Battery (vacuum tube)

An anode battery is a dry battery in which, by series connection of many galvanic cells, a comparatively high power supply voltage for the anode of the electron tube is made ​​available. A heating battery is a battery for the power supply of the filaments, or the thermionic electron tubes with a voltage range of a few volts. The application of these two energy storage was up in the 1920s in the supply of stationary tube radios with the required operating voltages, or up in the 1950s in portable receivers.

Anode batteries and heating batteries are obsolete and are no longer used today.

Anode battery

At the anode the battery, in English also called " B- battery " or " HT ( High Tension) ," about 70 to 100 galvanic cells are connected in series. Thus, the required for operation of electron tubes high DC voltage of 100 V to 150 V results in widespread tensions 60, 90, 120 V. The voltage were could be picked up at the appropriately labeled jacks on the anode battery. The life of such a battery was at headphone receiving several 100 hours, with speakers receive correspondingly less.

Often these anode batteries had still more taps to produce which is essential for setting the operating point bias.

Heating battery

Heating batteries, in English also called "A- battery " or " LT ( low tension ) ," owned voltages of 2, 4, or 1.5 V, corresponding to suitable tube series were developed, then the A- series of 4 V, the K series for 2 V and later the D- series with 1.4 V. The voltage of 4 V was also partly in later tubes were heated from a transformer is obtained. With the advent of tube- equipped car radios the newer tube types were developed with 6.3 volt filament voltage.

Later there were also wall-powered power supplies. The first common DC power supply was adapted directly served with the AC power supply system must have a " net anode ", a rectifier circuit with tube diodes. The tube heaters were, however, until the introduction of series heating ( see Allstromgerät ) still powered by a battery, the heating battery. So in DC operation a higher efficiency was achieved, also avoided hum in AC power mode.

However Transportable tube radios still needed an anode and a heating coil. This battery tubes have been developed which require a lower power consumption of the power sources in accordance with a reduced performance.

Also in radiochemistry and nuclear physics was dependent on anode batteries for the power supply of ionization chambers and counter tubes to the middle of the 20th century. For a counter tube voltage of 1500 volts ten batteries of 150 volts had to be connected in series.

Datasheet heating battery for stationary receivers

Circuit diagram of a tube stage with anode (B) and heating battery (A).

  • Electron tube
  • Historic battery
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