My selection

Here are gathered the books that allowed me to better understand the operation of vintage radios. You will find theoretical and technical works dating from the era of tubes, but also more recent works on electronics, physics, or mathematics that allow the design of test equipment or the development of calculation programs whose primary use is not related to vintage radios. Some of them are still published and therefore available. For the others, you need to visit vintage radio fairs or make requests on specialized forums: forum.retrotechnique.org, archives.doctsf.com, annonces.retrotechnique.org, tubebooks.org, etc...

Langford-Smith - RADIOTRON DESIGN HANDBOOK.(1953)

RADIOTRON DESIGN HANDBOOK cover
Contents:
  • The radio valve.
  • Geneal theory and components
  • Audio frequencies
  • Radio frequencies
  • Rectification, regulation, filtering and hum
  • completes receivers
  • Sundy data
One of the references for understanding tubes and their uses (1498 p.).
An interior page (281Ko)
The electronic version on P. Millet's website (25Mo)

F. E. TERMAN - Radio Engineer's Handbook.(1943)

Radio Engineer's Handbook cover
Contents:
  • TABLES
  • MATHEMATICAL RELATIONS
  • UNITS
  • CIRCUIT ELEMENTS
  • RESISTANCE AND RESISTORS
  • INDUCTANCE AND MUTUAL INDUCTANCE
  • COILS WITH AIR CORES
  • COILS WITH MAGNETIC CORES
  • CAPACITY AND CAPACITORS
  • SHIELDING OF MAGNETIC AND ELECTROSTATIC FIELDS
  • CIRCUIT THEORY
  • SIMPLE RESONANT CIRCUITS
  • TRANSMISSION LINES
  • NETWORK THEORY, FILTERS, AND EQUALIZERS
  • WAVE GUIDES AND CAVITY RESONATORS
  • VACUUM TUBES AND ELECTRONICS
  • LAWS OF ELECTRON BEHAVIOR
  • VACUUM TUBES
  • ELECTRON OPTICS AND CATHODE-RAY TUBES
  • GAS TUBES
  • VACUUM-TUBE AMPLIFIERS
  • GENERAL CONCEPTS
  • VOLTAGE AMPLIFIERS FOR AUDIO FREQUENCIES
  • AUDIO-FREQUENCY POWER AMPLIFIERS
  • AUDIO-FREQUENCY AMPLIFIERS-MISCELLANEOUS
  • VIDEO-FREQUENCY AMPLIFIER
  • TUNED AMPLIFIERS
  • MISCELLANEOUS AMPLIFIER PROPERTIES
  • OSCILLATORS
  • POWER OSCILLATORS
  • FREQUENCY STABILITY OF OSCILLATORS-CRYSTAL OSCILLATORS
  • MISCELLANEOUS TYPES OF OSCILLATORS AND OSCILLATIONS
  • ULTRA-HIGH-FREQUENCY OSCILLATORS
  • MODULATION AND DEMODULATION
  • AMPLITUDE MODULATION
  • DETECTION
  • FREQUENCY MODULATION
  • POWER-SUPPLY SYSTEMS
  • RECTIFIER-FILTER SYSTEMS FOR ANODE POWER
  • MISCELLANEOUS
  • RADIO TRANSMITTERS AND RECEIVERS
  • TRANSMITTERS EMPLOYING AMPLITUDE MODULATION
  • RECEIVERS FOR AMPLITUDE-MODULATED WAVES
  • TRANSMITTING AND RECEIVING SYSTEMS EMPLOYING FREQUENCY MODULATION
  • PROPAGATION OF RADIO WAVES
  • GROUND-WAVE PROPAGATION AND GROUND EFFECTS
  • THE IONOSPHERE AND ITS EFFECT ON THE PROPAGATION OF RADIO WAVES
  • PROPAGATION OF RADIO WAVES OF DIFFERENT FREQUENCIES
  • ANTENNAS
  • FUNDAMENTAL RELATIONS
  • CHARACTERISTICS OF ANTENNA SYSTEMS
  • ANTENNAS WITH HORN AND PARABOLIC RADIATORS
  • PRACTICAL TRANSMITTING ANTENNAS
  • RECEIVING ANTENNAS
  • WIDE-BAND ANTENNAS-TELEVISION ANTENNAS
  • RADIO AIDS TO NAVIGATION
  • DIRECTION FINDING
  • MISCELLANEOUS RADIO AIDS TO AIR NAVIGATION
  • MEASUREMENTS
  • CIRCUIT CONSTANTS AT LOW FREQUENCIES
  • CIRCUIT CONSTANTS AT RADIO FREQUENCY
  • VOLTAGE, CURRENT, AND POWER MEASUREMENTS
  • WAVE FORM AND PHASE
  • FREQUENCY MEASUREMENTS
  • VACUUM-TUBE CHARACTERISTICS
  • AMPLIFICATION AT AUDIO AND VIDEO FREQUENCIES
  • MEASUREMENTS ON RADIO RECEIVERS
  • MODULATION
  • FIELD STRENGTH OF RADIO WAVES
One of my bedside books: the most complete handbook on analog electronics and tubes.

