(1) (C RunTime) See runtime library.
(2) (Cathode Ray Tube) A vacuum tube used as a display screen in a computer monitor or TV. The viewing end of the tube is coated with phosphors, which emit light when struck by electrons.
In the past, CRT was a popular term for the entire computer display terminal. Today, "monitor" is the correct term as computer displays have shifted from CRTs to flat LCD panels (see flat panel display). Likewise, TV sets are widely available in LCD and plasma flat panel technologies. However, the CRT television is not over and done with. "Direct view" CRT sets come in wide screen, HDTV models that are more affordable and offer quality equal to or better than LCD and plasma TVs. See flat panel TV and rear-projection TV.
Electrons and Phosphors
The CRT works by heating a cathode which causes electrons to flow. Accelerating and focusing anodes turn the electrons into a fine beam that is directed to the phosphors by magnetic fields that are generated by steering coils. The viewing end of a color CRT tube is coated with red, green and blue phosphor dots, and separate "electron guns" bombard their respective colors a line at a time in a prescribed sequence (see raster scan).
The resulting color displayed on screen is derived by the intensity of the electron beams as they strike the red, green and blue phosphors and cause them to glow at each pixel location. See cathode and vacuum tube.
Back to the 1800s
The first oscilloscope tube was developed in 1897 by German scientist Ferdinand Braun. Using a fluorescent screen and still known as a "Braun tube" in Germany, his "cathode-ray oscilloscope" was used to display the patterns of electronic signals. Although better known for inventing the CRT, Braun shared the Nobel Prize in 1909 with Guglielmo Marconi for wireless telegraphy.
The Braun Tube
This is one of five CRT oscilloscopes developed by Ferdinand Braun in 1897. Using a bellows, it took a strong man to evacuate the air. The successor to Sir William Crookes' vacuum tubes some 20 years earlier, these tubes used \"cold\" cathodes, which means they were unheated, but required a huge voltage. (Image courtesy of O'Neill's Electronic Museum)
CRT Vs. Flat Panel
The CRT started to give way to flat panels in the late 1990s. Flat panels not only take up less space, but use less energy, emit less radiation and are generally resistant to glare. (Image courtesy of EIZO Nanao Technologies Inc.)
CRT Front Projection
The first data and TV projectors used CRTs, and although mostly abandoned, they continue to provide the highest quality. In 2000, this home theater was built by a serious video enthusiast, who enjoys tweaking the system and has no plans on replacing the CRTs. (Images courtesy of Kal of CurtPalm.com)
(2) (Cathode Ray Tube) A vacuum tube used as a display screen in a computer monitor or TV. The viewing end of the tube is coated with phosphors, which emit light when struck by electrons.
In the past, CRT was a popular term for the entire computer display terminal. Today, "monitor" is the correct term as computer displays have shifted from CRTs to flat LCD panels (see flat panel display). Likewise, TV sets are widely available in LCD and plasma flat panel technologies. However, the CRT television is not over and done with. "Direct view" CRT sets come in wide screen, HDTV models that are more affordable and offer quality equal to or better than LCD and plasma TVs. See flat panel TV and rear-projection TV.
Electrons and Phosphors
The CRT works by heating a cathode which causes electrons to flow. Accelerating and focusing anodes turn the electrons into a fine beam that is directed to the phosphors by magnetic fields that are generated by steering coils. The viewing end of a color CRT tube is coated with red, green and blue phosphor dots, and separate "electron guns" bombard their respective colors a line at a time in a prescribed sequence (see raster scan).
The resulting color displayed on screen is derived by the intensity of the electron beams as they strike the red, green and blue phosphors and cause them to glow at each pixel location. See cathode and vacuum tube.
Back to the 1800s
The first oscilloscope tube was developed in 1897 by German scientist Ferdinand Braun. Using a fluorescent screen and still known as a "Braun tube" in Germany, his "cathode-ray oscilloscope" was used to display the patterns of electronic signals. Although better known for inventing the CRT, Braun shared the Nobel Prize in 1909 with Guglielmo Marconi for wireless telegraphy.
The Braun Tube
This is one of five CRT oscilloscopes developed by Ferdinand Braun in 1897. Using a bellows, it took a strong man to evacuate the air. The successor to Sir William Crookes' vacuum tubes some 20 years earlier, these tubes used \"cold\" cathodes, which means they were unheated, but required a huge voltage. (Image courtesy of O'Neill's Electronic Museum)
CRT Vs. Flat Panel
The CRT started to give way to flat panels in the late 1990s. Flat panels not only take up less space, but use less energy, emit less radiation and are generally resistant to glare. (Image courtesy of EIZO Nanao Technologies Inc.)
CRT Front Projection
The first data and TV projectors used CRTs, and although mostly abandoned, they continue to provide the highest quality. In 2000, this home theater was built by a serious video enthusiast, who enjoys tweaking the system and has no plans on replacing the CRTs. (Images courtesy of Kal of CurtPalm.com)
 | Reproduced with permission from Computer Desktop Encyclopedia. Copyright (c) 1981-2009 The Computer Language Company Inc. All rights reserved. |
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