Chapter 03 of 5
The Crystal Clock
From a room-sized clock to a tuning fork the size of a grain of rice.
- Radio First
Keeping Stations in Tune
In the 1920s, crystals were first used to stabilize radio transmitters and keep stations on their assigned frequencies.
- The Idea
Count the Vibrations
If a crystal vibrates at an exact rate, counting its vibrations measures time.
- Bell Labs
Marrison's Clock
In 1927, Warren Marrison and J. W. Horton at Bell Telephone Laboratories built the first quartz clock.
17 more cards in this chapter
Could you answer this?
Why do watch crystals vibrate at exactly 32,768 times per second?
⌚ The Crystal That Counts Your Seconds
- 01Tick-Tock, BadlyHow mechanical watches kept time, and why they never quite could.
- 02The SqueezeThe Curie brothers, a crystal that makes electricity when pressed, and why it works in reverse.
- 03The Crystal ClockFrom a room-sized clock to a tuning fork the size of a grain of rice.
- 04The Quartz CrisisThe watch that cost as much as a car, and the industry it nearly destroyed.
- 05Crystals EverywherePhones, computers, atomic clocks and the tiny crystal on your wrist.