emitter stage feeding into a common-base stage. Compared to a single amplifier stage, this combination may have one or more of the following characteristics: higher input–output ...
operation *6AR8, 6JH8, 6ME8 –
Beam deflection tube Beam deflection tubes, sometimes known as sheet beam tubes, are vacuum tubes with an electron gun, a beam intensity control grid, a screen grid, sometimes a suppressor grid, and two electrostatic deflection electrodes on opposite sides of the ...
s for use as
NTSC The first American standard for analog television broadcast was developed by National Television System Committee (NTSC)National Television System Committee (1951–1953), Report and Reports of Panel No. 11, 11-A, 12–19, with Some supplement ...
chroma signal demodulators in analog color TV receivers *6AS6 – Pentode with a fine-pitched suppressor grid which could serve as a second control grid. Used in radar ''phantastron'' circuits. *6AS7, 6080 – Dual low-mu Triode, low impedance, mostly used for voltage regulation circuits. *6AS11 – ''Compactron'' 1x high-mu + 1x medium-mu dual triode and sharp-cutoff pentode, 12-pin base *6AT6 – Dual Diode, High-mu Triode, miniature version of type 6Q7. Triode amplification factor: 70. *6AU4 – TV "Damper/Efficiency" Diode *6AU6, EF94, ''6AU6A'' – Sharp-cutoff pentode *6AV6 – Dual Diode, High-mu Triode, miniature version of type 75. Triode amplification factor: 100. (Triode section similar in characteristics to one half of a 12AX7.) *6AV11 – ''Compactron'' Medium-mu triple triode, 12-pin base *6AX4 – TV "Damper/Efficiency" Diode *6AX5 – Full-wave rectifier. Octal base. Similar in structure to type 6X5, but with higher voltage and current ratings which are comparable to those of types 5Y3 and 80. *6B6-G – Dual Diode, High-mu Triode. Octal version of type 75. Has top-cap connection for triode grid. Later octal version, type 6SQ7, has under-chassis connection for triode grid. Miniature version: 6AV6. *6B7 (UX7 base), 6B8 (''EBF32'', Octal base) – Dual Diode, Semiremote-cutoff Pentodes with control grid on top cap. Based on type 2B7 which had a 2.5 volt heater. The diode anodes are most commonly used as (second) detectors and AVC rectification in superheterodyne receivers. Because their control grids have both sharp-cutoff and remote-cutoff characteristics, these types were used as I.F. amplifiers with AVC bias to the control grid, and as A.F. amplifiers. These types were also used in reflex radios. In a typical 2B7/6B7/6B8 reflex circuit, the I.F. signal from the converter is injected into the pentode and is amplified. The diodes then act as detectors, separating the A.F. signal from the R.F. signal. The A.F. signal is then re-injected into the pentode, amplified, and sent to the audio output tube. *6BA6, ''EF93'', W727, 5790 – Semiremote-cutoff R.F. Pentode (Often encountered in car radios) *6BD11 – ''Compactron'' 1x high-mu + 1x medium-mu dual triode and sharp-cutoff pentode, 12-pin base *6BE6, ''EK90'', 5750, X727 –
Pentagrid Converter The pentagrid converter is a type of radio receiving valve (vacuum tube) with five grids used as the frequency mixer stage of a superheterodyne radio receiver. The pentagrid was part of a line of development of valves that were able to take an ...
(Often encountered in car radios) *6BF6 – Dual Diode, Medium-mu triode. Miniature version of octal type 6R7. *6BF8 – Sextuple diode with a common cathode *6BG6 – Beam tetrode, anode cap. Used in early TV magnetic-deflection horizontal-output stage. *6BH11 – ''Compactron'' Medium-mu dual triode and sharp-cutoff pentode *6BK4 – High Voltage beam Triode (30 kV anode voltage). Used as shunt regulator in color TV receivers and measurement equipment such as high voltage meters *6BK7 – Dual Triode with Internal shield between each section, used in RF circuits (Similar to 6BQ7) *
6BK8 The EF86 is a high transconductance sharp cutoff pentode vacuum tube with Noval (B9A) base for audio-frequency applications. It was introduced by the Mullard company in 1953 and was produced by Philips, Mullard, Telefunken, Valvo, and GEC amo ...
, ''EF86'', Z729 – Audio Pentode used in
microphone preamplifier The term microphone preamplifier can either refer to the electronic circuitry within a microphone, or to a separate device or circuit that the microphone is connected to. In either instance, the purpose of the microphone preamplifier is the same. ...
s and audiophile equipment *6BK11 – ''Compactron'' 2x High-mu + 1x medium-mu triple triode preamplifier, 12-pin base; used in some guitar amps made by Ampeg. *6BL6 (5836) – ''
Sutton tube A Sutton tube, or reflex klystron, is a type of vacuum tube used to generate microwaves. It is a low-power device used primarily for two purposes; one is to provide a tuneable low-power frequency source for the local oscillators in receiver circuit ...
'', a reflex klystron used as a 250 mW CW microwave source, 1.6 to 6.5 GHz depending upon an external cavity. 4-pin ''peewee'' base with cavity contact rings and top cap *6BL8, ''ECF80'' – General-purpose Triode pentode used in TV, audio and test gear *6BM6 (5837) – Sutton tube used as a 150 mW CW microwave source, 550 MHz to 3.8 GHz depending upon an external cavity. 4-pin ''peewee'' base with cavity contact rings and top cap *6BM8, ''ECL82'' – Triode pentode used as the driver and output stages in audio amplifiers, audio output and vertical output stages in TV receivers and has even been seen in an electronic nerve stimulator. *6BN6 – ''Gated-beam discriminator'' pentode, used in radar, dual channel oscilloscopes and F.M.
quadrature detector In radio, a detector is a device or circuit that extracts information from a modulated radio frequency current or voltage. The term dates from the first three decades of radio (1888-1918). Unlike modern radio stations which transmit sound (an audi ...
s (cf. 6DT6, nonode). * 6BQ5, EL84,(N709) – 5.7 Watts AF Power pentode, noval base *6BQ6-GT – Beam Power Pentode, used as a Horizontal Deflection Output tube in monochrome TV receivers of the 1950s. Most commonly used in receivers with diagonal screen sizes less than . (However, may be found in some larger models.) Larger receivers often used similar type 6DQ6. Later versions of this tube branded as 6BQ6-GTB/6CU6. *6BQ7 – Dual RF/VHF triode with internal screen. The two sections can be used independently or in a
cascode The cascode is a two-stage amplifier that consists of a common-emitter stage feeding into a common-base stage. Compared to a single amplifier stage, this combination may have one or more of the following characteristics: higher input–output ...
stage :*6BQ7A – Improved 6BQ7 capable of operation at UHF frequencies *6BU8 – Split Anode TV Sync Separator *6BX6, ''EF80'' – Sharp-cutoff RF/IF/Video pentode, noval base *6BY6 – Similar to type 6CS6, but with higher
transconductance Transconductance (for transfer conductance), also infrequently called mutual conductance, is the electrical characteristic relating the current through the output of a device to the voltage across the input of a device. Conductance is the reciproc ...
. 3BY6 with a different heater *6BY7, ''EF85'', ''W719'' – Remote-cutoff R.F. Pentode (TV IF) *6BZ6 – Sharp-cutoff R.F. pentode used in video I.F. circuits of the 1960s. *6BZ7 – Dual Triode. See 6BK7 *6C4/EC90 – 3.6 W small-power V.H.F. triode up to 150 MHz; single 12AU7/ECC82 system *6C6 – Sharp-cutoff R.F. Pentode. Most common commercial uses were as a tuned R.F. amplifier, a detector, and an A.F. amplifier. Also used in test equipment. Has UX6 base with top cap. Based on type 57, which had a 2.5 volt heater. Similar to types 1603, 77 and octal types 6J7 and 6SJ7 *6C10 – ''Compactron'' High-mu triple triode, 12-pin base – ''not'' related to the Mazda/EdiSwan 6C10 triode-hexode *6CA4, ''EZ81'' – Full Wave Rectifier * 6CA7, ''EL34'' – Audio Power Output Pentode *6CA11 – ''Compactron'' High-mu dual triode and sharp-cutoff pentode *6CB6 – Remote-cutoff R.F. Pentode used in video I.F. circuits of the 1950s and early 1960s. *6CG7 – Dual Triode (used in TV and some audio amplifiers including modern solid-state designs often as a cathode follower, similar to 6SN7) *6CJ6 – Line Output Pentode *6CL6 – Power pentode *6CM5, ''EL36'', ''EL360'' – Audio and TV Line Output Beam Power Tetrode. *6CW4 – ''
Nuvistor The nuvistor is a type of vacuum tube announced by RCA in 1959. Nuvistors were made to compete with the then-new bipolar junction transistors, and were much smaller than conventional tubes of the day, almost approaching the compactness of ea ...
'' high-mu VHF triode, most common one in consumer electronics *6CZ5 – Beam pentode for use in vertical deflection or audio amplifier. In certain applications, it can be used in place of a 6973. *6D4 – 25 mAavg, 100 mApeak Indirectly heated, argon triode
thyratron A thyratron is a type of gas-filled tube used as a high-power electrical switch and controlled rectifier. Thyratrons can handle much greater currents than similar hard-vacuum tubes. Electron multiplication occurs when the gas becomes ionized, p ...
, negative starter voltage, miniature 7-pin base; found an additional use as a 0 to 10 MHz noise source, when operated as a diode (starter tied to cathode) in a transverse 375  G magnetic field. Sufficiently filtered for "flatness" ("
white noise In signal processing, white noise is a random signal having equal intensity at different frequencies, giving it a constant power spectral density. The term is used, with this or similar meanings, in many scientific and technical disciplines ...
") in a band of interest, such noise was used for testing radio receivers, servo systems and occasionally in analog computing as a random value source. *6D6 – Remote-Cutoff R.F. Pentode. Most common commercial uses were as an I.F. amplifier or as a superheterodyne mixer, aka 1st detector. Also used in test equipment. Has UX6 base with top cap. Based on type 58, which had a 2.5 volt heater. Similar to type 78. Octal version: 6U7-G. *6D8-G –
Pentagrid converter The pentagrid converter is a type of radio receiving valve (vacuum tube) with five grids used as the frequency mixer stage of a superheterodyne radio receiver. The pentagrid was part of a line of development of valves that were able to take an ...
, similar to type 6A8. Octal base with top cap. Has 150 mA heater. Used in pre-war 6-volt farm radios. *6D10 – High-mu triple triode for use as oscillator, mixer, amplifier or AFC tube, 12-pin base *6DA6, ''EF89'' – R.F. Pentode used in AM/FM radios manufactured outside North America. *
6DJ8 The 6DJ8 is a miniature nine-pin medium gain dual triode vacuum tube. It is distinguished by its very high transconductance, mostly the result of its frame grid construction. Versions of the tube are named ECC88, E88CC, 6922, E188CC, CV4108, 7308, ...
, ''ECC88'', ''E88CC'', 6922, ''6N23P'', ''6N11'' – Dual Audio and R.F. Triode (often used in TV broadcast equipment, test gear, oscilloscopes and audiophile gear) similar to 6ES8 *6DQ6 – Beam Power Pentode, used as a Horizontal Deflection Output tube in monochrome TV receivers of the 1950s. Most often found in receivers with diagonal screen measurements larger than . Smaller receivers often used similar type 6BQ6-GT. Also used as Audio Output tubes in Standel guitar amplifiers. Later versions branded as 6DQ6-B/6GW6. *6DR8, ''EBF83'' – R.F. pentode which will operate with 12 V anode supply, used as I.F. amplifier in car radios which run directly off the 13.5 volt supply. *6DS4 – ''Nuvistor'' VHF triode used in TV tuners immediately prior to the introduction of solid state tuning circuits. (
RCA The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse, AT&T Corporation and United Fruit Comp ...
TVs equipped with a 6DS4 tuner bore the trademark "Nu-Vista Vision"); successor of the 6CW4. *6DS8, ''ECH83'' – Triode-heptode Local oscillator-Mixer which will operate with 12 V anode supply, used in car radios which run directly off the 13.5 volt supply. *6DT6 – Quadrature detector used in TV audio circuits of the 1950s and early 1960s; cf. 6BN6, nonode. *6DV4 – Medium-mu ''Nuvistor'' triode for UHF oscillators; some versions had a gold-plated envelope *6DX8 – Triode pentode *6E5 – "Magic Eye" Tuning indicator. Has incorporated driver triode with sharp-cutoff grid which makes it extremely sensitive to any changes in signal strength. Has UX6 base. Based on type 2E5, which had a 2.5 volt heater. *6EM5 – TV Vertical Output Pentode *6ES6, ''EF98'' – R.F. pentode which will operate with 12 V anode supply, used as tuned R.F. amplifier in car radios which run directly off the 13.5 volt supply. *6ES8, ''ECC89'', ''E89CC'' – Dual Triode used as
cascode The cascode is a two-stage amplifier that consists of a common-emitter stage feeding into a common-base stage. Compared to a single amplifier stage, this combination may have one or more of the following characteristics: higher input–output ...
R.F. amplifier in TV tuners and V.H.F. receiver front ends, also used as general-purpose dual triode in test gear, similar to 6DJ8 *6EZ8 – High-mu triple triode, Noval base *6F4 – '' Acorn'' UHF triode up to 1.2 GHz, for use as an oscillator *6F5 – High-mu triode, equal to triode section of type 6Q7 *6F6 (''KT63'') – Power Pentode. Octal base version of type 42. Moderate power output rating – 9 watts max. (Single-ended Class-A circuit); 11 watts max. (Push-pull Class-A circuit); 19 watts max. (push-pull Class-AB2 circuit). Available in metal (numbered "6F6"), shouldered glass ("6F6-G"), and cylindrical glass ("6F6-GT"). Sometimes used as a transformer-coupled audio driver for types 6L6-GC and
807 __NOTOC__ Year 807 ( DCCCVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Abbasid Empire and Byzantine Empire * Emperor Nikephoros I is forced to sue for peace, ...
when those tubes were used in Class-AB2 or Class-B amplifiers. Also used as a Class-C oscillator/amplifier in transmitters. *6F7 – Remote-cutoff Pentode, Medium-mu Triode. Has UX7 base with top-cap connection for the pentode's control grid (grid 1). Most common uses were as superheterodyne mixer ("first detector") and local oscillator, or as a combination I.F. amplifier (pentode) and (second) detector or A.F. amplifier (triode). Octal version: 6P7-G. *6FH8 – Medium-mu triode and three-anode sharp-cutoff tetrode for use in TV receivers and complex wave generators *6G5 – "Magic Eye" Tuning indicator. Has incorporated triode with remote-cutoff grid, which makes it less reactive to low-level changes in signal strength. Has UX6 base. Electronically identical to type 6U5 except for indicator. Both types had "pie wedge" shadow indicators. At first, the shadow indicator for type 6G5 was fully closed at zero signal and opened as signal strength increased. For type 6U5, the shadow indicator was fully open at zero signal and closed as signal strength increased. After World War II, type 6G5 was discontinued as a unique tube and all 6U5s were double-branded either as 6G5/6U5 or 6U5/6G5. *6G6-G – Power pentode. Octal base. Low power output – 1.1 watt max. output. Has 150 mA heater. Used in pre-war 6-volt farm radios. Miniature version – 6AK6. *6G8-G – Dual Diode, Sharp-cutoff Pentode (Used as Detector and first A.F. stage in Australian 1940s radios) *6GK5 – Miniature V.H.F. triode (Used as V.H.F. local oscillator in some T.V. Turret Tuners) *6GM5 – Beam power pentode, identical to 7591 and 7868 with a Noval base *6GV8, ''ECL85'' – Triode Pentode (TV vertical output) *6GW8, ''ECL86'' – Audio Triode Pentode (audio, TV vertical output) *6GY8 – High-mu triple triode for use as oscillator, mixer, RF amplifier or AFC tube, Noval base *6H6, ''D63'', ''EB34'', ''OSW3109'' – Dual diode. Octal base. Most commonly found as a "stubby" metal envelope tube. Glass versions 6H6-G and 6H6-GT are also found. *6HS8 – Dual-anode pentode for TV receiver sync separation service or as a two-channel VCA *6J5 (Metal), 6J5GT (Glass Tubular), ''L63'' – Heater cathode type, medium-mu triode, identical to 12J5 except heater characteristics :*6J5WGT – Premium version of 6J5GT, identical to 12J5WGT except heater characteristics *6J6 – Dual general purpose VHF triode with common cathodes, operates over much of the UHF band (up to 600 MHz), equivalent to ECC91 *6J7, ''EF37'' – Sharp-cutoff Pentode. Most common commercial uses were as a tuned R.F. amplifier, a (second) detector, or an A.F. amplifier. Octal version of type 77. This type included a top-cap connection for the control grid. Later version, type 6SJ7, had its control grid connection on pin 4. *6J8-G – Triode-Heptode (radio local oscillator/mixer) *6JU8A – 9 mA, Quad diode, units 1&2 and 3&4 internally series-connected *6K6-G – Power Pentode, octal version of type 41. Low-to-moderate power output rating – 0.35 to 4.5 watts (single-ended Class-A circuit); 10.5 watts max. (push-pull Class-A circuit). *6K7, ''EF39'' – Remote-cutoff R.F. pentode. Most common commercial uses were as an I.F. amplifier or as a superheterodyne mixer, aka 1st detector. Also used in test equipment. Octal version of type 78. This type included a top-cap connection for the control grid. Later version, type 6SK7, had its control grid connection on pin 4. *6K8 and 12K8 – American Triode-Hexode mixer, 1938 *6K11 – ''Compactron'' 2x High-mu + 1x medium-mu triple triode, 12-pin base *6KM8 – Diode and three-anode sharp-cutoff tetrode for use in musical instruments, frequency dividers and complex wave generators *6L4 – ''Acorn'' UHF triode for use as an oscillator *6L5-G – Medium-mu triode (Similar to type 6J5-G, available only in ST shape) *
6L6 6L6 is the designator for a beam power tube introduced by Radio Corporation of America in April 1936 and marketed for application as a power amplifier for audio frequencies.J. F. Dreyer Jr."The Beam Power Output Tube" New York: McGraw-Hill, ''Ele ...
(EL37) – High-powered beam tetrode. ::There are several variations. Except for types 6L6-GC and 6L6-GX, all have the same maximum output ratings: ::*11.5 watts (single-ended Class-A circuit) ::*14.5 watts (push-pull Class-A circuit) ::*34 watts (push-pull Class-AB1 circuit) ::*60 watts (push-pull Class-AB2 circuit) ::6L6 (metal envelope) and 6L6-G (shouldered glass envelope) were used in pre-World War II radios and Public Address amplifiers. ::6L6 and 25L6 were introduced in 1935 as the first beam tetrodes. Both types were branded with the ''L6'' ending to signify their (then) uniqueness among audio output tubes. However, this is the only similarity between the two tubes. (Type 6W6-GT is the 6.3 volt heater version of types 25L6-GT and 50L6-GT.) :*6L6GA – Post-war version of type 6L6-G, in smaller ST-14 shape with ''Shouldered Tubular'', (ST), shaped bulb, revision A. :*6L6GB – Post-war improved version in a cylindrical glass envelope. Similar to type 5881. ::*6L6GTB – 6L6 with ''Tubular'', (T), shaped bulb, revision B, (higher power rating, as it happens. The 6L6GTB can always replace the 6L6, 6L6G, and 6L6GT, but a 6L6GTB running at maximum rating should not be replaced with another subtype). ::*6L6-WGB – "Industrial" version of type 6L6GB. :*6L6GC – Final and highest-powered audio version of the tube. Max. outputs: ::*17.5 watts (single-ended Class-A circuit) ::*32 watts (push-pull Class-A circuit) ::*55 watts (push-pull Class-AB1 circuit) ::*60 watts (push-pull Class-AB2 circuit) :*6L6-GX – Class-C oscillator/amplifier used in transmitters. Max. output 30 watts. (All versions may be used as a Class-C oscillator/amplifier, but this version is specifically designed for this purpose, has a special ceramic base.) *6L7 –
Pentagrid converter The pentagrid converter is a type of radio receiving valve (vacuum tube) with five grids used as the frequency mixer stage of a superheterodyne radio receiver. The pentagrid was part of a line of development of valves that were able to take an ...
often used in console radios of the late 1930s. Similar in structure to pentode-triode pentagrid converters 6SA7 and 6BE6, except that a separate oscillator – usually type 6C5 – is required. Also, grid 1 is remote-cutoff control grid, grid 3 is oscillator input grid. (In types 6SA7 and 6BE6, grid 1 is the internal oscillator grid, grid 3 is the control grid.) Because of low conversion
transconductance Transconductance (for transfer conductance), also infrequently called mutual conductance, is the electrical characteristic relating the current through the output of a device to the voltage across the input of a device. Conductance is the reciproc ...
, radios using type 6L7 typically have either a tuned RF pre-amplifier stage, or at least two stages of I.F. amplification. (A few models have both.) *6LF6 – Beam power tetrode with a duodecar ''Compactron'' base and anode cap, for CRT horizontal-deflection amplifiers *6M5 – Audio Output Pentode (Used as Class-A or C output stages of 1950s Australian radiograms) similar to 6BQ5 *6M11 – ''Compactron'' Dual triode and pentode *6MD8 – Medium-mu triple triode for use as
NTSC The first American standard for analog television broadcast was developed by National Television System Committee (NTSC)National Television System Committee (1951–1953), Report and Reports of Panel No. 11, 11-A, 12–19, with Some supplement ...
chroma signal demodulator matrix in analog color TV receivers, B9E Novar 9-pin base *6ME5 – "Magic Eye"-type tuning indicator, miniature 7-pin base *6MK8 – Dual-anode pentode for TV receiver sync separation service or as a two-channel VCA *6MJ8 – Medium-mu triple triode for use as NTSC chroma signal demodulator matrix in analog color TV receivers, 12-pin base *6MN8 – High-mu triple triode for use as NTSC chroma signal demodulator matrix in analog color TV receivers, 12-pin base *6N3, ''EY82'' – Half-Wave Rectifier *6N5 – Tuning indicator *6N7 – Dual Power Triode, used as Class-A audio driver or as Class-B power output (also 6N7-G and 6N7-GT). Max. output (Class-B) – 10 watts. Octal version of type 6A6. *6N8, ''EBF80'' – Remote-cutoff pentode, dual diode. (detector plus RF or AF amplifier in radios) *6P5-G/GT – Medium-mu triode, Octal version of type 76, often used as driver for type 6AC5-G. *6P7-G – Rarely seen octal version of type 6F7. *6Q5-G – Triode gas
thyratron A thyratron is a type of gas-filled tube used as a high-power electrical switch and controlled rectifier. Thyratrons can handle much greater currents than similar hard-vacuum tubes. Electron multiplication occurs when the gas becomes ionized, p ...
used in DuMont oscilloscopes as a sweep generator. Identical to type 884. *6Q11 – Medium-mu triple triode, 12-pin base, for use as a sync clipper and gated AGC amplifier in TV receivers *6R3, ''EY81'' – TV "Damper/Efficiency" Diode *6R7 – Dual Diode, Medium-mu Triode (also 6R7-G and 6R7-GT). Octal base with top cap. Miniature version – 6BF6. Amplification factor: 16. *6S7-G – Remote-cutoff RF Pentode, similar to type 6K7. Octal base with top cap. Has 150 ms heater. Used in pre-war 6-volt farm radios. *6S8-GT – Triple Diode, High-mu Triode. Octal tube with top-cap connection to triode grid. Has three identical diodes – two diodes share a cathode with the triode, one has a separate cathode. Used as a combined AM detector/AVC rectifier/FM ratio detector/A.F. amplifier in AM/FM radios. Typically, all sections of this tube are arranged around a single heater. *6SA7 – First pentode-triode style
pentagrid converter The pentagrid converter is a type of radio receiving valve (vacuum tube) with five grids used as the frequency mixer stage of a superheterodyne radio receiver. The pentagrid was part of a line of development of valves that were able to take an ...
. Octal type. Miniature version: 6BE6. *6SB7Y (octal), 6BA7 and 12BA7 (Noval) – VHF pentagrids, 1946 *6SC7 – High-mu dual triode (Both sections share a single cathode) *6SK7 – Remote-cutoff pentode (Used in I.F. stages of North American radios) Miniature version: 6BD6 *6SL7, ''ECC35'' – Dual triode (Used in TV and general electronics) * 6SN7, ''ECC32'', ''B65'', ''13D2'', ''CV1986'', 6042 – Medium-mu dual triode (Used in Audio Amplifiers, Hammond Organs and Television; extensive use in World War II radar) Each section is equivalent to a 6J5. Miniature version: 12AU7 *6SS7 – Remote-cutoff pentode (150 mA heater version of the 6SK7, found in some AA6 radios as both the RF amplifier and first IF). This is the only tube to have a same-letter repetition *6T5 – "Magic Eye" Tuning indicator. Has incorporated driver triode with remote-cutoff grid. Has UX6 base. Shadow indicator is fully closed at zero signal. As signal increases, shadow grows outward from the center, covering the entire circumference of the indicator. Electronically identical to types 6G5 and 6U5, which may be used as substitutes. *6T7-G – Dual diode, high-mu triode, similar to type 6Q7. Octal base with top cap. Has 150 mA heater. Used in pre-war farm radios. * – Triple Diode, High-mu Triode. Has three identical diodes – two have cathodes connected to the triode's cathode, one has a separate cathode. Triode amplification factor: 70. Used as an AM detector/AVC rectifier/FM ratio detector/A.F. amplifier in North American AM/FM radios. Identical to type 6AK8/EABC80, but with a shorter glass envelope. *6U5 (UX6 base), 6U5G (Octal base) – "Magic Eye" Tuning indicator. Has incorporated driver triode with remote-cutoff grid. Has "pie wedge" shadow indicator that is open at zero signal and closes as signal increases. Electronically identical to types 6G5 and 6T5 and may be used as a substitute for those types. After World War II, most new 6U5s were double-branded as either 6G5/6U5 or 6U5/6G5. *6U7-G – Remote-cutoff R.F. Pentode. Most common commercial uses were as an I.F. amplifier or as a superheterodyne mixer, aka 1st detector. Also used in test equipment. Octal version of type 6D6. Most direct substitute: 6K7. Similar to types 58, 78 and 6SK7. *6U8A – Triode-pentode, Noval base. Audio preamplifier. *6U10 – 1x High-mu + 2x medium-mu triple triode, 12-pin base *6V4 (''EZ80'') – Noval-base, indirectly heated, full-wave rectifier. EZ80 rated at 90mA, but 6V4 only rated for 70. Some brands were identical. *
6V6 The 6V6 is a beam-power tetrode vacuum tube. The first of this family of tubes to be introduced was the 6V6G by Ken-Rad Tube & Lamp Corporation in late 1936, with the availability by December of both Ken-Rad and Raytheon 6V6G tubes announced. ...
– Beam power tetrode, used in single-ended Class-A audio output stages of radios and sometimes seen in Class-B audio amplifiers (see also: 5V6 and 12V6). Electrically similar to 6AQ5/EL90. :*6V6G – 6V6 with ''Shouldered Tubular'', (ST), shaped bulb. :*6V6GT – 6V6 with ''Tubular'', (T), shaped bulb. *6V7-G – Dual diode, Medium-mu Triode. Octal version of type 85. Amplification factor: 8.3. Similar to type 6R7. *6W6-GT – Beam power pentode, used most often as a Vertical Deflection Output tube in monochrome TV receivers of the 1950s. Can also used as an Audio Output tube. This is the 6.3 volt heater version of types 25L6-GT and 50L6-GT. *6X4 (''EZ90'') and 6X5 (''EZ35'') – Full-wave rectifiers with indirectly heated common cathode. Type 6X4 has a 7-pin miniature base, the 6X5 has an octal base. Based on type 84/6Z4. No longer in production.


