autoheterodyne
|au-to-het-er-o-dyne|
🇺🇸
/ˌɔːtoʊˈhɛtərədaɪn/
🇬🇧
/ˌɔːtəʊˈhɛtərədaɪn/
self-mixing in radio/electronics
Etymology
'autoheterodyne' originates from Greek-derived elements, specifically 'auto-' from Greek 'autós' meaning 'self' and 'heterodyne' formed from Greek 'heteros' meaning 'other/different' + 'dyne' from Greek 'dýnamis' meaning 'power' (used in technical coinage).
'heterodyne' was coined in the late 19th to early 20th century in radio engineering to describe mixing of different frequencies; 'autoheterodyne' developed thereafter as a compound term combining 'auto-' and 'heterodyne' to denote self-generated heterodyning (seen in early 20th-century receiver descriptions).
Initially, related terms focused on the general act of mixing different frequencies; over time 'autoheterodyne' came to specify mixing performed using an internally generated oscillation (self-heterodyning).
Meanings by Part of Speech
Noun 1
a radio or electronic circuit in which an incoming signal is mixed with an oscillation generated within the same device (a self-generated local oscillation) to produce a beat (heterodyne) frequency; a self-heterodyning receiver or mixer (also called an autodyne).
The experiment used an autoheterodyne circuit to convert high-frequency signals to an intermediate frequency without an external local oscillator.
Synonyms
Noun 2
(more general/technical) The process or principle of self-heterodyning—producing new frequencies by mixing a signal with an internally generated oscillation within a single device or stage.
Documentation described the device's operation as an autoheterodyne process, where the same stage acted as oscillator and mixer.
Synonyms
Last updated: 2025/11/25 23:24