Modern Electronics (was Re: List charter mods & headcount... ; -))

From: der Mouse <mouse_at_Rodents.Montreal.QC.CA>
Date: Mon Jun 21 13:25:37 2004

> There was an idea some time back that if we ever get to the moon that
> we could be using "open-air" valves (tubes) in the vacuum there for
> high powered devices

Is the "open-air" vacuum on the Moon a hard enough vacuum for
vacuum-tube technology? Does it depend on whether it's day or night
(and therefore whether there is solar wind pouring in)? I know that
_some_ vacuum-tube technology - notably CRTs - depends on electrons
having a mean free path well over the tube size, and that needs a
pretty hard vacuum.

> - with the benefit that goes with the better radiation resistance
> that goes with valve technology.

Is it valves that give you rad-hardening, or size? A transistor the
size of a valve would, I suspect, be inherently pretty rad-hardened.
(Certainly the largest transistors I've seen are far smaller than the
smallest valve I've seen. Probably by about an order of magnitude,
once you strip each one down to the operating portion.)

> It would be quite cool to watch a tv picture on an open CRT methinks.

Possibly, though it would mean either suiting up or building the screen
into a wall. :-(

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Received on Mon Jun 21 2004 - 13:25:37 BST