William d. coolidge biography

          Coolidge (born October 23, , Hudson, Massachusetts, U.S.—died February 3, , Schenectady, New York) was an....

          William David Coolidge was born in Hudson, Massachu- setts, near Boston, on October 23, , and he died on February 3, in Schenectady, New York.

          William D. Coolidge

          Dr. W. D. Coolidge (1873-1975) was one of the most important innovators of the 20th century. Coolidge developed the ductile tungsten filament used in lightbulbs, fluorescent lamps, car ignitions and vacuum tubes.

          He worked on transformers and cathode ray tubes, high vacuum tubes and he was one of the early leaders at the General Electric Research Lab. He had a remarkable understanding of physics and made improvements to many technologies.


          Tungsten filaments replaced tantalum filaments in 1911 and have reigned as the filament of choice ever since.

          Before Coolidge's work lightbulb filaments were made with more fragile sintered tungsten, tantalum, bamboo or carbon.

          › Science › Chemistry.

        1. William David Coolidge was an American physicist and engineer, who made major contributions to X-ray machines.
        2. Coolidge (born October 23, , Hudson, Massachusetts, U.S.—died February 3, , Schenectady, New York) was an.
        3. William David Coolidge was an American physicist and engineer, who made major contributions to X-ray machines.
        4. Dr.
        5. Ductile tungsten allowed the bulb to last longer and produce brighter light.

          Condensed Biography:


          A young William Coolidge

          William Coolidge was born October 23, 1873 in Hudson, Massachusetts.

          Entering Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) he elected to major in electrical engineer