

These early bulbs had extremely short lifespans, were too expensive to produce or used too much energy. In 1835, the first constant electric light was demonstrated, and for the next 40 years, scientists around the world worked on the incandescent lamp, tinkering with the filament (the part of the bulb that produces light when heated by an electrical current) and the bulb’s atmosphere (whether air is vacuumed out of the bulb or it is filled with an inert gas to prevent the filament from oxidizing and burning out). Long before Thomas Edison patented - first in 1879 and then a year later in 1880 - and began commercializing his incandescent light bulb, British inventors were demonstrating that electric light was possible with the arc lamp.
#Light bulb experiment radioshark series#
It was a series of small improvements on the ideas of previous inventors that have led to the light bulbs we use in our homes today. Like all great inventions, the light bulb can’t be credited to one inventor.

It also led to new energy breakthroughs - from power plants and electric transmission lines to home appliances and electric motors. This invention changed the way we design buildings, increased the length of the average workday and jumpstarted new businesses.
#Light bulb experiment radioshark free#
We have a number of solder stations in our "science and technology center" that the students are free to use on their projects.More than 150 years ago, inventors began working on a bright idea that would have a dramatic impact on how we use energy in our homes and offices. Where do you think the energy in each electron goes as it passes through the LED?) As for attaching wires to bulbs and LEDs, I taught my students to solder. Interesting fact: the energy (wavelength) of the emitted photons is approximately equal to the voltage drop. Light output is directly proportional to current over a very wide range. the current is constant regardless of voltage drop, LEDs work very well. What function best fits the curve?) OTOH, if you have a current source, i.e.

(Interesting experiment: graph voltage drop and current flow. This is why resistors are placed in series with LEDs - to limit the current. 0.1V, will result in a very large change in current and hence light output. The problem is, a small change in voltage, e.g. Yes the resistance does change with temperature but over the normal operating range, current is proportional to applied voltage and vice-versa. One of the main reasons one uses a light bulb instead of an LED is that light bulbs are resistors and can act as a poor-man's voltmeter, i.e.

This response is a few years late but someone else might be looking for flashlight bulb sockets as I was. I bet a LASER CUTTER could do the job really well! Go slow drilling the tongue depressor they're thin and weak and tend to split. Ta Da! Done! I figure a teacher or instructor or parent with access to tools like a "clamp" and a "drill press" could cut and drill a couple of hundred of these in an hour for minimal cost. Secure the pieces together with the rubber band, which provides spring-like tension. Position the other half of the TD so that the bulbs nipple is wedged between the loops of wire. so that it pushes the wire into contact with the flange. Stick the bulb through the hole in the T.D. Wrap the other piece of wire around the bottom of the glass bulb, just above the flange, and twist it onto itself so it stays. Near the end of one half, drill a hole that the glass part of the bulb will fit through, but not the flange (typically, this will be between 3/8 and 7/16 inch.) At the end of the other side, put a couple notches to hold the wire in place and wrap one wire around at least twice. (grr.) So, you take your tongue depressor and cut it in half. The wire here is from cat5 ethernet cables, which get thrown out by the cartload cause they're too expensive to have a highly paid networking engineer untangle them after they've been used once. You'll need a tongue depressor, a rubber band, and some solid wire.
