“Victor”
Coolidge Tube
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1913 type Coolidge hot cathode tube. 20” (50 cms)
long. Tungsten target. Made by the Victor Corporation,
William D. Coolidge (1875-1973) applied for a patent for this tube
on May 9, 1913. The patent was granted on Oct.31, 1916. In his application,
Coolidge states : “……As
a cathode I ordinarily use a tungsten filament, and this may be conveniently
heated by current from a storage battery, or transformer with suitable
regulating devices so that the temperature of the cathode or filament may be
adjusted at will. I have found that electrons will be emitted from such a
cathode, which electrons will traverse the space between the cathode and the
target under the influence of the
electromotive force impressed upon
the tube, and
by bombardment of the
target will give
rise to x-rays……..” |
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The introduction of the “Hot
Cathode” opened a new era in the practice of radiology. It obviated the
instability and the “ temperamental” behaviour of the
gas discharge tubes of different types used until then. When asked
about the behavior of different gas discharge tubes, Röntgen
would have stated in a letter “I do not want to get involved in anything that
has to do with the properties of tubes, for these things are even more
capricious and unpredictable than women”. …… Alongside
German researchers like Lilienfeld and Rosenthal,
as well as a German patent in the name of Fürstenau,
W.D.Coolidge and his assistant Irving Langmuir, perfected a tube in 1913 in the laboratories of
the General Electric Co., (Georg Siemens “History of the House of Siemens”, Karl Alber, 1957, Vol II, p.79) About
the Victor Electric Corporation 1895 : Victor Electric Company
incorporated. Got involved in 1896 in the manufacture of therapeutic and x-ray machines. 1916: Victor, Snook, Macalaster-Wiggin,
and Scheidel-Western, combine to form Victor
Electric Corporation. 1920
: General
Electric acquires interest in Victor which reincorporates as Victor
X-Ray Corporation. 1926 : Victor becomes a wholly-owned affiliate of General
Electric.
“The Story of X-Ray”, General Electric Co., 1963, p.6 |
