Energy & Power

Gasoline Pump

The Museum's collections on energy and power illuminate the role of fire, steam, wind, water, electricity, and the atom in the nation's history. The artifacts include wood-burning stoves, water turbines, and windmills, as well as steam, gas, and diesel engines. Oil-exploration and coal-mining equipment form part of these collections, along with a computer that controlled a power plant and even bubble chambers—a tool of physicists to study protons, electrons, and other charged particles.

A special strength of the collections lies in objects related to the history of electrical power, including generators, batteries, cables, transformers, and early photovoltaic cells. A group of Thomas Edison's earliest light bulbs are a precious treasure. Hundreds of other objects represent the innumerable uses of electricity, from streetlights and railway signals to microwave ovens and satellite equipment.

Date: 1960s

Head Piece from Maiman Laser

This object may be the first laser. It was made by Theodore Maiman and his assistant Irnee D'Haenens at Hughes Aircraft Company in May 1960.In 1959 Maiman attended a technical conference on the subject of lasers.
Description
This object may be the first laser. It was made by Theodore Maiman and his assistant Irnee D'Haenens at Hughes Aircraft Company in May 1960.
In 1959 Maiman attended a technical conference on the subject of lasers. Maiman heard several speakers state that ruby was unsuitable for a laser but grew troubled by some of the numbers they cited. When he returned to his lab at Hughes he began experimenting. By May 1960 he and D'Haenens constructed several small metal cylinders. Each contained a photographer's spiral-shaped, xenon flashlamp that surrounded a small cylindrical crystal of synthetic ruby. When they fired the flashlamp, the burst of light stimulated the ruby crystal to emit a tightly focused pulse of light--the first operating laser.
Hughes Aircraft donated this and several other pieces of Maiman's apparatus to the Smithsonian in 1970. The crystal mounted inside this unit is from a 1961 experiment. While the donation records indicate that this is the first laser, Maiman wrote that he received the first laser as a gift when he left the company in April 1961. Several experimental models were made during the research, a common practice. So we may never know which unit actually generated the first laser light.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1960
associated date
1960
maker
Maiman, Theodore H.
Hughes Aircraft Company
ID Number
EM.330050
accession number
288813
catalog number
330050

Experimental Lead-in Wires

Hammered molybdenum foil leads with tungsten electrodes mounted to the foils for use as arc lamp electrode.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Hammered molybdenum foil leads with tungsten electrodes mounted to the foils for use as arc lamp electrode.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1965
maker
General Electric Lighting Company
ID Number
1996.0147.46
catalog number
1996.0147.46
accession number
1996.0147

Experimental Short Arc Lamp

Experimental mini-arc lamp designed to test short arc-gap.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Experimental mini-arc lamp designed to test short arc-gap.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1968
maker
Fridrich, Elmer G.
ID Number
1996.0147.27
accession number
1996.0147
catalog number
1996.0147.27

Experimental Ruby Laser

This is an experimental ruby laser made in 1963 at Ohio State University.
Description
This is an experimental ruby laser made in 1963 at Ohio State University. Edward Damon, a researcher at the University’s Antenna Laboratory, made this and several other lasers during his investigation of Theodore Maiman’s ruby laser experiments of three years earlier.
In addition to replicating Maiman's 1960 experiments, Damon wished to explore variations of the ruby laser. Unlike Maiman's laser, this laser does not use a spiral flashlamp to energize the ruby crystal. Instead, Damon placed three linear flashlamps parallel to the rod-shaped laser crystal. Firing these lamps simultaneously provided energy to the crystal. The laser also demonstrates a water cooling technique still used in some lasers today.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1963
ID Number
2009.0228.02
accession number
2009.0228
catalog number
2009.0228.02

Wave guide with ruby crystal

This is an experimental device made by Theodore Maiman at Hughes Aircraft in late 1959 or early 1960 as part of the series of experiments leading up to the demonstration of the first laser in May 1960.
Description
This is an experimental device made by Theodore Maiman at Hughes Aircraft in late 1959 or early 1960 as part of the series of experiments leading up to the demonstration of the first laser in May 1960. This object features a cube-shaped ruby crystal mounted at one end of a microwave wave-guide. Maiman sought to test the response of the synthetic ruby crystal to microwave stimulation. Other researchers claimed that ruby would be a poor material to use in a laser. Maiman thought otherwise.
After Charles Townes invented the microwave-emitting maser in 1954, researchers began trying to move to the higher energy levels of infrared and visible light. They referred to such devices as "optical masers," and only later did people adopt Gordon Gould's term, "laser." This experimental piece clearly shows the influence of microwave technology. The metal tube is not a stand but rather a hollow guide that channels microwaves to the ruby crystal. The results of this and other experiments led Maiman to ultimately choose a cylinder of ruby rather than a cube for his laser.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
1959
associated date
1960
associated user
unknown
associated institution
Hughes Research Laboratories
maker
Maiman, Theodore H.
Hughes Aircraft Company
ID Number
EM.330052
accession number
288813
catalog number
330052

