11.2
Most people think that light comes only from sources such as the Sun, a
Figure 1 The Sun produces its own light,
whereas a tree can only reflect light.
luminous produces its own light
non-luminous does not produce its
own light
Figure 2 Molten glass glows orange at
very high temperatures.
incandescence the production of light as
a result of high temperature
470 Chapter 11 • The Production and Reflection of Light
How Is Light Produced?
light bulb, or a fire. The reality is that light enters your eyes from all objects
that you see. You can see a tree in front of you only if light is coming from
the tree into your eyes (Figure 1). The difference between light coming from
the Sun and light coming from a tree is that the Sun radiates its own light,
whereas the tree can only reflect light.
The Sun is luminous, which means that it produces its own light.
Other examples of luminous sources are a light bulb, a lit match, and a
flashlight that is turned on. A tree does not produce its own light, so it is
non-luminous. A non-luminous source does not produce its own light
and can be seen only by using reflected light. Most objects around you are
non-luminous: this textbook, a pencil, and a bicycle are just a few. Let’s now
examine some luminous sources to see exactly how they produce light.
Light from Incandescence
When the burner of a stove is set to a high temperature, the filament
glows. Any object, as it gets hotter and hotter, will eventually produce
light (Figure 2). As the object gets hotter, the colours of light produced
change from red, to orange, to yellow, to white, and then to bluish-white.
This process of producing light as a result of high temperature is called
incandescence. Light from a burning candle and the lit sparks flying off a
grinder are examples of incandescence.
Incandescence also occurs in an incandescent light bulb (Figure 3).
A thin wire filament, usually made of tungsten, glows as electricity passes
through it. The filament becomes so hot that it gives off visible light. It also
emits infrared light that you feel as heat radiating from the bulb. Depending
on the type of bulb, only 5 % to 10 % of the electricity going through the
filament is actually converted into visible light. The rest of the energy is
converted into infrared light. For this reason, incandescent bulbs are very
inefficient light sources.
For an incandescent bulb to work, all the air from the bulb must be
removed. It is replaced with non-reactive gases. This way, the tungsten
filament cannot combine with oxygen in the air, which would make the
filament burst into flame. Even without oxygen present, the filament does
eventually disintegrate and break.
American inventor Thomas Edison is credited with producing the first
commercially useful incandescent bulb (Figure 4).
Figure 3 The modern incandescent bulb Figure 4 Compare Thomas Edison’s patent from
1880 for an incandescent bulb with Figure 3.
NEL
Light from Electric Discharge
Every time you see a flash of lightning (Figure 5) or walk past a lit neon sign
for a business (Figure 6), you are seeing another form of light production. This
light, known as electric discharge, is produced by an electric current passing electric discharge the process of
through a gas. The electricity causes the gas to glow. Although the term “neon producing light by passing an electric
current through a gas
lighting” is usually used to describe all signs that use this process, many gases
other than neon can be used. Neon gas produces the familiar red colour,
helium produces a gold-coloured glow, argon a pale violet-blue, and krypton a
greyish off-white.

DID YOU KNOW?

Canadian Bright Lights
Many people contributed to the
development of the incandescent bulb.
Two Torontonians, Henry Woodward
and Mathew Evans, filed a Canadian
patent in 1874 for an incandescent
bulb. Their bulb used a carbon filament
and was filled with nitrogen gas. They
tried to market their bulb but had no
commercial success. Edison recognized
the usefulness of their work and
purchased the rights to their patent.
He incorporated their work into the
development of his own incandescent
bulb using a carbon filament.

GO TO NELSON SCIENCE
Figure 5 Lightning is a dramatic example of Figure 6 Neon gas produces this
an electric discharge through a gas. In this characteristic red colour as an electric
case, the gas is the air in Earth’s atmosphere. current passes through it.

The development of electric discharge in gas tubes comes from the WRITIng Tip
invention in 1855 of a powerful vacuum pump by German physicist Writing Persuasively
Heinrich Geissler. The pump allowed Geissler to evacuate (remove) most of Imagine that you are writing an essay
the air from a closed tube. Geissler’s colleagues noticed that the remaining promoting the idea that Canadians
air in one of these tubes glowed when an electric current passed through developed the electric light bulb before
Thomas Edison did. Use the body of the
it. Further experiments showed that the colour of the glow depended on essay to state and explain the key points
which gas was inside the tube. These glowing gas tubes were originally of your argument. For example, state the
called Geissler tubes (Figure 7). When you look at the different colours of date of the Canadian patent, reasons for
commercial lighting, you are really looking at Geissler tubes. the patent’s failure, and so on.

