US2135661A - Gaseous electric discharge device - Google Patents

Gaseous electric discharge device Download PDF

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Publication number
US2135661A
US2135661A US120066A US12006637A US2135661A US 2135661 A US2135661 A US 2135661A US 120066 A US120066 A US 120066A US 12006637 A US12006637 A US 12006637A US 2135661 A US2135661 A US 2135661A
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US
United States
Prior art keywords
container
electric discharge
tube
gaseous electric
gaseous
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Expired - Lifetime
Application number
US120066A
Inventor
Hagen Wilhelm
Thouret Wolfgang
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General Electric Co
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General Electric Co
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Publication date
Priority claimed from GB2605836A external-priority patent/GB476833A/en
Application filed by General Electric Co filed Critical General Electric Co
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Publication of US2135661A publication Critical patent/US2135661A/en
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    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01J—ELECTRIC DISCHARGE TUBES OR DISCHARGE LAMPS
    • H01J61/00—Gas-discharge or vapour-discharge lamps
    • H01J61/84—Lamps with discharge constricted by high pressure
    • H01J61/86—Lamps with discharge constricted by high pressure with discharge additionally constricted by close spacing of electrodes, e.g. for optical projection
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01J—ELECTRIC DISCHARGE TUBES OR DISCHARGE LAMPS
    • H01J17/00—Gas-filled discharge tubes with solid cathode
    • H01J17/02—Details
    • H01J17/04—Electrodes; Screens
    • H—ELECTRICITY
    • H01—ELECTRIC ELEMENTS
    • H01J—ELECTRIC DISCHARGE TUBES OR DISCHARGE LAMPS
    • H01J5/00—Details relating to vessels or to leading-in conductors common to two or more basic types of discharge tubes or lamps
    • H01J5/32—Seals for leading-in conductors

Definitions

  • the present invention relates to gaseous electric discharge devices generally and more particularly the invention relates to vapor discharge lamp devices operating with elevated container 5 temperatures and with correspondingly elevated vapor pressures, such as a vapor pressure in the order of atmospheres, similar to those disclosed in co-pending application, Serial No. 4,312, filed October 6, 1936, the inventors being Marcello 10 Pirani, Robert Rompe and Wolfgang Thouret.
  • the gaseous electric discharge lamp devices disclosed in the co-pending application referred to above comprise a pair of electrodes centrally mounted in an elongated container and separated a distance less than the diameter of the container.
  • the current leads supporting the electrodes extend a substantial distance into the container, and consist of high melting point material such as tungsten or molybdenum.
  • the container is of small size and consists of a vitreous material, such as fused silica, capable of withstanding the high temperatures. Due to the different coeflicients of expansion of the vitreous material and the metal it is desirable to use graded seals for such devices.
  • the object of the present invention is to provide a gaseous electric discharge lamp device of the above type which comprises means of simple structure for protecting the part of the current leads inside the lamp container from the efiects' of the gaseous electric discharge.
  • Another ob- Ject of the invention is to provide a gaseous electric discharge lamp device of the above type which is simple in structure and is inexpensive to manufacture. Still further objects and ad vantages attaching to the device and to its use and operation will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the following particular description.
  • the invention attains its objects by surround- 4() ing the internal part of the current'lead with a tube or sleeve of high heat resisting, insulating material, such as quartz, the internal diameter of which closely approaches the diameter of the current lead extending therethrough to insure protection of the current lead from the gaseous electric discharge.
  • the lead protecting sleeve is part of the stem structure of the lamp which stem consists of the aforesaid sleeve, a graded joint fused to the end of and hermetically closing the end of said sleeve and a current lead fused into said joint and extending through and beyond said sleeve.
  • the stem structure is first fabricated and the sleeve is then fused to the container to make an hermetic joint therein.
  • the sleeve extends a substantial distance into the container and terminates ad- J'acent the electrode mounted on the end of the current lead.
  • FIG. 1 is a side elevational view of a. gaseous elec- 35 tric discharge lamp device
  • Fig. 2 is a sectional view of one end of the lamp shown in Fig. 1.
  • the gaseous electric discharge lamp device comprises an elongated, 40 tubular, quartz container I having a pair of current leads 4 sealed therein, one at each end thereof.
  • Said current leads 4 consist of a high melting point material, such as tungsten.
  • Said container i has therein a starting gas, such as argon, and a quantity of vaporizable material, such as mercury, the vapor of which is luminosity producing during the operation of the device.
  • An electrode 5 is mounted on each of said leads 4.
  • Each of said electrodes 5 consists of a perforated, tungsten shell filled with a mixture of electron emitting materials, suchas a mixture of aluminum oxide, tungsten and an alkaline earth oxide. Said electrodes 5 are heated to an electron emitting temperature during the operation of the device by the discharge.
  • Said container i has a stem at each end thereof which stem consists of a quartz tube 2, 1, a graded seal 8, 9, I0, H .fused to the end of said tube 2, I and to said current lead 4.
  • the part 8 of said seal 8, 9, Ni, ii fused to said lead 4 consists of a glass having a coefficient of expansion approximating that of the tungsten lead 4 and the part II of said graded seal 8, 9, III, II consists of a glass having a coefficient of expansion approximating that of the quartz tube 2, I.
  • the intermediate parts 9 and ID of the seal have coefiicients of expansion intermediate those of the parts 8 and H.
  • the part I of said tube 2, 1 extends from the endof said container I to a point adjacent the electrode 5 and has an opening 8 therein which is but slightly larger in diameter than the current lead 4 extending through said part 1.
  • the part 2 of said tube 2, 1 extends a short distance beyond the end of the container I and has an opening 3 therein having the same diameter as the part 6 of the opening.
  • the stem consisting of the tube 2, 1, the seal 8, 9, [8, H, the current lead 4 and the electrode 5 is first fabricated and the end of the container l is then fused to the'tube 2, l.
  • the other steps in the manufacture of the lamp device such as the treatment of the electrodes, exhausting the container and introducing the starting gas and the vaporizable material into the container; are then carried out.
  • a gaseous electric discharge device comprising a vitreous container, electrodes and electrode leads sealed therein, a gaseous atmosphere therein, said container having a stem comprising an elongated tube of vitreous material fused thereto, said tube surrounding one or said current leads and extending a substantial distance into said container, the coefiicient of expansion of said tube being approximately equal to that of said container and being difierent than that of said current lead, the inner diameter of said tube being slightly larger than the diameter of said current lead, the external end of said tube being closed by a graded seal fused thereto and to said current lead, said current lead extending along said tube and projecting beyond the internal end thereof, one of said electrodes being mounted on said current lead and adjacent the inner open end of said tube.

