An Electrostatic-Tube Storage System

A storage system which will store binary (on or off) pulses has been constructed, and should prove useful in laboratory studies of certain communication problems. The system comprises two storage channels, each utilizing an MIT electrostatic storage tube and switching circuits which route incoming pulses into one channel while stored pulses are being recovered from the other. Pulses are stored in each tube in a square array of discrete spots of charge; each spot may assume one of two possible potentials, corresponding to the two possible states of a binary pulse. The order of occurrence of incoming pulses is preserved during storage, but the time relationship is not; the time relationship of pulses recovered from storage is determined by an independent pulse source under control of the user. Consequently, the system may be used to compress, expand, or delay a group of pulses. The capacity of each storage channel is, at present, 256 pulses. The system operates reliably at all frequencies up to 33 kc when storing incoming pulses and up to 70 kc when supplying stored pulses.