How Do Light Bulbs Work?

Although Thomas Edison is often credited with the invention of the incandescent light bulb, It really took a series of events to develop it. He is the one who discovered the best filament to use. But I guess I’m ahead of myself. Let’s talk about what a light bulb is first.

There are several kinds of light bulbs. Incandescent lights, the lights with the glowing wire inside, where the first. They contain a coiled wire filament, a clear bulb, and a screw type base to connect it to the electricity. Most of the air is removed from the bulb so that the filament doesn’t burn up. This makes the light last a lot longer. The filament is made of a metal, usually tungsten, that has a high resistance. That means it’s hard for the electricity to push through it. This causes the filament to heat up and glow. If you hold your hand by it, you can feel the heat. Sometimes they make the glass of the bulb have a frosted look. This makes the light spread out a little so it doesn’t hurt your eyes.

Fluorescent lights are usually a tube of glass that has a smaller filament on both sides. The inside of the tube is coated with a chemical called phosphorus. There is hardly any air inside, but they add a very small amount of mercury vapor.  When the filaments are electrified, they get the molecules of mercury vapor all excited. The molecules move around very quickly until they give off a burst of energy. This energy hits the phosphorus and causes it to glow. As long as the electricity is on, the molecules keep moving and releasing energy. This give you light.

Neon lights are glass tubes with a special gas in them, usually neon or argon. The light has a special device that gives them a high voltage shock, causing the gas to glow. Each gas has its own color.

A newer kind of light is the LED.

It stands for light emitting diode. They come in various shapes and colors. They are made with a special device called a diode that is a type of microchip. When a current of electricity passes through it, it gives off light. They do not need to use very much energy, but still produce a good amount of light. They are small and can last a long time. This makes them useful for many things. You see them in Christmas lights, flashlights, and all kind of computer stuff. Most of the new lightbulbs are LEDs.

If you still want to know more, here is a short video about it.

Hope you like it!

Until next time,

Love Papaw.