(a) (b) (c)

Figure 7 Because Geissler was also a glass-blower, early Geissler tubes were very elaborate.

NEL 11.2 How Is Light Produced? 471

 DID YOU KNOW?
Watch That Dial!
Watch dials from the early 20th century
to shortly after World War II were made
luminous through the use of a paint
that contained radium. Radium is a
radioactive material, and the health
effects of radioactivity were not widely
understood at that time. As a result,
many of the people who worked at
those watch factories suffered serious
health effects from exposure to radium.
phosphorescence the process of
producing light by the absorption of
ultraviolet light resulting in the emission of
visible light over an extended period of time
fluorescence the immediate emission
of visible light as a result of the absorption
of ultraviolet light
Figure 8 Glow-in-the-dark toys are
examples of phosphorescence.
DID YOU KNOW?
Rock On
The process of fluorescence is named
after the mineral fluorite. Fluorite
glows when it is illuminated with
ultraviolet light. Many other naturally
occurring minerals also fluoresce
in brilliant colours when exposed to
ultraviolet light.
472 Chapter 11 • The Production and Reflection of Light
Light from Phosphorescence
People are familiar with objects that glow in the dark, such as the dials on some
wristwatches and clocks, and glow-in-the-dark stickers. These glow-in-the-dark
materials are coated with phosphors, special materials that give off light through
a process called phosphorescence. Phosphors absorb light energy, primarily
ultraviolet light. These materials keep some of the energy and release visible light
of lower energy. However, they do not do so immediately and hold onto this
energy for varying periods of time ranging from seconds up to days, depending
on the material. Because light is emitted over a period of time, phosphorescent
materials are often described as “glow-in-the-dark” (Figure 8).
Light from Fluorescence
Several laundry detergents claim that they can make clothes brighter. This claim
depends on the process of fluorescence. Fluorescence occurs when an object
absorbs ultraviolet light and immediately releases the energy as visible light.
Detergent manufacturers often add fluorescent dyes to their detergents.
Shirts washed in this detergent appear to glow slightly. This process is
apparent even in visible light because normal daylight includes a small
amount of ultraviolet light. The fluorescent dye on the clothing absorbs
UV light and emits visible light. The eye detects both this emitted light
and the light normally reflected from the shirt, so the shirt looks brighter.
Highlighter pens work on the same principle. The ink in these pens
contains a fluorescent dye that causes the ink to glow in the presence of the
ultraviolet part of normal daylight.
Fluorescent lights are the most common application of fluorescence.
A fluorescent light makes use of both electric discharge and fluorescence.
A fluorescent light tube is filled with very low-pressure mercury vapour. The inner
surface of the tube is also coated with a fluorescent material. When
a fluorescent light is turned on, the electric current causes the mercury atoms to
emit ultraviolet light. This ultraviolet light then strikes the fluorescent inner surface
of the tube, resulting in the production of visible light (Figure 9).
visible light
heat
mercury atoms
UV light
fluorescent coating
location of electric discharge
Figure 9 In a fluorescent light, electricity causes the mercury vapour to emit ultraviolet light.
This ultraviolet light hits the fluorescent material on the inner surface of the light tube, causing
visible light to be emitted.
NEL
 Fluorescent lights are four to five times more energy efficient
than incandescent bulbs. A fluorescent light can provide the
same light output as an equivalent incandescent bulb but
produces much less heat and uses far less electricity. Compact
fluorescent lights (CFLs) are recommended for use in homes
and businesses because they use less energy to operate
(Figure 10).
Widespread use of fluorescent lights could lead to significant
energy savings. Although fluorescent lights are more expensive
to purchase than incandescent bulbs, they are less expensive to
operate and last much longer than incandescent bulbs. There is
one slight downside, however, to fluorescent lights. They contain
mercury and should not be disposed of with regular household
waste. Instead, fluorescent lights should be treated like other
hazardous household waste, such as paint and batteries.
Fluorescent lights need to be taken to appropriate recycling
centres, where they will be properly treated.
Figure 10 Compact fluorescent lights (CFLs) can lead
to significant energy savings in homes and businesses.