H. Reich - Theory and Applications of Electron Tubes.(1944)

Theory and Applications of Electron Tubes cover
Contents:
  • Physical Concepts
  • Thermionic Emission: The High-vacuum Thermionic Diode
  • Grid-controlled High-vacuum Tubes
  • Methods of Analysis of Vacuum Tubes and Vacuum-tube Circuits
  • Amplifier Definitions, Classifications and Circuits
  • Analysis and Design of Voltage and Current Amplifiers
  • Class A and Class AB1 Power Amplifiers.
  • Class B and Class AB2 Amplifiers.
  • Modulation and Detection.
  • Trigger Circuits, Pulse Generators, and Oscillators.
  • Electrical Conduction in Gases
  • Glow- and Arc-discharge Tubes and Circuits
  • Light-sensitive Tubes and Cells.
  • Power Supplies.
  • Electron-tube Instruments and Measurements
One of the references for understanding tubes and their uses (716 p.).
An interior page (54Ko)
The summary (304Ko)
The electronic version on P. Millet's website (25Mo)

K. R. SPANGENBERG - Vacuum Tubes.(1948)

spangenberg_cover Vacumm Tubes cover
Contents:
  • 1 — INTRODUCTION
  • 2 — BASIC TUBE TYPES
  • 3 — ELECTRONS AND IONS
  • 4 — ELECTRONIC EMISSION
  • 5 — DETERMINATION OF POTENTIAL FlELDS
  • 6 — Laws of Electron Motion
  • 7 — The Electrostatic Field of a Triode
  • 8 — Space-charge Effects
  • 9 — Triode Characteristics
  • 10 — Tetrodes
  • 11 — Pentodes
  • 12 — Noise in Vacuum Tubes
  • 13 — Electrostatic Electron Optics
  • 14 — Magnetic Lenses
  • 15 — Cathode-ray Tubes
  • 16 — Ultra-high-frequency Effects in Conventional Tubes
  • 17 — Velocity-modulated Tubes or Klystrons
  • 18 — Magnetron Oscillators
  • 19 — Photoelectric Tubes
  • 20 — Special Tubes
  • 21 — High-vacuum Practice
  • Appendixes
A reference in a collection directed by Terman: a very complete work on the physics of tubes.
The summary (304Ko)
The electronic version on P. Millet's website (33Mo)

