Abstract
The Hughes Atomic Physics Department had been getting substantial contract research monies from the United States Army Signal Corps at Fort Monmouth, New Jersey. That funding was now being discontinued. In its stead, the Signal Corps offered Hughes a contract to make and deliver a special state-of-the-art microwave amplifier known as a “ruby maser .”
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Notes
- 1.
A maser is a device that amplifies microwaves and has some distant properties in common with a laser. That connection will be made clear later in the text.
- 2.
“Dewar flask” is the laboratory name for a thermos bottle, named after its inventor, Sir James Dewar.
- 3.
Zero degrees Kelvin is theoretically the lowest temperature that can be approached but never attained. At this temperature, the vibrational motion of all materials would plunge to zero.
- 4.
A “klystron” is a special tube that generates microwave energy.
- 5.
“Alnico” is a high-performance, commonly used permanent magnet material.
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Maiman, T.H. (2018). The Ruby Maser Distraction. In: The Laser Inventor. Springer Biographies. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-61940-8_5
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-61940-8_5
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