Re: home grown plasma globe

["Tesla list" <tesla@xxxxxxxxxx>]

Original poster: BunnyKiller <bunikllr@xxxxxxx>

Hi Mike...

just a rough guess but I would start at 10KV 20mA...   plus you only 
need to go for 11" if you place the electrode in the center of the 
flask.  As far as using the power supply from the computer...  I 
would go for a totally seperate supply   RF does some really nasty 
things in the presence of computers. I have one of those lightning 
discs ( from Walmart for 26$) and placed it within 3 feet of my 
computer and it would cause the computer to crash quite 
often....  now the disc is in the living room :)~

gas mix and pressure is very important as to what kind of display you 
will get, a (very)low pressure system will give you more wispy 
streamers as to where a higher pressure( still near vacuum) will give 
you more lightning bolt effects. At near atmospherical or 
pressuredized systems will require 120KV+ and serious amps... ( a 
tesla coil will work here)

Scot D



Tesla list wrote:

> Original poster: "Mike" <mike.marcum@xxxxxxxxxxxx>
>
> I plan on getting (eventually) a 75L round-bottom flask to make a 
> 22" plasma globe, hopefully with white or blue sparks (argon or N2). 
> Is there a cookbook somewhere on how to do this? I already have a 
> vacuum pump that can go down to 20 micron with a digital guage on it 
> (refridgeration type). I plan on trying to make it look like the 
> sparks from the 12" ones at Spencers and not just a bright glow when 
> it's touched. How much voltage/current do i need to jump 22" and 
> what's the output waveform and frequency usually? I guess that 
> depends on the gas and pressure but just need a ballpark figure. Now 
> I wish I woulda saved my old plasma driver board when the 12" globe 
> went belly up so I coulda took some measurements. I plan on using 
> this to decorate my pc case and run it off 1 of the 12vdc rails of 
> the atx supply.
>
> Mike