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  • Vessels And Coating Films For Discharge Lamps (AREA)
  • Discharge Lamp (AREA)

Description

Nov. 8, 1938. w. HAGEN ET AL GASEOUS ELECTRIC DISCHARGE DEVICE Filed Jan. ll, 1937 5 a 7 3 w il -"2312!! 2 o n v g m ?IVII,AVIIIW4FIIII/ICEC 2i 0 F i e nr 2 aln mHTjm m 26R N mn W/ E V O A m g .hm fl o WWm Patented Nov. 8, 1938 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE Berlin-Wilmersdorf, Germany,
assignors to General Electric Company, a corporation of New York Application January 11, 1937, Serial No. 120,066 In Germany January 15, 1936 1 Claim.
' The present invention relates to gaseous electric discharge devices generally and more particularly the invention relates to vapor discharge lamp devices operating with elevated container 5 temperatures and with correspondingly elevated vapor pressures, such as a vapor pressure in the order of atmospheres, similar to those disclosed in co-pending application, Serial No. 4,312, filed October 6, 1936, the inventors being Marcello 10 Pirani, Robert Rompe and Wolfgang Thouret.
The gaseous electric discharge lamp devices disclosed in the co-pending application referred to above comprise a pair of electrodes centrally mounted in an elongated container and separated a distance less than the diameter of the container.
The current leads supporting the electrodes extend a substantial distance into the container, and consist of high melting point material such as tungsten or molybdenum. The container is of small size and consists of a vitreous material, such as fused silica, capable of withstanding the high temperatures. Due to the different coeflicients of expansion of the vitreous material and the metal it is desirable to use graded seals for such devices.
The object of the present inventionis to provide a gaseous electric discharge lamp device of the above type which comprises means of simple structure for protecting the part of the current leads inside the lamp container from the efiects' of the gaseous electric discharge. Another ob- Ject of the invention is to provide a gaseous electric discharge lamp device of the above type which is simple in structure and is inexpensive to manufacture. Still further objects and ad vantages attaching to the device and to its use and operation will be apparent to those skilled in the art from the following particular description.
The invention attains its objects by surround- 4() ing the internal part of the current'lead with a tube or sleeve of high heat resisting, insulating material, such as quartz, the internal diameter of which closely approaches the diameter of the current lead extending therethrough to insure protection of the current lead from the gaseous electric discharge. The lead protecting sleeve is part of the stem structure of the lamp which stem consists of the aforesaid sleeve, a graded joint fused to the end of and hermetically closing the end of said sleeve and a current lead fused into said joint and extending through and beyond said sleeve. In the manufacture of the device the stem structure is first fabricated and the sleeve is then fused to the container to make an hermetic joint therein. The sleeve extends a substantial distance into the container and terminates ad- J'acent the electrode mounted on the end of the current lead.
We have observed that no diminution in the quantity of vaporizable material available for 5 the discharge takes place in a gaseous electri'c. discharge lamp'device embodying the present invention even after the device has been operating for several hundred hours. In many cases this is of importance, for example, when a limited 10 quantity of merc1u-y is introduced into the lamp during the manufacture thereof in order to vobtain an unsaturated vapor pressure when the lamp is at operating equilibrium. Any loss in the quantity of vaporizable material in the dis- 15 charge chamber of a device so constructed would, of course, change the electrical characteristics of the device, which is undesirable. While this is apt to be a source of difficulty in devices having protruding seals it does not take place in 20 devices embodying the present invention due to the fact that the electrode is closer to the end of the insulating sleeve than to the end of the container and consequently the end of the sleeve is at a higher temperature during the operation of the 25 device than the end of the container. Any condensation of mercury vapor therefore takes place at the end of the container where it is available for the discharge rather than in the,sleeve where it is not available for the discharge. 30
