How does a fluorescent light bulb work?
A fluorescent lamp consists of a glass tube that is filled with mercury vapor at low pressure. The inside of the tube is coated with a phosphorous substance. Two coiled metal (tungsten) filaments are at each end of the tube. When an electric current flows through the filaments they start to get hot and glow (like a regular light bulb). When we apply a voltage between the two filaments and electrons get sucked from one filament to the other. While zipping through the tube, electrons crash into mercury atoms, which start to glow and send out ultra-violet (UV) light. UV-light is very, very violet. Actually it is so violet that you can’t see it, but you can get a sunburn from it. So on its own UV-light wouldn’t make a useful lamp: that’s why there is a phosphorous substance in the inside of the glass tube. When UV-light hits the phosphor atoms, they absorb the UV light and send out the white light that illuminates your room. The conversion of light from one type to another is called fluore
A fluorescent light bulb is a high efficiency lamp that uses an electric discharge through low pressure mercury vapor to produce ultra-violet (UV) energy. The UV excites phosphor materials applied as a thin layer on the inside of a glass tubes which makes up the structure of the lamps. The phosphors transform the UV to visible light.
A fluorescent light bulb is filled with argon gas and mercury vapor. Electricity is passed between two naked contact points within the tube. This super heats the mercury vapour turning it into a plasma. this in turn gives off invisible UV light. The glass of the bulb is coated with a phosphor which fluoresces in the presence of UV light. This in turn produces visible light.
