Collection Summary
Harald T. Friis Papers 1921-1976
1921-1976
MSS75865
Friis, Harald T. (Harald Trap),
1893-1976
600 items
8 containers
5 linear feet
English
Danish
Collection material in English and Danish
Manuscript Division, Library of Congress
Washington, D.C.
Radio engineer and inventor.
Correspondence and other papers relating to Friis's work on radio transmission, radio
astronomy, and microwaves.
Selected Search Terms
The following terms have been used to index the description of this collection in the LC Catalog. They are grouped by name of person or organization, by subject or location, and by occupation and listed alphabetically.
People
Friis, Harald T. (Harald Trap), 1893-1976.
Friis, Harald T. (Harald Trap), 1893-1976. Seventy-five years in an exciting world.
Organizations
Bell Telephone Laboratories.
Subjects
Antennas (Electronics)
Microwaves.
Radio astronomy.
Radio noise.
Radio--Antennas.
Radio--Equipment and supplies.
Radio--Patents.
Radio--Transmitters and transmission.
Radio.
Occupations
Inventors.
Radio engineers.
Provenance
The papers of Harald T. Friis, radio engineer and inventor, were given to the Library
of Congress by Mrs. Harald T. Friis in 1977.
Processing History
The Friis Papers were processed in 1981. The finding aid was revised in 2014.
Copyright Status
The status of copyright in the unpublished writings of Harald T. Friis is governed by
the Copyright Law of the United States (Title 17, U.S.C.).
Access and Restrictions
The papers of Harald T. Friis are open to research. Researchers are advised to
contact the Manuscript Reading Room prior to visiting. Many collections are stored
off-site and advance notice is needed to retrieve these items for research use.
Preferred Citation
Researchers wishing to cite this collection should include the following information:
Container number, Harald T. Friis Papers, Manuscript Division, Library of Congress,
Washington, D.C.
Biographical Note
Date
Event
1893
Born, Naestved, Denmark
1916
Graduated in electrical engineering, Royal Technical College, Copenhagen,
Denmark, and started working at Royal Gun Factory
1919
Studied radio engineering, Columbia University, New York, N.Y.
1920
1958
Employed with research group at Western Electric Co., which became part of
Bell Telephone Laboratories in 1925
1923
1928
Published IRE (Institute of Radio Engineers) papers on radio signal to noise
ratio, directional antennas, and oscillographic observations
1930s
Developed with colleague Karl Jansky a new science of radio astronomy by
assisting in the design of receiving system; co-invented with Edmond Bruce rhombic
antenna for shortwave radio
1938
Appointed director, research team at Homdel Laboratory of Bell Labs
1940s
Research group under his direction developed microwave radar and microwave
communication equipment
1946
Published formula for transmission loss, the Friis transmission
equation
1954
Recipient, Valdemar Poulsen Medal of the Danish Academy of Sciences
1955
Recipient, IRE Medal of Honor (now the IEEE Medal of Honor)
1958
Recipient, Ballentine Medal from the Franklin Institute
1958
Retired from Bell Labs
1958
circa 1968
Research consultant, Hewlett-Packard Co.
1971
Published
Seventy Five Years in an Exciting World
. San
Francisco: San Francisco Press
1976, June 15
Died, Palo Alto, Calif.
Scope and Content Note
The papers of Harald Trap Friis (1893-1976) span the years 1921-1976. The papers are in
English and Danish and are organized alphabetically by type of material and by subject
matter with a miscellany at the end composed of awards, photographs, scrapbooks and
printed matter.
After studying in Denmark and at Columbia University, Friis spent his career at Bell
Telephone Laboratories as a researcher in various aspects of radio engineering. The
papers relate to his work in radio transmission, signal to noise ratio, radio astronomy,
antennas, and microwave transmission and equipment. Included are correspondence, notes,
diagrams, patents, writings, scrapbooks, printed matter, photographs, and material for
the writing of his 1971 memoir
Seventy-Five Years in an Exciting World
.
The photograph album from Bell Telephone Laboratories covers his long career with that
company. Photographs document radio equipment, antenna designs including large antennas
for radio astronomy, his co-workers, and the Holmdel laboratory facility.
Arrangement of the Papers
This collection is arranged alphabetically by type of material and subject matter.
Catalog Record: [https://lccn.loc.gov/mm81075865]
Container List
Container
Contents
1
Notes, 1943-1970
1943-1970
(12 folders)
2
Subject file
2
Amplifier, 1954
1954
2
Antenna towers, 1956-1957
1956-1957
2
Antenna sputnik radar, 1956-1965
1956-1965
2
Booton Radio Corp., 1960-1962
1960-1962
2
Clogston cable, 1950
1950
2
Dielectric antennas, 1951-1957
1951-1957
2
Edison Medal, 1974
1974
2
Frequency converter, 1959-1968
1959-1968
2
Frequency modulation diversity FM feedback phase
set, 1953-1963
1953-1963
2
Friis Fellowship, Stanford University, Stanford,
Calif., 1976
1976
2
Gaussian, Rayleigh 1956-1957
1956-1957
3
Jansky, Karl, 1928-1933
1928-1933
3
Laboratory, 1956-1957
1956-1957
3
Masers, varicaps, 1959-1960
1959-1960
3
Noise figures, 1942-1944, 1957-1959
1942-1944, 1957-1959
3
Nonlinear circuits, 1951-1954, 1957-1963
1951-1954, 1957-1963
3
Old antenna, 1924-1939
1924-1939
3
Oswald, A. A., 1937
1937
3
Patents, 1926-1963
1926-1963
3
Propagation, 1950-1959
1950-1959
3
Special circuits, 1960
1960
3
Timing pulses, 1955
1955
3
Transmission formula, 1936, 1946, 1971
1936, 1946, 1971
3
Transistors, 1958-1963
1958-1963
3
Tuning, 1944
1944
3
Waveguides, 1946-1959
1946-1959
3
Waveguides and transmission lines, 1940-1959
1940-1959
3
Wheeler Laboratories, 1959-1961
1959-1961
4
Writings
4
Hewlett-Packard Co. book, 1971-1974, undated
1971-1974, undated
(2 folders)
4
Noise, 1924,
1928
1924,
1928
4
Reprints, 1946-1971
1946-1971
4
Research, 1950, 1957
1950, 1957
4
Seventy-Five Years in an Exciting World
4
Correspondence, 1954-1979
1954-1979
(4 folders)
4
Illustrations and photographs, 1930-1969, undated
1930-1969, undated
4
Research and old writings file, 1921-1960
1921-1960
(2 folders)
4
Thirty Years with microwave, 1968-1969
1968-1969
5
Miscellany
5
Awards and certificates
6
Scrapbooks
6
Photograph album, Bell Telephone Laboratories,
circa 1925-1957
circa 1925-1957
7
Printed matter
8
Printed matter