In the drawing accompanying and forming part of this specification a gaseous electric discharge lamp device embodying the invention is shown. in which Fig, 1 is a side elevational view of a. gaseous elec- 35 tric discharge lamp device, and
Fig. 2 is a sectional view of one end of the lamp shown in Fig. 1.
Referring to the drawing the gaseous electric discharge lamp device comprises an elongated, 40 tubular, quartz container I having a pair of current leads 4 sealed therein, one at each end thereof. Said current leads 4 consist of a high melting point material, such as tungsten. Said container i has therein a starting gas, such as argon, and a quantity of vaporizable material, such as mercury, the vapor of which is luminosity producing during the operation of the device. An electrode 5 is mounted on each of said leads 4. Each of said electrodes 5 consists of a perforated, tungsten shell filled with a mixture of electron emitting materials, suchas a mixture of aluminum oxide, tungsten and an alkaline earth oxide. Said electrodes 5 are heated to an electron emitting temperature during the operation of the device by the discharge.
Said container i has a stem at each end thereof which stem consists of a quartz tube 2, 1, a graded seal 8, 9, I0, H .fused to the end of said tube 2, I and to said current lead 4. The part 8 of said seal 8, 9, Ni, ii fused to said lead 4 consists of a glass having a coefficient of expansion approximating that of the tungsten lead 4 and the part II of said graded seal 8, 9, III, II consists of a glass having a coefficient of expansion approximating that of the quartz tube 2, I. The intermediate parts 9 and ID of the seal have coefiicients of expansion intermediate those of the parts 8 and H. The part I of said tube 2, 1 extends from the endof said container I to a point adjacent the electrode 5 and has an opening 8 therein which is but slightly larger in diameter than the current lead 4 extending through said part 1. The part 2 of said tube 2, 1 extends a short distance beyond the end of the container I and has an opening 3 therein having the same diameter as the part 6 of the opening.
In the manufacture of the lamp device described above the stem consisting of the tube 2, 1, the seal 8, 9, [8, H, the current lead 4 and the electrode 5 is first fabricated and the end of the container l is then fused to the'tube 2, l. The other steps in the manufacture of the lamp device, such as the treatment of the electrodes, exhausting the container and introducing the starting gas and the vaporizable material into the container; are then carried out.
The advantages of a gaseous electric discharge lamp device having the above structure have been pointed out above. It will be understood, of course, that numerous changes in the form and details of the device illustrated may be made within the scope of the appended claim, for example, the tube 2, I is wholly within the container I when desired.
What we claim as new and desire to secure by Letters Patent of the United States is:
A gaseous electric discharge device comprising a vitreous container, electrodes and electrode leads sealed therein, a gaseous atmosphere therein, said container having a stem comprising an elongated tube of vitreous material fused thereto, said tube surrounding one or said current leads and extending a substantial distance into said container, the coefiicient of expansion of said tube being approximately equal to that of said container and being difierent than that of said current lead, the inner diameter of said tube being slightly larger than the diameter of said current lead, the external end of said tube being closed by a graded seal fused thereto and to said current lead, said current lead extending along said tube and projecting beyond the internal end thereof, one of said electrodes being mounted on said current lead and adjacent the inner open end of said tube.
WILHELM HAGEN. WOLFGANG THOURET.
US120066A 1935-08-29 1937-01-11 Gaseous electric discharge device Expired - Lifetime US2135661A (en)

Applications Claiming Priority (4)

