Something that I’ve noticed across most of the microwave ovens that I’ve used is that when they hum while cooking food, I can pick out 2 distinct tones. One of them is pretty clearly 60 120 hz, the 2nd harmonic of the AC power frequency. The other is consistently a minor 7th above that (which would be somewhere around 106-108 212-214 hz depending on the exact ratio). What causes this 2nd frequency to be produced?
Edit: after checking against a tone generator, the low frequency is actually 120 hz, double the grid frequency. The question is still the same, just an octave higher.
A few microwaves don’t do that because they’re able to continuously run the magnetron at less than full power by using an inverter instead of a transformer.