Production of Tiny Radio Waves. Efficient production of radio waves many times the frequency of the shortest "short waves" used a few years ago. has been one of the most important electronic developments of the war, said William C. White, head of the electronics section of the General Electric Research Laboratory, before the Philadelphia Section of the American Institute of Electrical Engineers."
"During the past few years, the war years, the outstanding electron-tube developments have been in connection with the generation, control, and utilization of ever higher frequencies," he said. "Extraordinary progress has been made. Many of the techniques that the radio engineer has used in broadcasting and communication have been extended more than ten-fold upward along the spectrum of electromagnetic radiations. This has not only given engineers many additional frequency channels to utilize for radio and its by-products but made practical new elements such, for instance, as sharply directed beams with relatively small antenna structures."
Discussing the trend of electronics in the future, Mr. White declared that "one may be sure that just as soon as manpower and material restrictions arc relaxed, the promotion of frequency modulation broadcasting and television will become very active. There always have been more individuals or groups desirous of going into the business of broadcasting than there have been suitable available frequency channels. Broadcasting by FM meets this demand and there is every reason to believe that hundreds of such stations will be put into operation as soon as they can be manufactured. As for television, there have already been enough applications filed for licenses for transmitting stations to indicate that most big city areas will have regular evening programs; in fact, several to choose from in some areas."
He pointed out that of the many new and ingenious industrial uses of electronics which have been widely publicized, "most are technically possible but some are economically unsound for most applications." He cited electronic heating, "which is heat in one of its most expensive forms. For simply removing moisture from bulk, low-cost material, such as paper or clay, il cannot be justified. If, however, the product is of high unit value, if time is an all-important factor and if the selective heating property of high frequency electronic methods are involved, the story may be quite different."
The same is true, he warned, in connection with electronic devices for the home. "Take for example," he said, "the garage door opener. You drive up to your closed garage door and, by a certain sequence of flashing of your headlights, radio impulses or blowing of your horn, the garage door opens. There is no stepping out in the cold, rain or snow. The same method is used on leaving the garage. Now this device is entirely practical technically, but ~,,ould you seriously consider paying, say $25o for it? This is one of the chief problems to be faced in most new devices." R. H. O. 34I