"7" prefix Loctal tubes

These tubes all have 6.3 volt AC/DC heaters. *7A4 – Medium-mu triode, Loctal version of type 6J5, often numbered 7A4/XXL *7A5 – Beam power pentode, Loctal version of type 6U6GT *7A6 – Dual detector diode, similar to type 6H6 *7A7 – Remote- cutoff pentode, Loctal version of type 6SK7 *7A8 – The only octode
pentagrid converter The pentagrid converter is a type of radio receiving valve (vacuum tube) with five grids used as the frequency mixer stage of a superheterodyne radio receiver. The pentagrid was part of a line of development of valves that were able to take an ...
produced in America by Sylvania, 1939. Used mostly in
Philco Philco (an acronym for Philadelphia Battery Company) is an American electronics industry, electronics manufacturer headquartered in Philadelphia. Philco was a pioneer in battery, radio, and television production. In 1961, the company was purchased ...
radios. *7AB7 – Sharp-cutoff pentode *7AD7 – Power pentode *7AF7 – Dual medium-mu triode *7AG7 – Sharp-cutoff pentode *7AH7 – Remote-cutoff pentode *7AJ7 – Sharp-cutoff pentode * 7AK7 – Sharp-cutoff, dual control pentode for computer service. Perhaps the first active device specifically designed for computer use. *7B4 – High-mu triode, Loctal version of types 6F5 and 6SF5 *7B5 – Power pentode, Loctal version of types 6K6 and 41 *7B6 – High-mu triode, dual detector diodes, Loctal version of type 75, similar to types 6AV6 and 6SQ7 *7B7 – Remote-cutoff pentode *7B8 –
Pentagrid converter The pentagrid converter is a type of radio receiving valve (vacuum tube) with five grids used as the frequency mixer stage of a superheterodyne radio receiver. The pentagrid was part of a line of development of valves that were able to take an ...
, Loctal version of types 6A7 and 6A8 *7C4 – High frequency diode *7C5 – Beam power pentode, Loctal version of type 6V6 *7C6 – High-mu triode, dual detector diode *7C7 – Sharp-cutoff pentode *7E5 – Medium-mu high-frequency triode *7E6 – Medium-mu triode, dual detector diode, Loctal version of types 6R7 and 6SR7, electronically identical to miniature type 6BF6. *7E7 – Semiremote-cutoff pentode, dual detector diode, similar to types 6B7 and 6B8 *7F7 – High-mu dual triode, Loctal version of type 6SL7-GT *7F8 – Medium-mu VHF triode, used as amplifier or converter *7G7 – Sharp-cutoff pentode *7G8 – Sharp-cutoff dual tetrode *7H7 – Semiremote-cutoff pentode *7J7 – Triode-heptode converter, similar to type 6J8-G *7K7 – High-mu triode, dual detector diode, similar to types 6AT6 and 6Q7 *7L7 – Sharp-cutoff pentode *7N7 – Dual medium-mu triode, Loctal version of type 6SN7-GT *7Q7 – Pentagrid converter, similar to type 6SA7 *7R7 – Remote-cutoff pentode, dual detector diode *7S7 – Triode-heptode converter *7T7 – Sharp-cutoff pentode *7V7 – Sharp-cutoff pentode; 7W7 but with the suppressor grid on pin 4, an internal shield on pin 5, and the cathode on pin 7 *7W7 – Sharp-cutoff pentode; 7V7 but with the suppressor grid and internal shield on pin 5, and the cathode on pins 4 and 7 :Note: When substituting a 7V7 for a 7W7 or vice-versa, verify connections on socket pins 4 and 7; pin 5 is usually connected to the chassis *7X6 – Dual rectifier diode *7X7 – High-mu triode, dual detector diodes on separate cathodes, used as FM discriminator and AF amplifier, often numbered 7X7/XXFM *7Y4 – Full-wave rectifier *7Z4 – Full-wave rectifier


12 volt heater tubes

*12A5 – Power pentode. UX7 base. Center-tapped 12.6 V/300 mA resp. 6.3 V/600 mA heater. Mostly used in pre-war car radios. *12A7 – Power pentode, rectifier diode. Pentode section is similar to type 38. Diode has a low power rating – 120 volt, 30 mA – that limits the number of tubes that can be tied to its B+ circuit. Used in one-tube portable phonographs and a few two- and three-tube radios. Forerunner of such types as 32L7-GT, 70L7-GT and 117L7-GT. UX7 base with top cap. Not related to types 2A7 and 6A7. *12AB5 – Beam Power Tube *12AC10 – ''
Compactron Compactrons are a type of vacuum tube, thermionic valve, or vacuum tube, which contain multiple electrode structures packed into a single enclosure. They were designed to compete with early transistor electronics and were used in televisions, radi ...
'' High-mu triple triode for use as
NTSC The first American standard for analog television broadcast was developed by National Television System Committee (NTSC)National Television System Committee (1951–1953), Report and Reports of Panel No. 11, 11-A, 12–19, with Some supplement ...
chroma signal demodulator matrix in analog color TV receivers, 12-pin base *12AE10 – ''Compactron'' Beam power tube and sharp-cutoff pentode *12AL5 – Dual diode (similar to 6AL5 except for heater) *12AT6 – Dual diode/triode (Commonly replaced by 12AV6 in consumer radios) *
12AT7 12AT7 (also known in Europe by the Mullard–Philips tube designation of ECC81) is a miniature 9-pin medium-gain (60) dual-triode vacuum tube popular in guitar amplifiers. It belongs to a large family of dual triode vacuum tubes which share th ...
, ECC81, 6060, B309, M8162 – High-mu dual triode. Commonly used as R.F. amplifier/mixer in VHF circuits. * 12AU7, ECC82, 6067, B329, M8136 – Medium-mu dual triode. Two 6C4/EC90s in one envelope; however, it is only specified as an audio frequency device. Commonly used in audio applications and TV receivers. *12AV6 – Dual diode/High-mu triode (see also: 6AV6) *12AV7, 5965 – Medium-mu dual triode. Principally designed for VHF amplifier/mixer operation. * 12AX7, ECC83, 6057, B327, M8137 – High-mu dual triode. Very similar to triode section of 6AV6. Commonly used in high-gain audio stages and as power inverters in class A/B amplifiers. *12AW7 – See 12DW7 below. Called AW by some, but proper name is DW. *12AY7 – Dual Triode. Medium gain but low noise, intended for low-level/preamplifier use. *12AZ7 – Dual Triode. Medium-mu, AF Amplifier, or combined oscillator and mixer, Noval base. *12B4A – Low-mu triode, noval base. *12BA6 – Remote-cutoff pentode, 6BA6/EF93 with a different heater *12BE6 –
Pentagrid converter The pentagrid converter is a type of radio receiving valve (vacuum tube) with five grids used as the frequency mixer stage of a superheterodyne radio receiver. The pentagrid was part of a line of development of valves that were able to take an ...
, 6BE6/EK90 with a different heater *12BH7 – Dual Triode, Medium-mu, designed for use in equipment having series heater-string arrangement. *12BY7 – Video Amplifier Pentode *12DT5 – Beam Power Pentode *12DT6 – Sharp-cutoff pentode *12DW7/ECC832, 7247 – Dissimilar triodes. One half 12AX7 value, other half 12AU7 value. *12EG6 – Pentagrid converter, both grids 1 and 3 are sharp-cutoff, has 12.6 volt anode and screen grid voltage, for use in car radios *12FA6 – Low-anode voltage, car radio version of 12BE6 pentagrid converter *12FQ8 – Common-cathode, dual split-anode triode for use in musical instruments, frequency dividers and complex wave generators *12FX8 – Low-anode voltage, triode-heptode converter for car radios *12GA6 – Similar to type 12FA6, but with lower conversion
transconductance Transconductance (for transfer conductance), also infrequently called mutual conductance, is the electrical characteristic relating the current through the output of a device to the voltage across the input of a device. Conductance is the reciproc ...
*12J5WGT – Heater cathode type, medium-mu triode, identical to 6J5WGT except heater characteristics *12K5 – Low-anode voltage tetrode with a space charge grid *12MD8 – Medium-mu triple triode for use as
NTSC The first American standard for analog television broadcast was developed by National Television System Committee (NTSC)National Television System Committee (1951–1953), Report and Reports of Panel No. 11, 11-A, 12–19, with Some supplement ...
chroma signal demodulator matrix in analog color TV receivers, B9E Novar 9-pin base *12MN8 – High-mu triple triode for use as NTSC chroma signal demodulator matrix in analog color TV receivers, B12C Duodecar 12-pin base *12SA7 – Pentagrid converter (Octal version of 12BE6) *12SK7 – Remote-cutoff Pentode (Octal version of 12BA6) *12SQ7 – Dual diode, triode (Octal version of 12AV6) *12U5G – Tuning indicator identical to 6U5G except heater characteristics *12Z3 – Half-wave rectifier, UX4 base


"14" prefix Loctal tubes

These tubes all have 12.6 volt AC/DC heaters *14A4 – Medium-mu triode, Loctal version of type 12J5 *14A5 – Beam power pentode *14A7 – Remote-cutoff pentode, often numbered 14A7/12B7 *14AF7 – Dual medium-mu triodes, often numbered 14AF7/XXD *14B6 – High-mu triode, dual detector diode, similar to types 12AV6 and 12SQ7 *14B8 –
Pentagrid converter The pentagrid converter is a type of radio receiving valve (vacuum tube) with five grids used as the frequency mixer stage of a superheterodyne radio receiver. The pentagrid was part of a line of development of valves that were able to take an ...
, Loctal version of type 12A8 *14C5 – Beam power pentode, Loctal version of type 12V6-GT *14C7 – Sharp-cutoff pentode *14E6 – Medium-mu triode, dual detector diode, Loctal version of 12SR7 *14E7 – Semiremote-cutoff pentode, dual detector diode, similar to type 12C8 *14F7 – High-mu dual triode, Loctal version of type 12SL7-GT *14F8 – Medium-mu VHF triode, used as amplifier or converter *14H7 – Semiremote-cutoff pentode *14J7 – Triode-heptode converter *14N7 – Dual medium-mu triode, Loctal version of type 12SN7-GT *14Q7 – Pentagrid converter, similar to type 12SA7 *14R7 – Remote-cutoff pentode, dual detector diode *14S7 – Triode-heptode converter *14W7 – Sharp-cutoff pentode *14X7 – High-mu triode, dual detector diodes on separate cathodes, used as FM discriminator and AF amplifier *14Y4 – Dual rectifier diode


25 volt series heater tubes

*25A6 – Power pentode, octal version of type 43 *25C5 – Beam Power Pentode (Identical to the 50C5 but with a 25 V 300 mA heater) *25F5 – Beam Power Pentode (Identical to the 50C5, but with a 25 V 150 mA heater, used in some AA5 type radios using push-pull output) *
25L6 The 25L6 is an octal-based vacuum tube of the Beam tetrode type. It is the Octal base equivalent to thtype '43 power tubewhich made early AC-powered loudspeaker radios affordable. It found common application in AC/DC radio receivers - such as th ...
– Beam-power pentode (Except for heater, electrically identical to type 50L6) *25Z5 – Dual rectifier diode *25Z6 – Octal version of 25Z5


35 volt series heater tubes

*35A5 – Beam Power Tube (Loctal, Similar to 35L6) *35B5 – Beam power tube *35C5 – Identical to 35B5 except for basing ("pin-out") arrangement (HL92) *35DZ8 – High-mu Triode/Beam Power tube (Like the 35HB8, used for audio) *35HB8 – Triode/Beam Power tube (Used primarily as both the audio amplifier and output) *35L6-GT – Beam power pentode similar to, but not electronically identical to, types 25L6-GT and 50L6-GT *35W4 – Rectifier diode *35Y4 – Rectifier Diode (Loctal, similar to 35Z5) *35Z3 – Rectifier Diode (Loctal, Similar to 35Z4) *35Z4-GT – Rectifier diode *35Z5-GT – Similar to 35Z4-GT, but equipped with a heater tap used to power a pilot light


50 volt series heater tubes

*50A5 – Beam Power Tube (Loctal, similar to 50L6) *50B5 – Beam power tube, similar to 35B5 but with 50 volt heater * 50C5 – Similar to 35C5 but with 50 volt heater, and 50B5 except for basing ("pin-out") arrangement *50DC4 – Rectifier diode (Similar to 35W4 except for heater) *50EH5 – Beam Power tube, (Similar to 50C5 but with higher gain, some radios that use this tube do not have an audio amplifier section.) *50HK6 – Power pentode (Filament is tapped for use with a dial lamp) *50L6 – Beam power tube (see also
25L6 The 25L6 is an octal-based vacuum tube of the Beam tetrode type. It is the Octal base equivalent to thtype '43 power tubewhich made early AC-powered loudspeaker radios affordable. It found common application in AC/DC radio receivers - such as th ...
) *50X6 – Dual Diode (Loctal, commonly used as a rectifier-doubler)


117 volt heater tubes

All of the following tubes are designed to operate with their heaters connected directly to the 117 volt (now 120 volt) electrical mains of North America. All of them use indirectly heated cathodes. All of them incorporate at least one rectifier diode. *Rectifier diode – Beam power pentode combinations :*117L7GT :*117M7GT :*117N7GT :*117P7GT *Rectifier tubes :*117Z3 – Single diode, 7-pin miniature version of 117Z4GT :*117Z4GT :*117Z6GT – Dual diode, can be used as a voltage doubler


Other tubes with nonstandard heater voltages

The tubes in this list are most commonly used in series-wired circuits. *2AF4 – UHF triode oscillator *2BN4 – VHF triode *2CW4 – ''
Nuvistor The nuvistor is a type of vacuum tube announced by RCA in 1959. Nuvistors were made to compete with the then-new bipolar junction transistors, and were much smaller than conventional tubes of the day, almost approaching the compactness of ea ...
'' high-mu VHF triode, 6CW4 with a 2.1 volt/450 mA heater; used in TV receivers with series heater strings *2CY5 – VHF sharp-cutoff tetrode *2EA5 – VHF sharp-cutoff tetrode *2EN5 – Dual diode *2ER5 – VHF triode *2ES5 – VHF triode *2EV5 – VHF sharp-cutoff tetrode *2FH5 – VHF triode *2FQ5 – VHF triode *2FV6 – VHF sharp-cutoff tetrode *2FY5 – VHF triode *4CB6 – Sharp- cutoff pentode *5J6 – General purpose RF dual triode with common cathodes, a 6J6 with a 4.7 volt/600 mA controlled warm-up heater *7AU7 – Medium-mu Dual triode with a center-tapped 7.0/3.5 V heater, like the 12AU7 *7KY6 – Sharp-cutoff frame-grid pentode with a 7.3 volt nominal heater voltage for use as video output tube in TV receivers, Noval base *8AC10 – ''
Compactron Compactrons are a type of vacuum tube, thermionic valve, or vacuum tube, which contain multiple electrode structures packed into a single enclosure. They were designed to compete with early transistor electronics and were used in televisions, radi ...
'' High-mu triple triode for use as
NTSC The first American standard for analog television broadcast was developed by National Television System Committee (NTSC)National Television System Committee (1951–1953), Report and Reports of Panel No. 11, 11-A, 12–19, with Some supplement ...
chroma signal demodulator matrix in analog color TV receivers, 12-pin base *8B10 – ''Compactron'' Dual triode and dual diode *8FQ7/8CG7 – Dual triode (8 V version of the common 6CG7) *10DE7 – Dual triode (dissimilar triode sections) *11DS5 – Beam Power tube (11 V heater version of the 50B5/35B5) *13CW4 – ''Nuvistor'' used as a
preamplifier A preamplifier, also known as a preamp, is an electronic amplifier that converts a weak electrical signal into an output signal strong enough to be noise-tolerant and strong enough for further processing, or for sending to a power amplifier a ...
in Neumann condenser microphones ''U-47'' and ''U-48'' after the production of the VF14 ceased *18FX6 –
Pentagrid converter The pentagrid converter is a type of radio receiving valve (vacuum tube) with five grids used as the frequency mixer stage of a superheterodyne radio receiver. The pentagrid was part of a line of development of valves that were able to take an ...
(18 V version of the 12BE6) *18FY6 – Dual diode/triode (18 V version of the 12AV6) *34GD5 – Beam power tube (34 V version of the 35C5/50C5) *36AM3 – Half-wave rectifier (36 V version of the 35W4) *38HE7 – ''Compactron'' Diode and beam power tube *38HK7 – ''Compactron'' Diode and beam power tube


List of ''RMA'' professional tubes

*1B23 – 20 kW, 400 to 1500 MHz Gas-filled,
cold-cathode A cold cathode is a cathode that is not electrically heated by a filament.A negatively charged electrode emits electrons or is the positively charged terminal. For more, see field emission. A cathode may be considered "cold" if it emits more ele ...
Transmit/Receive Tube (TR cell) *1B41 – Gas-filled, cold-cathode 9.5 kV, 450 A spark gap *1B45 – Gas-filled, cold-cathode 14 kV, 450 A spark gap *1B49 – Gas-filled, cold-cathode 12 kV, 450 A spark gap *1C21 – Gas-filled, 25 mAavg, 100 mApeak, triode
thyratron A thyratron is a type of gas-filled tube used as a high-power electrical switch and controlled rectifier. Thyratrons can handle much greater currents than similar hard-vacuum tubes. Electron multiplication occurs when the gas becomes ionized, p ...
*1D21 – ''Strobotron'' Gas-filled, 50 mAavg, 5 Apeak, luminescent tetrode thyratron for use as a stroboscope lamp *1P21 – 9-stage
Photomultiplier A photomultiplier is a device that converts incident photons into an electrical signal. Kinds of photomultiplier include: * Photomultiplier tube, a vacuum tube converting incident photons into an electric signal. Photomultiplier tubes (PMTs for sh ...
, spectral S4 response, 11-pin base *1P25 – Infrared image converter used in World War II night vision "sniperscopes". *1P29 – Gas-filled
phototube A phototube or photoelectric cell is a type of gas-filled or vacuum tube that is sensitive to light. Such a tube is more correctly called a 'photoemissive cell' to distinguish it from photovoltaic or photoconductive cells. Phototubes were previ ...
, spectral S3 response, 4-pin base *1P39 – Vacuum Phototube, spectral S4 response, 4-pin base *1S22 – 10 kV, 20 A Vacuum SPDT
switch In electrical engineering, a switch is an electrical component that can disconnect or connect the conducting path in an electrical circuit, interrupting the electric current or diverting it from one conductor to another. The most common type of ...
*2C21 – Dual transmitting triode, indirectly heated, 7-pin base plus a single
top cap A spinning top, or simply a top, is a toy with a squat body and a sharp point at the bottom, designed to be spun on its vertical axis, balancing on the tip due to the gyroscopic effect. Once set in motion, a top will usually wobble for a few ...
for one of the grids *2C22 – Transmitting triode, indirectly heated, Octal base plus dual top cap for grid and anode *2C36 – ''Rocket''-type disk-seal UHF triode with an internal feedback circuit between cathode and anode, for use as UHF oscillator up to 1.75 GHz *2C37 – ''Rocket'' triode for use as SHF oscillator up to 3.3 GHz *2C39A – ''Oil can''-type disk-seal UHF power triode with glass spacers up to 3 GHz, Panode = 100 W :*2C39B – 2C39A with ceramic spacers *2C40 – ''Lighthouse''-type disk-seal UHF power triode for continuous operation, Panode = 6.5 W at 3370 MHz *2C41 – ''Oil can'' UHF power triode for pulsed operation, 2200 Wpeak at 3 GHz *2C42 – ''Lighthouse'' UHF power triode for pulsed operation, 1750 Wpeak at 1050 MHz; improved 446 *2C43 – ''Lighthouse'' UHF power triode, indirectly heated, up to 3.37 GHz, 6-pin base *2C46 – ''Lighthouse'' UHF power triode *2C51 – Dual shielded triode, indirectly heated, Noval base */EN91 (PL21, PL2D21, CV797) – 100 mAavg, 500 mApeak, 10 Asurge, Gas-filled, indirectly heated tetrode thyratron, negative starter voltage, miniature 7-pin base, for relay and grid-controlled rectifier service, used in
jukebox A jukebox is a partially automated music-playing device, usually a coin-operated machine, that will play a patron's selection from self-contained media. The classic jukebox has buttons, with letters and numbers on them, which are used to sele ...
es and computer equipment. *2E22 – 53 W Power pentode, 5-pin base with anode on top cap *2E26 – Popular amateur 5.3 W VHF beam power tetrode up to 175 MHz, octal base * – 10 W Directly heated beam power tetrode with deflection screens available on separate pin, miniature 7-pin base *2E31 – Subminiature, directly heated, fully shielded sharp- cutoff RF/IF pentode, 5-pin all-glass wire-ended, FL *2E32 – Similar to 2E31, SL *2E35 – 6 mW Subminiature directly heated power pentode, 5-pin all-glass wire-ended, FL *2E36 – Similar to 2E35, SL *2E41 – Diode, pentode, FL *2E42 – Similar to 2E42, SL *2F21 – Indirectly heated hexode monoscope, ''Indian Head'' test pattern, 6-pin base with dual top caps for grid4 and anode *2G21 – Directly heated triode-heptode mixer, 7-pin all-glass wire-ended *2G41 – Triode-heptode converter, FL *2G42 – Similar to type 2G42, SL *2H21 – ''Phasitron'', a magnetically controlled beam-deflection phase modulator tube similar to the 5593, used in early FM broadcast transmittersDave Hershberger ( W9GR)
PHASITRON vacuum tube web page
/ref> *2J30 to 2J34 – 300 kW S-band
Magnetron The cavity magnetron is a high-power vacuum tube used in early radar systems and currently in microwave ovens and linear particle accelerators. It generates microwaves using the interaction of a stream of electrons with a magnetic field while ...
s *2J55 and 2J56 – 40 kW
X-band The X band is the designation for a band of frequencies in the microwave radio region of the electromagnetic spectrum. In some cases, such as in communication engineering, the frequency range of the X band is rather indefinitely set at approxi ...
Magnetrons for use as pulsed oscillator *2K25 – 25 mW 8.5 to 9.66 GHz
Reflex Klystron A klystron is a specialized linear-beam vacuum tube, invented in 1937 by American electrical engineers Russell and Sigurd Varian,Pond, Norman H. "The Tube Guys". Russ Cochran, 2008 p.31-40 which is used as an amplifier for high radio freque ...
*2K50 – 15 mW 23.5 to 24.5 GHz Reflex Klystron *2P23 – Early image
orthicon Video camera tubes were devices based on the cathode ray tube that were used in television cameras to capture television images, prior to the introduction of charge-coupled device (CCD) image sensors in the 1980s. Several different types of tubes ...
TV camera tube. *3B28 – Xenon half wave rectifier; ruggedized replacement for mercury vapor type 866. *3C22 – Disk-seal UHF power triode, Panode = 125 W with forced-air cooling, 1.4 GHz *3C23 – 1.5 Aavg, 6 Apeak, Mercury-vapor triode thyratron, 4-pin base with anode top cap *3C45 – 45 mAavg, 1.5 A RMS, 35 Apeak, Half-indirectly heated hydrogen triode thyratron, 4-pin base with anode top cap *3D21 – Indirectly heated beam power tetrode, Octal base with anode top cap *3D22 – Gas-filled, 800 mAavg, 8 Apeak, tetrode thyratron, 7-pin base *3E29 – Dual beam power tube used in radar equipment; a pulse rated variant of the earlier 829B, ''Septar'' 7-pin base with dual anode top cap. *4B32 – 10 kV, 1.25 Aavg, 5 Apeak Xenon half wave rectifier *4D21 (6155,
Eimac Eimac is a trade mark of Eimac Products, part of the Microwave Power Products Division of Communications & Power Industries. It produces power vacuum tubes for radio frequency applications such as broadcast and radar transmitters. The company name ...
4-125A) – 125 W Glass VHF beam power tetrode *4E27 – 125 W Glass radial-beam power pentode *4J31 to 4J35 – 1 MW S-band Magnetrons *5B24 – '' Tungar bulb'', a low-voltage, mercury-vapor, full wave rectifier for charging 60-cell lead-acid batteries at 6 A; 2.5 V, 24 A heater *5C22 – Half-indirectly heated, hydrogen triode thyratron for radar modulators. *5D22 (6156, Eimac 4-250A) – 250 W, 110 MHz Glass beam power tetrode *5J26 – 500 kW, 1.22 to 1.35 GHz S-band Magnetrons *6C21 – Triode radar modulator for "hard tube" pulsers. *7C23 – 120 kW Power triode for high voltage pulse operation. *8D21 – Internally water cooled dual tetrode used in early VHF TV transmitters. *9C21 – 100 kW Water-cooled power triode, directly heated, 4-pin base with dual top caps for grid and anode


List of ''EIA'' professional tubes

Note: Most of these are special quality versions of the equivalents given. Some manufacturers preceded the
EIA Eia or EIA may refer to: Medicine * Enzyme immunoassay * Equine infectious anemia * Exercise-induced anaphylaxis * Exercise-induced asthma * External iliac artery Transport * Edmonton International Airport, in Alberta, Canada * Erbil Internation ...
number with a manufacturer's code, as explained above.


5000s

*5331, 5332, 5514 – Directly heated power triodes, 4-pin base with anode top cap *5556 – Directly heated power triode, 4-pin base *5593 – ''Phasitron'', a magnetically controlled beam-deflection phase modulator tube similar to the 2H21, used in early FM broadcast transmitters *5608 – Dual power triode, designed for use with AC anode voltage and critical grid leak requirements *5651 – 86-volts, cold-cathode, glow-discharge
voltage reference A voltage reference is an electronic device that ideally produces a fixed (constant) voltage irrespective of the loading on the device, power supply variations, temperature changes, and the passage of time. Voltage references are used in power sup ...
, 7-pin miniature base * 5654, CV4010, 408A – VHF pentode; common in vintage radar IF amplifiers; premium version of 6AK5, EF95, 6J1P (6Ж1П) *5678 (CK5678 Raytheon) – 5 leads subminiature shielded pentode for RF applications *5691 – ''Special Red'' ruggedized long-life high-mu triode for industrial applications *5692 – ''Special Red'' ruggedized long-life medium-mu triode for industrial applications *5693 – ''Special Red'' ruggedized long-life sharp-cutoff pentode for industrial applications *5704 – Subminiature diode, all-glass wire-ended *5727 – 650 V, 100 mAavg, 500 mApeak, 10 Asurge Indirectly heated tetrode
thyratron A thyratron is a type of gas-filled tube used as a high-power electrical switch and controlled rectifier. Thyratrons can handle much greater currents than similar hard-vacuum tubes. Electron multiplication occurs when the gas becomes ionized, p ...
, positive starter voltage, miniature 7-pin base *5729 – Beam-deflection, 30-channel analog
multiplexer In electronics, a multiplexer (or mux; spelled sometimes as multiplexor), also known as a data selector, is a device that selects between several analog or digital input signals and forwards the selected input to a single output line. The sel ...
for telecomms transmitting
channel bank In telecommunications, a channel bank is a device that performs multiplexing or demultiplexing ("demux") of a group of communications channels, such as analog or digital telephone lines, into one channel of higher bandwidth or higher digital bit r ...
s, internal electrostatic focusing and deflection to determine through which one out of 30 grids the electron beam passes to the common anode. Cf. 5738, 6090, 6091, 6170, 6324 *5731 – Narrow-tolerance selected
955 Year 955 ( CMLV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * August 10 – Battle of Lechfeld: King Otto I ("the Great") defeats the Hungarians (also ...
'' Acorn'' triode for use in ''
Radiosonde A radiosonde is a battery-powered telemetry instrument carried into the atmosphere usually by a weather balloon that measures various atmospheric parameters and transmits them by radio to a ground receiver. Modern radiosondes measure or calcula ...
'' weather balloon transmitters *5734 – Mechano-electronic displacement sensor; a vacuum triode with its anode mounted on a shaft that extends through a thin, flexible metal diaphragm; shaft movement is reflected in anode current; Fres = 12 kHz *5738 – Beam-deflection, secondary emission, 25-channel analog
multiplexer In electronics, a multiplexer (or mux; spelled sometimes as multiplexor), also known as a data selector, is a device that selects between several analog or digital input signals and forwards the selected input to a single output line. The sel ...
, internal electrostatic focusing and
deflection Deflection or deflexion may refer to: Board games * Deflection (chess), a tactic that forces an opposing chess piece to leave a square * Khet (game), formerly ''Deflexion'', an Egyptian-themed chess-like game using lasers Mechanics * Deflection ...
to determine which one out of 25 individually controllable dynodes receives the electron beam controlled by a common grid. Cf. 5729, 6090, 6091, 6170, 6324 *5749– RF pentode; premium version of 6BA6, EF93, W727 *5750 – Heptode mixer; premium version of 6BE6, EK90, X727 * 5751 – Low-voltage, low-noise
avionics Avionics (a blend of ''aviation'' and ''electronics'') are the electronic systems used on aircraft. Avionic systems include communications, navigation, the display and management of multiple systems, and the hundreds of systems that are fit ...
dual triode with separate cathodes *
5814A The 12AU7 and its variants are miniature nine-pin (B9A base) medium-gain dual triode vacuum tubes. It belongs to a large family of dual triode vacuum tubes which share the same pinout ( RETMA 9A). 12AU7 is also known in Europe under its Mullard ...
– Industrial, computer-rated version of ''12AU7/ECC82'' *5836, 6BL6 – ''
Sutton tube A Sutton tube, or reflex klystron, is a type of vacuum tube used to generate microwaves. It is a low-power device used primarily for two purposes; one is to provide a tuneable low-power frequency source for the local oscillators in receiver circuit ...
'', a reflex klystron used as a 250 mW CW microwave source, 1.6 to 6.5 GHz depending upon an external cavity. 4-pin ''peewee'' base with cavity contact rings and top cap *5837, 6BM6 – Sutton tube used as a 150 mW CW microwave source, 550 MHz to 3.8 GHz depending upon an external cavity. 4-pin ''peewee'' base with cavity contact rings and top cap *5845 – Dual directly heated ''saturated-emission diode''. Acts as a heating current-controlled, variable series resistor in voltage/current stabilizer circuits. *5876A – Glass ''pencil''-type disk-seal UHF power triode up to 2 GHz *5930 – Ruggedized, directly heated power triode, 4-pin base *5962 – 700 V/2...55 μA Corona voltage reference, miniature 7-pin base with anode top cap *5963, 5964, 5965 – Dual triode, designed for high speed digital computers, has a high zero-bias anode current, industrial/computer-rated versions of 12AV7 *5998, 6336A, 6394, 6520, 6528, 7802 – Dual power triodes, designed for series voltage regulator applications