CITIZEn ACTION
Thinking for the Future
The Issue
Much of the energy used by our society comes from fossil
fuels. These fuels add significant amounts of pollutants and
greenhouse gases to Earth’s atmosphere. Greenhouses gases
are a major factor in global warming.
It is estimated that if each household in Canada replaced just
one 60 W incandescent bulb with an equivalent light output
15 W CFL, then there would be an energy saving of $73 million
per year. In addition, that one CFL would reduce carbon dioxide
emissions by 400 000 t—the equivalent of taking 66 000 cars
off the road.
SKILLS HANDBOOK
4.A.7, 4.C.6.
What Can You Do To Help?
Think of how you can personally reduce your contribution to
global warming. Examine the lighting in your home, and see
where you could use CFLs. Wherever possible, actually change
the lights in your home from incandescent to CFL. Estimate how
much energy you are saving because of this and the personal
effect that you are having on greenhouse gas production.
Develop an ad campaign to encourage your community to
switch to CFLs. Remember to think globally and act locally.
GO TO NELSON SCIENCE

Light from Chemiluminescence

Have you ever played with a light stick or a glow stick? Have you ever worn
a necklace or bracelet at a concert or fair that, when bent and shaken, gave
off visible light? If so, you have seen light produced by chemiluminescence.
Chemiluminescence is the production of light as a direct by-product of chemiluminescence the direct
a chemical reaction. Almost no heat is produced as a result of this type of production of light as the result of
a chemical reaction with little or no
reaction. That is why this type of light is often called “cold light”.
heat produced
Light sticks operate by causing two chemicals to mix. The chemicals are
originally separate in the light stick. One chemical is in a narrow, small glass
vial in the middle of the stick; the second chemical is in the main body of
the stick. Bending the light stick in the middle causes the small glass vial to
break, allowing the two chemicals to mix in the main body of the stick. The
chemical reaction that occurs produces visible light.

NEL 11.2 How Is Light Produced? 473

 Light sticks are inexpensive to manufacture (Figure 11). They are very
popular for use in camping, with law enforcement and military personnel,
in entertainment venues (concerts, dance halls, amusement parks), and
in emergency situations. Light sticks are very durable. Because they have
no moving parts and are completely sealed, they are very popular with
underwater divers. Light sticks do not require an electric current, so they
are useful in hazardous environments where a spark could be quite
dangerous. Examine the effect of temperature on a light stick by doing
the “Glowing with Light” activity.

Figure 11 Light sticks, or glow sticks,

produce light by chemiluminescence as
the result of two chemicals mixing.

T RY THIS gLOWIng WITH LIgHT

SKILLS MENU: Predicting, Controlling Variables, Observing SKILLS HANDBOOK
3.B.
Equipment and Materials: a light stick; freezer; two large 5. Place the light stick in a freezer for several hours. Predict
beakers or transparent plastic containers; ice cubes; tap water what will happen. Then take the light stick out of the freezer
and observe the amount of light emitted.
NOTE: This activity is best done in a darkened room.
6. Let the frozen light stick return to room temperature and
Light sticks contain broken glass. Also, the chemicals may
make a final observation of the amount of light emitted.
be toxic. If a stick is damaged, ask your teacher how to
A. Were your predictions correct? T/I
properly dispose of it.
B. What happened to the light output when the light stick was
1. Fill one beaker with warm tap water. Place ice cubes in the
cooled? When it was warmed? T/I
other beaker and fill it with cold tap water.
C. Explain the changes in light output. Consult with other
2. Bend the light stick. Observe the amount of light that the light
classmates. T/I
stick emits at room temperature.
D. What effect did the freezer have on the light stick? What
3. Predict what will happen when you cool the light stick. Then
happened when it returned to room temperature? Explain
place the light stick in the ice-water mixture. Observe the
your observations. T/I
amount of light emitted.
4. Predict what will happen if you heat the light stick. Now
place the light stick in the beaker with warm water. Again,
observe the amount of light emitted.

474 Chapter 11 • The Production and Reflection of Light NEL

Light from Bioluminescence
When chemiluminescence occurs in living organisms, scientists call it bioluminescence the production of
light in living organisms as the result
bioluminescence. Bioluminescence occurs in a wide variety of organisms,
of a chemical reaction with little or no
including certain bacteria, fungi, marine invertebrates, fish, and the well- heat produced
known examples of glow-worms and fireflies (Figure 12). In fact, the glow
from a firefly is an excellent example of bioluminescence caused by the
chemical reaction of oxygen and luciferin, a substance in the lower abdomen
of the insect. The enzyme luciferase is necessary for the chemical reaction
to take place. The end result is the production of visible light. Scientists
think that living organisms use bioluminescence to protect themselves from
predators, to lure prey, or to attract mates.

