GR-874 connector
General Radio 874 (GR-874) connectors are hermaphroditic (asexual) coaxial RF connectors developed by General Radio in the late 1940s, initially for applications up to "4500 Mc" (4.5 GHz).
GR-874 connectors are carefully engineered to keep a constant impedance throughout the signal path, by varying connector diameters between free-air and dielectrically supported sections. These connectors therefore exhibit very little reflection and are well suited for gigahertz and pulse applications.
They are typically for 50 Ω impedance. Versions for 75 Ω and 125 Ω were also available using the same ground shield and housing, but different (thinner) center pin geometry. The Tektronix 519 uses the 125 Ω GR-874 variant.
The regular 50 Ω version is used in the 1S1, 1S2, 3S1, 3S7, 3T7, 4S1, 4S2, 5T1, 5T1A, 5T3, 7M11, N, S-1, S-2, 106, 109, 110, 113, 191, 280, 281, 282, P6051 and possibly others.
Different versions of the connector have different maximum voltage ratings; 1000 V is typical. There are locking and non-locking versions.
By the 1970s, GR-874 connectors were being supplanted by SMA connectors in test equipment, see e.g. the progression from the S-1 to the S-4 sampling heads.
GR-874 connectors continue to be available through [IET Labs].
Links
- A Radically New Coaxial Connector for the Laboratory. General Radio Experimenter, Volume XXIII No.5, October 1948
- New and Improved Coaxial Connectors. General Radio Experimenter, Volume 35 No.10, October 1961
- GR-874 Section of 1973 General Radio Catalog (PDF)
- http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GR_connector
- US Patent #2548457, Coaxial connector for high-frequency transmission lines. Filed 10 Jan 1947, granted 10 Apr 1951.
- MGS sales list of GR874 hardware
- 017-053 adapter
Pictures
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GR-874 connectors on a 106 pulse generator
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50 Ω GR-874 connector
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125 Ω GR-874 connector
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Two 75 Ω and one 50 Ω GR-874 connectors
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An assortment of GR-874 connectors and adapters
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GR-874 50 Ω Terminator
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7M11 delay line front panel with four GR-874 connectors
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GR-874 connector on S-1 sampling head
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Patent drawings from US2548457