6000s

*6047 – ''Additron'', a triple-control grid, split-anode tetrode for use as a single-bit digital
full adder An adder, or summer, is a digital circuit that performs addition of numbers. In many computers and other kinds of processors adders are used in the arithmetic logic units (ALUs). They are also used in other parts of the processor, where they are ...
(technically a hexode) *6057, M8137 – High-mu dual triode; premium version of 12AX7, ECC83, B339 *6059 – Low-
microphonics Microphonics, microphony, or microphonism describes the phenomenon wherein certain components in electronic devices transform mechanical vibrations into an undesired electrical signal (noise). The term comes from analogy with a microphone, which ...
pentode; premium version of 6BR7 *6060, M8162 – High-mu dual triode; premium version of
12AT7 12AT7 (also known in Europe by the Mullard–Philips tube designation of ECC81) is a miniature 9-pin medium-gain (60) dual-triode vacuum tube popular in guitar amplifiers. It belongs to a large family of dual triode vacuum tubes which share th ...
, ECC81, B309 *6064, M8083 – R.F. pentode; premium version of 6AM6, EF91, Z77 *6067, M8136 – Medium-mu dual triode; premium version of 12AU7, ECC82, B329 *6080 – Very-low impedance dual power triode, designed for series
voltage regulator A voltage regulator is a system designed to automatically maintain a constant voltage. A voltage regulator may use a simple feed-forward design or may include negative feedback. It may use an electromechanical mechanism, or electronic components ...
applications, now popular for
output transformerless Output transformerless (OTL) is a type of vacuum tube audio power amplifier, which omits an output transformer for the purpose of greater linearity and fidelity. Conventional vacuum tube amplifier designs rely upon an output transformer to couple t ...
audio amplifiers; premium version of 6AS7 *6082 – Ruggedized, indirectly heated power triode, octal base *6090 – Beam-deflection, 18-channel analog
demultiplexer In electronics, a multiplexer (or mux; spelled sometimes as multiplexor), also known as a data selector, is a device that selects between several analog or digital input signals and forwards the selected input to a single output line. The sel ...
for telecomms receiving
channel bank In telecommunications, a channel bank is a device that performs multiplexing or demultiplexing ("demux") of a group of communications channels, such as analog or digital telephone lines, into one channel of higher bandwidth or higher digital bit r ...
s, internal electrostatic focusing and deflection to determine which one out of 18 anodes receives the electron beam controlled by a common grid. Cf. 5729, 5738, 6091, 6170, 6324 *6091 – Beam-deflection, 25-channel analog
multiplexer In electronics, a multiplexer (or mux; spelled sometimes as multiplexor), also known as a data selector, is a device that selects between several analog or digital input signals and forwards the selected input to a single output line. The sel ...
for telecomms transmitting
channel bank In telecommunications, a channel bank is a device that performs multiplexing or demultiplexing ("demux") of a group of communications channels, such as analog or digital telephone lines, into one channel of higher bandwidth or higher digital bit r ...
s, internal electrostatic focusing and deflection to determine through which one out of 25 grids the electron beam passes to the common anode. Cf. 5729, 5738, 6090, 6170, 6324 *6146 – 60 MHz, 120 W AF/RF/VHF beam power pentode :*6146B (''8298A'') – Improved version of 6146, 6146A and 8298. *6170 and 6324 – Beam-deflection, 25-channel analog
multiplexer In electronics, a multiplexer (or mux; spelled sometimes as multiplexor), also known as a data selector, is a device that selects between several analog or digital input signals and forwards the selected input to a single output line. The sel ...
for telecomms transmitting
channel bank In telecommunications, a channel bank is a device that performs multiplexing or demultiplexing ("demux") of a group of communications channels, such as analog or digital telephone lines, into one channel of higher bandwidth or higher digital bit r ...
s, external focusing and deflection by a multiphase, rotating magnetic field to determine through which one out of 25 grids the electron beam passes to the common anode. Cf. 5729, 5738, 6090, 6091 *6173 – ''Pencil''-type disk-seal UHF diode up to 3.3 GHz *6196 – Directly heated dual, compensating
electrometer An electrometer is an electrical instrument for measuring electric charge or electrical potential difference. There are many different types, ranging from historical handmade mechanical instruments to high-precision electronic devices. Modern ...
tetrode with space charge grids for use in the 2 branches of a differential-in, differential-out bridge circuit *6218/E80T (CV5724) – Modulated, single-anode
beam deflection tube Beam deflection tubes, sometimes known as sheet beam tubes, are vacuum tubes with an electron gun, a beam intensity control grid, a screen grid, sometimes a suppressor grid, and two electrostatic deflection electrodes on opposite sides of the ...
for pulse generation up to 375 MHz; shock resistant up to 500  g *6263 – ''Pencil''-type disk-seal UHF power triode up to 500 MHz, Panode = 8 W *6351 – Secondary emission pentode for wide band RF amplifiers *6353 – 19.3 kV/25...1000 μA Corona voltage reference, miniature 7-pin base with anode top cap *6361 – ''Convectron'', an inclinometer tube that senses tilt from the vertical by means of different gas convections around a heating wire in a glass envelope, of two 6361s aligned in a 90° V-shaped position to each other and the heating wires connected in a bridge circuit *6391 – Subminiature low-
microphonics Microphonics, microphony, or microphonism describes the phenomenon wherein certain components in electronic devices transform mechanical vibrations into an undesired electrical signal (noise). The term comes from analogy with a microphone, which ...
pentode, 8-pin all-glass wire-ended *6441 – 650 V, 100 mAavg, 300 mAsurge ''Tacitron'', a grid turn-off hydrogen
thyratron A thyratron is a type of gas-filled tube used as a high-power electrical switch and controlled rectifier. Thyratrons can handle much greater currents than similar hard-vacuum tubes. Electron multiplication occurs when the gas becomes ionized, p ...
with a grid that forms a shield around both the cathode and anode and separates the two by a wire mesh, so the arc discharge can be extinguished by a negative grid that surrounds the positive anode with a field of opposing polarity and inhibits conduction, taking over part of the anode current during deionisation – similar to today's GTOs; Octal base *6462 – ''Magnetic pickup tube'', a 1-axis beam-deflection magnetometer with approx. resolution; an electron beam is electrostatically centered between two anodes while no magnetic field is present; the magnetic field to be detected will then deflect the beam more towards one of the anodes, resulting in an imbalance between the two anode currents *
6550 Tung-Sol was an American manufacturer of electronics, mainly lamps and vacuum tubes. History Tung-Sol was founded as Tung-Sol Lamp Works Inc. in Newark, New Jersey in 1907. Their early products were mainly geared towards the automotive mark ...
– 20 W AF
beam tetrode A beam tetrode, sometimes called a beam power tube, is a type of vacuum tube or thermionic valve that has two grids and forms the electron stream from the cathode into multiple partially collimated beams to produce a low potential space cha ...
for high fidelity amplifiers :*6550A – Improved 6550 42 watt anode *6571 – Williams-type computer memory tube *6577 – ''Typotron'', a
charactron Charactron was a U.S. registered trademark (number 0585950, 23 February 1954) of Consolidated Vultee Aircraft Corporation (Convair) for its shaped electron beam cathode ray tube. Charactron CRTs performed functions of both a display device and a ...
for
text mode Text mode is a computer display mode in which content is internally represented on a computer screen in terms of characters rather than individual pixels. Typically, the screen consists of a uniform rectangular grid of ''character cells'', each ...
video rendering in early computer monitors *6700 – 200 ns Decade counter ''Magnetron Beam Switching Tube'', 6.3 V, 300 mA heater *6701 – Low-voltage 500 ns decade counter ''Magnetron Beam Switching Tube'', 6.3 V, 300 mA heater *6703 – 500 ns Decade counter ''Magnetron Beam Switching Tube'', 6.3 V, 300 mA heater *6704 – 100 ns Decade counter ''Magnetron Beam Switching Tube'' with internal spade load resistors, 6.3 V, 300 mA heater *6710, 6711, 6712 (High current), 6714 (Low voltage) – 2 MHz Decade counter ''Beam-X Switch'', 6.3 V heater *6762 – ''Wamoscope'', a TWT/ CRT combination used to directly visualize an incoming microwave signal by electron velocity-sorting *6835, 7570, 7571 – Single-
electron gun An electron gun (also called electron emitter) is an electrical component in some vacuum tubes that produces a narrow, collimated electron beam that has a precise kinetic energy. The largest use is in cathode-ray tubes (CRTs), used in nearly ...
''recording
storage tube Storage tubes are a class of cathode-ray tubes (CRTs) that are designed to hold an image for a long period of time, typically as long as power is supplied to the tube. A specialized type of storage tube, the Williams tube, was used as a main mem ...
'', an
analog video Video is an electronic medium for the recording, copying Copying is the duplication of information or an artifact based on an instance of that information or artifact, and not using the process that originally generated it. With analog f ...
frame freezer tube. This was achieved by a CRT that writes the video image onto a thin, dielectric target and subsequently can read the generated charge pattern up to 30000 times from that target, producing a video signal containing a static shot that resembles a still photograph *6846 – Gas-filled, three-cathode 1-bit binary counter or switching tube, Miniature 7-pin base *6877, 7233 – Power triodes, designed for series voltage regulator applications *6900 – Dual power triode for pulse applications in
missile In military terminology, a missile is a guided airborne ranged weapon capable of self-propelled flight usually by a jet engine or rocket motor. Missiles are thus also called guided missiles or guided rockets (when a previously unguided rocke ...
s,
avionics Avionics (a blend of ''aviation'' and ''electronics'') are the electronic systems used on aircraft. Avionic systems include communications, navigation, the display and management of multiple systems, and the hundreds of systems that are fit ...
and industrial systems; noval base *6922 (''E88CC'', industrial version of ''6DJ8/ECC88'') *6973 – Power pentode similar in shape, size, and base to the ''EL84/6BQ5'', but with a high gain for more than double the output range. Popular in some makes of 1960s era guitar amplifiers, though rarely implemented in modern times.


7000s

*7025 – Low-hum, noise and microphonics version of 12AX7 *7027 – AF Power pentode improved
6L6 6L6 is the designator for a beam power tube introduced by Radio Corporation of America in April 1936 and marketed for application as a power amplifier for audio frequencies.J. F. Dreyer Jr."The Beam Power Output Tube" New York: McGraw-Hill, ''Ele ...
with a 25 Watt anode and different pinout :*7027A – Improved 7027 with a 35 watt anode *7077 – Miniature ceramic/metal disk-seal UHF triode *7105 – 12.6-volts version of 6080 *7189/6BQ5/
EL84 The EL84 is a vacuum tube of the power pentode type. It is used in the power-output-stages of audio-amplifiers, most commonly now in guitar amplifiers, but originally in radios. The EL84 is smaller and more sensitive than the octal 6V6 that was ...
– AF Power pentode :*7189A – Improved 7189 * 7199 – Triode-pentode, noval base. Similar to 6U8. *7229, 7230, 7231, 7232, 7439, 7440, 7441, 7595, 7596, 7597, 7598, 7599, 7600, 7602 –
Krytron The krytron is a cold-cathode gas-filled tube intended for use as a very high-speed switch, somewhat similar to the thyratron. It consists of a sealed glass tube with four electrodes. A small triggering pulse on the grid electrode switches the ...
s, cold-cathode gas-filled trigger tubes with a primer electrode for use as a very high-speed, high-surge current switch –
second source In the electronics industry, a second source is a company that is licensed to manufacture and sell components originally designed by another company (the first source). It is common for engineers and purchasers to avoid components that are only av ...
to
EG&G EG&G, formally known as Edgerton, Germeshausen, and Grier, Inc., was a United States national defense contractor and provider of management and technical services. The company was involved in contracting services to the United States government ...
*7236 – Dual power triode for use as long-life power amplifier in computer applications *7241, 7242 – Triple-cathode power triodes, designed for hi-rel cathode follower series voltage regulator applications where the cathode is split into 3 sections connected together via balancing resistors to equalize the emission along the cathode *7266 – Miniature ceramic/metal disk-seal UHF diode *7289 – 3 GHz, 40 W UHF planar power triode *7308/E188CC – Premium version of 6922 * –
Beam deflection tube Beam deflection tubes, sometimes known as sheet beam tubes, are vacuum tubes with an electron gun, a beam intensity control grid, a screen grid, sometimes a suppressor grid, and two electrostatic deflection electrodes on opposite sides of the ...
, used as balanced modulator/mixer up to 100 MHz *7414 – ''Time Totalizer'', a metal-vapor
coulometer A voltameter or coulometer is a scientific instrument used for measuring electric charge (quantity of electricity) through electrolytic action. The SI unit of electric charge is the coulomb. The voltameter should not be confused with a voltmeter ...
, a cold-cathode gas-discharge tube where metal is constantly sputtered off the cathode and deposited on a collector element whose resistance therefore decreases with elapsed time *7430 – Flat-envelope version of the 6AK5/EF95 sharp-cutoff pentode for use on PCBs in ''
Radiosonde A radiosonde is a battery-powered telemetry instrument carried into the atmosphere usually by a weather balloon that measures various atmospheric parameters and transmits them by radio to a ground receiver. Modern radiosondes measure or calcula ...
'' weather balloon transmitters *7548 – Secondary emission hexode for pulse generator and pulse amplifier applications *7551 – Noval-base beam power pentode with 12-15 volt heater. 6.3 volt heater version was 7558. Used in telephony, RF amplification, and more rarely AF amplification. *7554 – Ceramic/metal ''pencil''-type disk-seal SHF power triode up to 5 GHz *7572, 7575, 7702 – Dual-
electron gun An electron gun (also called electron emitter) is an electrical component in some vacuum tubes that produces a narrow, collimated electron beam that has a precise kinetic energy. The largest use is in cathode-ray tubes (CRTs), used in nearly ...
''recording
storage tube Storage tubes are a class of cathode-ray tubes (CRTs) that are designed to hold an image for a long period of time, typically as long as power is supplied to the tube. A specialized type of storage tube, the Williams tube, was used as a main mem ...
'', a realtime
analog video Video is an electronic medium for the recording, copying Copying is the duplication of information or an artifact based on an instance of that information or artifact, and not using the process that originally generated it. With analog f ...
frame freezer tube with simultaneous R/W, and storing capability. This was achieved by a CRT/
camera tube Video camera tubes were devices based on the cathode ray tube that were used in television cameras to capture television images, prior to the introduction of charge-coupled device (CCD) image sensors in the 1980s. Several different types of tub ...
combination; the CRT part writes the video signal onto a thin, dielectric target, which can hold the generated charge pattern for many hours; the camera part reads the charge pattern from the back side of this target, producing a video signal containing a static shot that resembles a still photograph *7586 – First ''
Nuvistor The nuvistor is a type of vacuum tube announced by RCA in 1959. Nuvistors were made to compete with the then-new bipolar junction transistors, and were much smaller than conventional tubes of the day, almost approaching the compactness of ea ...
'' available on the market, medium-mu triode *7587 – ''Nuvistor'' Sharp cutoff tetrode *7591 – Beam power pentode, octal base. Found in many guitar amps made by
Gibson Gibson may refer to: People * Gibson (surname) Businesses * Gibson Brands, Inc., an American manufacturer of guitars, other musical instruments, and audio equipment * Gibson Technology, and English automotive and motorsport company based * Gi ...
and
Ampeg Ampeg is a manufacturer best known for its bass amplifiers. Originally established in 1946 in Linden, New Jersey by Everett Hull and Stanley Michaels as "Michael-Hull Electronic Labs," today Ampeg is part of the Yamaha Guitar Group. Although ...
. *7688, 7690 (Medium-mu), 7689 (high-mu) – triple triodes *7699 – Dual tetrode for wide band push-pull amplifiers *7762 – Shock-proof
avionics Avionics (a blend of ''aviation'' and ''electronics'') are the electronic systems used on aircraft. Avionic systems include communications, navigation, the display and management of multiple systems, and the hundreds of systems that are fit ...
AF beam power pentode *7763 –
Beam deflection tube Beam deflection tubes, sometimes known as sheet beam tubes, are vacuum tubes with an electron gun, a beam intensity control grid, a screen grid, sometimes a suppressor grid, and two electrostatic deflection electrodes on opposite sides of the ...
, used as IF amplifier/limiter where a constant phase shift over a wide range of input signal amplitudes is required *7768 – Miniature ceramic/metal disk-seal planar SHF triode up to 4 GHz *7868 – Beam power pentode, B9E Novar base version of 7591. Found in many of the once popular ''Challenger'' series ''PA'' amps made by Bogen Communications, also found in some guitar amplifiers made by Ampeg. *7895 – Improved 7586 ''Nuvistor'' with higher mu


8000s

*8011 – '' Micropup''-type UHF power triode up to 600 MHz *8056 – ''
Nuvistor The nuvistor is a type of vacuum tube announced by RCA in 1959. Nuvistors were made to compete with the then-new bipolar junction transistors, and were much smaller than conventional tubes of the day, almost approaching the compactness of ea ...
'' triode for low supply voltage *8058 – ''Nuvistor'' triode with grid on envelope and an anode cap, for grounded-grid UHF circuits *8069 – 8 kV/23...1000 μA Corona voltage reference, cathode cylinder and anode top cap *8089 – 1.6 kV/20...800 μA Corona voltage reference, 2-pin all-glass wire-ended *8090 – 3.5 kV/50...1000 μA Corona voltage reference, Noval base with anode top cap *8091 – 4 kV/50...1000 μA Corona voltage reference, Noval base with anode top cap *8122 – Forced-air cooled, 300 W@470 MHz beam power tetrode *8256 – 3.5 kV/35...1900 μA Corona voltage reference, 2-pin all-glass wire-ended *8257 – 1.2 kV/15...750 μA Corona voltage reference, 2-pin all-glass wire-ended *8393 – ''Nuvistor'' Medium-mu triode, used in
Tektronix Tektronix, Inc., historically widely known as Tek, is an American company best known for manufacturing test and measurement devices such as oscilloscopes, logic analyzers, and video and mobile test protocol equipment. Originally an independent ...
oscilloscopes, 13.5 Volt heater *8469 – 400 V/5...400 μA Corona voltage reference, 2-pin all-glass wire-ended *8506 – Miniature ceramic/metal disk-seal planar UHF triode *8514 – 1 kV/10...800 μA Corona voltage reference, 7-pin with anode top cap *8515 – 1.6 kV/20...950 μA Corona voltage reference, 7-pin with anode top cap *8526 – ''Nuvistor''-type medium-mu dual triode *8873 – 500 MHz, 200 W anode dissipation power triode *8874 – 500 MHz, 400 W anode dissipation power triode *8875 – 500 MHz, 300 W anode dissipation power triode *8877 = 3CX1500A7 – Ceramic, forced air cooled, 1.5 kW power triode *
8974 8974 / X-2159 is a power tetrode designed for megawatt power levels in industrial and broadcast applications. Specifications The 8974 is an external anode tube made of metal and ceramic. It has an overall height of , a diameter of , and weigh ...
(X-2159) – Giant water-cooled megawatt-class tetrode used for very high-power broadcast and industrial service; possibly the most powerful tube ever commercially produced


List of European ''Mullard–Philips'' tubes


List of ''Pro Electron'' professional tubes

Note: Typecode explained above.


X - Electro-optical devices


XA

*XA1003 –
Phototube A phototube or photoelectric cell is a type of gas-filled or vacuum tube that is sensitive to light. Such a tube is more correctly called a 'photoemissive cell' to distinguish it from photovoltaic or photoconductive cells. Phototubes were previ ...
, caesium-on-oxydated-silver cathode, 2-pin all-glass wire-ended


XG

*XG2000 – Image converter for
x-ray An X-ray, or, much less commonly, X-radiation, is a penetrating form of high-energy electromagnetic radiation. Most X-rays have a wavelength ranging from 10  picometers to 10  nanometers, corresponding to frequencies in the range 30&nb ...
diagnostics


XL

*XL7900 – Vibrating-capacitor chopper front end for
dosimeter A radiation dosimeter is a device that measures dose uptake of external ionizing radiation. It is worn by the person being monitored when used as a personal dosimeter, and is a record of the radiation dose received. Modern electronic personal d ...
s,
electrometer An electrometer is an electrical instrument for measuring electric charge or electrical potential difference. There are many different types, ranging from historical handmade mechanical instruments to high-precision electronic devices. Modern ...
s,
pH meter A pH meter is a scientific instrument that measures the hydrogen-ion activity in water-based solutions, indicating its acidity or alkalinity expressed as pH. The pH meter measures the difference in electrical potential between a pH elect ...
s etc., Magnoval base with gold-plated pinsThis tube's designation is inconsistent with the scheme


XM

*XM1000 – Nimo tube, directly heated cathode-ray 1-digit numeric display tube, decimal points on both sides, hence 12 stenciled
electron gun An electron gun (also called electron emitter) is an electrical component in some vacuum tubes that produces a narrow, collimated electron beam that has a precise kinetic energy. The largest use is in cathode-ray tubes (CRTs), used in nearly ...
s, top-viewing, green, 15 mm high '' Futura Medium'' font, oval envelope for easy horizontal stacking, 14-pin base


XP

*XP1000 – 10-stage
photomultiplier A photomultiplier is a device that converts incident photons into an electrical signal. Kinds of photomultiplier include: * Photomultiplier tube, a vacuum tube converting incident photons into an electric signal. Photomultiplier tubes (PMTs for sh ...
, blue-sensitive Sb-Cs
cathode A cathode is the electrode from which a conventional current leaves a polarized electrical device. This definition can be recalled by using the mnemonic ''CCD'' for ''Cathode Current Departs''. A conventional current describes the direction in wh ...
, Ag-Mg-O-Cs
dynode A dynode is an electrode in a vacuum tube A vacuum tube, electron tube, valve (British usage), or tube (North America), is a device that controls electric current flow in a high vacuum between electrodes to which an electric potential diff ...
s, diheptal (14-pin) base *XP1001 – 10-stage photomultiplier for gamma ray scintillation spectrometry, Sb-Cs cathode, Ag-Mg-O-Cs dynodes *XP1002 – 10-stage photomultiplier, blue/green/yellow/orange-sensitive Sb-Na-K-Cs cathode, Ag-Mg-O-Cs dynodes, diheptal base *XP1003 – 10-stage photomultiplier with quartz window, UV/blue/green/yellow/orange-sensitive Sb-Na-K-Cs cathode, Ag-Mg-O-Cs dynodes, diheptal base *XP1004 – 10-stage photomultiplier with quartz window, UV/blue-sensitive Sb-Cs cathode, Ag-Mg-O-Cs dynodes, diheptal base *XP1005 – 10-stage Ag-O-Cs (800±100 nm) photomultiplier, IR/red-sensitive Ag-O-Cs cathode, Ag-Mg-O-Cs dynodes, diheptal base *XP1010 – 10-stage photomultiplier for r-ray and gamma ray scintillation spectrometry, selected 150AVP for low noise and resolution, blue-sensitive Sb-Cs cathode, Ag-Mg-O-Cs dynodes, duodecal (12-pin) base *XP1011 – 10-stage photomultiplier, blue-sensitive Sb-Cs cathode, Ag-Mg-O-Cs dynodes, shock and vibration-proof, duodecal base *XP1020 – 12-stage photomultiplier, blue-sensitive Sb-Cs cathode, Ag-Mg-O-Cs dynodes, 100 Ω output, duodecal (20-pin) base *XP1021 – 12-stage photomultiplier, UV/blue-sensitive Sb-Cs cathode, Ag-Mg-O-Cs dynodes, 50 Ω output, duodecal base *XP1023 – 12-stage photomultiplier with quartz window Sb-Cs cathode, Ag-Mg-O-Cs dynodes, UV/blue-sensitive, 50 Ω output, duodecal base *XP1030 – 10-stage photomultiplier, blue-sensitive Sb-Cs cathode, Ag-Mg-O-Cs dynodes, diheptal (14-pin) base *XP1031 – 10-stage photomultiplier, blue-sensitive Sb-Cs cathode, Ag-Mg-O-Cs dynodes, for gamma ray scintillation spectrometry *XP1032 – 10-stage photomultiplier with 3 mm quartz window, UV/blue-sensitive Sb-Cs cathode, Ag-Mg-O-Cs dynodes, diheptal base *XP1033 – 10-stage photomultiplier with 10 mm quartz window, UV/blue-sensitive Sb-Cs cathode, Ag-Mg-O-Cs dynodes, diheptal base *XP1040 – 14-stage photomultiplier, blue-sensitive Sb-Cs cathode, Ag-Mg-O-Cs dynodes, concave window, duodecal base *XP1110 – Photomultiplier, blue-sensitive Sb-Cs cathode, Ag-Mg-O-Cs dynodes *XP1111 – Photomultiplier, blue-sensitive Sb-Cs cathode, Ag-Mg-O-Cs dynodes, wire-ends *XP1113 – 6-stage Photomultiplier, blue-sensitive Sb-Cs cathode, Ag-Mg-O-Cs dynodes *XP1114 – 4-stage Photomultiplier, blue-sensitive Sb-Cs cathode, Ag-Mg-O-Cs dynodes *XP1115 – Photomultiplier, blue-sensitive Sb-Cs cathode, Ag-Mg-O-Cs dynodes, wire-ends, shock and vibration-proof *XP1116 – Photomultiplier, red-sensitive Ag-O-Cs cathode, Ag-Mg-O-Cs dynodes, shock and vibration-proof *XP1117 – 9-stage photomultiplier, blue/green/yellow/orange-sensitive Sb-Na-K-Cs cathode, Ag-Mg-O-Cs dynodes *XP1118 – Photomultiplier with quartz window, UV/blue-sensitive Sb-Cs cathode, Ag-Mg-O-Cs dynodes *XP1120 – 17-stage photomultiplier for x-ray (λ > 200 pm) or UV (λ < 150 nm)
photon counting Photon counting is a technique in which individual photons are counted using a single-photon detector (SPD). A single-photon detector emits a pulse of signal for each detected photon, in contrast to a normal photodetector, which generates an analo ...
in a high-vacuum environment,
Nickel Nickel is a chemical element with symbol Ni and atomic number 28. It is a silvery-white lustrous metal with a slight golden tinge. Nickel is a hard and ductile transition metal. Pure nickel is chemically reactive but large pieces are slow ...
cathode, Cu-Be-O dynodes,
coaxial In geometry, coaxial means that several three-dimensional linear or planar forms share a common axis. The two-dimensional analog is ''concentric''. Common examples: A coaxial cable is a three-dimensional linear structure. It has a wire condu ...
outputs, built-in resistor ladder *XP1121 – 17-stage photomultiplier for ion (> 10 keV) or electron (0.1...10 keV) photon counting in a high-vacuum environment, Cu-Be-O cathode and dynodes, coaxial outputs, built-in resistor ladder *XP1122 – 17-stage photomultiplier for x-ray (λ > 200 pm) or UV (λ < 150 nm) photon counting in a high-vacuum environment, Nickel cathode, Cu-Be-O dynodes, coaxial outputs, built-in resistor ladder *XP1123 – 17-stage photomultiplier for ion (> 10 keV) or electron (0.1...10 keV) photon counting in a high-vacuum environment, Cu-Be-O cathode and dynodes, coaxial outputs, built-in resistor ladder *XP1130 – 17-stage photomultiplier for x-ray (λ > 200 pm) or UV (λ < 150 nm) photon counting in a high-vacuum environment, Nickel cathode, Cu-Be-O dynodes, coaxial outputs, built-in resistor ladder *XP1131 – 17-stage photomultiplier for ion (> 10 keV) or electron (0.1...10 keV) photon counting in a high-vacuum environment, Cu-Be-O cathode and dynodes, coaxial outputs, built-in resistor ladder *XP1140 – 6-stage photomultiplier, blue-sensitive Sb-Cs cathode, Ag-Mg-O-Cs dynodes, fast, diheptal base *XP1141 – 7-stage photomultiplier, blue-sensitive Sb-Cs cathode, Ag-Mg-O-Cs dynodes, fast, diheptal base *XP1180/52AVP – 10-stage photomultiplier, blue-sensitive Sb-Cs cathode, Ag-Mg-O-Cs dynodes, fast, diheptal base *XP1240 – Photomultiplier


