Re: What about this experiment? Was Neon Tube sources.

["Jim Lux" <jimlux-at-xxxxxxxxxxxxx> (by way of Terry Fritz <twftesla-at-xxxxxxxxxx>)]

Tesla list wrote:
> 
> Original poster: "Mike Harrison" <mike-at-whitewing.co.uk>
> 
> On Thu, 09 Nov 2000 11:35:54 -0700, you wrote:
> 
> >Original poster: "Jim Lux" <jimlux-at-earthlink-dot-net>
> >
> >Similar phosphors in CRTs... Usually some sort of sulfide (ZnS is common)
> >with an "activating" ion which determines the color, etc.  Rare earths
> >(Yttrium, etc.) give the reds..
> >
> >In any case, the efield won't do anything... In the CRT case it is the
> >electrons hitting the phosphor.. in the fluorescent (and luminious gas lamp
> >"aka" neon) it is the UV
> 
> Without wanting to digress into a deep quantum physics discussion,
> what's an electrostatic field if not a bunch of electrons (or lack of
> them)....

electric field, not electrostatic...  the field is the result of an excess
or lack of electrons, but the field exists where there aren't any
electrons... Consider a trivial example, a single electron sitting out in
space.  The field extends away from the electron.

The field alone won't excite the phosphor.  However, a field alone CAN
ionize gases, which can then create particles (e.g. electrons or protons)
or radiation (e.g. Hg emitting a photon as it changes excitation levels)
which will excite the phosphor.  The field can also cause electrons to be
spontaneously emitted from the surface, which can then be accelerated by
the field....