Application Number Priority Date Filing Date Title
DEP71723D DE646241C (en) 1935-08-29 1935-08-29 Electric mercury vapor discharge lamp with a noble gas base filling, the operating vapor pressure of which is more than 20 atmospheres
DE2135734X 1936-09-15
GB2605836A GB476833A (en) 1936-09-25 1936-09-25 Improvements in or relating to high-pressure metal-vapour electric discharge lamps
DE2135661X 1937-01-15

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US2135661A true US2135661A (en) 1938-11-08

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Family Applications (3)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
US97278A Expired - Lifetime US2103041A (en) 1935-08-29 1936-08-21 Gaseous electric discharge lamp device
US120066A Expired - Lifetime US2135661A (en) 1935-08-29 1937-01-11 Gaseous electric discharge device
US163700A Expired - Lifetime US2135734A (en) 1935-08-29 1937-09-13 Gaseous electric discharge device

Family Applications Before (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
US97278A Expired - Lifetime US2103041A (en) 1935-08-29 1936-08-21 Gaseous electric discharge lamp device

Family Applications After (1)

Application Number Title Priority Date Filing Date
US163700A Expired - Lifetime US2135734A (en) 1935-08-29 1937-09-13 Gaseous electric discharge device

Country Status (5)

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US (3) US2103041A (en)
DE (1) DE646241C (en)
FR (2) FR810098A (en)
GB (3) GB456608A (en)
NL (1) NL48532C (en)

Cited By (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US2518944A (en) * 1948-02-13 1950-08-15 Gen Electric Electric discharge device seal
US2716713A (en) * 1950-03-22 1955-08-30 Gen Electric Cold electrode pulse lamp structure
US3219870A (en) * 1963-06-14 1965-11-23 Gen Electric High pressure discharge lamps seal and base
US4202999A (en) * 1978-04-11 1980-05-13 General Electric Company Fused silica lamp envelope and seal
US4282395A (en) * 1978-08-02 1981-08-04 Patent-Treuhand-Gesellschaft Fur Elektrische Gluhlampen Mbh High melting point glass-to-metal seal and melt connection, particularly for tungsten supply wires for high-pressure discharge lamps

Families Citing this family (9)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
DE875687C (en) * 1938-10-05 1953-05-04 Electricitaets Ges Sanitas M B Arrangement for operating a high-pressure mercury vapor lamp with a basic gas filling, non-activated incandescent cathodes heated by the discharge and an elongated arc
US2567491A (en) * 1943-12-29 1951-09-11 Mitchell John Wesley Luminous discharge tube
US2545884A (en) * 1946-01-18 1951-03-20 Gen Electric High-pressure mercury vapor electric discharge lamp
US2707247A (en) * 1951-06-05 1955-04-26 Hanovia Chemical & Mfg Co Vapor electric discharge lamp
GB835183A (en) * 1957-05-07 1960-05-18 Philips Electrical Ind Ltd Improvements in or relating to low-pressure mercury vapour discharge tubes
US2939985A (en) * 1957-10-09 1960-06-07 Philips Corp Low-pressure mercury vapour discharge tube
US3293493A (en) * 1963-09-25 1966-12-20 Gen Electric Light source for color synthesis
GB2105904B (en) * 1981-09-04 1985-10-23 Emi Plc Thorn High pressure discharge lamps
US5312472A (en) * 1992-09-23 1994-05-17 Spectra-Physics Lasers, Inc. Method for manufacturing resonant cavity for laser

Cited By (5)

* Cited by examiner, † Cited by third party
Publication number Priority date Publication date Assignee Title
US2518944A (en) * 1948-02-13 1950-08-15 Gen Electric Electric discharge device seal
US2716713A (en) * 1950-03-22 1955-08-30 Gen Electric Cold electrode pulse lamp structure
US3219870A (en) * 1963-06-14 1965-11-23 Gen Electric High pressure discharge lamps seal and base
US4202999A (en) * 1978-04-11 1980-05-13 General Electric Company Fused silica lamp envelope and seal
US4282395A (en) * 1978-08-02 1981-08-04 Patent-Treuhand-Gesellschaft Fur Elektrische Gluhlampen Mbh High melting point glass-to-metal seal and melt connection, particularly for tungsten supply wires for high-pressure discharge lamps

Also Published As

Publication number Publication date
GB456608A (en) 1936-11-12
DE646241C (en) 1937-06-14
GB478368A (en) 1938-01-18
FR810098A (en) 1937-03-15
NL48532C (en) 1940-06-15
GB468643A (en) 1937-07-09
FR48790E (en) 1938-06-23
US2103041A (en) 1937-12-21
US2135734A (en) 1938-11-08

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