XQ

*XQ1023 –
Camera tube Video camera tubes were devices based on the cathode ray tube that were used in television cameras to capture television images, prior to the introduction of charge-coupled device (CCD) image sensors in the 1980s. Several different types of tub ...
*XQ1029R – Camera tube, red channel *XQ1032 – 1" ''
Vidicon Video camera tubes were devices based on the cathode ray tube that were used in television cameras to capture television images, prior to the introduction of charge-coupled device (CCD) image sensors in the 1980s. Several different types of tubes ...
''; magnetic focusing and deflection *XQ1053 – Camera tube *XQ1072 – 1" ''
Plumbicon Video camera tubes were devices based on the cathode ray tube that were used in television cameras to capture television images, prior to the introduction of charge-coupled device (CCD) image sensors in the 1980s. Several different types of tubes ...
'' *XQ1073 – XQ1072 with higher resolution and improved low level contrast *XQ1200 – ''Vidicon'', silicon target *XQ1270 – " ''Vidicon''; Overall length 108mm (4") *XQ1272 – " ''Vidicon'' *XQ1274 – " '' Newvicon'', magnetic focussing and deflection, ZnSe+ CdZnTe target *XQ1275 – ''Vidicon'', silicon target *XQ1276 – XQ1274 with high sensitivity into the near infrared *XQ1277 – XQ1275 with high sensitivity into the near infrared *XQ1278 – XQ1275 with better geometry and uniform signal *XQ1285 – 1" ''Vidicon''; magnetic focusing and deflection, precision electron gun *XQ1290 – 1" ''Resistron'' camera tube *XQ1293 – Camera tube *XQ1300 – '' Saticon'' Camera Tube *XQ1340 – Low-light ''Vidicon'' *XQ1371 – ''Resistron'' *XQ1380 – XQ1274 with radiation resistant (anti-browning) faceplate *XQ1381 – " ''Newvicon''; electrostatioc focusing and magnetic deflection with radiation-resistant (anti-browning) faceplate *XQ1395 – High-resolution ''Resistron'' camera tube *XQ1410B/G/R – ''Plumbicon'' for color TV broadcast *XQ1412 – 6/5" ''Plumbicon''; low lag, unity gamma matched to P20 phosphor *XQ1413B/G/R – ''Plumbicon'' for color TV broadcast *XQ1415B/G/R – ''Plumbicon'' for color TV broadcast *XQ1427 – " ''Plumbicon''; low lag *XQ1427B/G/R – ''Plumbicon'' for color TV broadcast *XQ1430B/G/R – ''Plumbicon'' for color TV broadcast *XQ1435B/G/R – ''Plumbicon'' for color TV broadcast *XQ1440 – 1" ''Newvicon'', separate mesh, ZnSe+CdZnTe target *XQ1500B/G/R – ''Plumbicon'' for color TV broadcast *XQ1505B/G/R – ''Plumbicon'' for color TV broadcast *XQ1560 – 1" ''Saticon'' *XQ1565 – 1" ''Saticon'' *XQ1570 – 1" ''Saticon'' *XQ1575 – 1" ''Saticon'' *XQ1585 – 1" ''Saticon'' *XQ1600 – " ''Vidicon''; separate mesh, electrostatic focusing and magnetic deflection *XQ1601 – " ''Newvicon''; separate mesh, electrostatic focusing and magnetic deflection *XQ2070/02B/G/R – ''Plumbicon'' for color TV broadcast *XQ2070/05B/G/R – ''Plumbicon'' for color TV broadcast *XQ2075/02B/G/R – ''Plumbicon'' for color TV broadcast *XQ2075/05B/G/R – ''Plumbicon'' for color TV broadcast *XQ2172 – 1" ''Plumbicon''; wide dynamic range matched to digital radiography applications *XQ2182 – 1" ''Plumbicon''; wide dynamic range matched to digital radiography applications *XQ2427B/G/R – ''Plumbicon'' for color TV broadcast *XQ3070/02B/G/R – ''Plumbicon'' for color TV broadcast *XQ3070/05B/G/R – ''Plumbicon'' for color TV broadcast *XQ3075/02B/G/R – ''Plumbicon'' for color TV broadcast *XQ3075/05B/G/R – ''Plumbicon'' for color TV broadcast *XQ3427B/G/R – ''Plumbicon'' for color TV broadcast *XQ3430B/G/R – ''Plumbicon'' for color TV broadcast *XQ3435B/G/R – ''Plumbicon'' for color TV broadcast *XQ3440B/G/R – ''Plumbicon'' for color TV broadcast *XQ3445B/G/R – ''Plumbicon'' for color TV broadcast *XQ3457B/G/R – ''Plumbicon'' for color TV broadcast *XQ3467B/G/R – ''Plumbicon'' for color TV broadcast *XQ3477B/G/R – ''Plumbicon'' for color TV broadcast *XQ3487B/G/R – ''Plumbicon'' for color TV broadcast *XQ3550B/G/R – ''Plumbicon'' for color TV broadcast *XQ3555B/G/R – ''Plumbicon'' for color TV broadcast *XQ4187B/G/R – ''Plumbicon'' for color TV broadcast *XQ4502 – 2" ''Plumbicon''; Highest resolution, low lag *XQ5002 – 2" ''Plumbicon''; Electrostsatic deflection for improved corner resolution, low output capacitance *XQ7002 – 1" ''Plumbicon''; Low output capacitance *XQ8002 – 1" ''Plumbicon'' *XQ9002 – 1" ''Plumbicon''


XR

*XR1000 – Monoscope,
test pattern A test card, also known as a test pattern or start-up/closedown test, is a television test signal, typically broadcast at times when the transmitter is active but no program is being broadcast (often at sign-on and sign-off). Used since the ear ...
specified by suffix


XX

*XX1000 – 2-stage image intensifier *XX1010 – Image intensifier *XX1020 – Image intensifier *XX1030 – Image intensifier *XX1050 – Image intensifier *XX1060 – Image intensifier *XX1066 – 1. Gen. 3-stage image intensifier *XX1140 – 1. Gen. 3-stage image intensifier *XX1190 – 1. Gen. inverter, 1-stage image intensifier *XX1192 – 1. Gen. inverter, 1-stage image intensifier *XX1200 – 1. Gen. inverter, 1-stage image intensifier *XX1211 – 1. Gen. inverter, 3-stage image intensifier *XX1270 – 1. Gen. inverter, 2-stage image intensifier *XX1400 – 2. Gen. inverter, 1-stage image intensifier *XX1430 – 1. Gen. inverter, 1-stage image intensifier *XX1510 – 1. Gen. 3-stage image intensifier *XX1610 – 2. Gen. image intensifier *XX1800 – 2. Gen. proximity focused, 1-stage image intensifier


Y - Vacuum tubes


YA

*YA1000 – 5 kV, 5mA, Directly heated ''saturated-emission diode'' with pure-metal cathode for use in RMS converters of AC voltage/current stabilizer circuits, noval base


YD

*YD1000 – 120 kW, Water-cooled RF power triode *YD1001 – 120 kW, Air-cooled RF power triode *YD1012 – 360 kW, Vapor-cooled RF power triode *YD1130 – 580 W, Air-cooled, linear RF/AF power triode *YD1252 (RS 2051 V) – 420 kW, Water-cooled, modulator power triode *YD1300 – 35 W, Air-cooled, UHF power triode *YD1301 – 50 W, Air-cooled, UHF power triode *YD1302 – 55 W, Air-cooled, UHF power triode *YD1332 – 250 W, Air-cooled, UHF power triode *YD1333 – 100 W, Air-cooled, UHF power triode *YD1334 – 110 W, Air-cooled, UHF power triode *YD1335 – 550 W, Air-cooled, UHF power triode *YD1336 – 220 W, Air-cooled, UHF power triode *YD1342 – 30 MHz, 530 kW, Water-cooled RF power triode *YD1352S (8867, DX334) – 5 MHz, 3 kW, Water-cooled ''Neotron'', a gridless ''field-effect tube'' where a magnetically focused electron beam is modulated by varying the voltage of a gate electrode surrounding it. Used as RF power amplifier or oscillator


YG

*YG1000 – Directly heated
electrometer An electrometer is an electrical instrument for measuring electric charge or electrical potential difference. There are many different types, ranging from historical handmade mechanical instruments to high-precision electronic devices. Modern ...
tetrode with an oxide cathode and a space charge grid, grid current ≤600 fA, magnoval base with input grid on top cap


YH

*YH1000 –
Traveling-wave tube A traveling-wave tube (TWT, pronounced "twit") or traveling-wave tube amplifier (TWTA, pronounced "tweeta") is a specialized vacuum tube that is used in electronics to amplify radio frequency (RF) signals in the microwave range. The TWT belongs t ...
*YH1050 – Traveling-wave tube *YH1110 – Traveling-wave tube *YH1120 – Traveling-wave tube, >5 GHz *YH1131 – Traveling-wave tube, >11 GHz *YH1150 – Traveling-wave tube *YH1160 – Traveling-wave tube, >3 GHz *YH1181 – Traveling-wave tube, >4 GHz *YH1190 – Traveling-wave tube, >11 GHz *YH1200 – Traveling-wave tube, >5 GHz


YJ

*YJ1000 – Indirectly heated, 2.5 kW
magnetron The cavity magnetron is a high-power vacuum tube used in early radar systems and currently in microwave ovens and linear particle accelerators. It generates microwaves using the interaction of a stream of electrons with a magnetic field while ...
for use as a pulsed
X-band The X band is the designation for a band of frequencies in the microwave radio region of the electromagnetic spectrum. In some cases, such as in communication engineering, the frequency range of the X band is rather indefinitely set at approxi ...
oscillator between 9.19 and 9.32 GHz *YJ1462 – Indirectly heated, 28 kW coaxial magnetron for use as a pulsed X-band oscillator at 9.375 GHz


YK

*YK1000 – Water-cooled, permanent-magnet 11 kW UHF linear-beam
Klystron A klystron is a specialized linear-beam vacuum tube, invented in 1937 by American electrical engineers Russell and Sigurd Varian,Pond, Norman H. "The Tube Guys". Russ Cochran, 2008 p.31-40 which is used as an amplifier for high radio frequen ...
for use in TV transmitters between 400 and 620 MHz *YK1004 – Water-cooled, permanent-magnet 11 kW UHF linear-beam Klystron for use in TV transmitters between 610 and 790 MHz *YK1005 – Water-cooled, permanent-magnet 11 kW UHF linear-beam Klystron for use in TV transmitters between 470 and 860 MHz *YK1046 – 35 mW X-band Reflex Klystron, 9.16 to 9.34 GHz *YK1151 – Forced-air cooled, permanent-magnet 25 kW UHF linear-beam Klystron for use in TV transmitters between 470 and 860 MHz *YK1190 – Water-cooled 40 kW UHF linear-beam Klystron for use in TV transmitters between 470 and 610 MHz *YK1191 – Water-cooled 40 kW UHF linear-beam Klystron for use in TV transmitters between 590 and 720 MHz *YK1192 – Water-cooled 40 kW UHF linear-beam Klystron for use in TV transmitters between 710 and 860 MHz


YL

*YL1000/8463 – RF power pentode *YL1020/8118 – See QQZ03/20 *YL1030 – See QQZ06/40 *YL1050 – UHF power tetrode *YL1060/7854 – See QQE06/40 *YL1070/8117 – Dual RF power tetrode *YL1071 – YL1070 with a different heater *YL1080/8348 – Dual VHF power tetrode *YL1120 – RF power tetrode *YL1130/8408 – Dual VHF power pentode *YL1150/8579 – RF beam power tetrode *YL1190/8580 – Dual UHF power tetrode *YL1200 – See PE1/100 *YL1210 – QQE03/12 with a different heater *YL1220 – QQE02/5 with a different heater *YL1240/8458 – Dual VHF power tetrode *YL1250/8505 – VHF beam power tetrode *YL1270/8581 – Dual UHF power tetrode *YL1290 – QE08/200 with a different heater *YL1310/8603 – RF beam power tetrode *YL1360 – QQE04/5 with a different heater *YL1570 (RS 1084 CJ) – VHF power tetrode


Z -

Gas-filled tube A gas-filled tube, also commonly known as a discharge tube or formerly as a Plücker tube, is an arrangement of electrodes in a gas within an insulating, temperature-resistant envelope. Gas-filled tubes exploit phenomena related to electric ...
s

Note: See also standard M-P tubes under Z


ZA

*ZA1000 – Neon-filled, coaxial,
tritium Tritium ( or , ) or hydrogen-3 (symbol T or H) is a rare and radioactive isotope of hydrogen with half-life about 12 years. The nucleus of tritium (t, sometimes called a ''triton'') contains one proton and two neutrons, whereas the nucleus of ...
-primed (
half-life Half-life (symbol ) is the time required for a quantity (of substance) to reduce to half of its initial value. The term is commonly used in nuclear physics to describe how quickly unstable atoms undergo radioactive decay or how long stable at ...
: 12.32 years), sputtered- molybdenum cold-cathode switching diode, meshed cylinder anode, all-glass wire-ended *ZA1001 – Neon-filled, coaxial, tritium-primed, sputtered-molybdenum cold-cathode switching diode with traces of heavy gas (
krypton Krypton (from grc, κρυπτός, translit=kryptos 'the hidden one') is a chemical element with the symbol Kr and atomic number 36. It is a colorless, odorless, tasteless noble gas that occurs in trace amounts in the atmosphere and is often ...
/
xenon Xenon is a chemical element with the symbol Xe and atomic number 54. It is a dense, colorless, odorless noble gas found in Earth's atmosphere in trace amounts. Although generally unreactive, it can undergo a few chemical reactions such as the ...
) for slow de-ionization, e.g. for low-frequency
relaxation oscillator In electronics a relaxation oscillator is a nonlinear electronic oscillator circuit that produces a nonsinusoidal repetitive output signal, such as a triangle wave or square wave. on Peter Millet'Tubebookswebsite The circuit consists of a feedb ...
s; meshed cylinder anode, all-glass wire-ended *ZA1002 – Neon-filled, coaxial, tritium-primed, sputtered-molybdenum cold-cathode switching diode, large difference between burning and ignition voltage, meshed cylinder anode, 3-pin all-glass wire-ended *ZA1003 – Neon-filled, coaxial, tritium-primed, sputtered-molybdenum cold-cathode switching diode for use as indicator tube in
transistorized file:MOSFET Structure.png, upright=1.4, Metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSFET), showing Metal gate, gate (G), body (B), source (S) and drain (D) terminals. The gate is separated from the body by an insulating layer (pink). A ...
circuits, meshed cylinder anode, 3-pin all-glass wire-ended *ZA1004 – Neon-filled, coaxial, tritium-primed, sputtered-molybdenum cold-cathode switching diode, small difference between burning and ignition voltage, for use as indicator tube in transistorized circuits or as 86.4 V
Voltage reference A voltage reference is an electronic device that ideally produces a fixed (constant) voltage irrespective of the loading on the device, power supply variations, temperature changes, and the passage of time. Voltage references are used in power sup ...
, meshed cylinder anode, 3-pin all-glass wire-ended *ZA1005 – Neon-filled, coaxial, tritium-primed, sputtered-molybdenum cold-cathode switching diode for use like a DIAC in thyristor circuits, meshed cylinder anode, 2-pin all-glass wire-ended


ZC

*ZC1010 (Z661W) – 8 mAavg, 50 mApeak, Gas-filled, cold-cathode AC trigger pentode, two starters and a primer electrode, positive starter voltage, 5-pin all-glass wire-ended, envelope inside radioactively coated for a constant ignition voltage, for use in bidirectional counters *ZC1040 – 25 mA, Gas-filled, cold-cathode AC trigger tetrode, one starter and a primer electrode, positive starter voltage, noval base *ZC1050 – 2 mA, Gas-filled, cold-cathode, luminescent trigger tetrode, one starter and a primer, 300  mlm light output for use as self-displaying
shift register A shift register is a type of digital circuit using a cascade of flip-flops where the output of one flip-flop is connected to the input of the next. They share a single clock signal, which causes the data stored in the system to shift from one loc ...
cells in large-format, crawling-text
dot-matrix display A dot-matrix display is a low cost electronic digital display device that displays information on machines such as clocks, watches, calculators, and many other devices requiring a simple alphanumeric (and/or graphic) display device of limited res ...
s; all-glass wire-ended *ZC1060 – 20 mAavg, 5 kApeak, Gas-filled, cold-cathode, high-current trigger triode for e.g. capacitor discharge circuits. One external (capacitive) starter electrode


ZM

*ZM1000 –  ''0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 14 mm character height side-viewing, left
decimal point A decimal separator is a symbol used to separate the integer part from the fractional part of a number written in decimal form (e.g., "." in 12.45). Different countries officially designate different symbols for use as the separator. The choi ...
*ZM1000R – ZM1000 with a red contrast filter coating *ZM1001 –  ''+ - ~ ''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 14mmCH side-viewing, for use with ZM1000 *ZM1001R – ZM1001 with a red contrast filter coating, for use with ZM1000R *ZM1002 –  ''ns μs ms s Hz kHz MHz''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 13mmCH side viewing, for use with ZM1000 in digital frequency counters *ZM1003 –  ''1 - +''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 14mmCH side-viewing, for use with ZM1000 *ZM1005 –  ''0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9''  Long-life neon-filled digital indicator tube, 14mmCH side-viewing, left decimal point,
multiplex Multiplex may refer to: * Multiplex (automobile), a former American car make * Multiplex (comics), a DC comic book supervillain * Multiplex (company), a global contracting and development company * Multiplex (assay), a biological assay which measu ...
-capable *ZM1005R – ZM1005 with a red contrast filter coating *ZM1006 –  ''1 2 3 4 5 6''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, side-viewing, left and right decimal point, for use in TV receivers *ZM1008 –  ''0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 14mmCH side-viewing *ZM1010 –  ''0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 14mmCH side-viewing, left decimal point *ZM1012 –  ''0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 14mmCH side-viewing *ZM1015 –  ''0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 14mmCH side-viewing * (Z520M) – ZM1022 with a red contrast filter coating * (Z521M) – ZM1023 with a red contrast filter coating, for use with ZM1020 * –  ''0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 15.5mmCH top-viewing, no decimal point *ZM1023 –  ''A V Ω % + - ~''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 15.5mmCH top-viewing, for use with ZM1022 in digital multimeters *ZM1024 – ZM1025 with a red contrast filter coating, for use with ZM1020 *ZM1025 –  '' μs ms ns s''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 15.5mmCH top-viewing, for use with ZM1022 in digital frequency counters *ZM1030 – ZM1032 with a red contrast filter coating *ZM1031 – ZM1031/01 without the  ~  *ZM1031/01 – ZM1033/01 with a red contrast filter coating, for use with ZM1030 *ZM1032 –  ''0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 15.5mmCH side-viewing, no decimal point, 5 dual cathodes and separate odd/even anode compartments for biquinary multiplexing *ZM1033/01 –  ''+ - ~''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 15.5mmCH side-viewing, separate anode compartment for  + , for use with ZM1032 * (Z522M) – ZM1042 with a red contrast filter coating *ZM1041 – ZM1043 with a red contrast filter coating, for use with ZM1040 *ZM1041S – ZM1043S with a red contrast filter coating, for use with ZM1040 * (Z5220M) –  ''0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 30mmCH side-viewing, no decimal point *ZM1043 –  ''+ -''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 30mmCH side-viewing, for use with ZM1042 *ZM1043S –  ''Y X + W U Z -''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 30mmCH side-viewing, for use with ZM1042 *ZM1047 – ZM1049 with a red contrast filter coating, for use with ZM1040 *ZM1049 –  ''T F S N Z Y G H M X''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, side-viewing, for use with ZM1042 in numerical control systems * (Z550M, 8453) – Neon-filled digital indicator tube, top-viewing,
dekatron In electronics, a Dekatron (or Decatron, or generically three-phase gas counting tube or glow-transfer counting tube or cold cathode tube) is a gas-filled decade counting tube. Dekatrons were used in computers, calculators, and other counti ...
-type readout with common anode and common cathodes, pulsating anode voltage, controlled by 5-volts sensitive starter electrodes, for
transistorized file:MOSFET Structure.png, upright=1.4, Metal-oxide-semiconductor field-effect transistor (MOSFET), showing Metal gate, gate (G), body (B), source (S) and drain (D) terminals. The gate is separated from the body by an insulating layer (pink). A ...
circuits *ZM1060 (Z505S) – Argon-filled, 50 kHz decade ''Counter/Selector Dekatron'' *ZM1070 (Z504S, 8433) – Neon-filled, 5 kHz decade ''Counter/Selector Dekatron'' *ZM1080 – ZM1082 with a red contrast filter coating *ZM1081 – ZM1083 with a red contrast filter coating, for use with ZM1080 *ZM1082 –  ''0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 14mmCH side-viewing, no decimal point, probe electrode *ZM1083 –  ''+ - ~''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 14mmCH side-viewing, for use with ZM1082 *ZM1100 –  ''0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 15.5mmCH top-viewing *ZM1120 – ZM1122 with a red contrast filter coating *ZM1122 –  ''0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9''  Miniature neon-filled digital indicator tube, 7.8mmCH top-viewing *ZM1130 – ZM1132 with a red contrast filter coating *ZM1131 – ZM1133 with a red contrast filter coating, for use with ZM1080 *ZM1132 –  ''0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, side-viewing, left and right decimal point *ZM1133 –  ''+ - ~''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, side-viewing, for use with ZM1132 *ZM1136L/R – ZM1138L/R with a red contrast filter coating *ZM1137 – ZM1139 with a red contrast filter coating, for use with ZM1136L/R *ZM1138L/R –  ''0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 13mmCH side-viewing, left or right decimal points (specify) *ZM1139 –  ''+ - ~ Ω''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 13mmCH side-viewing, for use with ZM1138 in digital multimeters *ZM1162 –  ''0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9''  Long-life neon-filled digital indicator tube, 15.5mmCH top-viewing, no decimal point, rectangular envelope for close stacking in both axes *ZM1170 – ZM1172 with a red contrast filter coating *ZM1172 –  ''0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 15.5mmCH side-viewing, no decimal point *ZM1174 – ZM1175 with a red contrast filter coating *ZM1175 –  ''0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 15.5mmCH side-viewing, left decimal point *ZM1176 – ZM1177 with a red contrast filter coating *ZM1177 – ZM1175, but right decimal point *ZM1180 – ZM1182 with a red contrast filter coating *ZM1181 – ZM1183 with a red contrast filter coating, for use with ZM1180 *ZM1182 –  ''0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 16mmCH top-viewing, no decimal point, semi-rectangular envelope for close horizontal stacking *ZM1183 –  ''+ - ~ Ω''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, top-viewing, 13mmCH for use with ZM1182 in digital multimeters *ZM1184D – ZM1185D with a red contrast filter coating *ZM1185A (GR1420) –  ''1 2 3 4 5 6 U K E R''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 16mmCH top-viewing *ZM1185D (GR1430) –  ∇ Δ  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 16mmCH top-viewing, for use in
elevator An elevator or lift is a cable-assisted, hydraulic cylinder-assisted, or roller-track assisted machine that vertically transports people or freight between floors, levels, or decks of a building, vessel, or other structure. They a ...
s *ZM1185E (GR1472) –  ''0 1 2 3 4 5 - t kg +''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 16mmCH top-viewing *ZM1200 – ''Pandicon'', multiplexed 14-digit display tube with decimal points and punctuation marks, pin connections on both ends *ZM1202 – 12-Digit ''Pandicon'' *ZM1204 – 10-Digit ''Pandicon'' *ZM1206 – 8-Digit ''Pandicon'' *ZM1210 – ZM1212 with a red contrast filter coating *ZM1212 –  ''0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 15.5mmCH side-viewing, left decimal point, all-glass wire-ended *ZM1220 – ZM1222 with a red contrast filter coating *ZM1222 –  ''0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9''  Large neon-filled digital indicator tube, 40mmCH side-viewing *ZM1230 – ZM1232 with a red contrast filter coating *ZM1232 –  ''0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 15.5mmCH upside-down side-viewing, no decimal point *ZM1240 – ZM1242 with a red contrast filter coating *ZM1241 – ZM1243 with a red contrast filter coating, for use with ZM1240 *ZM1242 –  ''0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 16mmCH side-viewing, right decimal point *ZM1243 –  ''+ - ~ Ω''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 16mmCH side-viewing, for use with ZM1242 in digital multimeters *ZM1263 –  ~ ⚫  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 10mmCH side-viewing *ZM1290 – ZM1292 with a red contrast filter coating *ZM1292 –  ''0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 10mmCH side-viewing *ZM1330 – ZM1332 with a red contrast filter coating *ZM1331 – ZM1333 with a red contrast filter coating, for use with ZM1330 *ZM1332 –  ''0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 13.1mmCH side-viewing, left and right decimal points, all-glass wire-ended *ZM1333 –  ''+ - ~ Ω''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 13.1mmCH side-viewing, all-glass wire-ended, for use with ZM1332 in digital multimeters *ZM1334 – ZM1336 with a red contrast filter coating *ZM1335 – ZM1337 with a red contrast filter coating, for use with ZM1334 *ZM1336 –  ''0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 13.1mmCH side-viewing, left and right decimal points,
multiplex Multiplex may refer to: * Multiplex (automobile), a former American car make * Multiplex (comics), a DC comic book supervillain * Multiplex (company), a global contracting and development company * Multiplex (assay), a biological assay which measu ...
-capable *ZM1337 –  ''+ - ~ Ω''  Neon-filled digital indicator tube, 13.0mmCH side-viewing, right decimal point (!), all-glass wire-ended, red contrast filter coating, for use with ZM1336 in digital multimeters *ZM1350 – ''Varisymbol'', planar neon-filled digital 40mm x 27mm
fourteen-segment display A fourteen-segment display (FSD) (sometimes referred to as a starburst display or Union Jack display) is a type of display based on 14 segments that can be turned on or off to produce letters and numerals. It is an expansion of the more com ...
tube, right decimal point, separate ''underscore'' text cursor, keep-alive cathode,
multiplex Multiplex may refer to: * Multiplex (automobile), a former American car make * Multiplex (comics), a DC comic book supervillain * Multiplex (company), a global contracting and development company * Multiplex (assay), a biological assay which measu ...
-capable, viewing angle 160° *ZM1360 – ZM1350 with 60mm x 40mm characters *ZM1370 – ZM1350 with 20mm x 13mm characters *ZM1410 – ZM1412 with a red contrast filter coating *ZM1412 – Neon-filled digital
seven-segment display A seven-segment display is a form of electronic display device for displaying decimal numerals that is an alternative to the more complex dot matrix displays. Seven-segment displays are widely used in digital clocks, electronic meters, basic ...
tube, 8.6mmCH side-viewing, right decimal point and left
punctuation mark Punctuation (or sometimes interpunction) is the use of spacing, conventional signs (called punctuation marks), and certain typographical devices as aids to the understanding and correct reading of written text, whether read silently or aloud. A ...
, all-glass wire-ended *ZM1500 – ''Pandicon'', multiplexed 12-digit, 7-segment display tube *ZM1550 – Planar neon-filled digital two-digit
seven-segment display A seven-segment display is a form of electronic display device for displaying decimal numerals that is an alternative to the more complex dot matrix displays. Seven-segment displays are widely used in digital clocks, electronic meters, basic ...
tube, right decimal points *ZM1551 – Planar neon-filled digital 1-digit
seven-segment display A seven-segment display is a form of electronic display device for displaying decimal numerals that is an alternative to the more complex dot matrix displays. Seven-segment displays are widely used in digital clocks, electronic meters, basic ...
tube with  +  and  -  signs, right decimal points Note: More Nixie tubes under '' standard - ZM'' and '' ETL examples''


ZP

*ZP1000 – Boron trifluoride-filled Geiger-Müller tube,
thermal A thermal column (or thermal) is a rising mass of buoyant air, a convective current in the atmosphere, that transfers heat energy vertically. Thermals are created by the uneven heating of Earth's surface from solar radiation, and are an example ...
neutron The neutron is a subatomic particle, symbol or , which has a neutral (not positive or negative) charge, and a mass slightly greater than that of a proton. Protons and neutrons constitute the nuclei of atoms. Since protons and neutrons beh ...
s *ZP1010 – Boron trifluoride-filled Geiger-Müller tube, thermal neutrons *ZP1020 – Boron trifluoride-filled Geiger-Müller tube, thermal neutrons *ZP1070 – Subminiature Geiger-Müller tube, all-glass wire-ended *ZP1080 – Halogen-quenched Geiger-Müller tube, β and γ *ZP1100 – Halogen-quenched Geiger-Müller tube, γ; wire-ended *ZP1200 – Halogen-quenched Geiger-Müller tube, γ *ZP1300 – Halogen-quenched Geiger-Müller tube, γ and high-energy β *ZP1330 – Halogen-quenched Geiger-Müller tube, for use in damp and/or saline atmosphere, β and γ *ZP1400 – Halogen-quenched Geiger-Müller tube, 9mm diameter mica window, β and γ *ZP1430 – Halogen-quenched Geiger-Müller tube, 27.8mm diameter mica window, α, β, γ *ZP1490 – Halogen-quenched Geiger-Müller tube, 28mm diameter mica window, low-level α, β and γ *ZP1600 – Halogen-quenched Geiger-Müller tube, 19.8 mm diameter mica window,
X-ray An X-ray, or, much less commonly, X-radiation, is a penetrating form of high-energy electromagnetic radiation. Most X-rays have a wavelength ranging from 10  picometers to 10  nanometers, corresponding to frequencies in the range 30&nb ...
s, 6.0 to 20 
keV Kev can refer to: Given name * Kev Adams, French comedian, actor, screenwriter and film producer born Kevin Smadja in 1991 * Kevin Kev Carmody (born 1946), Indigenous Australian singer-songwriter * Kev Coghlan (born 1988), Scottish Grand Prix moto ...
energy, 60 to 200 pm wavelength range *ZP1610 – Side window, organically quenched Geiger-Müller tube. 7 x 18 mm mica window; X-rays, 2.5 to 40 keV energy, 30 to 500 pm wavelength range *ZP1700 – Halogen-quenched, cosmic-ray guard counter tube for low-background measurements; to be used with another radiation counter tube in an anticoincidence circuit *ZP1800 – Halogen-quenched Geiger-Müller tube for use at temperatures up to 200 °C, γ *ZP1810 – Halogen-quenched Geiger-Müller tube for use at temperatures up to 200 °C, γ, low sensitivity, up to 40 mGy/h *ZP1860 – Halogen-quenched Geiger-Müller tube, β and γ


ZT

*ZT1000 – 21 kV, 10 A Mercury vapor triode thyratron


ZX

*ZX1000 – 800 V, 1140 Apk, 13Aavg
Ignitron An ignitron is a type of gas-filled tube used as a controlled rectifier and dating from the 1930s. Invented by Joseph Slepian while employed by Westinghouse, Westinghouse was the original manufacturer and owned trademark rights to the name "Ignit ...
*ZX1051 – Water-cooled, 56 Aavg Ignitron *ZX1052 – Water-cooled, 140 Aavg Ignitron *ZX1053 – Water-cooled, 355 Aavg Ignitron *ZX1060 – Water-cooled, 10 Aavg Ignitron *ZX1061 – Water-cooled, 10 Aavg Ignitron *ZX1062 – Water-cooled, 10 Aavg Ignitron *ZX1063 – Water-cooled, 10 Aavg Ignitron


ZY

*ZY1000 ( 872B) – High voltage, half-wave mercury-vapor rectifier *ZY1001/8008A – High voltage, half-wave mercury-vapor rectifier, 4-pin base with anode top cap *ZY1002 – High voltage, half-wave mercury-vapor rectifier, E40 (''Goliath'') Edison screw lamp base with anode top cap


ZZ

*ZZ1000 – 81 V
Voltage reference A voltage reference is an electronic device that ideally produces a fixed (constant) voltage irrespective of the loading on the device, power supply variations, temperature changes, and the passage of time. Voltage references are used in power sup ...
, 2-pin all-glass wire-ended *ZZ1010 – 85 V Voltage reference *ZZ1020 (STV85-8) – 82 V Voltage reference with primer electrode, 3-pin all-glass wire-ended *ZZ1030 (STV500-0,1) – Quad 125 V Voltage references, noval base *ZZ1031 – Quad Voltage reference, noval base *ZZ1040 (STV100-60Z) – 100 V Voltage reference with primer electrode *ZZ1050 – 82 V Voltage reference, 2-pin all-glass wire-ended


List of European transmitting tubes

Note: Typecode explained above.