Frederick W. Grover - Inductance calculation. (2001)

grover_couv
Contents:
  • Introduction.
    • General Principles
    • Methods of Calculating Inductances
    • Geometric Mean Distances
    • Construction of and Method of Using the Collection of Working Formulas
  • Circuits Whose Elements Are Straight Filaments
    • Parallel Elements of Equal Length
    • Mutual Inductance of Unequal Parallel Filaments
    • Mutual Inductance of Filaments Inclined at an Angle to Each Other
    • Circuits Composed of Combinations of Straight Wires
    • Mutual Inductance of Equal, Parallel, Coaxial Polygons of Wire
    • Inductance of Single-layer Coils on Rectangular Winding Forms
  • Coils and Other Circuits Composed of Circular Elements
    • Mutual Inductance of Coaxial Circular Filaments
    • Mutual Inductance of Coaxial Circular Coils
    • Self-inductance of Circular Coils of Rectangular Cross Section
    • Mutual Inductance of Solenoid and a Coaxial Circular Filament
    • Mutual Inductance of Coaxial Single-layer Coils
    • Single-layer Coils on Cylindrical Winding Forms
    • Special Types of Single-layer Coil.
    • Mutual Inductance of Circular Elements with Parallel Axes.
    • Mutual Inductance of Circular Filaments Whose Axes Are Inclined to One Another.
    • Mutual Inductance of Solenoids with Inclined Axes, and Solenoids and Circular Coils with Inclined Axes.
    • Circuit Elements of Larger Cross Sections with Parallel Axes.
    • Auxiliary Tables of Functions which Appear Frequently in Inductance Formulas.
    • Formulas for the Calculation of the Magnetic Force between Coils.
    • High Frequency Formulas.
  • References.
This book, in English, deals with absolutely everything about self-inductance and mutual inductance for all possible shapes of objects through which a current flows. The reference since 1946. All the calculation tools you will find on this site are based on the data in this book.
Vintage Radio Notes An excerpt (102Ko) here.

J. F. Reinjes - Principles of Radar.(1953)

radar
Contents:
  • Pulsed Radar
  • Timing Circuits
  • CLIPPING CIRCUITS
  • R-C CIRCUITS
  • R-L-C CIRCUITS
  • Modulators
  • PULSE FORMATION BY NETWORKS AND SWITCHES
  • LINE-PULSING MODULATORS 169
  • DRIVER-POWER-AMPLIFIER MODULATORS
  • Indicators
  • CATHODE-RAY TUBES
  • SWEEP-VOLTAGE CIRCUITS
  • SWEEP-CURRENT CIRCUITS
  • Synchros and Servomechanisms
  • SYNCHROS
  • SERVOMECHANISMS
  • Receivers
  • GENERAL PRINCIPLES
  • COMPONENT CIRCUITS
  • Radio-frequency Transmission Lines
  • Waveguides
  • Resonant Lines and Cavities
  • High-frequency Triode Oscillators
  • Klystrons and Magnetrons
  • KLYSTRONS
  • Radio-frequency Transmitting and
  • Antennas
  • Propagation
Great... Everything about tubes and very high frequencies. A reference. Without immediate interest for vintage radios.
Vintage Radio Notes The detail here (126Ko)

ARRL - Handbook Radio Communication.(2003)

ARRL_couv.jpg
Contents:
  • Introduction
    • What is Amateur Radio?
    • Activities
    • Wireless Technology for Everybody
  • Fundamental Theory
    • Mathematics for Amateur Radio
    • DC Theory and Resistive Components
    • AC Theory and Reactive Components
    • Digital Signal Theory and Components
    • Analog Signal Theory and Components
  • Practical Design and Projects
    • Safety Practices
    • Real-World Component Characteristics
    • Power Supplies and Projects
    • Modulation Sources (What and How We Communicate)
    • RF Power Amplifiers and Projects
    • AC/RF Sources (Oscillators and Synthesizers)
    • Mixers, Modulators and Demodulators
    • Filters and Projects
    • Receivers, Transmitters, Transceivers and Projects
    • Digital Signal Processing
    • Transmission Lines
    • Antennas and Projects
    • Propagation
    • Station Setup and Accessory Projects
    • Repeaters, Satellites, EME and DFing
  • Construction Techniques
    • Component Data
    • Circuit Construction
    • Test Procedures and Projects
    • Troubleshooting and Repair
  • Operating Practices
    • Electromagnetic Interference (EMI)
    • Regulations
    • References
  • Index
When one is interested in radio (in short waves), one inevitably explores amateur radio transmission and reception. A bible ... updated every year.


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