Quartz crystals

Quartz crystals are used for electronic timekeeping and can be found in nearly everything. A nice history of the technology can be found here: A History Of The Quartz Crystal Industry In The USA

With the aid of many of the people who were involved, this paper is an attempt to record the history of the quartz crystal industry in the USA. Although crystal units were in use at least a decade earlier, the beginning of the quartz crystal industry in the USA can logically be dated November 1941 when the Quartz Crystal Section was organized in the Office of the Chief Signal Officer.

The history of the industry is traced from its origin with the discovery of Piezoelectricity by the Curie brothers in 1880-81 to the present time. Special emphasis is placed upon the problems which were encountered and overcome in creating an industry capable of meeting the demands of the Armed Services of the United States and their Allies during WW II.

The record of cooperation among the large and small industries, governmental agencies, the armed services, universities and individual citizens inspires confidence that the most critical problem can be solved with cooperation, dedication and effort.

A long and fascinating read. Much more at the site here.