B - Backward-wave amplifier


BA

*BA9/20 –
X-band The X band is the designation for a band of frequencies in the microwave radio region of the electromagnetic spectrum. In some cases, such as in communication engineering, the frequency range of the X band is rather indefinitely set at approxi ...
, 20 mW, Forced-air cooled
backward-wave oscillator A backward wave oscillator (BWO), also called carcinotron or backward wave tube, is a vacuum tube that is used to generate microwaves up to the terahertz range. Belonging to the traveling-wave tube family, it is an oscillator with a wide elect ...


D - Rectifier incl. grid-controlled


DA

*DA1.5/75 – 1.5 kV, 75 W Half-wave power rectifier, triode TA1.5/75 without grid *DA12/24000 – 12 kV, 24 kW Water-cooled half-wave power rectifier


DC

*DC1/50 – 1 kV, 50 mA Full-wave power rectifier, DC1/60 with dual anode top cap *DC1/60 – 1 kV, 60 mA Full-wave power rectifier *DC2/200 – 2 kV, 200 mA Full-wave power rectifier with dual anode top cap


DCG

*DCG1/125 – 1 kV, 125 mA Half-wave mercury-vapor rectifier with Edison screw lamp base and anode top cap *DCG12/30 – 12 kV, 30 A Grid-controlled, half-wave mercury-vapor rectifier with anode top cap


DCX

*DCX4/1000 – 4 kV, 1 kW Half-wave xenon rectifier with anode top cap *DCX4/5000 – 4 kV, 5 kW Half-wave xenon rectifier with anode top cap


DE

*DE2/200 – 2 kV, 200 W Full-wave power rectifier with dual anode top cap


J - Magnetron


JP

*JP8/02B – 8.8 GHz, 25 W
Magnetron The cavity magnetron is a high-power vacuum tube used in early radar systems and currently in microwave ovens and linear particle accelerators. It generates microwaves using the interaction of a stream of electrons with a magnetic field while ...
*JP9/15 – 9.345 to 9.405 GHz, 15 kW Forced-air cooled magnetron for pulsed service


JPT

*JPT9/01 – 9.15 to 9.60 GHz, 5 W Magnetron


K - Klystron


KB

*KB9/150W –
X-band The X band is the designation for a band of frequencies in the microwave radio region of the electromagnetic spectrum. In some cases, such as in communication engineering, the frequency range of the X band is rather indefinitely set at approxi ...
, 150 W Water-cooled, dual-resonator
klystron A klystron is a specialized linear-beam vacuum tube, invented in 1937 by American electrical engineers Russell and Sigurd Varian,Pond, Norman H. "The Tube Guys". Russ Cochran, 2008 p.31-40 which is used as an amplifier for high radio frequen ...


KS

*KS7/85 – 6.5 to 7.5 GHz, 85 mW Reflex klystron


L - Traveling-wave tube


LA

*LA9/3 – 7 to 11.5 GHz '' Forward-wave amplifier'' *LA16/2 – 11.5 to 18 GHz ''Forward-wave amplifier''


M - AF modulator Triode


MA

*MA4/600 – 4 kV, 600 W Radiation-cooled triode


MB

*MB1/50 – 1 kV, 50 W Radiation-cooled triode *MB2/200 – 2 kV, 200 W Radiation-cooled triode


MY

*MY3/275 – 3 kV, 275 W Radiation-cooled triode


MZ

*MZ2/200 – 2 kV, 200 W Radiation-cooled triode


P - Pentode


PA

*PA12/15 – 15 kW Water-cooled shortwave pentode *PA12/20 – 20 kW Water-cooled pentode made by Philips and used in the 1930s and 1940s


PAL

*PAL12/15 – Air-cooled version of PAW12/15


PAW

*PAW12/15 – 15 kW Water-cooled shortwave pentode


PB

*PB2/200 – 200 W Shortwave pentode *PB3/1000 – 1 kW Shortwave pentode


PC

*PC03/3 – 3 W Shortwave pentode *PC3/1000 – 1 kW Shortwave pentode


PE

*PE04/10 – 10 W Shortwave pentode * (YL1200) – 100 W Shortwave pentode


Q - Tetrode


QB

*QB2/75 – 75 W Beam-tetrode *QB5/2000 – 2 kW Beam-tetrode


QBL

*QBL4/800 – Air-cooled 800 W beam-tetrode *QBL5/3500 – Air-cooled 3500 W beam-tetrode


QBW

*QBW5/3500 – Water-cooled 3500 W beam-tetrode


QC

*QC05/15 – 15 W Beam-tetrode *QC05/35 – 35 W Beam-tetrode


QE

*QE04/10 – 10 W Beam-tetrode *QE05/40 (''6146'') – 40 W Radiation-cooled output beam-tetrode, popular amongst radio amateurs as a final RF amplifier * – 200 W Beam-tetrode


QEL

*QEL1/150 – Air-cooled 150 W beam-tetrode *QEL1/250 – Air-cooled 250 W beam-tetrode


QEP

*QEP20/18 – 18 W Beam-tetrode for use as a pulse modulator


QQC

*QQC03/14 – 14 W Dual beam-tetrode


QQE

* (6939) – 5 W Dual beam-tetrode * (6360) – 12 W Dual beam-tetrode *QQE03/20 (6252) – 20 W Dual beam-tetrode * (7377) – 5 W Dual beam-tetrode * (5894, YL1060) – 40 W dual beam-tetrode, internally neutralized, ''Septar'' base with dual anode top cap


QQV

*QQV02/6 – 6 W dual beam-tetrode *QQV03/20A – 20 W Radiation-cooled split-anode tetrode made by Mullard and used in the 1940s, 1950s and 1960s as a VHF frequency-doubling output stage with balanced output. *QQV07/50 – 50 W Dual beam-tetrode


QQZ

* (8118, YL1020) – 20 W Dual beam-tetrode * (YL1030) – 40 W Dual beam-tetrode


QV

*QV04/7 – 7 W Beam-tetrode *QV05/25 (''
807 __NOTOC__ Year 807 ( DCCCVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Abbasid Empire and Byzantine Empire * Emperor Nikephoros I is forced to sue for peace, ...
'') – 25 W Radiation-cooled output beam-tetrode made by Mullard. *QV2/250C – 250 W Beam-tetrode


QY

*QY3/65 – 65 W Beam-tetrode *QY5/3000A – 3 kW Beam-tetrode *QY5/3000W – Water-cooled version of QY5-3000A


QYS

*QYS50/P40 – Pulsed power tetrode,
Silica Silicon dioxide, also known as silica, is an oxide of silicon with the chemical formula , most commonly found in nature as quartz and in various living organisms. In many parts of the world, silica is the major constituent of sand. Silica is ...
envelope, 50 kV anode voltage, considerable
x-radiation An X-ray, or, much less commonly, X-radiation, is a penetrating form of high-energy electromagnetic radiation. Most X-rays have a wavelength ranging from 10 picometers to 10 nanometers, corresponding to frequencies in the range 30  ...
, 810 °C anode temperature at 700 W anode dissipation, 40 A anode current at duty factor 0.0005, Vg1
Cut-off A cut-off, battle jacket, battle vest or kutte in heavy metal subcultures, is a type of vest or jacket which originated in the U.S. military, specifically the Army Air Corps, where pilots and other aviation personnel would collect patches or o ...
 (IA=1 mA@VA=55 kV): > -3.4 kV, gm: 38  mS


QZ

*QZ06/20 – 25 W VHF Power tetrode up to 175 MHz


R - Rectifier incl. grid-controlled


RG

*RG1000/3000 – 1 kV, 3 A Half-wave mercury-vapor rectifier with anode top cap


RGQ

*RGQ7.5/0.6, RSQ7.5/0.6 (Grid-controlled) – 7.5 kV, 600 mA Half-wave mercury-vapor rectifier with anode top cap *RGQ20/5, RSQ15/40 (Grid-controlled) – 20 kV, 5 A Half-wave mercury-vapor rectifier with anode top cap


T - AF/RF/oscillator Triode


TA

*TA04/5 – 400 V, 50 W Radiation-cooled power triode *TA1.5/75 – 1.5 kV, 75 W Radiation-cooled power triode *TA4/2000K – 4 kV, 2 kW Air-cooled power triode made by Philips in the 1930s *TA18/100000 – 18 kV, 100 kW Water-cooled power triode


TB

*TB04/8 – Directly heated ''Doorknob'' VHF power triode up to 600 MHz *TB2.5/400 – 2.5 kV, 300 W Radiation-cooled power triode *TB5/2500 – 5 kV, 2.5 kW Radiation-cooled power triode


TBL

*TBL2/300 – 2 kV, 300 W Forced air-cooled power triode *TBL15/125 – 15 kV, 125 kW Forced air-cooled power triode, 3-phase filament structure


TBW

*TBW6/14 – 6 kV, 14 kW Water-cooled power triode *TBW15/125 – 15 kV, 125 kW Water-cooled power triode, 3-phase filament structure


TC

*TC03/5 – RF power triode up to 85 MHz, 5 W *TC2/250 – RF power triode up to 20 MHz, 250 W


TD

*TD03/5 – Indirectly heated ''disk-seal'' UHF power triode up to 2 GHz *TD03/10 – Indirectly heated ''disk-seal'' UHF power triode up to 2.8 W, 3.75 GHz :*TD03/10F – TD03/10 with internal feedback for use as an oscillator *TD04/20 – Indirectly heated ''disk-seal'' UHF power triode up to 13.5 W, 1 GHz *TD1/100C = 2C39BA – Indirectly heated, ceramic ''disk-seal'' UHF power triode up to 24 W, 3.5 GHz *TD2/400 – Directly heated, ceramic ''disk-seal'' UHF power triode up to 600 W, 900 MHz *TD2/500 – Directly heated, ceramic ''disk-seal'' UHF power triode up to 500 W, 940 MHz


TE

*TE05/10 – RF power triode up to 150 MHz


TX

*TX12/12W – Water-cooled RF power triode *TX12/20W – Water-cooled RF power triode *TX10/4000 – Power triode,
Silica Silicon dioxide, also known as silica, is an oxide of silicon with the chemical formula , most commonly found in nature as quartz and in various living organisms. In many parts of the world, silica is the major constituent of sand. Silica is ...
envelope, 12 kV anode voltage, 4 kW anode dissipation, 1.6 A cathode current, gm: 4.5  mS, for use as self-excited high-power oscillator in
induction heating Induction heating is the process of heating electrically conductive materials, namely metals or semi-conductors, by electromagnetic induction, through heat transfer passing through an induction coil that creates an electromagnetic field within th ...
equipment.


TY

*TY2/125 – 135 W VHF power triode up to 200 MHz *TY12/50A – Forced-air cooled 45 kW RF power triode up to 30 MHz *TY12/50W – Water-cooled 50 kW RF power triode up to 30 MHz


TYS

*TYS2/250 – Power triode,
Silica Silicon dioxide, also known as silica, is an oxide of silicon with the chemical formula , most commonly found in nature as quartz and in various living organisms. In many parts of the world, silica is the major constituent of sand. Silica is ...
envelope, 2.5 kV anode voltage, 250 W anode dissipation *TYS4/500 – Power triode, Silica envelope *TYS5/1000 – Power triode, Silica envelope *TYS5/2000 – Power triode, Silica envelope *TYS5/3000 – Power triode, Silica envelope, 6 kV anode voltage, 950 °C anode temperature at 3.5 kW anode dissipation, 2.8 A cathode current, gm: 15  mS. Used in RF generators for
induction hardening Induction hardening is a type of surface hardening in which a metal part is induction-heated and then quenched. The quenched metal undergoes a martensitic transformation, increasing the hardness and brittleness of the part. Induction hardening is ...
.


X - Thyratron


XGQ

*XGQ2/6400 – 2 kV, 6.4 kW Mercury-vapor tetrode
thyratron A thyratron is a type of gas-filled tube used as a high-power electrical switch and controlled rectifier. Thyratrons can handle much greater currents than similar hard-vacuum tubes. Electron multiplication occurs when the gas becomes ionized, p ...
with anode and grid1 top caps


XR

*XR1/1600 (5545) – 1 kV, 1.6 kW Inert gas-filled triode thyratron with anode top cap *XR1/6400 – 1 kV, 6.4 kW Inert gas-filled triode thyratron with anode top cap


List of other number tubes


1

*175HQ – Ultra high reliability pentode for use in long-haul submarine communications cable
repeater In telecommunications, a repeater is an electronic device that receives a signal and retransmits it. Repeaters are used to extend transmissions so that the signal can cover longer distances or be received on the other side of an obstruction. Som ...
s


1600s

*1602 – Directly heated triode used for A.F. amplification with low
microphonics Microphonics, microphony, or microphonism describes the phenomenon wherein certain components in electronic devices transform mechanical vibrations into an undesired electrical signal (noise). The term comes from analogy with a microphone, which ...
. 7.5 volt heater/filament. 12 watts of A.F. operating in Class-A. 15 watts of low R.F. operating in Class-C. Similar to type 10. *1603 – Indirectly heated pentode used for A.F. amplification with low microphonics. Similar to types 6U7, 57, 6D6 and 6C6. UX6 Base. *1608 – Directly heated triode giving 20 watts at up to 45 MHz. 2.5 volt heater/filament. UX base. *1609 – Directly heated pentode used for A.F. amplification with low microphonics. American 5-Pin(UY)base. *1610 – Directly heated pentode specially designed for use as a
crystal oscillator A crystal oscillator is an electronic oscillator circuit that uses a piezoelectric crystal as a frequency-selective element. The oscillator frequency is often used to keep track of time, as in quartz wristwatches, to provide a stable clock ...
. 2.5 volt heater/filament, American 5-Pin base. *1612 –
Pentagrid converter The pentagrid converter is a type of radio receiving valve (vacuum tube) with five grids used as the frequency mixer stage of a superheterodyne radio receiver. The pentagrid was part of a line of development of valves that were able to take an ...
; low-microphonics version of type 6L7. Both control grids (1 and 3) are sharp-cutoff. *1619 – Beam Power Tetrode, similar to 6L6 with directly heated filament, common in World War II battle tank transmitters. *1624, 1625 – Very similar to the
807 __NOTOC__ Year 807 ( DCCCVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Abbasid Empire and Byzantine Empire * Emperor Nikephoros I is forced to sue for peace, ...
, but with different heater voltage *1626 – RF triode, very similar to 6J5 but with 12.6 volt filament *1629 – Tuning indicator tube with DC amplifier triode unit *1630 – Indirectly heated, orbital-beam, secondary-emission, 12-pin ''Jumbo Acorn''-type UHF hexode *1633 – Dual triode, equivalent to 6SN7 with 25 volt heater (World War II aircraft use) *1635 – Indirectly heated, 10.4 W dual AF power triode, Octal base *1636 – Secondary emission UHF
beam deflection tube Beam deflection tubes, sometimes known as sheet beam tubes, are vacuum tubes with an electron gun, a beam intensity control grid, a screen grid, sometimes a suppressor grid, and two electrostatic deflection electrodes on opposite sides of the ...
, used as a balanced mixer up to 600 MHz *1650 – High-altitude version of the
955 Year 955 ( CMLV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * August 10 – Battle of Lechfeld: King Otto I ("the Great") defeats the Hungarians (also ...
''Acorn''-type triode *1680 – Dual-control heptode for use as a
NAND gate In digital electronics, a NAND gate (NOT-AND) is a logic gate which produces an output which is false only if all its inputs are true; thus its output is complement to that of an AND gate. A LOW (0) output results only if all the inputs to the ...
in a
coincidence circuit In physics and electrical engineering, a coincidence circuit or coincidence gate is an electronic device with one output and two (or more) inputs. The output activates only when the circuit receives signals within a time window accepted as ''at the ...
in IBM computers, 6BE6/EK90 with a sharp-cutoff grid no.3


2

*24B1 –
Trigatron A trigatron is a type of triggerable spark gap switch designed for high current and high voltage (usually 10–100 kV and 20–100 kA, though devices in the mega-ampere range exist as well). It has very simple construction and in many cases is the ...
*24B9 – Trigatron *29C1 – Directly heated ''saturated-emission diode''; acts as a heating current-controlled, variable series resistor in voltage/current stabilizer circuits.


200s

*203A – 40 W, Directly heated RF transmitter power triode, 4-pin base, anode on top cap *204A – 450 W, Directly heated RF transmitter power triode, 3-pin base, anode on top cap *205D – 14 W, Directly heated AF or modulator power triode, 4-pin base *207 – 22.5 kW, Water-cooled, directly heated RF transmitter power triode *210T – Directly heated RF transmitter power triode, 4-pin base, similar to type 10 triode with an ''isolantite'' base *210DET –
Cossor A.C. Cossor Ltd. was a British electronics company founded in 1859. The company's products included valves, radios, televisions and military electronics. The company was purchased by Raytheon in 1961. Early history The story of A.C. Cossor Ltd ...
directly heated, 2 volts, special detector *210HF – Cossor, directly heated, 2 volts, triode *210HL – Cossor, directly heated, 2 volts, triode *210LF – Cossor, directly heated, 2 volts, triode *210PG – Cossor, directly heated, 2 volts, variable-mu pentagrid *210RC – Cossor, directly heated, 2 volts, very high impedance triode *210SPT – Cossor, directly heated, 2 volts, HF pentode *210VPT – Cossor, directly heated, 2 volts, HF variable-mu shielded pentode *211 – 260 W, Directly heated AF or modulator power triode now favored by audiophiles; Jumbo 4-pin base *212E – 250 W, Directly heated RF transmitter power triode, 4-pin base *215P – Cossor, directly heated AF power triode *220B – 5 kW, Water-cooled, directly heated AF/modulator power triode *228 – 2.5 kW, Directly heated RF/AF power triode *230XP – Cossor, directly heated power triode *232C – 8.5 kW, Water-cooled, directly heated RF transmitter power triode *236A – 12 kW, Water-cooled, directly heated RF transmitter power triode *240B – Cossor, directly heated dual AF power triode *241B – 300 W, Directly heated AF/modulator power triode, 3-pin base, anode on top cap *242A – Directly heated AF/modulator power triode, 4-pin base *250TH – 1.1 kW, Directly heated AF/modulator power triode, 4-pin base, anode on top cap *254A – 14 W, Directly heated RF transmitter power triode, 4-pin base, anode on top cap *261A – 170 W, Directly heated AF/modulator power triode, 4-pin base *268A – 20 W, Directly heated power triode, 4-pin base, anode on top cap *270A – 350 W, Directly heated AF/RF power triode, 4-pin base, anode on top cap *275A – 3 W, Directly heated AF power triode, 4-pin base *276A – 170 W, Directly heated AF/RF power triode, 4-pin base *279A – 1.75 kW, Directly heated AF/RF power triode *295A – 125 W, Directly heated AF/RF power triode, 4-pin base *298A – 5 kW, Water-cooled, directly heated power triode


3


300s

*
300B In electronics, the 300B is a directly-heated power triode A triode is an electronic amplifying vacuum tube (or ''valve'' in British English) consisting of three electrodes inside an evacuated glass envelope: a heated filament or cathode, a ...
– 40 watt directly heated power triode, 4-pin base *316A = VT191 – Directly heated ''Doorknob''-type UHF power triode up to 750 MHz *322 – ''Oil can''-type disk-seal UHF clipper power diode, 800 VPIV, 15 W, 1500 MHz *328 – '' Tungar bulb'', a low-voltage, gas-filled, full wave rectifier for charging 12V lead-acid batteries at 1.3 A *368A – Directly heated ''Doorknob'' UHF power triode, graphite anode, up to 1.7 GHz *388A – Directly heated ''Doorknob'' UHF power triode, graphite anode, up to 1.7 GHz


4

*4XP – Cossor, directly heated power triode *41MP – Cossor, indirectly heated power triode


400s

*402P – Cossor, indirectly heated power triode, 7-pin base *416B – Planar SHF power triode, 500 mW output at 4 GHz *416D – Planar SHF power triode with
BeO BEO, Beo, BeO or ''variation'' may refer to: ;BEO * Banquet event order * Belmont Airport IATA code * Book entry only * Beyond Earth Orbit ;Beo * ''Beo'', a variant of the name of the Anglo-Saxon god Beowa. * Beo language, an African language ...
spacers, 5 W output at 4 GHz *446A – Early ''Lighthouse'' UHF triode, 10 dB
noise figure Noise figure (NF) and noise factor (''F'') are figures of merit that indicate degradation of the signal-to-noise ratio (SNR) that is caused by components in a signal chain. These figures of merit are used to evaluate the performance of an amplifier ...
at 1 GHz *450TH – Early Eimac high-mu power triode, 450 watt anode dissipation to 40 MHz *455A – Ultra high reliability pentode for use in submarine communications cable repeaters


4000s

Philips Koninklijke Philips N.V. (), commonly shortened to Philips, is a Dutch multinational conglomerate corporation that was founded in Eindhoven in 1891. Since 1997, it has been mostly headquartered in Amsterdam, though the Benelux headquarters i ...
: *4065 – Directly heated
electrometer An electrometer is an electrical instrument for measuring electric charge or electrical potential difference. There are many different types, ranging from historical handmade mechanical instruments to high-precision electronic devices. Modern ...
triode, grid current ≤125 fA, 4-pin all-glass wire-end, for probe amplifiers *4613 – Directly heated power triode, 4-pin base *4614 – Indirectly heated power triode, 5-pin base *4641 – Directly heated power triode, 4-pin base *4671/E1C (
955 Year 955 ( CMLV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * August 10 – Battle of Lechfeld: King Otto I ("the Great") defeats the Hungarians (also ...
) – Indirectly heated '' Acorn'' triode *4672/E1F (954) – Indirectly heated ''Acorn'' pentode *4674 – Indirectly heated ''Acorn'' diode *4675 – 4671/E1C with a 4 Volts heater *4676 – 4672/E1F with a 4 Volts heater *4678 (EM1) – Indirectly heated tuning indicator *4683 – Directly heated power triode, side-contact 8 base *4695/E2F (956) – Indirectly heated ''Acorn'' pentode
RCA The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse, AT&T Corporation and United Fruit Comp ...
: *4042 – Ceramic/metal ''pencil''-type disk-seal UHF power triode for pulsed operation up to 425 W *4062A – Ceramic/metal ''pencil''-type disk-seal SHF power triode up to 4 GHz, mu = 100, Panode = 10 W *4560 – Character generator monoscope for
text mode Text mode is a computer display mode in which content is internally represented on a computer screen in terms of characters rather than individual pixels. Typically, the screen consists of a uniform rectangular grid of ''character cells'', each ...
video rendering in early computer monitors, with a square target having letters, digits and symbols stenciled into it in a customer-supplied 8x8 array. An electron beam selects and scans a character, both by appropriate
electrostatic deflection Electrostatic deflection refers to a way for modifying the path of a beam of charged particles by the use of an electric field applied transverse to the path of the particles. The technique is called electro''static'' because the strength and di ...
, and generates an analog video signal; cf. CK1414, TH9503 *4598, 7539, 7828, 8087, 8098 – ''Graphechon'' dual-electron gun scan conversion tubes, analog video
transcoder Transcoding is the direct digital-to-digital conversion of one encoding to another, such as for video data files, audio files (e.g., MP3, WAV), or character encoding (e.g., UTF-8, ISO/IEC 8859). This is usually done in cases where a target devi ...
s with simultaneous R/W capability for realtime resolution and frame rate transcoding between different analog video standards. This was achieved by a CRT/camera tube combination; the CRT part writes onto a thin, dielectric target; the camera part reads the generated charge pattern at a different scan rate from the back side of this target. The setup could also be used as a
genlock Genlock (generator locking) is a common technique where the video output of one source (or a specific reference signal from a signal generator) is used to synchronize other picture sources together. The aim in video applications is to ensure the ...
Standard Telephones and Cables Standard Telephones and Cables Ltd (later STC plc) was a British manufacturer of telephone, telegraph, radio, telecommunications, and related equipment. During its history, STC invented and developed several groundbreaking new technologies incl ...
: *4205E = 205E – Directly heated power triode, 4-pin bayonet base with offset pin *4270A = 270A = 3C/350E – Directly heated power triode, 3-pin base *4275A = 275A – Directly heated power triode, 4-pin base *4300A = 300A – Directly heated power triode, 4-pin base *4307A = 307A – Power pentode similar to the output beam-tetrode type
807 __NOTOC__ Year 807 ( DCCCVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Abbasid Empire and Byzantine Empire * Emperor Nikephoros I is forced to sue for peace, ...
. It differs from an 807 by being a ''directly heated'' pentode rather than an ''indirectly heated'' beam-tetrode. Both types are contained in an ST-16 bulb with an anode cap and 5-pin "American" UY base :The SY4307A is historically notable because a pair of them in parallel Class-C was used as the output stage in a transmitter built in secret by Australian soldiers in Japanese-occupied Portuguese
Timor Timor is an island at the southern end of Maritime Southeast Asia, in the north of the Timor Sea. The island is divided between the sovereign states of East Timor on the eastern part and Indonesia on the western part. The Indonesian part, also ...
during
World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposing ...
in 1942. This transmitter, now reconstructed and on display at the Australian War Memorial in Canberra, was called "Winnie the War Winner". :*4307AF – 4307A qualified for use in standard aircraft radio


5

*5BP4 – Five-inch CRT used in pre-World War II television receivers, such as the
RCA TRK-5 The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent pool, patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse Electric Corporation, Westin ...
and in early radars such as the SCR-268 and
SCR-270 The SCR-270 (Set Complete Radio model 270) was one of the first operational early-warning radars. It was the U.S. Army's primary long-distance radar throughout World War II and was deployed around the world. It is also known as the Pearl Harbor ...
. *5CEP11 ( blue, short persistence); 10VP15, 5AKP15, 5DKP15, 5ZP15 (blue-green, extremely short); 5BNP16, 5CEP16, 5DKP16, 5ZP16 (violet/near-ultraviolet, very short); 5AKP24, 5AUP24, 5DKP24, 5ZP24 (green, short); 131QP55 (blue-green, very short); 131QP56 (blue-violet, very short) – CRT-type
flying-spot scanner A flying-spot scanner (FSS) uses a scanning source of a spot of light, such as a high-resolution, high-light-output, low-persistence cathode ray tube (CRT), to scan an image. Usually the image to be scanned is on photographic film, such as motion ...
s for use in a
telecine Telecine ( or ) is the process of transferring film into video and is performed in a color suite. The term is also used to refer to the equipment used in the post-production process. Telecine enables a motion picture, captured originally on fi ...