Light from Triboluminescence

“It is well known that all sugar, whether candied or plain, if it be hard,
will sparkle when broken or scraped in the dark.” English philosopher
Francis Bacon wrote this in Novum Organum in 1620, a book in which he
argued that science should be based on experimentation. This statement is
the first known reference to triboluminescence. Triboluminescence is the Figure 12 A firefly exhibiting
bioluminescence
production of light when certain crystals are scratched, crushed, or rubbed
(Figure 13). Unlike other methods of producing light, triboluminescence triboluminescence the production of
does not appear to have any practical application at this time. Do light from friction as a result of scratching,
the activity called “Eating Candy for the Sake of Science” to observe crushing, or rubbing certain crystals
triboluminescence.

Figure 13 The glow from triboluminescence is visible after rubbing two quartz crystals together.

T RY THIS EATIng CAnDY FOR THE SAKE OF SCIEnCE

SKILLS MENU: Observing SKILLS HANDBOOK
3.B.6.
Equipment and Materials: two sugar cubes; a 3. Stand in front of a mirror or face your partner. Bite down
wintergreen-flavoured hard candy; a lab partner or a on a wintergreen candy but keep your mouth open.
large mirror Observe the inside of your mouth.
1. Go into a completely dark room. Wait at least 5 min until your A. Describe what you saw when the two sugar cubes were
eyes become adjusted to the dark. struck. T/I
2. Strike the two sugar cubes against one another as if you B. What did you see when biting down on the candy? T/I

were striking a match. Observe what happens.

NEL 11.2 How Is Light Produced? 475

light-emitting diode (LED) light produced
as a result of an electric current flowing in
semiconductors
semiconductor a material that allows an
electric current to flow in only one direction
Figure 14 LED Christmas lights use far
less electricity than other kinds of lights.
Light from a Light-Emitting Diode (LED)
A light-emitting diode (LED) is an electronic device that allows an electric
current to flow in only one direction. This is achieved by using special
materials called semiconductors, such as silicon. Unlike a conductor, which
allows current to flow in either direction, semiconductors allow an electric
current to flow in only one direction. When an electric current flows in the
allowed direction, the LED emits light.
An LED differs in several ways from an incandescent bulb: it does not
require a filament; it does not produce much heat as a by-product; and it is
more energy efficient. For a long time, the major consumer application of
LEDs was as indicator lights in electronic devices (for example, the small red
light to show that a radio was on). Recent improvements in LED technology
have led to their use in other areas. LEDs are now used in Christmas lights
(Figure 14), illuminated signs, and traffic lights. Recent advances in LED
manufacturing may reduce the cost of production in the near future. You
may well see LEDs being used for street lights and lighting in your home.

In SUMMARY
• Incandescence is light emitted when a material
has been heated.
• Light from an electric discharge is caused by
passing an electric current through a gas.
• Phosphorescence and fluorescence are both
caused by a material absorbing ultraviolet light.
In phosphorescence, visible light is emitted over
a period of time, whereas in fluorescence, visible
light is emitted immediately.
• Chemiluminescence is light produced from
a chemical reaction without an increase in
temperature; chemiluminescence in living
organisms is called bioluminescence.
• Triboluminescence is light produced from
friction with crystals.
• A light-emitting diode (LED) is a special
electronic device that produces light when an
electric current flows through it.

CHECK YOUR LEARnIng

1. In Grade 9 science, you studied the differences among 6. Predict whether or not a fluorescent material would glow
stars, planets, and moons. Which are luminous, and if it was illuminated by infrared light. T/I
which are non-luminous? Explain why this second group 7. Why is chemiluminescence also called “cold light”? K/U

is classified as non-luminous. K/U

2. Why is an incandescent bulb a very inefficient light
source? K/U
3. Name the process of producing light by passing an
electric current through a gas. K/U
4. What is the main difference between phosphorescence
and fluorescence? K/U
5. (a) Do fluorescent brighteners in detergents really make
clothes cleaner?
(b) There is concern that extra additives in detergents can
have negative health and environmental impacts. Is
it wise to use detergents containing these additives?
Explain. K/U T/I A
8. Predict whether or not a light stick would be a good light
source in a potentially explosive environment. Explain your
prediction. T/I C
9. State several reasons why living organisms might use
bioluminescence. K/U C
10. What are two differences between LEDs and incandescent
bulbs? K/U C
11. LEDs are considered an even better alternative to CFLs to
replace incandescent bulbs. Compare CFLs with LEDs.
Are LEDs a better alternative? Be sure to consider
environmental, health, and economic factors. Write a brief
report to communicate your opinion. K/U T/I A

476 Chapter 11 • The Production and Reflection of Light NEL