SPECIAL UHF TUBES

2-9 Q1. What is the major difference in grid construction between power pentodes and conventional pentodes? Q2. Beam-forming tubes and power tubes are similar except that power pentodes lack what element? Q3. What effect does the shielding of the screen grid by the control grid have on plate current in beam-forming tetrodes? Q4. What effect does a large negative input signal applied to a variable-mu tube have on a. conduction through the control grid, and b. gain of the tube? Q5. Identify the type of electron tube(s) that would be most suitable for the following applications. a. Power amplifier b. Voltage amplifier with small signal inputs c. Low distortion amplifiers for use with large signal inputs SPECIAL UHF TUBES In the earlier discussion of conventional-electron tubes, you learned some of the limitations of tubes. One of these limitations was that the conventional tube was not able to operate (amplify) at extremely high frequencies such as those used in radar equipment. Even at frequencies lower than those used in radar equipment, problems occur. For example, at ultrahigh frequencies (300 MHz to 3000 MHz), transit time effects make the operation of a conventional-electron tube impossible. For this reason, the special ultrahigh frequency tubes were developed to operate within this frequency range. Before we discuss the way in which special uhf tubes counter the effects of transit time, you should understand the manner in which transit time affects conventional tubes. LIMITATION OF TRANSIT TIME We will explain the limitation of transit time by using figure 2-9. In view A, the positive-going alternation of a uhf ac signal is applied to the grid of a conventional-triode tube. The first positive-going alternation reduces the negative bias on the grid, and electrons start to move toward the grid. Since the input is an ultrahigh frequency signal, the majority of the electrons cannot pass the grid before the input signal progresses to the negative alternation. The electrons that have not yet passed the grid are either stopped or repelled back toward the cathode. This is shown in view B. Before these electrons can move very far, the second positive alteration reaches the grid, and causes even more electrons to move from the cathode (view C). At the same time, the electrons that were repelled from the grid toward the cathode by the first negative alternation feel the effect of the positive-going grid. These electrons reverse direction and again move toward the grid. Because these electrons had to first reverse direction, they are now moving slower than the electrons that are attracted from the cathode by the second positive alteration. The result is that the electrons from the cathode catch up to the slower moving electrons and the two groups combine (view C). This action is called BUNCHING.