500s

*527 – High-mu power triode up to 900 W *559 – ''Lighthouse''-type disk-seal UHF diode *592 = 3-200A3 – Medium-mu power triode up to 200 W, 150 MHz


6

*6P10 – Ultra high reliability pentode for use in short-haul submarine communications cable repeaters *6P12 – Ultra high reliability pentode for use in long-haul submarine communications cable repeaters


7

*7JP1 – Monochrome cathode ray tube for use in early postwar oscilloscopes.
Electrostatic deflection Electrostatic deflection refers to a way for modifying the path of a beam of charged particles by the use of an electric field applied transverse to the path of the particles. The technique is called electro''static'' because the strength and di ...
, P1 green, short-persistence phosphor, screen. *
7JP4 The 7JP4 is an early black and white or monochrome cathode ray tube (also called picture tube and kinescope). It was a popular type used in late 1940s low cost and small table model televisions. The 7JP4 has a 7" diameter round screen which was of ...
– Monochrome cathode ray tube common in early postwar TV receivers. Electrostatic deflection, P4 white, medium-persistence phosphor, screen. *7JP7 – Monochrome cathode ray tube for use in early postwar
radar display A radar display is an electronic device to present radar data to the operator. The radar system transmits pulses or continuous waves of electromagnetic radiation, a small portion of which backscatter off targets (intended or otherwise) and retu ...
s. Electrostatic deflection, P7 blue-white, long-persistence phosphor, screen.


700s

*703A – Directly heated ''Doorknob'' UHF power triode up to 1.5 GHz *713A – Indirectly heated ''Little Doorknob'' UHF pentode, Bakelite Octal base *717A (CV3594, VT269) – 713A with a metal shield and a low loss mica-filled
phenolic resin Phenol formaldehyde resins (PF) or phenolic resins (also infrequently called phenoplasts) are synthetic polymers obtained by the reaction of phenol or substituted phenol with formaldehyde. Used as the basis for Bakelite, PFs were the first commerc ...
Octal base


8


800s

*800 – Directly heated V.H.F. power triode, giving 35 watts up to 60 MHz and 18 watts at 180 MHz. American 4-Pin(UX)base with side locating pin. *801 – Directly heated power triode, used in pairs in Class-B in A.M. modulation sections of transmitters giving up to 45 watts of power at 60 MHz and 22 watts at 120 MHz. *802 – Indirectly heated H.F. power pentode, giving 8 watts up to 30 MHz and 4 watts at 110 MHz. *803 – Directly heated H.F. power pentode, giving 50 watts up to 20 MHz and 25 watts at 70 MHz. *804 – Directly heated H.F. power pentode, giving 20 watts up to 15 MHz and 10 watts at 10 MHz. *805 – Directly heated H.F. high-mu triode, giving 140 watts up to 30 MHz and 70 watts at 85 MHz. *806 – Directly heated H.F. high-mu triode, giving 390 watts up to 30 MHz 195 watts at 100 MHz. *
807 __NOTOC__ Year 807 ( DCCCVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Abbasid Empire and Byzantine Empire * Emperor Nikephoros I is forced to sue for peace, ...
– Indirectly heated H.F. beam power tetrode, giving 25 watts up to 30 MHz and 12 watts at 125 MHz. A variation of type
6L6 6L6 is the designator for a beam power tube introduced by Radio Corporation of America in April 1936 and marketed for application as a power amplifier for audio frequencies.J. F. Dreyer Jr."The Beam Power Output Tube" New York: McGraw-Hill, ''Ele ...
originally designed as a Class-C transmitter tube. Later used in pairs as push-pull outputs for high-wattage Class-AB2 audio amplifiers. Also used as a horizontal output tube in early TV receivers. One of the first commercial tubes that used the top cap to connect the anode (instead of the
control grid The control grid is an electrode used in amplifying thermionic valves (vacuum tubes) such as the triode, tetrode and pentode, used to control the flow of electrons from the cathode to the anode (plate) electrode. The control grid usually consist ...
) to the circuit. *808 – Directly heated H.F. high-mu triode, giving 140 watts up to 30 MHz and 70 watts at 130 MHz. *809 – Directly heated H.F. high-mu triode, giving 55 watts up to 27 MHz and 30 watts at 100 MHz. *810 – Directly heated H.F. triode, 10 volt filament and Zirconium Carbide anode. Base fits R.C.A. UT-541A Socket. *811A – Directly heated H.F. triode, 6.3 volt filament, 88 watts *813 – Beam Power Tetrode possessing about 5 times the Anode dissipation of an 807. *814 – A directly heated Beam Power Tetrode giving about 130 watts at 30 MHz and 65 watts at 100 MHz operating in Class-C. *815 – An indirectly heated dual Pentode. Octal base. *825 – First commercially available ''klystrode'', a VHF/UHF linear-beam transmitting tube, similar to a klystron *829 – A dual indirectly heated beam power tetrode. Two 6.3 volt heaters sharing a common tap. *830 – A directly heated triode giving about 50 watts at 15 MHz and 7.5 watts at 60 MHz operating in Class-C. *831 – A directly heated triode giving about 400 watts at 20 MHz and 200 watts at 60 MHz operating in Class-C. 11 volt heater/filament. *833 – A larger directly heated high-mu triode giving about 1 kW at 30 MHz and 500 watts at 45 MHz operating in Class-C. Usable up to 100 MHz at reduced power, (400 W). 10 volt heater/filament drawing 10 A. The anode of this device is fabricated from
tantalum Tantalum is a chemical element with the symbol Ta and atomic number 73. Previously known as ''tantalium'', it is named after Tantalus, a villain in Greek mythology. Tantalum is a very hard, ductile, lustrous, blue-gray transition metal that ...
. Anode current of 800 mA with an anode voltage of 3 kV and grid voltage of zero. Anode current of 4.3 A at a voltage of 750 with 350 volt on the grid. Uses two-part R.C.A socket assembly UT-103. :* 833A – Improved 833. *834 – A directly heated triode giving 58 watts at 100 MHz and 25 watts at 350 MHz operating in Class-C. 7.5 volt heater/filament. Fitted with an American 4-Pin, (UX4), base with side locating pin. *836 – An indirectly heated high vacuum rectifier with a peak inverse voltage of 5 kV and peak anode current of 1 ampere. 2.5 volt heater. *837 – An indirectly heated pentode giving 11 watts at 20 MHz and 5 watts at 80 MHz. operating in Class-C. 12.6 volt heater. *838 – A directly heated triode giving about 100 watts at 30 MHz operating in Class-C. 10 volt heater/filament. *841 – A directly heated high-mu triode giving about 10 watts at 6 MHz and 5 watts at 170 MHz operating in Class-C. 7.5 volt heater/filament. *842 – A directly heated triode giving about 3 watts at 6 MHz operating in Class-C. 7.5 volt heater/filament. *843 – An indirectly heated tetrode giving gain at 6 MHz and usable up to 200 MHz operating in Class-C. 2.5 volt heater/filament. *844 – A directly heated triode giving gain at 6 MHz and usable up to 155 MHz operating in Class-C. 2.5 volt heater/filament. * 845 – A directly heated triode giving up to 24 watts of undistorted power in Class-A at audio frequency with an anode voltage of 1250. 10 volt heater/filament. *849 – A directly heated triode giving gain at 3 MHz operating in Class-C. Two 849s, working in push-pull Class-B are capable of delivering 1.1 kW of audio output with an anode voltage of 3 kV. Usable up to 30 MHz. 11 volt filament/heater. *850 – A directly heated tetrode giving 120 watts of power gain up to 13 MHz and 50 watts at 100 MHz, operating in Class-C. 10 volt heater/filament. *851 – A directly heated triode giving 1.5 kW of power up to 3 MHz operating in Class-C. 11 volt heater/filament. *852 – A directly heated triode giving 75 W of power up to 30 MHz operating in Class-C. 10 volt heater/filament. *857B – Large mercury-vapor rectifier used in 50 kW class broadcast transmitters. 22 kV anode voltage, 10 A anode current. Filament 5 V @ 30 A *860 – A directly heated tetrode giving 105 W of power up to 30 MHz and 50 watts at 120 MHz operating in Class-C. 10 volt heater/filament. *861 – A directly heated triode giving 400 W of power up to 20 MHz and 200 watts at 60 MHz operating in Class-C. 11 volt heater/filament. *862 – Large water-cooled triode for broadcast/industrial applications. Used in experimental 500 kW transmitter at
WLW WLW (700 AM) is a commercial news/talk radio station licensed to Cincinnati, Ohio. Owned by iHeartMedia, WLW is a clear-channel station, often identifying itself as The Big One. WLW operates with around the clock. Its daytime signal provides ...
. *864 – A directly heated general-purpose, low-
microphonics Microphonics, microphony, or microphonism describes the phenomenon wherein certain components in electronic devices transform mechanical vibrations into an undesired electrical signal (noise). The term comes from analogy with a microphone, which ...
triode with a maximum anode voltage of 135 volts and anode current of 3.5 mA. 1.1 volt heater/filament. *865 – A directly heated tetrode giving 30 W of power up to 15 MHz 15 watts at 70 MHz operating in Class-C. 7.5 volt heater/filament. *866 – A mercury-vapor rectifier with a peak inverse voltage of 5 kV and peak anode current of 1 ampere. Average anode current, 250 mA, forward drop, 15 volt. Heater voltage and current, 2.5 at 5 A. American 4-Pin(UX) base. :*
866A The 866 is a mercury vapor half-wave rectifier intended for high-voltage applications. The voltage drop is approximately 15 volts up to 150 Hz. To avoid unwanted shorts the tube must be operated in a vertical position and the filament ...
– Improved 866 with a peak inverse voltage of 10 kV and a forward drop of 10 volt. * – A mercury-vapor rectifier with a peak inverse voltage of 5 kV and peak anode current of 5 amperes. Average anode current, 1250 mA, forward drop, 15 volt. Heater voltage, 5.0 at 10 A. Base fits R.C.A. UT-541A Socket. :*872A – Improved 872 with a peak inverse voltage of 10 kV, a forward drop of 10 volt and a heater current of 6.25 A. *879 – A high vacuum rectifier with a peak inverse voltage of ca. 15 kV and peak anode current of ca. 5 mA. 2.5 volt heater and American 4-Pin, (UX) base. Used as half wave rectifier for high voltage cathode ray tube supplies. Similar to type 2X2. *884 – An indirectly heated triode
thyratron A thyratron is a type of gas-filled tube used as a high-power electrical switch and controlled rectifier. Thyratrons can handle much greater currents than similar hard-vacuum tubes. Electron multiplication occurs when the gas becomes ionized, p ...
. 6.3 volt heater/filament, Octal base. Electrically similar to type 885. Once commonly used as a sawtooth horizontal sweep waveform generator in recurrent-sweep oscilloscopes. Marketed by DuMont under the type number 6Q5. *885 – An indirectly heated triode
thyratron A thyratron is a type of gas-filled tube used as a high-power electrical switch and controlled rectifier. Thyratrons can handle much greater currents than similar hard-vacuum tubes. Electron multiplication occurs when the gas becomes ionized, p ...
. 2.5 volt heater/filament, American 5-Pin (UY) base. Otherwise similar to type 884. *898 – Large water-cooled triode for broadcast/industrial applications. Updated version of 862, with 3-phase filament structure.


9


900s

*934 – Vacuum
Phototube A phototube or photoelectric cell is a type of gas-filled or vacuum tube that is sensitive to light. Such a tube is more correctly called a 'photoemissive cell' to distinguish it from photovoltaic or photoconductive cells. Phototubes were previ ...
, spectral S4 response (maximum sensitivity at 400±50 nm), 3-pin ''Small-Shell Peewee'' base *935 – Vacuum Phototube, spectral S5 response (maximum sensitivity at 340±50 nm), 4-pin octal base *950 – Power pentode with directly heated cathode, used in storage battery home radios with 2.0 volt filament supply. Similar to types 1F4 and 1J5G *951 – Sharp- cutoff pentode with directly heated cathode, used in storage battery home radios with 2.0 volt filament supply. Similar to type 1B4P *953 – '' Acorn''-type UHF diode; 6.3 V heater *954 (4672/E1F) – Indirectly heated ''Acorn''-type sharp-cutoff pentode giving gains of 2...3 up to 300 MHz operating in Class-A and usable up to 600 MHz with careful stage design; 6.3 V heater *
955 Year 955 ( CMLV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * August 10 – Battle of Lechfeld: King Otto I ("the Great") defeats the Hungarians (also ...
(4671/E1C) – Indirectly heated ''Acorn''-type triode giving a power of 135 mW up to 600 MHz operating in Class-A and 500 mW in Class-C with careful stage design; 6.3 V heater *956 (4695/E2F) – Indirectly heated ''Acorn''-type remote-cutoff pentode giving gains of 3...4 up to 600 MHz operating in Class-A with careful stage design; 6.3 V heater *957 (D1C) – Directly heated ''Acorn''-type UHF receiving triode; 1.25 V filament for portable equipment *958 (D2C) – Directly heated ''Acorn''-type UHF transmitting triode with dual, paralleled 1.25 V filaments for increased emission, for portable equipment :*958A – 958 with tightened emission specs *959 (D3F) – Directly heated ''Acorn''-type sharp-cutoff UHF pentode; 1.25 V filament for portable equipment *991 – 60-Volts
Voltage reference A voltage reference is an electronic device that ideally produces a fixed (constant) voltage irrespective of the loading on the device, power supply variations, temperature changes, and the passage of time. Voltage references are used in power sup ...
, T4 lightbulb with 2-contact, bayonet candelabra mount


9000s

*9001 – 954 with a miniature 7-pin base *9002 – 955 with a miniature 7-pin base *9003 – 956 with a miniature 7-pin base *9004 – ''Acorn'' UHF diode *9005 – ''Acorn'' UHF diode with a 3.6 V heater *9006 – Detector diode with a miniature 7-pin base


List of other letter tubes


A

Edison and Swan Electric Light Company The Edison and Swan Electric Light Company Limited was a manufacturer of incandescent lamp bulbs and other electrical goods. It was formed in 1883 with the name Edison & Swan United Electric Light Company with the merger of the Swan United Elec ...
(British Mazda/EdiSwan): *A40 – '' Acorn'' UHF triode up to 600 MHz, 4 Volts heater *A41 – ''Acorn'' UHF pentode up to 600 MHz, 4 Volts heater


AC*/

Mazda/EdiSwan 4-volts AC, indirectly heated receiver tubes: *AC/HL – AF triode, British 5-pin base *AC/HLDD = TDD4 = MHD4 – Dual diode and AF triode, British 7-pin base *AC/ME – Tuning indicator, British 7-pin base *AC/P, AC/P1 – AF triode, British 5-pin base *AC/P4 – CRT electrostatic-deflection output power triode, British 5-pin base *AC/PEN – AF power pentode, British 7-pin base *AC/S2PEN – RF pentode, British 7-pin base *AC/SP1 – RF pentode for use in
squelch In telecommunications, squelch is a circuit function that acts to suppress the audio (or video) output of a receiver in the absence of a strong input signal. Essentially, squelch is a specialized type of noise gate designed to suppress weak s ...
circuits or, as the reactance tube, in AFC circuits, British 7-pin base *AC/SP3 – RF pentode for shortwave and TV receivers, British 7-pin base *AC/SP3/RH – Low-noise, low-
microphonics Microphonics, microphony, or microphonism describes the phenomenon wherein certain components in electronic devices transform mechanical vibrations into an undesired electrical signal (noise). The term comes from analogy with a microphone, which ...
RF pentode for shortwave and TV receivers, British 7-pin base *AC/TH1 – Triode/hexode oscillator/mixer, British 9-pin base *AC/TP = TP4 – Triode/pentode oscillator/mixer, British 7-pin base *AC/VP1, AC/VP2 – RF pentode, British 7-pin base *AC2/HL – High-mu triode *AC2/PEN – AF Power pentode *AC2/PEN.DD – Dual diode and AF Power pentode *AC4/PEN – AF Beam power pentode *AC5/PEN – AF Beam power pentode *AC5/PEN.DD – Dual diode and AF Beam power pentode *AC6/PEN – Beam power pentode for use as a magnetic horizontal-deflection output amplifier


ACT

Marconi-Osram Valve Company *ACT9 – 800 W Air cooled transmitting triode up to 15 MHz, with derating up to 80 MHz


B


BA

Industrial Electronic Engineers: *BA-0000-P31 – Nimo tube, cathode-ray 1-digit numeric display tube, 10 stenciled
electron gun An electron gun (also called electron emitter) is an electrical component in some vacuum tubes that produces a narrow, collimated electron beam that has a precise kinetic energy. The largest use is in cathode-ray tubes (CRTs), used in nearly ...
s aiming at a P31- phosphor (yellowish-green, medium-persistence) fluorescent screen, top-viewing, '' Futura Medium'' font, 2.5 kV anode voltage, 12-pin base


BG

Burroughs Neon-filled planar glow-transfer plasma bar graph displays: *BG08220-K – 120-Segment circular with five cathode strings plus a Reset cathode, 1-in-5 major/minor graduation, for use e.g. in direction-finding equipment *BG12201 = Dale PBG12201 – Dual 201-segment linear with three cathode strings plus a Reset cathode, for use in
VU meter A volume unit (VU) meter or standard volume indicator (SVI) is a device displaying a representation of the signal level in audio equipment. The original design was proposed in the 1940 IRE paper, ''A New Standard Volume Indicator and Reference ...
s etc. *BG12203 = PBG12203 – Dual 203-segment linear bidirectional with three cathode strings plus two Reset cathodes *BG12205 = PBG12205 – Dual 201-segment linear with five cathode strings plus a Reset cathode, for use in VU meters etc. *BG16101 = PBG16101 – Dual 101-segment linear with three cathode strings plus a Reset cathode, for use in VU meters etc.; cf. ИН-33


BT

British Thomson-Houston (
General Electric General Electric Company (GE) is an American multinational conglomerate founded in 1892, and incorporated in New York state and headquartered in Boston. The company operated in sectors including healthcare, aviation, power, renewable en ...
subsidiary): *BT1 –
Thyratron A thyratron is a type of gas-filled tube used as a high-power electrical switch and controlled rectifier. Thyratrons can handle much greater currents than similar hard-vacuum tubes. Electron multiplication occurs when the gas becomes ionized, p ...
used in Wynn-Williams' binary prescaler for the
alpha particle Alpha particles, also called alpha rays or alpha radiation, consist of two protons and two neutrons bound together into a particle identical to a helium-4 nucleus. They are generally produced in the process of alpha decay, but may also be pr ...
counter that Rutherford, Chadwick et al. used for their nuclear research at the Cavendish Laboratory in the 1930s


C


CH

Tung-Sol Tung-Sol was an American manufacturer of electronics, mainly lamps and vacuum tubes. History Tung-Sol was founded as Tung-Sol Lamp Works Inc. in Newark, New Jersey in 1907. Their early products were mainly geared towards the automotive market ...
: *CH1027 – ''Curristor'' – Four types of nitrogen-filled, radioactive constant-current tubes with a current plateau from 25 to 500 V, all-glass wire-ended, active material is 226Ra with a
half-life Half-life (symbol ) is the time required for a quantity (of substance) to reduce to half of its initial value. The term is commonly used in nuclear physics to describe how quickly unstable atoms undergo radioactive decay or how long stable at ...
of 1601 years, for linear capacitor charging and draining in
missile In military terminology, a missile is a guided airborne ranged weapon capable of self-propelled flight usually by a jet engine or rocket motor. Missiles are thus also called guided missiles or guided rockets (when a previously unguided rocke ...
and
ordnance Ordnance may refer to: Military and defense *Materiel in military logistics, including weapons, ammunition, vehicles, and maintenance tools and equipment. **The military branch responsible for supplying and developing these items, e.g., the Unit ...
mine timing circuits, instrumentation biasing, as current reference, etc.: :*CH1027-9 – 10−9 A, :*CH1027-10 – 10−10 A, :*CH1027-11 – 10−11 A, :*CH1027-12 – 10−12 A,


CK

Raytheon Raytheon Technologies Corporation is an American multinational aerospace and defense conglomerate headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. It is one of the largest aerospace and defense manufacturers in the world by revenue and market capitali ...
: *CK1022 – 1 kV/5...55 μA Corona voltage reference, miniature 7-pin base with anode top cap *CK1037 = 6437 – 700 V/5...125 μA Corona voltage reference, 3-pin all-glass wire-ended *CK1038 – 900 V/5...55 μA Corona voltage reference, 3-pin all-glass wire-ended *CK1039 = 6438 – 1.2 kV/5...125 μA Corona voltage reference, 3-pin all-glass wire-ended *CK1366, CK1367, CK1368, CK1369 – CRTs with an unphosphored front glass but with fine wires embedded in it for use as electrostatic print heads; the wires would pass the electron beam current through the glass onto a sheet of paper where the desired content was therefore deposited as an electrical charge pattern. The paper was then passed near a pool of liquid ink with the opposite charge. The charged areas of the paper attract the ink and thus form the image. *CK1383 – Dual-
electron gun An electron gun (also called electron emitter) is an electrical component in some vacuum tubes that produces a narrow, collimated electron beam that has a precise kinetic energy. The largest use is in cathode-ray tubes (CRTs), used in nearly ...
''recording
storage tube Storage tubes are a class of cathode-ray tubes (CRTs) that are designed to hold an image for a long period of time, typically as long as power is supplied to the tube. A specialized type of storage tube, the Williams tube, was used as a main mem ...
'', a realtime polar, radar PPI-to-rectangular, TV-type
analog video Video is an electronic medium for the recording, copying Copying is the duplication of information or an artifact based on an instance of that information or artifact, and not using the process that originally generated it. With analog f ...
transcoder Transcoding is the direct digital-to-digital conversion of one encoding to another, such as for video data files, audio files (e.g., MP3, WAV), or character encoding (e.g., UTF-8, ISO/IEC 8859). This is usually done in cases where a target devi ...
similar to the 7702, with simultaneous R/W, and storing capability. This was achieved by a CRT/
camera tube Video camera tubes were devices based on the cathode ray tube that were used in television cameras to capture television images, prior to the introduction of charge-coupled device (CCD) image sensors in the 1980s. Several different types of tub ...
combination; the CRT part writes the PPI-format image onto a thin, dielectric target; the camera part reads the generated charge pattern in TV format from the back side of this target. *CK1414 – ''Symbolray'' character generator monoscope for
text mode Text mode is a computer display mode in which content is internally represented on a computer screen in terms of characters rather than individual pixels. Typically, the screen consists of a uniform rectangular grid of ''character cells'', each ...
video rendering in early computer monitors, with a square target having letters, digits and symbols patterned on it in a customer-supplied
8x8 8x8 Inc. is an American provider of Voice over IP products. Its products include cloud-based voice, contact center, video, mobile and unified communications for businesses. Since 2018, 8x8 manages Jitsi. History The company was founded in 1987 ...
or 8x12 array. An electron beam selects and scans a character, both by appropriate
electrostatic deflection Electrostatic deflection refers to a way for modifying the path of a beam of charged particles by the use of an electric field applied transverse to the path of the particles. The technique is called electro''static'' because the strength and di ...
, and generates an analog video signal; cf. 4560, TH9503


CL

Ferranti Ferranti or Ferranti International plc was a UK electrical engineering and equipment firm that operated for over a century from 1885 until it went bankrupt in 1993. The company was once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. The firm was known ...
: *CL40 and CL41 – Indirectly heated, linear light source (''glow modulator tube''), mercury/argon-filled gas diode with primer electrode, Octal base, for rotating-drum
FAX Fax (short for facsimile), sometimes called telecopying or telefax (the latter short for telefacsimile), is the telephonic transmission of scanned printed material (both text and images), normally to a telephone number connected to a printer o ...
receivers,
film soundtrack A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack o ...
recording, etc. *CL42 and CL43 – Indirectly heated, low-noise linear light source, helium-filled gas diode with primer electrode, Octal base, for film soundtrack recording, interferometers, etc. *CL44 – Indirectly heated, low-noise linear light source, neon-filled gas diode with primer electrode, Octal base *CL50 and CL52 – Indirectly heated, linear light source, gas-filled diode with primer electrode, Miniature 7-pin base, for rotating-drum
FAX Fax (short for facsimile), sometimes called telecopying or telefax (the latter short for telefacsimile), is the telephonic transmission of scanned printed material (both text and images), normally to a telephone number connected to a printer o ...
receivers,
film soundtrack A soundtrack is recorded music accompanying and synchronised to the images of a motion picture, drama, book, television program, radio program, or video game; a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured in the soundtrack o ...
recording, etc. *CL55 – Indirectly heated, spectrally pure light source, helium-filled gas diode with primer electrode, Miniature 7-pin base with anode top cap *CL56 – Indirectly heated, spectrally pure light source, krypton-filled gas diode with primer electrode, Miniature 7-pin base with anode top cap *CL57 – Indirectly heated, spectrally pure light source, neon-filled gas diode with primer electrode, Miniature 7-pin base with anode top cap *CL58 – Indirectly heated, spectrally pure light source, xenon-filled gas diode with primer electrode, Miniature 7-pin base with anode top cap *CL60 – Indirectly heated triode flood beam CRT-type stroboscope lamp with a green ''A''-type phosphor with <1 μs
decay time In electronics, fall time (pulse decay time) t_f is the time taken for the amplitude of a pulse to decrease (fall) from a specified value (usually 90% of the peak value exclusive of overshoot or undershoot) to another specified value (usually 10 ...
and 10 k Cd light output, 20 kV anode voltage, 7-pin duodecal base *CL61 – CL60 with a blue ''P''-type phosphor with 5 μs decay time and 16 kCd light output *CL62 – CL60 with an UV ''Q''-type phosphor with 100 ns decay time and 240 Cd light output *CL63 – CL60 with a yellow-green ''C''-type phosphor with 6 μs decay time and 24 kCd light output *CL64 – CL60 with a yellow ''V''-type phosphor with 5 μs decay time and 12 kCd light output *CL65 – CL60 with a red ''R''-type phosphor with 2 μs decay time and 14 kCd light output *CL66 – CL60 with a white ''T''-type phosphor with 5 μs decay time and 12 kCd light output


D

Philips Koninklijke Philips N.V. (), commonly shortened to Philips, is a Dutch multinational conglomerate corporation that was founded in Eindhoven in 1891. Since 1997, it has been mostly headquartered in Amsterdam, though the Benelux headquarters i ...
: *D1 – Early directly heated triode used in 1920s TRF and regenerative radios


DDR

Mullard Mullard Limited was a British manufacturer of electronic components. The Mullard Radio Valve Co. Ltd. of Southfields, London, was founded in 1920 by Captain Stanley R. Mullard, who had previously designed thermionic valves for the Admir ...
: *DDR100 – 100  g max., 250 Hz max., 1-axis
accelerometer An accelerometer is a tool that measures proper acceleration. Proper acceleration is the acceleration (the rate of change of velocity) of a body in its own instantaneous rest frame; this is different from coordinate acceleration, which is acc ...
dual diode with elastically supported anodes, 6.3V/600mA indirect heater, fres = 1 kHz, B8G base


DZ

Cerberus: *DZ10 – 3 kHz max. Decade ''Counter/Selector
Dekatron In electronics, a Dekatron (or Decatron, or generically three-phase gas counting tube or glow-transfer counting tube or cold cathode tube) is a gas-filled decade counting tube. Dekatrons were used in computers, calculators, and other counti ...
'', 14-pin diheptal base


