Experimental RCA Image Orthicon 5820A

[julianburke]

Has anyone seen a RCA experimental 5820A image orthicon tube like this one that has perhaps a night vision intensifier looking addition on it? It has a (red) RCA label touting it as experimental only and the intensifier is all professionally annealed to the glass tube itself as this could only be made at the manufacturer. All of the swirl marks on the metal drum are some sort of a glue or adhesive that was scraped off. There are also two electrodes on the drum.

[Aussie Bloke]

Man I WANT this tube, it looks COOL!!! What museum is this tube located in?

I have decided to a bit of research on the Google punching in image orthicon and night vision and have actually found a Popular Mechanics article from 1959 on night vision camera experiments using IO tubes fitted with night vision and scrolling down the pages I see a 3 inch IO fitted with a night vision apparatus similar to the one in your photo except it's a lot longer. Here is the link to the Popular Mechanics magazine, just scroll down a bit and you'll see a drawing of the night vision modified IO:
http://books.google.com.au/books?id=...vision&f=false

Oh also check out the IO tube at the bottom of this page http://www.aade.com/tubepedia/1colle...tubepedia1.htm it is said to be fitted with an image intensifier for night vision, it looks much more like the tube in your photo but has (I guess) coils wrapped around the intensifier, could be what's missing off the tube in your photo.

From those sources it would have to be what you said, an IO fitted with a night vision image intensifier.

[julianburke]

I have some other tubes with an intensifier on its' front. This is the only thing this could be and perhaps for another light spectrum. I would like to hear some feedback on this one. This is likely a one only tube.

[BrianSummers]

HI The 5820 is a standard RCA IO tube so it looks like it is a development tube. The Bit on the front looks like a Intensifier tube for low light working.

EEV in the UK did a lot of work on similar tubes ( the image Isocon) data attached.

Nice radio it is stitting on!

Brian

www.tvcameramuseum.org

[old_tv_nut]

Originally Posted by Aussie Bloke

...I see a 3 inch IO fitted with a night vision apparatus similar to the one in your photo except it's a lot longer...

The long one looks like two stages of intensification to me.

Note: Photocathodes typically have a peak quantum efficiency of 10%, often in the visible/blue region, but some were developed for near infrared. CCDs may have a peak approaching 100%, typically in the infrared.