I decided to do an experiment on the topic of lightbulbs. I got this idea from the Steve Spangler youtube, Sick Science. You should definitely check it out. So the basic idea of this experiment is to make light. I taped together 8 D batteries. I had 2 small wires with alligator clips on the ends. I connected one end of the alligator clips together with a 0.05mm pencil lead which would be a makeshift filament. The other ends were connected by the batteries. When put to either end of the batteries, the pencil lead would begin to produce light! It only lasts for a short time before the pencil lead burns out. One thing I found out is that you really have to push the batteries together because sometimes they aren't actually touching each other.
So how does a lightbulb work? Light is a form of energy produced by tiny atoms. The energy is called photons. Photons are produced when atoms "get excited" and start moving. Heat will do this. When heat is added to something it causes the atoms to jump around and move. This will produce photons. In the average lightbulb there is a filament. Usually there is about six feet of metal filament in a bulb. This filament is just an electricity conductor. When the electricity is added it makes heat which makes the atoms around the filament move creating light!
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BenI'm an eighth grader and want to share my love of science with others. Archives
December 2016
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