On the Physical Behavior of Flashing Incandescent Light Sources
Bibliographic Data
| ID | 10262007 |
|---|---|
| Authors | Richard I Land (corresponding author) |
| Year | 1975 |
| Volume | 8 |
| Issue | 3 |
| Pages | 232 |
| Publication date | 1975-01-01 |
| Peer Reviewed | Yes |
| Open Access | No |
| Type | ARTICLE |
| Venue | Leonardo (JOURNAL) |
| Journal identifiers | ISSN: 0024-094X • E-ISSN: 1530-9282 |
| Publisher | JSTOR (PUBLISHER) |
| DOI | 10.2307/1573245 |
| OpenAlex | W2327859022 |
| Language | EN |
| Citations received | 2 |
| References cited | 1 |
It seems to me that the physical behavior of flashing electric light sources is not sufficiently understood by some kinetic artists who use them. I am thinking in particular about Robert Baldwin's recent discussion in Leonardo in which he claimed that he had projected images on a screen having durations of about 1/100 sec. by means of passing electric current during a short time interval (1/100 sec.) through the filament of an incandescent lamp in a slide projector [1]. I doubt that images produced in this way and sufficiently bright to be seen can be of such short duration. I shall give the physical reasons below but I shall not discuss the important psychophysical aspects of subliminal stimulation of visual perception. There are many types of electric light sources but there are only a few common ways of obtaining a uniformly repeatable short high-intensity light flash. [2]. The most reliable way involves the use of mechanical shutters in front of a continuous light source. A desirable feature is that the mechanism can be calibrated accurately and the color of the source controlled. It can obtain a flash duration down to the range of 1 to 10 msec. (1 millisecond or msec = one-thousandth of a second). Another way involves a gas discharge lamp, which is capable of obtaining a flash duration down to the range of 1 to 10 / sec. (1 microsecond or j/ sec. = onemillionth of a second). The lamp requires a highvoltage supply, the color is peculiar and it is expensive. For direct viewing, images can be displayed on a cathode ray tube (CRT), as in television, for exposures as short as a few microseconds. Color is not controllable and the method is expensive. A way not generally recommended consists of briefly energizing an incandescent lamp, which Baldwin used, causing it to give a brilliant flash but, as I shall explain below, the duration of a flash will not be below 20 msec, because 20 msec represents the delay required to heat the filament to luminosity. The temperature of a glowing tungsten filament
Computer graphics (images) · Flashing · Incandescent light bulb · Optics · Physics · Computer Science · Experimental and Theoretical Physics Studies · Materials Science · Ocular and Laser Science Research
| Unique citing works | 2 |
|---|---|
| Citations per year | 0,04 |
| Citation span | 1975 - 1976 (2) |
| Citation velocity | historical |
| Highly cited | No |