Flourescent Lights

Light is a form of energy that can be released by an atom. It is made up of many small particle-like packets that have energy and momentum but no mass. These particles, called light photons, are the most basic units of light. Atoms release light photons when their electrons become excited. An atom's electrons have different levels of energy. Electrons of different energy levels occupy different orbitals. Generally, electrons with greater energy move in orbitals farther away from the nucleus.

When an atom gains or loses energy, it causes the electrons to move. For example, when heat passes energy on to an atom, an electron may be temporarily boosted to a higher orbital. The electron only stays in this position for a

When you turn the lamp on, the current flows through the electrical circuit to the electrodes. The voltage across the electrodes will make the electrons migrate through the gas from one end of the tube to the other. This energy changes some of the mercury in the tube from a liquid to a gas. As electrons and charged atoms move through the tube, some of them will collide with the gaseous mercury atoms. These collisions excite the atoms, bumping electrons up to higher energy levels. When the electrons return to their original energy level, they release light photons.

Fluorescent lamps come in all shapes and sizes, but they all work on the same basic principle: An electric current stimulates mercury atoms, which causes them to release ultraviolet photons. These photons in turn stimulate a phosphor, which emits visible light photons.

The wavelength of a photon is determined by the electron arrangement in the atom. The electrons in mercury atoms are arranged so that they mostly release light photons in the ultraviolet wavelength range. Our eyes don't see ultraviolet photons, so this sort of light needs to be converted into visible light to illuminate the lamp.

tiny fraction of a second; then it is immediately drawn back toward the nucleus, to its original orbital. As it returns to its original orbital, the electron releases the extra energy in the form of a photon, in this case a light photon.

Some topics in this essay:
, fluorescent lamps, electrical current, light photons, mercury atoms, incandescent light, fluorescent lamp, visible light, light bulbs, free electrons, incandescent light bulbs, release light photons, starter switch, ions free electrons, fluorescent lamps complex, electrons energy levels,