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Having never finished grade school, self-taught engineer Percy LeBaron Spencer seemed an unlikely candidate to invent something that would revolutionize the way Americans lived. Still, that didn't stop him from accidentally discovering the technology to construct the first microwave oven in 1945.
Spencer worked for Raytheon Manufacturing Company (now Raytheon Technologies) in a department conducting radar systems experiments with magnetrons - vacuum tubes that produced microwave radiation. One day while he was experimenting with the tubes, he realized the chocolate bar stashed in his pocket had melted.
Intrigued, he further tested placing other foods near the radioactive waves. As popcorn kernels popped and eggs vibrated before bursting, Spencer considered the notion that the vacuum tubes' energy might quickly cook foods exposed to lower-density currents.
Spencer constructed a metal box to hold the radioactive waves, knowing that the currents couldn't pass through metal. After realizing his discovery led to faster food cooking times versus a traditional oven, he filed for a patent in October 1945.
The first restaurant to commercially test the “Radarange” microwave oven was Hotel Statler in Boston (now the Park Plaza Hotel) in May 1947, but it took time before the trendy appliance landed in 90% of American households. The first ones were costly and almost the same size as a standard oven, making them inconvenient for most homes. Additionally, many potential consumers worried that exposing food to microwave radiation might produce harmful side effects.
In 1967, Raytheon finally produced the first system small enough to fit on a typical American countertop. To add to the appeal, the appliance cost less than $500.
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