Neon Lights

how do neon lights work?

Neon lights operate by physics and chemistry principles.

Neon has 10 electrons per atom, with 8 present on the outer shell of each atom. When electric voltage is applied to the ends of a glass tube containing neon gas, the outer electrons of a neon atom are excited to the next highest orbital.

Once the electrons return to their original orbital, a photon is released containing the energy of excitation, or the energy between orbitals. The energy of the photon determines its wavelength, and thus, the color it produces. Different gases have different jumps in energy between orbitals, so they produce photons of different energy, and thus, different colors of light.

Gases used for neon lights include neon, argon, mercury, helium, xenon, and krypton. For neon gas, the photons emitted have a lower energy, and they produce red light. Gases can also be combined and fluorescent coatings can be used to produce an even wider range of colors.