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Fluorescent Light Bulbs
Home » Lighting & Fans » Specialty Light Bulbs » Fluorescent Light BulbsFluorescent light bulbs produce light in a completely different way than regular, or incandescent, light bulbs do. Fluorescent light starts with electrodes at both ends of a tube; inside the tube is a gas that contains argon and mercury vapor. The inside of the tube is coated with phosphor. A stream of electrons moves back and forth between the electrodes, flowing through the gas and bumping into the mercury atoms. This excites the mercury atoms, and as they move between the excited state and the unexcited state, they give off ultraviolet photons. These photons hit the phosphor coating, which creates light. In other words, the phosphor fluoresces and produces light.
Fluorescent bulbs are very efficient since they produce very little heat. They are four to six times more efficient than incandescent light bulbs. Fluorescent bulbs are used in offices, stores, warehouses, and homes. A 15 watt fluorescent bulb gives off as much light as a 60 watt incandescent bulb. Compact fluorescent light bulbs can also be used in the sockets for incandescent bulbs.
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