Table of Contents

Acknowledgments vii

Introduction: "We Were Heavily Armed and We Had Crystals" 1

1 From Wire to Wireless: The Development—and Acceptance—of Tactical Radio 5

2 Crystal Control—the Great Gamble 17

3 The Signal Corps Lays the Foundation 31

4 Nothing Else to Do but Grind Crystals 55

5 Riding the "Flat Wheel Limited"—Overseeing a Mass Production Industry 69

6 Supplying a Mass Production Industry—the Civilian Government Steps In 93

7 "The Whole Radio Crystal Program of the Armed Services Depends Upon the Success of the Procurement Program in Brazil. Nothing Must Be Allowed to Interfere With It" 117

8 "God Made Lots of Small Crystals" 129

9 The Aging Crisis—Stopgap Measures 145

10 The Aging Crisis—Physics to the Rescue! 153

11 "Without Crystals You Have Radio; With Them, Communications" 163

Appendix 1: Crystal-Controlled Equipment 175

Appendix 2: Crystal Manufacturers 179

References 183

Index 219

About the Author

RICHARD J. THOMPSON, Jr., is the Dean of Mathematics and Science at The College of Saint Rose in Albany, New York. He received a PhD in astronomy and astrophysics from The Pennsylvania State University in 1994 and has served as a physics professor and department chairman at McMurry University in Abilene, Texas.