Americus times-recorder. [volume] (Americus, Ga.) 1891-current, 1922-05-17
Only in Experimental Stage, but
Scientists Have Faith in Its
Possibilities.
SOFT ORANGE COLORED GLOW
Research Work at Massachusetts In
stitute of Technology Has Sue
ceeded in Producing Light
Without Wires.


supposes for an instant that our light
Ing problems have been solved. Com
pared with what the future will bring
forth the present arrangement of
wires with bulbs that have to be
screwed into their sockets and renewed
frequently is cumbersome and inef-
ficient. Research work at the Massa-
chusetts Institute of Technology has
succeeded in producing a light with
out wires that is to say, the mean
descence is set up by induction, where
the electric current bridges an inter
val purely by electric energy. To be
sure the light is only an experiment
and so far is not practical for COM
mercial purposes, but the method has
possibilities.
The Test.
The research division of the depart
ment of electrical engineering expert
ments with a tube filed with neon gas
have beenA carried to the point where
the tube has been caused to give out
light, although no wires have been at
tached to it. In the ordinary form Of
electric illumination the light is usual
~ produced by an incandescent form
Of filament or by carbon electrodes.
The life of both Of these types is linn
tied by the burning out of the i'm
candescent element OF course, in the
case Of the arc lamp this can be cas-
ilN renewed, but at the cost of fire.
quent trimming. The type of mean
descent bulb In common use has been
improved through the substitution of
tungsten for the carbon filament. Sew
eral types of lamp using incandescent
vapor have been developed, and have
been used both experimentally and
commercially. The Moore light used
very long tubes filled with carbon
diOXide or nitrogen, which were caused
to glow through the discharge of high
voltage electric current through the
glass. This type was not much used
commercially, but a similar lamp
known as the COoper-Hewitt mercury
vapor lamp is at present in general
use in a great variety OF. places.
among them the motion,picture stu
dos. Both Of these types require cleo
trOdes, or terminals, sealed in the
glass, but they have a long life be
cause there are no parts which wear
out or burn out.
The instrument.
The experiments conducted at the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
used glass tube closed upon itself
in the form of ring. This ring was
slipped over an iron core wound with
the proper number of turns of wire
through which alternating current was
ing through the glass tube, then in
duced voltage In the gas contained
therein, and If the parts were properly
proportional this voltage iOnized the
vapOr and caused It to glow, giving
out light in a similar manner TO the
Moore and the COOper-Hewitt lamps,
but of pleasing orange color. Neon
gas at low pressure was used since
it has desirable characteristics for this
purpose, and high-freQuency current
of about 100000 cycles was employed
to excite the transformer.
The new lamp is only in the ex-
detrimental stage at present and the
amount of light given out is not large,
but the possibilities are interesting. 1t
could be commercially made in the
form of a standard fixture around
which the glass tubes could be slipped
The lamp will last indefinitely unless
the glass is broken, and then it is
only necessary to slip a new tube In
place, no electrical connections being
required. The quality of the light is
soft and pleasing, and as it is not of
high intensity it does not strain the
eyes.