E. Alberti. Cathode Oscillograph, GTTI, 1933, 128 pp. Price 2 rub. 75 kopecks; translated from the German under the editorship of Prof. S. N. Rzhevkin.

The book contains a historical survey of the development of the Braun tube, the physical principles of its operation, a description of the constructions of various elements of the cathode oscillograph, methods of observation and general circuits, as well as a description of some applications of the Braun tube. At the end of the book there is appended a detailed list of literature (292 titles) relating to the cathode oscillograph, published up to 1932.

This book is regarded by the author as an introduction to the study of the Braun tube and as a reference book for specialists needing bibliographical guidance. The book under review does not satisfy the first designation. As a reference work it can be recommended only with certain limitations indicated below.

The “historical survey,” compiled by the author on the basis of the study of patent literature, is only a chronological list of discoveries and inventions relating to the cathode oscillograph. The author does not elucidate the historical connection among these inventions or their dependence on the general development of physics and electrical engineering.

The section “Physical principles” contains a description of the nature, methods of obtaining, and properties of cathode rays. All the generally accepted material is presented concisely, in the manner of handbooks. The formulas, with the exception of calculations of the deflection of cathode rays in electric and magnetic fields, are given without derivations. For a first acquaintance with the foundations of electron theory this section of the book is unsuitable, owing to the one-sided selection of material and the brevity of its presentation. A qualified reader may use this section as a reference source containing an exposition of the modern point of view on the basic questions of the physics of cathode rays that are important in designing and working with the cathode oscillograph.

The next three sections of the book contain a description of a very large number of various designs of elements of the cathode oscillograph, various circuits and methods of observation. In view of the breadth of the material covered, the author describes each of these designs, circuits, and methods briefly, confining himself to data from the literature. The author gives no comparative evaluation of them. Often the brevity of the description

is achieved at the cost of a substantial detriment to the clarity of the exposition. For all details the author refers the reader to the original literary sources. Indications from the field of laboratory practice are almost entirely absent. The influence of the author’s personal experience is quite imperceptible.

In general, these three sections of the book have rather the character of a “guide to the literature” than of a laboratory handbook. Use of this “guide” is facilitated by systematically selected references to the literature, a list of which is appended at the end of the book.

The last section of the book is devoted to certain applications of the Braun tube. Unlike the preceding sections, this section does not claim exhaustive coverage of the literature. Nevertheless, this section too contains only abbreviated retellings of original works, and in this respect the characterization given above of the three preceding sections may be fully extended to it.

Thus, in the main, the book under review is a reference work, summarizing literary data on the cathode oscillograph. This reference work considerably facilitates use of the literature, and in some cases may even remove the need to become acquainted with the original works. The publication of the translation of the book under review should be welcomed.

G. Razorenov