E


EN

Ferranti Ferranti or Ferranti International plc was a UK electrical engineering and equipment firm that operated for over a century from 1885 until it went bankrupt in 1993. The company was once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. The firm was known ...
: *EN10 – ''Neostron'', 400 Apk Gas-filled, cold-cathode tetrode
thyratron A thyratron is a type of gas-filled tube used as a high-power electrical switch and controlled rectifier. Thyratrons can handle much greater currents than similar hard-vacuum tubes. Electron multiplication occurs when the gas becomes ionized, p ...
, differential trigger electrodes, Octal base, for use as a relay or as a reddish 700  Cd stroboscope lamp *EN15 – 80 Aavg Neon-filled, cold-cathode tetrode thyratron, differential trigger electrodes, Noval base, for use as a stroboscope lamp *EN30 – 250 Apk Gas-filled, arc-discharge cold-cathode tetrode thyratron, differential trigger electrodes, miniature 7-pin base with anode cap, for use as a relay or as a stroboscope lamp *EN40 – 250 Apk Gas-filled, cold-cathode tetrode thyratron, differential trigger electrodes, Octal base, for use as a whitish stroboscope lamp with a high actinism for photographic film *EN55 (Single), EDN10 (dual) – Xenon-filled, arc-discharge cold-cathode tetrode thyratron, external (capacitive) trigger, 12-pin base, for use as a white 140 kCd stroboscope lamp *EN60 – Gas-filled, arc-discharge cold-cathode tetrode thyratron, external (capacitive) trigger, Edison screw lamp base with anode cap, for use as a white 900 
klm KLM Royal Dutch Airlines, legally ''Koninklijke Luchtvaart Maatschappij N.V.'' (literal translation: Royal Aviation Company Plc.), is the flag carrier airline of the Netherlands. KLM is headquartered in Amstelveen, with its hub at nearby Amste ...
@10μF@800V stroboscope lamp


G

Standard Telephones and Cables Standard Telephones and Cables Ltd (later STC plc) was a British manufacturer of telephone, telegraph, radio, telecommunications, and related equipment. During its history, STC invented and developed several groundbreaking new technologies incl ...
/Brimar: *G10/241E – ''Nomotron'', a unidirectional
Dekatron In electronics, a Dekatron (or Decatron, or generically three-phase gas counting tube or glow-transfer counting tube or cold cathode tube) is a gas-filled decade counting tube. Dekatrons were used in computers, calculators, and other counti ...
with multi-alloy cathodes
Cerberus In Greek mythology, Cerberus (; grc-gre, Κέρβερος ''Kérberos'' ), often referred to as the hound of Hades, is a multi-headed dog that guards the gates of the Underworld to prevent the dead from leaving. He was the offspring of the ...
: *G11 – 5 mA Gas-filled, cold-cathode switching diode e.g. for
relaxation oscillator In electronics a relaxation oscillator is a nonlinear electronic oscillator circuit that produces a nonsinusoidal repetitive output signal, such as a triangle wave or square wave. on Peter Millet'Tubebookswebsite The circuit consists of a feedb ...
s, 2-pin all-glass wire-ended *G42 – 35 mApeak Gas-filled switching diode e.g. for relaxation oscillators, 2-pin all-glass wire-ended


GE

Ferranti Ferranti or Ferranti International plc was a UK electrical engineering and equipment firm that operated for over a century from 1885 until it went bankrupt in 1993. The company was once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. The firm was known ...
: *GE10 – Directly heated ''saturated-emission diode''. Acts as a heating current-controlled, variable series resistor in voltage/current stabilizer circuits. It has two shorted pins that can be used to disable the circuit if the tube is removed from its socket


GK

Cerberus: *GK11 – ''Touch button tube'', an illuminated capacitance
touch switch A touch switch is a type of switch that only has to be touched by an object to operate. It is used in many lamps and wall switches that have a metal exterior as well as on public computer terminals. A touchscreen includes an array of touch switches ...
; a cold-cathode DC ''relay tube'', external (capacitive) starter activated by touching; then the cathode glow is visible as an orange ring. 2-pin all-glass wire-ended


GN

Ferranti Ferranti or Ferranti International plc was a UK electrical engineering and equipment firm that operated for over a century from 1885 until it went bankrupt in 1993. The company was once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. The firm was known ...
: *GN10 – 250 Amps pulse-current, cold-cathode tetrode thyratron. Octal base


GR

Cerberus: *GR15 – 15 mA Gas-filled cold-cathode DC tetrode, one starter and one electrical primer and tritium-primed (
half-life Half-life (symbol ) is the time required for a quantity (of substance) to reduce to half of its initial value. The term is commonly used in nuclear physics to describe how quickly unstable atoms undergo radioactive decay or how long stable at ...
: 12.32 years), noval base, for voltage triggers, RC timers etc. *GR16 – 20 mA Gas-filled, cold-cathode, tritium-primed AC/DC triode, one starter and an EM shield, noval base, for voltage triggers, RC timers etc. *GR17 – 15 mA Gas-filled cold-cathode AC triode, one starter and an EM shield, noval base, for voltage triggers, RC timers etc. *GR31 – 15 mA Gas-filled cold-cathode DC tetrode, one starter and one electrical primer plus a tritium primer, noval base *GR44 – 12 mA Subminiature gas-filled cold-cathode DC pentode, two starters and one primer electrode plus a tritium primer, 5-pin all-glass wire-ended *GR46 – 12 mA Subminiature gas-filled cold-cathode DC tetrode, one starter and one primer electrode, 4-pin all-glass wire-ended


GRD

Ferranti Ferranti or Ferranti International plc was a UK electrical engineering and equipment firm that operated for over a century from 1885 until it went bankrupt in 1993. The company was once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. The firm was known ...
: *GRD7 – Educational, directly heated ''saturated-emission'' guard ring diode


K


KN

Edgerton, Germeshausen, and Grier: *KN2 – 4 kV, 500 Asurge
Krytron The krytron is a cold-cathode gas-filled tube intended for use as a very high-speed switch, somewhat similar to the thyratron. It consists of a sealed glass tube with four electrodes. A small triggering pulse on the grid electrode switches the ...
, a cold-cathode gas-filled tube with a primer electrode, for use as a very high-speed, high-surge current switch; similar to a
thyratron A thyratron is a type of gas-filled tube used as a high-power electrical switch and controlled rectifier. Thyratrons can handle much greater currents than similar hard-vacuum tubes. Electron multiplication occurs when the gas becomes ionized, p ...
, lifespan 107 shots, 4-pin all-glass wire-ended *KN4 – 5 kV, 2.5 kAsurge Krytron with a primer electrode, lifespan 25000 shots, 4-pin all-glass wire-ended *KN6 – 5 kV, 3 kAsurge Krytron with a primer electrode, lifespan 35000 shots, 4-pin all-glass wire-ended :*KN6B – 8 kV, 3 kAsurge Krytron with a primer electrode, lifespan 35000 shots, 4-pin all-glass wire-ended *KN9 – 4 kV, 500 Asurge Krytron with a primer electrode, lifespan 1.5×107 shots, 4-pin all-glass wire-ended *KN11B – 2.5 kV, 1.5 kAsurge
Sprytron The krytron is a cold-cathode gas-filled tube intended for use as a very high-speed switch, somewhat similar to the thyratron. It consists of a sealed glass tube with four electrodes. A small triggering pulse on the control grid, grid electrode s ...
, lifespan 2000 shots, 3-pin all-glass wire-ended *KN12 – 5 kV, 3 kAsurge Sprytron, lifespan 500 shots, 3-pin all-glass wire-ended *KN22 – 5 kV, 100 Asurge Krytron with a primer electrode, lifespan 2×107 shots, 4-pin all-glass wire-ended, for
laser A laser is a device that emits light through a process of optical amplification based on the stimulated emission of electromagnetic radiation. The word "laser" is an acronym for "light amplification by stimulated emission of radiation". The fi ...
pumping, to drive Pockels cells, also for educational purposes *KN26 – 5 kV, 3 kAsurge Krytron with a primer electrode, lifespan 75000 shots, 4-pin all-glass wire-ended


KT

"Tung-Sol": *
KT90 The KT90 is a vacuum tube used in audio applications. Typically, it is used in hi-fi or electric guitar amplifier applications. KT90 was developed by Elektronska Industrija Niš (Ei). KT90 is designed by Blagomir Bukumira,a leading engineer at Ei ...
*KT120 – New production tube *KT150 – New production tube *KT170 – New production tube


M


MC

Philips Koninklijke Philips N.V. (), commonly shortened to Philips, is a Dutch multinational conglomerate corporation that was founded in Eindhoven in 1891. Since 1997, it has been mostly headquartered in Amsterdam, though the Benelux headquarters i ...
: *MC6-16, MC13-16 – CRT-type
flying-spot scanner A flying-spot scanner (FSS) uses a scanning source of a spot of light, such as a high-resolution, high-light-output, low-persistence cathode ray tube (CRT), to scan an image. Usually the image to be scanned is on photographic film, such as motion ...
s, P16-type phosphor (violet/near-ultraviolet, very short persistence), for use in a
telecine Telecine ( or ) is the process of transferring film into video and is performed in a color suite. The term is also used to refer to the equipment used in the post-production process. Telecine enables a motion picture, captured originally on fi ...


ME

Edison and Swan Electric Light Company The Edison and Swan Electric Light Company Limited was a manufacturer of incandescent lamp bulbs and other electrical goods. It was formed in 1883 with the name Edison & Swan United Electric Light Company with the merger of the Swan United Elec ...
( British Mazda/EdiSwan): *ME91 – AC/DC mains tuning indicator


P


PD

Edison and Swan Electric Light Company The Edison and Swan Electric Light Company Limited was a manufacturer of incandescent lamp bulbs and other electrical goods. It was formed in 1883 with the name Edison & Swan United Electric Light Company with the merger of the Swan United Elec ...
( British Mazda/EdiSwan): *PD220 – Dual AF power triode for battery-supplied equipment (1939)


PL

Philips Koninklijke Philips N.V. (), commonly shortened to Philips, is a Dutch multinational conglomerate corporation that was founded in Eindhoven in 1891. Since 1997, it has been mostly headquartered in Amsterdam, though the Benelux headquarters i ...
: *PL21 = 2D21 = EN91 – 100 mAavg, 500 mApeak, 10 Asurge, Gas-filled, indirectly heated tetrode thyratron, negative starter voltage, miniature 7-pin base, for relay and grid-controlled rectifier service *PL323 = 3C23 – 1.5 Aavg, 6 Apeak, Mercury-vapor triode thyratron, 4-pin base with anode top cap *PL5727 = 5727 – 100 mAavg, 500 mApeak, 10 Asurge, Tetrode thyratron, 7-pin miniature base


Q

Philips Koninklijke Philips N.V. (), commonly shortened to Philips, is a Dutch multinational conglomerate corporation that was founded in Eindhoven in 1891. Since 1997, it has been mostly headquartered in Amsterdam, though the Benelux headquarters i ...
: *Q13-110GU – CRT-type
flying-spot scanner A flying-spot scanner (FSS) uses a scanning source of a spot of light, such as a high-resolution, high-light-output, low-persistence cathode ray tube (CRT), to scan an image. Usually the image to be scanned is on photographic film, such as motion ...
, white phosphor, for use in a
telecine Telecine ( or ) is the process of transferring film into video and is performed in a color suite. The term is also used to refer to the equipment used in the post-production process. Telecine enables a motion picture, captured originally on fi ...


QK

Raytheon Raytheon Technologies Corporation is an American multinational aerospace and defense conglomerate headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. It is one of the largest aerospace and defense manufacturers in the world by revenue and market capitali ...
: *QK329 – Beam-deflection '' square-law tube'' for use as a
function generator In electrical engineering, a function generator is usually a piece of electronic test equipment or software used to generate different types of electrical waveforms over a wide range of frequencies. Some of the most common waveforms produced ...
in
analog computer An analog computer or analogue computer is a type of computer that uses the continuous variation aspect of physical phenomena such as electrical, mechanical, or hydraulic quantities (''analog signals'') to model the problem being solved. In ...
s. A flat sheet beam is electrostatically deflected across the anode which is partially covered by a parabolically stenciled screen "grid" that acts as the tube's output. Two tubes may be combined to form a 1-quadrant
analog multiplier In electronics, an analog multiplier is a device that takes two analog signals and produces an output which is their product. Such circuits can be used to implement related functions such as ''squares'' (apply same signal to both inputs), and '' ...
using the equation where the deflection electrode signals and can be obtained directly from a fully balanced resistor
bridge A bridge is a structure built to span a physical obstacle (such as a body of water, valley, road, or rail) without blocking the way underneath. It is constructed for the purpose of providing passage over the obstacle, which is usually somethi ...


R

Marconi-Osram Valve Company: *R – Early directly heated triode derived from the French TM tube and used by many amateurs in the 1920s


RK

Raytheon Raytheon Technologies Corporation is an American multinational aerospace and defense conglomerate headquartered in Arlington, Virginia. It is one of the largest aerospace and defense manufacturers in the world by revenue and market capitali ...
: *RK61 – Miniature, gas-filled, directly heated
thyratron A thyratron is a type of gas-filled tube used as a high-power electrical switch and controlled rectifier. Thyratrons can handle much greater currents than similar hard-vacuum tubes. Electron multiplication occurs when the gas becomes ionized, p ...
designed specifically to operate like a vacuum triode below its ignition voltage, allowing it to both amplify analog signals and work as a
relaxation oscillator In electronics a relaxation oscillator is a nonlinear electronic oscillator circuit that produces a nonsinusoidal repetitive output signal, such as a triangle wave or square wave. on Peter Millet'Tubebookswebsite The circuit consists of a feedb ...
, for use as a self-quenching superregenreative detector up tp 100 MHz in radio control receivers, activating a
relay A relay Electromechanical relay schematic showing a control coil, four pairs of normally open and one pair of normally closed contacts An automotive-style miniature relay with the dust cover taken off A relay is an electrically operated switch ...
in its anode circuit when a carrier wave is received; 4-pin all-glass wire-ended, 1.4 V, 45 mA filament, Ua=45 V, Ia=1.5 mA. *RK62 – RK61's predecessor, marketed since 1938; this was the major technical development which led to the wartime development of radio-controlled weapons and the parallel development of radio controlled modelling as a hobby.George Honnest-Redlich ''Radio Control for Models (1950)'' p. 7


S


SB

Radio Corporation of America The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse, AT&T Corporation and United Fruit Com ...
: *SB256 – 256-bit
Selectron tube The Selectron was an early form of digital computer memory developed by Jan A. Rajchman and his group at the Radio Corporation of America (RCA) under the direction of Vladimir K. Zworykin. It was a vacuum tube that stored digital data as elect ...
, an early form of digital
computer memory In computing, memory is a device or system that is used to store information for immediate use in a computer or related computer hardware and digital electronic devices. The term ''memory'' is often synonymous with the term '' primary storag ...


SU

Cossor A.C. Cossor Ltd. was a British electronics company founded in 1859. The company's products included valves, radios, televisions and military electronics. The company was purchased by Raytheon in 1961. Early history The story of A.C. Cossor Ltd ...
: *SU25 – EHT rectifier *SU2150 (''CV1120'') – High-voltage vacuum half-wave rectifier for use in CRT power supplies


T

British General Electric Company: *TuneOn – Early neon-filled bar graph tuning indicator, a glass tube with a short wire anode and a long wire cathode that glows partially; the glow length is proportional to the tube current *TuneOn Button – Early ''glow modulator'' used as a budget-priced tuning indicator – a
neon lamp A neon lamp (also neon glow lamp) is a miniature gas discharge lamp. The lamp typically consists of a small glass capsule that contains a mixture of neon and other gases at a low pressure and two electrodes (an anode and a cathode). When suff ...
whose brightness is proportional to the tube current
Standard Telephones and Cables Standard Telephones and Cables Ltd (later STC plc) was a British manufacturer of telephone, telegraph, radio, telecommunications, and related equipment. During its history, STC invented and developed several groundbreaking new technologies incl ...
/Brimar: *Tunograph – Precursor of the "Magic Eye" tuning indicator first introduced in 1933; a tiny CRT with 1-axis
electrostatic deflection Electrostatic deflection refers to a way for modifying the path of a beam of charged particles by the use of an electric field applied transverse to the path of the particles. The technique is called electro''static'' because the strength and di ...
and a phosphored target at 45° to the electron beam, so the projected green dot can be observed from the side


TH

Compagnie Française Thomson-Houston: *TH9503 – ''Scripticon'', a character generator monoscope for
text mode Text mode is a computer display mode in which content is internally represented on a computer screen in terms of characters rather than individual pixels. Typically, the screen consists of a uniform rectangular grid of ''character cells'', each ...
video rendering in early computer monitors, with a square target having letters, digits and symbols patterned on it in an (optionally customer-supplied) 8x8 array. An electron beam selects and scans a character, both by appropriate magnetic deflection, and generates an analog video signal; cf. 4560, CK1414


TM

E.C.&A. Grammont and Compagnie des Lampes (1888): *TM – Vacuum triode for amplification and detection of radio signals, developed in France and made since 1915. It became the standard receiving and amplifying tube of the Entente countries during World War I, and the first mass-produced radio tube. TM's production volume in France alone is estimated at 1.1 million units; in addition, the production of TM and/or improved versions was started in the UK ( Marconi–Osram R tube), the Netherlands (
Philips Koninklijke Philips N.V. (), commonly shortened to Philips, is a Dutch multinational conglomerate corporation that was founded in Eindhoven in 1891. Since 1997, it has been mostly headquartered in Amsterdam, though the Benelux headquarters i ...
E tube), the United States and the Soviet Union (R-5, Russian: Р-5).( ru) :The TM was developed in 1914–15 by the French military telecommunications service ''Télégraphie Militaire'' on the initiative of their technical director
Gustave-Auguste Ferrié Gustave-Auguste Ferrié (19 November 1868 – 16 February 1932) was a French radio pioneer and army general.
. He and his assistant, physicist
Henri Abraham Henri Abraham (1868–1943) was a French physicist who made important contributions to the science of radio waves. He performed some of the first measurements of the propagation velocity of radio waves, helped develop France's first triode vacu ...
, visited the American laboratories on a number of occasions and were aware of the works of Lee de Forest, Reginald A. Fessenden and Irving Langmuir. They knew that de Forest's Audion and Henry Round's British tube were unreliable and imperfect, and Langmuir's ''Pliotron'' was too complex for mass production. They also knew about the latest German developments: Soon after the outbreak of the war, Ferrié received extensive information from a former
Telefunken Telefunken was a German radio and television apparatus company, founded in Berlin in 1903, as a joint venture of Siemens & Halske and the ''Allgemeine Elektrizitäts-Gesellschaft'' (AEG) ('General electricity company'). The name "Telefunken" ap ...
employee, the Frenchman Paul Pichon, who, upon return from a mission from his German employer to gather samples of the latest triodes from the USA, had to surrender himself and the samples to the French. The samples Pichon brought performed poorly due to insufficient vacuum. Following the ideas of Langmuir, Ferrié required the industry to guarantee a high vacuum in series production. :In October 1914, Ferrié, Abraham and François Péri from the radiotelegraph centre in
Lyon Lyon,, ; Occitan language, Occitan: ''Lion'', hist. ''Lionés'' also spelled in English as Lyons, is the List of communes in France with over 20,000 inhabitants, third-largest city and Urban area (France), second-largest metropolitan area of F ...
/La-Doua( fr) went to the light bulb department of ''Société des Téléphones E.C.&Alexandre Grammont'' in Lyon to develop with them a triode suitable for mass production. The first prototypes, mere copies of de Forest's ''Audion'', proved to be unreliable and unstable; the next ones were rejected for being too complex. Only the fourth prototype developed in December 1914, with a vertical coaxial system, an Edison screw lamp base for the filament and additional side terminals for anode and grid, was deemed suitable for series production, which started in February 1915 and stopped in October 1915 when it became clear that the vertical structure of "Abraham's Lamp" was too fragile and too many tubes were damaged during transport. Ferrié asked Péri to resolve the problem, and two days later Péri and Jacques Biguet came up with a horizontal coaxial system on the latest four-pin type European 4-pin base. The series production of the Péri/Biguet tubes, named TM after Ferrié's service unit, began in November 1915 under Grammont's ''Radio Fotos'' brand; this variant became highly successful, and when demand started to exceed Grammont's production capacity, Compagnie des Lampes (1888) in
Ivry-sur-Seine Ivry-sur-Seine () is a commune in the Val-de-Marne department in the southeastern suburbs of Paris, France. It is located from the centre of Paris. Paris's main Asian district, the Quartier Asiatique in the 13th arrondissement, borders the ...
also started production under their ''Métal'' brand. Ferrié and Abraham were nominated for the 1916
Nobel Prize in Physics ) , image = Nobel Prize.png , alt = A golden medallion with an embossed image of a bearded man facing left in profile. To the left of the man is the text "ALFR•" then "NOBEL", and on the right, the text (smaller) "NAT•" then " ...
for their work in the field of radio communications. :The TM is a cylindrical/coaxial triode; the directly-heated cathode is a filament made of pure
tungsten Tungsten, or wolfram, is a chemical element with the symbol W and atomic number 74. Tungsten is a rare metal found naturally on Earth almost exclusively as compounds with other elements. It was identified as a new element in 1781 and first isol ...
with a diameter of 60 μm, the anode is a
nickel Nickel is a chemical element with symbol Ni and atomic number 28. It is a silvery-white lustrous metal with a slight golden tinge. Nickel is a hard and ductile transition metal. Pure nickel is chemically reactive but large pieces are slow ...
cylinder with a diameter of 10 mm and a length of 15 mm. The dimensions and material of the grid depend on the place of production – the Grammont plant in Lyon used molybdenum wire, the CdL plant in Ivry-sur-Seine used nickel. The diameter of the grid spiral is 4 resp. 4.5 mm. The filament required 4 V and 700 mA to bring it up to white heat; the bright glow prompted Grammont in 1923 to start producing TM tubes with dark blue glass envelopes to protect the eyes of radio operators from the blinding glare, and hide the harmless, but unsightly plaque of metal particles inevitably deposited on the inner wall of the bulb while evacuating during production – but also prevented the triodes' previous, secondary use as light sources, which had earned them their nickname '' Loupiote'' ("little lamp"). :The TM could be used for their intended purpose, amplifying and detecting signals in radio receivers, or as power oscillators in low-power radio transmitters, and also, by paralleling of several tubes, as AF power amplifiers. The Soviet analogue of the TM, the triode R-5, could withstand anode voltages of up to 500...800 V, and was able to deliver a power of up to 1 W in Class-C mode, but only 40 mW in Class-A mode. A typical single-TM radio receiver of World War I ran at Ua=40 V, Ug=0 V, Ia≈2 mA, gm=400  μS, Ri=25 kΩ, μ=10. With an anode voltage of 160 V and a grid bias of -2 V, the anode current was 3...6 mA, while the reverse grid current reached 1 μA. :The problem of TM tubes was their short service life of 100 hours maximum – if the tube was manufactured in strict accordance with the specifications. In wartime, this was not always possible; due to raw materials supply problems, plants sometimes had to use substandard materials. Such tubes were marked with a cross; they differed from the standard by a higher
noise Noise is unwanted sound considered unpleasant, loud or disruptive to hearing. From a physics standpoint, there is no distinction between noise and desired sound, as both are vibrations through a medium, such as air or water. The difference aris ...
level and were prone to catastrophic failures due to cracks in the glass envelope.


TT

Bendix: *TT8, TT9, TT13, TT15, TT17, TT18, TT20, TT21, TT22 – ''Chronotron'', integrating, balanced-bridge hot-wire/PTC time delay devices Marconi-Osram Valve Company: *TT11 – Low power VHF transmitting beam tetrode *TT21 – RF power beam-tetrode derived from
KT88 The KT88 is a beam tetrode/kinkless tetrode (hence "KT") vacuum tube for audio amplification. Features The KT88 fits a standard eight-pin octal socket and has similar pinout and applications as the 6L6 and EL34. Specifically designed for audio ...
*TT100 – RF power beam-tetrode


V


VHT

Ferranti Ferranti or Ferranti International plc was a UK electrical engineering and equipment firm that operated for over a century from 1885 until it went bankrupt in 1993. The company was once a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. The firm was known ...
: *VHT1 –
Pentagrid converter The pentagrid converter is a type of radio receiving valve (vacuum tube) with five grids used as the frequency mixer stage of a superheterodyne radio receiver. The pentagrid was part of a line of development of valves that were able to take an ...
, 1933


Lettered Loctal tubes used in

Philco Philco (an acronym for Philadelphia Battery Company) is an American electronics industry, electronics manufacturer headquartered in Philadelphia. Philco was a pioneer in battery, radio, and television production. In 1961, the company was purchased ...
radios

*'
FM1000
'' – Unusual pentagrid for use as oscillator and
coincidence A coincidence is a remarkable concurrence of events or circumstances that have no apparent causal connection with one another. The perception of remarkable coincidences may lead to supernatural, occult, or paranormal claims, or it may lead t ...
-type
phase detector A phase detector or phase comparator is a frequency mixer, analog multiplier or logic circuit that generates a signal which represents the difference in phase between two signal inputs. The phase detector is an essential element of the phase- ...
in a PLL FM quadrature detector. The anode signal is loosely coupled into the oscillator
tank A tank is an armoured fighting vehicle intended as a primary offensive weapon in front-line ground combat. Tank designs are a balance of heavy firepower, strong armour, and good battlefield mobility provided by tracks and a powerful engi ...
and pulls it to stay quadrature-phase-locked with the IF; manufactured by Sylvania and used in
Philco Philco (an acronym for Philadelphia Battery Company) is an American electronics industry, electronics manufacturer headquartered in Philadelphia. Philco was a pioneer in battery, radio, and television production. In 1961, the company was purchased ...
AM/FM radios of the late 1940s and early 1950s. Predecessor of the nonode approach *XXB – Medium-mu twin triode, also numbered 3C6/XXB *XXD – Medium-mu twin triode, also numbered 14AF7/XXD *XXFM – High-mu triode, twin diode (one shares its cathode with the triode, one with separate cathode), also numbered 7X7/XXFM *XXL – Medium-mu triode, also numbered 7A4/XXL


List of tubes used in 1920s and 1930s radio receivers


Tubes with directly heated cathodes

Used with AC, DC or home-based storage battery power supplies (1927–31)


With a 1.1 Volt DC filament

Used in 1920s home radios. Filaments powered by 1.5 volt dry cells, anodes powered by storage batteries. *
WD-11 The WD-11 vacuum tube, a triode, was introduced by the Westinghouse Electric corporation in 1922 for their Aeriola RF model radio and found use in other contemporary regenerative receivers (used as a detector-amplifier) including the Regenoflex and ...
– triode/detector


With a 2 Volts DC filament

Used in 1930s home radios powered by storage batteries. *19 – Dual power triode – also used in farm radios with 6-volt vibrator power supplies. Early version of octal type 1J6G. *20 – Power triode – Early versions numbered UX-120. *22 – Sharp-cutoff tetrode – Early versions numbered UX-222 or CX-322. *25S – Dual detector diode, medium-mu triode. Identical to type 1B5. Usually numbered 1B5/25S. *30 – Medium-mu triode, An upgraded version of type 01-A – Early versions numbered RCA-230 or CX-330. Can also be used as a power triode. The type 30 was popular amongst amateurs of the day. Early UX4 based version of octal type 1H4G. *31 – Power triode, UX4 based – Early versions numbered RCA-231 or CX-331. *32 – Sharp-cutoff tetrode – Early versions numbered RCA-232 or CX-332. *33 – Power pentode – Early versions numbered RCA-233 or C-333. *34 – Remote-cutoff tetrode – Early versions numbered RCA-234 or CX-334. *49 – Dual-grid power triode, similar to type 46


With a 3.3 Volts DC filament

Used in 1920s home radios powered by dry cells (filaments) and storage batteries (B-plus voltage). *V99 – Low-mu triode. Except for stub-pin bayonet base and pinout, electronically similar to X99 *X99 – Similar to V99, but with standard pins and different basing arrangement (pinout).