Arc Lamp Components

Box of 12 quartz glass exhaust stems for experimental lamps.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Box of 12 quartz glass exhaust stems for experimental lamps.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1967
maker
Fridrich, Elmer G.
ID Number
1996.3042.88
catalog number
1996.3042.88
nonaccession number
1996.3042

Heat Lamp

Type PAR48 heat lamp. Two coiled tungsten filaments in parallel. Envelope has gold reflective coating on inner wall.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Type PAR48 heat lamp. Two coiled tungsten filaments in parallel. Envelope has gold reflective coating on inner wall.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1963
maker
GTE Sylvania, Inc.
ID Number
2000.0224.05
catalog number
2000.0224.05
accession number
2000.0224

Experimental Lamp Components

Etched molybdenum foils ready to be attached to leads and electrodes for mini-arc lamp experiments.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Etched molybdenum foils ready to be attached to leads and electrodes for mini-arc lamp experiments.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1968
maker
General Electric Company
ID Number
1996.0147.52
accession number
1996.0147
catalog number
1996.0147.52

Experimental Tungsten Photolamp

Incomplete coiled-coil tungsten halogen photolamp. Halogen fill not added and exhaust tube still attached.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Incomplete coiled-coil tungsten halogen photolamp. Halogen fill not added and exhaust tube still attached.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1968
maker
General Electric Company
ID Number
1996.0147.51
accession number
1996.0147
catalog number
1996.0147.51

Experimental Lamp Components

An arc lamp pre-pinch showing the electrode assembly. A lamp pinch must withstand many heating and cooling cycles.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
An arc lamp pre-pinch showing the electrode assembly. A lamp pinch must withstand many heating and cooling cycles.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1965
maker
Fridrich, Elmer G.
ID Number
1996.0147.94
accession number
1996.0147
catalog number
1996.0147.94

Krypton-filled Incandescent Lamp

Krypton-filled "Super Bulb". This is a three-way lamp having a krypton gas fill.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Krypton-filled "Super Bulb". This is a three-way lamp having a krypton gas fill.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1968
maker
Westinghouse Electric Corporation. Lamp Division
ID Number
1997.0389.52
accession number
1997.0389
catalog number
1997.0389.52

Ultraviolet Lamp

"Sterilamp" ultraviolet lamp with mercury. A lamp used for generating ozone as an air freshener.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
"Sterilamp" ultraviolet lamp with mercury. A lamp used for generating ozone as an air freshener.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1960
maker
Westinghouse Electric Corporation
ID Number
2001.0084.11
accession number
2001.0084
catalog number
2001.0084.11

Experimental Tungsten Halogen Lamps

Set of nine experimental tungsten halogen lamps from at least three test series.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Set of nine experimental tungsten halogen lamps from at least three test series.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1964
maker
Fridrich, Elmer G.
ID Number
1996.0147.81
accession number
1996.0147
catalog number
1996.0147.81

Experimental Short Arc Lamp

Experimental mini-arc lamp with air bubbles in one seal. Unusually small lamp.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Experimental mini-arc lamp with air bubbles in one seal. Unusually small lamp.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1966
maker
Fridrich, Elmer G.
ID Number
1996.0147.71
accession number
1996.0147
catalog number
1996.0147.71

Experimental Short Arc Lamp

Experimental mini-arc lamp with quartz envelope, welded foils, ceramic end caps and test leads.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Experimental mini-arc lamp with quartz envelope, welded foils, ceramic end caps and test leads.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1963
maker
Fridrich, Elmer G.
ID Number
1996.0147.76
accession number
1996.0147
catalog number
1996.0147.76

Experimental Heat Lamp

Tungsten heat lamp made with sand quartz process. Heat lamps led to visible light tungsten halogen lamps.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Tungsten heat lamp made with sand quartz process. Heat lamps led to visible light tungsten halogen lamps.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1963
maker
Fridrich, Elmer G.
ID Number
1996.0147.47
catalog number
1996.0147.47
accession number
1996.0147

