Fluorescent lightbulb
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Fluorescent light bulbs are lamps that use the phenomena of fluorescence to produce light. Fluorescence is the emission of radiation by a substance that is exposed to an external source of radiation.[1] They are much more efficient than traditional incandescent bulbs, since incandescent bulbs waste most of their energy producing heat rather than light.[2]
Operation
Fluorescent bulbs consist of glass tubes filled with low pressure mercury-argon vapor. The inner wall of the tube is coated with a white phosphor. A heated filament emits electrons into the vapor, causing the vapor atoms to emit ultraviolet light. This ultraviolet light is then absorbed by the white phosphor and re-emitted as visible light.[3]
Footnotes
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