With a 4 Volts DC filament

* 3NF – Tube-based "integrated circuit" with 3 triodes and passive components in the same envelope. 4V heater


With a 5 Volts DC filament

Used in 1920s home radios powered by storage batteries. *00-A – Detector triode with a trace of
argon Argon is a chemical element with the symbol Ar and atomic number 18. It is in group 18 of the periodic table and is a noble gas. Argon is the third-most abundant gas in Earth's atmosphere, at 0.934% (9340 ppmv). It is more than twice as ...
. "00-A" is the number used in most tube manuals. Numbers for earlier versions include UX-200-A and CX-300-A (long pins, push-in socket) and UV-200-A (stub pins, bayonet socket). *01-A – All-purpose low-mu triode, used as RF amplifier, detector, AF amplifier and power triode. The most popular tube of the 1920s. "01-A" is the number used for replacements manufactured after 1930 and in tube manuals. Numbers for early versions include UX-201-A and CX-301-A (long pins, push in socket) and UV-201-A (stub pins, bayonet socket). :''Note: There were four tubes in the "01" series, each with different current ratings for their filaments. Type ''01-A'' was the most commonly used.'' ::Types UV 201 and UX 201 – 1.0 ampere ::Type 01-A (UV 201-A, UX 201-A, etc.) – 250 milliampere ::Type UX 201-B – 125 milliampere ::Type UX 201-C – 60 milliampere *12-A – Medium-mu triode, often used as detector, audio driver or audio output, but not as an RF amplifier. This type is listed in tube manuals after 1930 for replacements purposes. Also referred to as type 112-A. Many early versions are marked UX-112-A or CX-112-A. *40 – Medium-mu triode – Early versions numbered UX-240. Introduced in 1927, this was an upgraded version of the "01" series. The "01" series had an amplification factor of 8, while type 40 had an amplification factor of 30. (By comparison, the two AC triodes introduced in the same time period – types 26 and 27 – had amplification factors of 8.3 and 9, respectively.) Because this was the highest-amplification triode available, advertising literature of the time lists it as a high-mu triode, although it is now classified as a medium-mu triode. Type 40 had the highest amplification factor of any triode until the introduction in 1932 of diode/triode complex type 2A6, which had an amplification factor of 100. It also had the highest amplification factor of any DC filament triode until the introduction in 1939 of complementary diode/triode complex types 1H5GT (octal) and 1LH4 (Loctal), which both had amplification factors of 65.


Directly AC-heated power tubes

*10 – Power triode – Early versions numbered UX-210 or CX-310. *26 – Medium-mu triode, used in early AC radio receivers manufactured in the late 1920s. Used as an RF or AF amplifier, but not as a detector or power output tube – Early versions numbered UX-226 or CX-326. *45 – Power triode – Early versions numbered UX-245 or CX-345. *46 – Dual grid power triode – Grids 1 and 2 connected together for use as push-pull Class-B outputs, Grid 2 and anode connected together for use as single-tube audio driver. *47 – Power pentode – Early versions numbered RCA-247 or C-347. *50 – Power triode – Early versions numbered UX-250 or CX-350. *71-A – Power triode – This type listed in tube manuals after 1930 for replacements purposes. Also referred to as 171-A. Many early versions numbered as UX-171-A or CX-371-A.


Directly AC-heated rectifier tubes

*80 – Full-wave rectifier used in early power supplies or ''
battery eliminator A battery eliminator is a device powered by an electrical source other than a battery, which then converts the source to a suitable DC voltage that may be used by a second device designed to be powered by batteries. A battery eliminator does awa ...
s'' (electronically similar to 5Y3G) – Early versions numbered UX-280 or CX-380 *81 – Half-wave rectifier – Early versions numbered UX-281 or CX-381. *82 – Full-wave mercury-vapor rectifier *83 – Full-wave mercury-vapor rectifier *83-V – High-vacuum version of type 83, Early UX4 based version of octal type 5V4G.


Tubes with indirectly heated cathodes


With a DC heater

*15 – Sharp-cutoff pentode, used in farm radios, in autodyne circuits requiring a separate cathode. *48 – Power tetrode, used in 32-volt farm radios. When two are parallel-connected, they can operate with anode and screen voltages as low as 28 volt.


With a 2.5 Volts heater

Powered by an AC transformer *24 – Sharp-cutoff tetrode, UX5 based, Early versions numbered UY-224 and C-324 *24-A – an upgraded version of type 24, see type 24 above. Early versions numbered UY-224A and C-324A *27 – Medium-mu triode, UX5 based, Early versions numbered UY-227 and C-327. The first North American tube with an indirectly heated cathode, which is necessary for detector circuits in AC powered tube radios. *35 – Remote-cutoff tetrode, UX5 based, (Commonly branded as 35/51). Early versions numbered UY-235 or C-335 *51 – Similar to 35, see type 35 above. (Commonly branded as 35/51) *53 – Dual power triodes, Class-B, UX7 based, (Except for heater, electronically similar to 6A6 and octal based 6N7) *55 – Dual diode, medium-mu triode, UX6 based, (Except for heater, electronically similar to type 85, and octal based 6V7G, but not to 75) *56 – Medium-mu triode, UX5 based, (Except for heater, electronically similar to 76, and octal based 6P5G) *57 – Sharp-cutoff pentode used in cabinet and mantel radio receivers, UX6 based, (Except for heater, electronically similar to 6C6 and octal based 6J7G, and somewhat similar to type 77) *58 – Remote-cutoff pentode, UX6 based, (Except for heater, electronically similar to 6D6 and octal based 6U7G, but not to 78) *59 – Power pentode, UX7 based.


With a 4 Volts heater

*2HF – Tube-based "integrated circuit" with 2 tetrodes and passive components in the same envelope


With a 6.3 Volts heater

Powered by an AC transformer or a vehicle crank battery *1-V – Half-wave rectifier, UX4 based, (often branded as type 1V/6Z3). Early version was KR-1. *36 – Sharp-cutoff tetrode, UX5 based. Early versions numbered RCA-236 or C-336 *37 – Medium-mu triode, UX5 based. Early versions numbered RCA-237 or C-337 *38 – Power pentode, UX5 based. Early versions numbered RCA-238 *39 – Remote-cutoff pentode, UX5 based (Commonly branded as 39/44). *41 – Power pentode, Early UX6 based version of octal type 6K6G, and Loctal type 7B5. *42 – Power pentode, Early UX6 based version of octal type 6F6G, Except for heater, similar to types 2A5 and 18. *44 – Similar to type 39, see type 39 above. (Commonly branded as 39/44). *75 – Dual diode, high-mu triode. Early UX6 based version of octal types 6B6G & 6SQ7GT, and Loctal type 7B6, and 7-pin miniature type 6AV6. Also except for heater, electronically similar to 2A6. *76 – Medium-mu triode, Early UX5 based version of octal type 6P5G. *77 – Sharp-cutoff pentode, Early UX6 based version of octal type 6J7G. *78 – Remote-cutoff pentode, Early UX6 based version of octal type 6K7G. *79 – Dual power triode, Early UX6 based version of octal type 6Y7G. *84 – Full-wave rectifier, often branded as type 84/6Z4. Early UX5 based version of octal type 6X5GT, and Loctal 7Y4, and 7-pin miniature 6X4. *85 – Dual diode, medium-mu triode. Early UX6 based version of octal type 6V7G, except for heater voltage similar to type 55. Also somewhat similar to octal type 6SR7GT and 7-pin miniature types 6BF6. *89 – Power pentode, UX6 based.


With an AC/DC series heater

*43 – Power pentode, Early UX6 based version of octal type 25A6G *WG38 – Tube-based "integrated circuit" with 2 pentodes, a triode and passive components in the same envelope


Shielded tubes for Majestic radios

In the early 1930s, the Grigsby-Grunow Company – makers of Majestic brand radios – introduced the first American-made tubes to incorporate metal shields. These tubes had metal particles sprayed onto the glass envelope, copying a design common to European tubes of the time. Early types were shielded versions of tube types already in use. (The shield was connected to the cathode.) The Majestic numbers of these tube types, which are usually etched on the tube's base, have a "G" prefix (for Grigsby-Grunow) and an "S" suffix (for shielded). Later types incorporated an extra pin in the base so that the shield could be connected directly to the chassis. Replacement versions from other manufacturers, such as Sylvania or
General Electric General Electric Company (GE) is an American multinational conglomerate founded in 1892, and incorporated in New York state and headquartered in Boston. The company operated in sectors including healthcare, aviation, power, renewable en ...
, tend to incorporate the less expensive, form-fitting Goat brand shields that are cemented to the glass envelope. Grigsby-Grunow did not shield rectifier tubes (except for type 6Y5 listed below) or power output tubes. *Early types based on existing tubes. (Non-shielded versions may be used, but add-on shielding is recommended.) :*G-2A7-S –
Pentagrid converter The pentagrid converter is a type of radio receiving valve (vacuum tube) with five grids used as the frequency mixer stage of a superheterodyne radio receiver. The pentagrid was part of a line of development of valves that were able to take an ...
:*G-2B7-S – Semiremote-cutoff pentode, dual detector diode :*G-6A7-S – Pentagrid converter :*G-6B7-S – Semiremote-cutoff pentode, dual detector diode :*G-6F7-S – Remote-cutoff pentode, medium-mu triode :*G-25-S – Medium-mu triode, dual detector diode for 2.0 volt storage battery radios. Glass type 1B5/25S used for replacement. :*G-51-S – Remote-cutoff tetrode :*G-55-S – Medium-mu triode, dual detector diode :*G-56-S – Medium-mu triode :*G-56A-S – Medium-mu triode, original version of type 76, but with 400 milliampere heater. (Not to be confused with types 56 or G-56-S, which has a 2.5 volt, 1.0 ampere heater.) :*G-57-S – Sharp-cutoff pentode :*G-57A-S – Sharp-cutoff pentode, original version of type 6C6, but with 400 milliampere heater. (Not to be confused with types 57 or G-57-S, which has a 2.5 volt, 1.0 ampere heater.) :*G-58-S – Remote-cutoff pentode :*G-58A-S – Remote-cutoff pentode, original version of type 6D6, but with 400 milliampere heater. (Not to be confused with types 58 or G-58-S, which has a 2.5 volt, 1.0 ampere heater.) :*G-85-S – Similar to G-55-S, but with 6.3 volt heater. *Later types :*6C7 – Medium-mu triode, dual detector diode, similar to later octal types 6R7 and 6SR7. Seven pin base. (Shield to pin 3.) :*6D7 – Sharp-cutoff pentode, identical to type 6C6, but with 7-pin base. (Shield to pin 5.) :*6E7 – Remote-cutoff pentode, identical to type 6D6, but with 7-pin base. (Shield to pin 5.) :*6Y5 – Dual rectifier diode, similar to type 84/6Z4, but with 6-pin base. (Shield to pin 2.) *Other tubes unique to Majestic radios :*G-2-S and G-4-S – Dual detector diodes with common cathodes. The first detector diodes packaged in a separate tube. Forerunners of octal type 6H6. Spray-shielded. Both tubes have 2.5 volt heaters. G-2-S is larger and has a 1.75 ampere heater. Type G-4-S has a 1.0 ampere heater. Later Sylvania replacement type 2S/4S has a 1.35 ampere heater. :*2Z2/G-84 – Half-wave rectifier diode with 2.5 volt indirectly heated cathode. A lower-voltage version of type 81. Not interchangeable with type 6Z4/84. :*6Z5 – Full-wave rectifier, similar to types 6Z4/84 and 6X5, but with 12.6 volt center-tapped heater.


Rarely used tubes

*14 – Similar to 24-A but with a 14 volt, 300 milliampere heater. Used in
Philco Philco (an acronym for Philadelphia Battery Company) is an American electronics industry, electronics manufacturer headquartered in Philadelphia. Philco was a pioneer in battery, radio, and television production. In 1961, the company was purchased ...
models 46 and 46E *17 – Similar to 27 but with a 14 volt, 300 milliampere heater. Used in Philco models 46 and 46E *18 – Similar to 2A5 and 42 but with a 14 volt, 300 milliampere heater. No known commercial use. *29 – '' Wunderlich
detector A sensor is a device that produces an output signal for the purpose of sensing a physical phenomenon. In the broadest definition, a sensor is a device, module, machine, or subsystem that detects events or changes in its environment and sends ...
''. Known to have been manufactured by Sylvania. *52 – Dual grid power triode similar to types 46 and 49. Has 6.3 volt filament. Most commonly used in early car radios. *64 – Sharp-cutoff tetrode (Except for 400 milliampere heater, similar to 36) *65 – Remote-cutoff pentode (Except for 400 milliampere heater, similar to 39) *67 – Medium-mu triode (Except for 400 milliampere heater, similar 37) *68 – Power pentode (Except for 400 milliampere heater, similar to 38) *69 – ''Wunderlich detector'' *70 – ''Wunderlich detector'' used in Mission Bell model 19 car radio. Listed in early Philco tube lists. *90 – ''Wunderlich detector'' *92 – ''Wunderlich detector'' *95 – Original number of type 2A5 *181 – Power triode *182-B – Similar to 482-B below. *183 – Similar to 483 below. *213 – Early version of type 80 – Often numbered UX-213 *216 – Early version of type 81 – Often numbered as UX-216-B *482-B – Power triode with directly heated cathode. Used in Sparton AC radios, circa 1929. Replacements often numbered 182-B/482-B. Similar to type 71-A, but with higher anode voltage. *483 – Power triode with directly heated cathode. Used in Sparton AC radios, circa 1929. Replacements often numbered 183/483. Similar to type 45, but with a 5.0 volt, 1.25 ampere heater. *485 – Medium-mu triode with indirectly heated cathode. Used in Sparton AC radios, circa 1929. Similar to types 56 and 76, but with a 3.0 volt, 1.25 ampere heater, and lower anode voltage.


List of Russian tubes


Standard tubes

Note: Typecode explained above. *6J1J 6Ж1Ж (954) – Indirectly heated '' Acorn''-type sharp-cutoff pentode, 6.3 V heater *6K1J 6К1Ж (956) – Indirectly heated ''Acorn''-type remote-cutoff pentode, 6.3 V heater *6L1P 6Л1П – Nonode for FM quadrature detection *
6N1P The 6N1P (russian: 6Н1П) is a Russian-made miniature 9-pin medium gain double triode vacuum tube intended for use as a line audio amplifier and cathode driver. Basic data: * Uf = 6.3 V, If = 600 mA * μ = 35 * Ia = 7.5 mA * S = 4.35 mA/V * Pa = ...
6Н1П – Dual triode, similar to ''
6DJ8 The 6DJ8 is a miniature nine-pin medium gain dual triode vacuum tube. It is distinguished by its very high transconductance, mostly the result of its frame grid construction. Versions of the tube are named ECC88, E88CC, 6922, E188CC, CV4108, 7308, ...
/ECC88'' *
6N2P The 6N2P, (Russian: 6Н2П), also sometimes spelled in English "6H2Pi", is a miniature 9-pin dual triode vacuum tube manufactured in USSR, Russia and China with characteristics similar to the 12AX7. The most significant difference between the two is ...
6Н2П – Dual triode, similar to '' 12AX7/ECC83'' *
6N3P The 6N3P (Russian: 6Н3П) is a Russian-made direct equivalent of the 2C51 medium gain dual triode vacuum tube. It may be used as an amplifier, mixer, oscillator or multivibrator over a frequency range AF through VHF. The Russian tube is slightly ...
6Н3П (2C51) – Dual triode *6N8S 6Н8С ( 6SN7/ECC32) – Dual triode *6N9S 6Н9С (6SL7) – Dual triode *6N13S 6Н13С (6AS7G) – Dual power triode * 6N14P 6Н14П – Dual RF/VHF triode, similar to ''ECC84/6CW7'' *6N23P 6Н23П (
6DJ8 The 6DJ8 is a miniature nine-pin medium gain dual triode vacuum tube. It is distinguished by its very high transconductance, mostly the result of its frame grid construction. Versions of the tube are named ECC88, E88CC, 6922, E188CC, CV4108, 7308, ...
/ECC88) – Dual triode * 6N24P 6Н24П (ECC89/6FC7, 6ES8) – Dual RF/VHF triode for
cascode The cascode is a two-stage amplifier that consists of a common-emitter stage feeding into a common-base stage. Compared to a single amplifier stage, this combination may have one or more of the following characteristics: higher input–output ...
amps *
6P1P The 6P1P (Russian: 6П1П) is a Soviet-made miniature 9-pin beam tetrode vacuum tube A vacuum tube, electron tube, valve (British usage), or tube (North America), is a device that controls electric current flow in a high vacuum between elec ...
6П1П – Power pentode, similar to ''6AQ5/EL90'' *6P3S 6П3С – Beam-power tetrode, similar to '' 6L6GB'' *6P3S-E 6П3С-Е – Beam-power tetrode, similar to ''5881/6L6WGB'' *6P6S 6П6С (
6V6 The 6V6 is a beam-power tetrode vacuum tube. The first of this family of tubes to be introduced was the 6V6G by Ken-Rad Tube & Lamp Corporation in late 1936, with the availability by December of both Ken-Rad and Raytheon 6V6G tubes announced. ...
) – Beam-power tetrode *6P14P 6П14П (6BQ5/
EL84 The EL84 is a vacuum tube of the power pentode type. It is used in the power-output-stages of audio-amplifiers, most commonly now in guitar amplifiers, but originally in radios. The EL84 is smaller and more sensitive than the octal 6V6 that was ...
) – Power pentode *6P41S 6П41С – Beam power tetrode, designed for TV sets, used in line output stages, similar to 7868. *6P45S 6П45С (6KG6/EL509) – Beam power tetrode, designed for TV sets, used in line output stages. *6S1J 6С1Ж (
955 Year 955 ( CMLV) was a common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Europe * August 10 – Battle of Lechfeld: King Otto I ("the Great") defeats the Hungarians (also ...
) – Indirectly heated ''Acorn''-type triode, 6.3 V heater *6S19P 6С19П – Output triode


Professional tubes

Note: Typecode explained above. *V1-0.15/55 В1-0.15/55 – 55 kV, 150 mA Half-wave rectifier *VI1-5/20 ВИ1-5/20 – 20 kV, 5 A Half-wave pulse rectifier *G-807 Г-807 – Shortwave transmitter tube (the Russian
807 __NOTOC__ Year 807 ( DCCCVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Abbasid Empire and Byzantine Empire * Emperor Nikephoros I is forced to sue for peace, ...
analogue). *GI-7B ГИ-7Б – Impulse tube *GM-70 ГМ-70 – Modulator tube *GK-71 ГК-71 - RF generation and power amplification, 125 watt pentode, direct heating. *GS-31B ГС-31Б – UHF transmitter tube *GU-29 ГУ-29 – VHF transmitter tube, dual beam tetrode, 20W max. anode dissipation per section. *GU-32 ГУ-32 – VHF transmitter tube, dual beam tetrode, 15W max. anode dissipation per section. * GU-50 ГУ-50 – VHF transmitter pentode, similar to the German LS-50 (no direct U.S. equivalent) *GU-78B ГУ-78Б – VHF transmitter tetrode *I3-70-0.8A И3-70-0.8 – 800 V, 70 A Ignitron *I3-200-1.5A И3-200-1.5 – 1.5 kV, 200 A Ignitron *LP-4 ЛП-4 – Linear
trochotron A Nixie tube ( ), or cold cathode display, is an electronic device used for displaying numerals or other information using glow discharge. The glass tube contains a wire-mesh anode and multiple cathodes, shaped like numerals or other symbols ...
, 26-pin '' Acorn''-type all-glass wire-ended, *SG203K СГ203К – 82 V
Voltage reference A voltage reference is an electronic device that ideally produces a fixed (constant) voltage irrespective of the loading on the device, power supply variations, temperature changes, and the passage of time. Voltage references are used in power sup ...
*SG204K СГ204К – 164 V Voltage reference *TGI1-270/12 ТГИ1-270/12 – 12 kV, 270 A Hydrogen thyratron


Indicator tubes

*IN-33 ИН-33 – Neon-filled, planar, dual 105-segment linear glow-transfer plasma bar graph display with three cathode strings, for use in VU meters etc.; similar to BG16101 *ITM2-M ИТМ2-М – Four-color phosphored-
thyratron A thyratron is a type of gas-filled tube used as a high-power electrical switch and controlled rectifier. Thyratrons can handle much greater currents than similar hard-vacuum tubes. Electron multiplication occurs when the gas becomes ionized, p ...
latching
pixel In digital imaging, a pixel (abbreviated px), pel, or picture element is the smallest addressable element in a raster image, or the smallest point in an all points addressable display device. In most digital display devices, pixels are the ...
; 4x4 array of 4 subminiature dual-starter luminescent thyratrons each for the colors red, yellow, green and blue (thus, 5 intensities per color yields 54 = 625 colors), 4x4 matrix of 10-volts sensitive starter electrodes, cubic envelope for easy stacking in both axes, 12-pin all-glass wire-ended, similar to today's RGBA LEDs *ITS1 ИТС1 – Green phosphored-thyratron latching
seven-segment display A seven-segment display is a form of electronic display device for displaying decimal numerals that is an alternative to the more complex dot matrix displays. Seven-segment displays are widely used in digital clocks, electronic meters, basic ...
, no decimal point, 5-volts sensitive starter electrodes, all-glass wire-ended, rectangular envelope for easy stacking in both axes *MTX-90 МТХ-90 – Small neon-filled thyratron for use as a latching single-dot indicator, top-viewing, top of envelope acts as a magnifier, all-glass wire-ended, comes with a blob of solder on the end of each wire for rapid installing, like today's
ball grid array A ball grid array (BGA) is a type of surface-mount packaging (a chip carrier) used for integrated circuits. BGA packages are used to permanently mount devices such as microprocessors. A BGA can provide more interconnection pins than can be pu ...
s


Compagnie des Lampes (1921, "French Mazda") and Mazda-Belvu

Not to be confused with Compagnie des Lampes (1888, see above) nor with British Mazda (see above). The 1921 incarnation of ''
La Compagnie des Lampes La Compagnie des Lampes ("The Lamp Company") was a name used by several French companies all in the area of electrical products particularly lighting. La Compagnie des Lampes (1888) The original ''Compagnie des Lampes'' was set up at Ivry-sur-Se ...
'' (since 1953 as ''Lampe Mazda'') made light bulbs and electronic tubes under the French ''
Mazda , commonly referred to as simply Mazda, is a Japanese multinational automotive manufacturer headquartered in Fuchū, Hiroshima, Japan. In 2015, Mazda produced 1.5 million vehicles for global sales, the majority of which (nearly one m ...
'' brand. Many of their tubes were also available from '' Compagnie Industrielle Française des Tubes Electroniques'' (CIFTE) under their ''Mazda-Belvu'' brand, which otherwise used mostly
EIA Eia or EIA may refer to: Medicine * Enzyme immunoassay * Equine infectious anemia * Exercise-induced anaphylaxis * Exercise-induced asthma * External iliac artery Transport * Edmonton International Airport, in Alberta, Canada * Erbil Internation ...
, RETMA and Mullard–Philips tube designations. Examples: Before 1949: *1883 – Indirectly heated, 350 V/125 mA full-wave rectifier, 5 V/1.6 A heater *2XM600 – Directly heated, 10 kV/250 mA half-wave mercury-vapor rectifier, 2.5 V/5 A heater *4Y25 =
807 __NOTOC__ Year 807 ( DCCCVII) was a common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar) of the Julian calendar. Events By place Abbasid Empire and Byzantine Empire * Emperor Nikephoros I is forced to sue for peace, ...
– Indirectly heated beam tetrode * RETMA tube 6H8G * RCA-800 tubes 879, 884 Since 1949 with a
fire pot A fire pot is a container, usually earthenware, for carrying fire. Fire pots have been used since prehistoric times to transport fire from one place to another, for warmth while on the move, for cooking, in religious ceremonies and even as weapon ...
logo: * RMA tube 2E30 *3T20 – Directly heated power triode, graphite anode *3T100 – Directly heated power triode, graphite anode *4Y50 – Indirectly heated beam tetrode *E1 –
Electrometer An electrometer is an electrical instrument for measuring electric charge or electrical potential difference. There are many different types, ranging from historical handmade mechanical instruments to high-precision electronic devices. Modern ...
tetrode *E2 – Dual electrometer tetrode *ST130 – 130 V Neon-filled
voltage reference A voltage reference is an electronic device that ideally produces a fixed (constant) voltage irrespective of the loading on the device, power supply variations, temperature changes, and the passage of time. Voltage references are used in power sup ...
Since 1953 as ''LAMPE MAZDA'': * RMA tube 2G21 *4Y100 = 7745 – Dual beam tetrode * RCA-800 tubes 829, 832 *927 – Gas-filled
phototube A phototube or photoelectric cell is a type of gas-filled or vacuum tube that is sensitive to light. Such a tube is more correctly called a 'photoemissive cell' to distinguish it from photovoltaic or photoconductive cells. Phototubes were previ ...
*929 – Vacuum phototube * EIA tubes 6196, 6250 *E5 – Subminiature electrometer tetrode, all-glass wire-ended Since 1959 with a
Faravahar The Faravahar ( fa, فروهر), also known as the Foruhar () or the Farre Kiyâni ( fa, فر کیانی, label=none), is one of the best-known symbols of Zoroastrianism, an Iranian religion. There are various interpretations of what the Far ...
logo related to Ahura Mazda:French Mazda datasheets since 1959: 3T50 (February 1966) b
CdLBELVU
nbsp;• 4Y75 (February 1964) b
CdLBELVU
nbsp;• 6K8 (June 1964) b
CdL
nbsp;• 78A (September 1966) b
CdLBELVU
nbsp;• 7233 (April 1962) b
CdL
nbsp;• 7242 (April 1965) b
CdL
nbsp;• 7377 (April 1962) b
CdL
nbsp;• 8418 (February 1963) b
CdLBELVU
nbsp;• E6 (February 1964) b
CdL
nbsp;• E7 (June 1965) b
CdL
nbsp;• E9 (September 1965) b
CdL
nbsp;• ECF202 (April 1967) b
CdLBELVU
nbsp;• ECL802 (December 1966) b
CdLBELVU
nbsp;• ED501 (February 1966) b
CdL
nbsp;• EF816 (April 1967) b
CdL
nbsp;• EL183 (June 1959) b
CdLBELVU
nbsp;• EL503 (June 1966) b
CdLBELVU
nbsp;• EY81F (April 1967) b
CdLBELVU
nbsp;• EY802 (April 1967) b
CdLBELVU
nbsp;• F7024x (April 1967) b
CdLBELVU
nbsp;• F9102 (April 1965) b
CdLBELVU
nbsp;• F9116 (December 1965) b
CdL
nbsp;• GY86 (June 1966) b
CdL
nbsp;• GY802 (April 1967) b
CdL
nbsp;• K25000A1 (June 1961) b
CdL
nbsp;• PY81F (April 1967) b
CdLBELVU
/ref> *3T50 – Directly heated power triode, thoriated-tungsten filament, graphite anode *4Y75 – Directly heated power triode * RETMA tube 6K8 *78A – Directly heated, educational diode * EIA tubes 7233, 7242, 7377, 8418 *E6 – Subminiature dual electrometer tetrode, all-glass wire-ended *E7, E9 – Subminiature electrometer pentodes, all-glass wire-ended * Mullard–Philips tubes ECF202, ECL802, ED501, EF816, EL503, EY81F, EY802, GY86, GY802, PY81F *F7024A (Diode), F7024C (Triode), F7024E (Tetrode), F7024L (Pentode) – Set of 4 educational tubes *F9116 – Electrometer tetrode *K25000A1 – Directly heated, 25 kV/70 mA half-wave rectifier, 2.5 V/9 A heater


References and footnotes


Specific items


General literature and data sheets


Frank Philipse's Tube Datasheet Archive
:*Mirrors i

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Brazil searchable
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USA







General Electric Essential Characteristics
1970 *
RCA The RCA Corporation was a major American electronics company, which was founded as the Radio Corporation of America in 1919. It was initially a patent trust owned by General Electric (GE), Westinghouse, AT&T Corporation and United Fruit Comp ...
Receiving Tube Manual
R10
nbsp;(1932) 
RC11
nbsp;(1933) 
RC12
nbsp;(1934) 
RC13
nbsp;(1937) 
RC14
nbsp;(1942) 
RC15
nbsp;(1948) 
RC16
nbsp;(1951) 
RC17
nbsp;(1954) 
RC18
nbsp;(1956) 
RC19
nbsp;(1959) 
RC20
nbsp;(1960) 
RC21
nbsp;(1961) 
RC22
nbsp;(1963) 
RC23
nbsp;(1964) 
RC24
nbsp;(1965) 
RC25
nbsp;(1966) 
RC26
nbsp;(1968) 
RC27
nbsp;(1970) 
RC28
nbsp;(1971) 
RC29
nbsp;(1973) 
RC30
nbsp;(1975) * Scanned tube documentation (PDFs)

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4tubes


1958 * J. P. Hawker (ed),
Radio and television servicing
', Newnes, London, 1964

nbsp;

Decoding type numbers
Decoding Valve, Transistor and CRT Numbers
* European tube designation systems

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See also


External links


Vacuum Tube Data Sheet LocatorTube Substitution and Characteristics Guide
* ttp://lampes-et-tubes.info/index-e.htm Belgian virtual thermionic valve museum with good quality pictures and databr>Radio museumVirtual Valve Museum
{{DEFAULTSORT:Vacuum tubes * Electronics lists Gas-filled tubes