Whaleback steamer Frank Rockefeller

Scotsman Alexander McDougall (1845-1924) was a ship captain on the Great Lakes when he patented the idea of a “whaleback” ship in the early 1880s. With low, rounded hulls, decks and deckhouses, his invention minimized water and wind resistance.
Description
Scotsman Alexander McDougall (1845-1924) was a ship captain on the Great Lakes when he patented the idea of a “whaleback” ship in the early 1880s. With low, rounded hulls, decks and deckhouses, his invention minimized water and wind resistance. Between 1887 and 1898, 44 whalebacks were produced: 23 were barges and 21 were steamships, including one passenger vessel.
Frank Rockefeller was the 36th example of the type, built in 1896 at a cost of $181,573.38 at McDougall’s American Steel Barge Company in Superior, WI. One of the larger examples of the type, Rockefeller measured 380 feet in length, drew 26 feet of water depth and had a single propeller.
Although it belonged to several different owners over its 73-year working life, the Rockefeller spent most of its early life transporting iron ore from mines in Lake Superior to steel mills along the shores of Lake Erie. In 1927, new owners put it in service as a sand dredge that hauled landfill sand for the 1933 Chicago World’s Fair. From 1936-1942 the old ship saw service as a car carrier for another set of owners. In 1942 the ship wrecked in Lake Michigan, but wartime demand for shipping gave the old ship repairs, a new name (Meteor) and a new life as a tanker transporting petroleum products for more than 25 years. In 1969 Meteor ran aground off the Michigan coast, Instead of repairing the old ship, the owners sold it for a museum ship at Superior, WI. In poor condition today, Meteor is the last surviving example of McDougal’s whaleback or “pig boat”.
Date made
1961
date the Frank Rockefeller was built
1896
patentee of whaleback ships
McDougall, Alexander
company that built the Frank Rockefeller
American Steel Barge Company
ID Number
TR.318433
catalog number
318433
accession number
236171

Reproduction Steinmetz Patent Lamp

A reproduction of Charles Steinmetz’s 1912 mercury vapor lamp made for defense of U.S. patent 3,234,421.
Description (Brief)
A reproduction of Charles Steinmetz’s 1912 mercury vapor lamp made for defense of U.S. patent 3,234,421.
date made
1965
maker
General Electric Lighting Company
ID Number
1996.0084.02
catalog number
1996.0084.02
accession number
1996.0084

Experimental Short Arc Lamp

Experimental mini-arc lamp with a round quartz arc-tube mounted inside an outer envelope.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Experimental mini-arc lamp with a round quartz arc-tube mounted inside an outer envelope.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1967
maker
Fridrich, Elmer G.
ID Number
1996.0147.79
accession number
1996.0147
catalog number
1996.0147.79

Home-made Laser

The term “home-made laser” almost seems a contradiction but that is not the case. This gas laser was built by high school student Stephen M. Fry in 1964, only four years after Ali Javan made the first gas laser at Bell Labs.
Description
The term “home-made laser” almost seems a contradiction but that is not the case. This gas laser was built by high school student Stephen M. Fry in 1964, only four years after Ali Javan made the first gas laser at Bell Labs. Fry followed plans published in Scientific American's "The Amateur Scientist" column in September 1964, (page 227).
The glass tube is filled with helium and neon and, as the magazine reported, "seems to consist merely of a gas-discharge tube that looks much like the letter 'I' in a neon sign; at the ends of the tube are flat windows that face a pair of small mirrors. Yet when power is applied, the device emits as many as six separate beams of intense light."
The discharge tube is the only piece of this particular laser that remains. The flat windows (called "Brewster windows") are square instead of round, and the electrodes are parallel to the gas tube instead of perpendicular. Otherwise it resembles the drawings in the magazine. Fry later earned a Ph.D. in physics with a dissertation on lasers.
Location
Currently not on view
Date made
1964
date ordered, given, or borrowed
1985-03-15
maker
Fry, Stephen M.
ID Number
1985.0269.01
accession number
1985.0269
catalog number
1985.0269.01

Experimental Short Arc Lamp

Incomplete experimental arc lamp. Excess glass has not been trimmed from the seal ends and the leads are loose.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Incomplete experimental arc lamp. Excess glass has not been trimmed from the seal ends and the leads are loose.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1967
maker
Fridrich, Elmer G.
ID Number
1996.0147.68
accession number
1996.0147
catalog number
1996.0147.68

Low Pressure Sodium Lamp

Low pressure sodium lamp with a pin-style base.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Low pressure sodium lamp with a pin-style base.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1960
maker
General Electric Company
ID Number
EM.323810
catalog number
323810
accession number
249200

Experimental Tungsten Halogen Lamp

Experimental tungsten halogen lamp with filament legs coiled around ends of the leads.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Experimental tungsten halogen lamp with filament legs coiled around ends of the leads.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1963
maker
Fridrich, Elmer G.
ID Number
1996.0147.37
accession number
1996.0147
catalog number
1996.0147.37

Arc Lamp Seal Assembly

Pre-pinch assembly for making tipless arc lamps. Molybdenum foil pressed into quartz tube.Currently not on view
Description (Brief)
Pre-pinch assembly for making tipless arc lamps. Molybdenum foil pressed into quartz tube.
Location
Currently not on view
date made
ca 1967
maker
Fridrich, Elmer G.
ID Number
1996.0147.13
accession number
1996.0147
catalog number
1996.0147.13

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