[sdiy] Tube on a Chip from early 80s

[Theo]

There was research done at Delft University in the '80 on tubes small enough
to be PART of a IC structure.
Its said they manufactured opamps with tube input stages with this.
Don't think there was ever a commercial application.

Theo


From: Terry Michaels <104065.2340 at compuserve.com>

> Message text written by INTERNET:xyzzy at sysabend.org
> >I remember reading in the early 80s an artical in IEEE Spectrum about a
> company developing, if I remember correctly, plastic incased miniature
> vacuum tubes.  These were housed in multiples in packages that looked
> like bulky ICs or hybrids.  In order to find the artical again I would
> have to pull 30+ years of Spectrum out of my parents attic and read
> every one from the 80s so I figured I'd ask here first.  I'm betting
> they had applications in military equipment, but I'm also a little
> curious if they ever made production and if so could they be used in
> interesting audio circuits.
>
> Anyway... is my brain fried from all those things I did in the
> mid 80s or does someone else remember this artical?
>
> Wouldnt a complete/complex modular that was all tube be kinda cool? :-)<
>
> The smallest vacuum tube that was in commercial production was RCA's
> Nuvistor, AFAIK.  It's not a whole lot bigger than some of the early metal
> cased transistors.  Example: 6CW4.
>
> Terry Michaels