Comeback For The Incandescent Light Bulb?
- 8 years ago
Researchers from MIT and Purdue University have developed a method they say could make incandescent light bulbs even more efficient than compact fluorescents and LEDs.
Thomas Edison's incandescent light bulb is in the process of being phased out in favor of more efficient alternatives. But through nanophotonic technology, the warm glow of traditional bulbs may be making a comeback.
According to the write-up of a recent study by MIT and Purdue University researchers, "The first stage involves a conventional heated metal filament, with all its attendant losses. But instead of allowing the waste heat to dissipate in the form of infrared radiation, secondary structures surrounding the filament capture this radiation and reflect it back to the filament to be re-absorbed and re-emitted as visible light."
Thomas Edison's incandescent light bulb is in the process of being phased out in favor of more efficient alternatives. But through nanophotonic technology, the warm glow of traditional bulbs may be making a comeback.
According to the write-up of a recent study by MIT and Purdue University researchers, "The first stage involves a conventional heated metal filament, with all its attendant losses. But instead of allowing the waste heat to dissipate in the form of infrared radiation, secondary structures surrounding the filament capture this radiation and reflect it back to the filament to be re-absorbed and re-emitted as visible light."