On 12/19/05, Robin van Spaandonk <[EMAIL PROTECTED]> wrote:
In reply to William Beaty's message of Mon, 19 Dec 2005 10:50:46
-0800 (PST):
Hi,
[snip]
>Mix 1 tablespoon baking soda in 1 pint water.
>Cut two electrodes from an aluminum pie dish
>Place the elctrodes on opposite sides of a jam-jar.
>
>Connect the electrolytic cell in series with a 75 watt lamp
>to a 120 volt AC line supply - or better, through a 1:1
>isolation transformer. Care!
>
>The light quickly dims.
>In a dark room, the electrodes glow.
>
>See <http://home.earthlink.net/~lenyr/borax.htm >
>
>What is the mechanism?
[snip]
If the electrodes do indeed form diodes, and the glow occurs
during reverse bias, then that is when a high voltage falls across
a very thin chemical layer. The electron leakage current could be
sufficiently accelerated to produce energetic electrons capable of
exciting high energy (i.e. blue) transitions within the atoms.
Regards,
Robin van Spaandonk
http://users.bigpond.net.au/rvanspaa/
Competition provides the motivation,
Cooperation provides the means.
--
"Monsieur l'abbé, I detest what you write, but I would give my life to make it possible for you to continue to write" Voltaire
