Why do CFl lightbulbs tend to glow after being turned off?
Awesome question! CFL stands for Compact FLUORESCENT Light. The fluorescent bit is the important part. Think back to what you know about the structure of the atom. There is a central nucleus, and then outside the nucleus are the electrons. You can think of them as orbiting the nucleus (this is not exactly correct, but this description will suffice). OK, remember those electrons. Second, if you have ever broken a CFL light bulb (not recommended) it is full of white powder. The bulb sends electric current into this white powder. The atoms of the white powder respond when they are placed in a current, and the electrons orbiting the nucleus jump up to a higher orbit around the nucleus. After staying there for a bit, they fall back down to their original orbit and when they do this, they emit a photon, or 1 particle of light! Now, multiply that by millions and millions of atoms inside the light bulb, and these emitted photons are what make the light, um . . .light up. Now, when you shut off the electric current (like by turning the light off), lots of electrons are still in their higher orbits, or "excited states" as they are called. It takes some time for the electrons to return to their lower orbits, and as they do that the light continues to glow, until all the electrons have relaxed. This process of continued glowing is fluorescence. What is really cool is that if you have a black light, lots of different rocks do exactly the same thing. Take a black light out some time at night and you will probably be surprised by what you find.
Why do CFL bulbs which are not plugged in glow when shaken or gently tapped? Is this normal, or does it mean our house is maybe too close to the power lines?
“Why do CFL bulbs which are not plugged in glow when shaken or gently tapped? Is this normal, or does it mean our house is maybe too close to the power lines?”Most gas discharge lamps can exhibit this symptom. They’re filled with some easy to ionize gas, e.g. neon to start the discharge. These lamps start emitting dim light at very low electric powers. Do you know this?It’s a voltage detector screwdriver. There is a small neon lamp and a resistor (around 1Mohm) in the transparent body. You stick it into the mains and complete the circuit by touching the other end with a finger. The extremely low current, in the order of microampers is far not strong enough to cause any sensation as it’s passing through your body, but it’s enough to excite the neon gas into a dim orange glow.The same is happening in CFL bulbs. Any minuscule stray current, radio waves, quickly changing electric field is enough to ionize the gas and produce light. Static electricity without an actual discharge works too. Moving a charged object around the CFL lights it up. I believe this is what’s happening.
Why do some CFL light bulbs take time to glow after switched on?
These CFLs have different starter circuit . These are programmed for warm start .. So initially a very low current goes to heat up the lamp and then current increases to increase the glow .. This way it increases the life of lamp operation .
Trouble with my fluorescent light - only turns on when I touch the bulb?
I know this sounds crazy - I have a fluorescent light on my aquarium. It's on a timer, and was working as expected for nearly a year (my brother had the aquarium previously and it worked for him). Well it quit working one day, so I bought a replacement bulb but it still didn't work. I bought a second bulb and it still didn't work (didn't turn on at all), My dad replaced the ballast and switch and we thought it was working (it worked during testing). BUT when my timer turns it on, it doesn't appear to be working. I turn over the hood and the bulb has a very dim glow of orange-ish light on each end of the bulb. As soon as I TOUCH the bulb (in the middle, or anywhere), it works!! I don't understand what else could be the problem. I've re-inserted the bulb to make sure it was secure, but I can't think of what would cause it to not work until I touch it...ideas??
Why don't people glow like light bulbs?
We do glow, but not with a frequency that the human eye can see. If you look at the human body with an infrared camera you will see the heat glow.
How does a cfl glow?
CFL - Compact Fluorescent LampCFL is basically a fluorescent lamp. It is filled with mercury vapours. When the current is applied it creates ultraviolet rays due to discharging through mercury vapour medium.The glass tube of fluorescent lamp is coated with fluorescent material such absorbs UV radiation and re-emits as white light.
If you put 120v through your body and touch a light bulb, will the bulb light if you touch the base contacts?
The correct circuit would be to ground one contact of the bulb and touch the other bulb contact with your body (which is also in contact with a 120VAC source). You’re trying to turn your body into a conductive wire.The answer is no.First off, 120VAC is considered painful, but not typically deadly. That’s because your body creates resistance. 100mA is about the threshold your heart and lungs can take before function is interrupted and you potentially die. Depending on the path the electricity takes, that much current probably won’t reach your heart because your body is a large resistor.Of course, voltage overcomes resistance. Raise the voltage and more amps will reach your heart and lungs, killing you.Because your body creates so much resistance, this also means you would not get enough power from one end, to the other, in order to light the bulb. The current would just be too low. Potentially, you could light the bulb by making the distance shorter, say through the narrowest part of your finger, however, that much current would likely severely burn your skin, as well as the insides of your finger.
Why does the filament of a light bulb glow while the connecting wires do not?
The filament completes the circut. It glows because it is getting the charge that the two wires bring into the equation. When the filament goes out the bulb stops glowing becuase it can't make a whole connection. The wires are just small factor, it's the filament that gives off light.