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Curiosity Insight

Curiosity Insight

Learning never exhausts the mind

How Does Neon Signs Work?

August 13, 2020 By Miranda Jackson Leave a Comment

Colorful and glittering on the commercial signs or whiteness in our kitchen or our old classrooms, the neon tubes take many different forms in so many colors. But in fact, how does it work?

Invented at the beginning of the 20th century, neon lights now illuminate all the major cities of the world. And not only. Your rooms can also shelter some, and some tuned cars can also fly … But how does it work, a neon? The illuminated signs are made by folding glass tubes, to give birth to different letters or forms. These tubes are then filled with an inert gas such as argon or neon gas. Once your small lamps are installed where you want, when you press the switch, the electric current then touches some electrodes in the glass tubes, thus circulating the electrons through the gas and allowing the gas atoms inside the neon to produce this famous warm glow.

They are sometimes red, sometimes green … Some prefer when they give off blue light, others lean towards a pink or yellow light … In short, the neon lights can be of any color! It is the type of glass and the kind of gas that influences the glow of neon lights. For example, argon gas in a clear glass tube will give a blue neon. To obtain a red light, it will instead place neon gas in a clear glass tube. Thanks to these two gases and with only two types of glasses (colored by fluorescent powder), more than 80 colors can be produced. That’s it; you know everything! Speaking of neon, it would not be time to run to buy NEON # 31 on newsstands for a few days?

Chemical links between atoms

The chemical bonds between the atoms of the elements are made in close relation to the number of electrons they have in the last orbit. This quantity of electrons determines the number of valence or oxidation with which the atoms carry out chemical bonds.

Valencia band

The valence band is called the last energy level or orbit farthest from the nucleus of the atom, where the chemical combinations are made. The valence band allows electrons that rotate in the previous orbit to pass from one bit to another, depending on their “valence number” or “oxidation number,” which can be positive (+), or negative (- ), according to the specific properties of each element in question. Thus, depending on the electronegativity or tendency of the atom of a molecule to attract electrons according to its atomic number or valence, positive or negative ions are formed.

The following table presents some chemical elements with their respective atomic number, number, or oxidation numbers or valences and the number of electrons they have at each energy level. As you can see, the Neon (Ne) does not have a valence number, as this is a noble or inert gas. All gases of this type contain the maximum number of electrons possible in the last energy level, that is, eight, so none of them react chemically with other elements. In addition to Neon, among inert gases are also helium (He), argon (Ar), krypton (Kr), xenon (Xe), and radon (Rn). 

ElementChemical symbolAtomic numberOxidation or valence numberNumber of electrons per energy level
 HydrogenHone  +1, -1  one
 OxygenOR8  -two  2 – 6
 NeonNe10  Does not have  2 – 8
 SodiumNaeleven  +1  2 – 8 – 1
 SiliconYes14  -4, +2, +4  2 – 8 – 4
 ChlorineCl17  -1, +1, +3, +5, +7  2 – 8 – 7
 IronFaith26  +2, +3  2 – 8 – 14 – 2
 CopperCu29  +1, +2  2 – 8 – 18 – 1
 SilverAg47  +1  2 – 8 – 18 – 18 – 1
 GoldAu79  +1, +3  2 – 8 – 18 – 32 – 18 – 1

Different types of links

The different types of chemical bonds that occur between atoms of simple elements are the following:

  • Ionic or electrovalent bond

  • Covalent bond

  • Metallic link

Ionic or electrovalent bond. Due to the force of attraction that is exerted between the ions with charges of opposite sign (positive and negative), ionic or electrovalent bonds originate, which gives rise to the creation of molecules of chemical compound elements. For example, charges of harmful ion chlorine (Cl-) or anion and a positive ion (Na+) or a cation, attract each other to give rise to the formation of one molecule of sodium chloride, known as common salt (NaCl).

Electrovalent or ionic bond between . a chlorine ion (Cl – ) and a sodium ion . (Na + ).

Covalent bond. It occurs when two atoms share their electrons as, for example, when two hydrogen molecules(H + H = H 2 ) or other similar elements are joined, such as nitrogen(N 2 ), oxygen (O 2 ), chlorine(Cl 2) ), etc.

The covalent bond between the two hydrogen atoms (H 2 ).Metallic bond. It is done when the electrons that are rotating in the last orbit of the atoms of metal move through a molecular structure, keeping it together as it happens, for example, with copper: Cu

Diving conductivity band

Driving band

It is called “conduction band” at the energy level, where the attraction of the nucleus of the atom on the electrons is weakest. This level corresponds to the last orbit of the atom, which can thus share its electrons among the rest of the atoms of a body, allowing them to travel through it in the form of an electron cloud. 

When an atom is excited using electrical current, light, heat, etc., some of its electrons can absorb energy, jump into the conduction band and move from one molecule to another within a body.

Each atom has a certain number of electrons revolving around it in different orbits forming an electronic cloud; however, it is only the last orbit that determines the amount of valence or driving properties that each chemical element possesses, in any atom that the final realm admits only a maximum of eight electrons to complete its atomic structure. The tendency of all is to complete it.

An atom with seven electrons in its last orbit (valence -1, for example) tends to attract the electron. It needs to capture it from another atom that possesses only one in its last orbit (valence +1, for example). In turn, the atom that has between one and three electrons in the last orbit tends to yield them to other atoms that require it so that it can complete the eight. 

This mechanism called “rule of the octet” gives rise to the creation of different chemical combinations, the conduction of heat and the conduction of electric current, according to the way in which the atoms are excited.

Conductivity

It is the property of the atoms of metals that allows the electrons that rotate in their last orbit or band of conduction to move through their molecular structure, conducting heat or electricity. 

According to the greater or lesser conductivity that a body has, they are classified into three groups:

  • Drivers

  • Insulators or dielectrics

  • Semiconductors

Drivers. All metals conduct, to a greater or lesser extent, electricity and heat, because their atoms tend to easily give up the electrons that rotate in their last orbit. Gold (Au), silver (Ag), copper (Cu), aluminum (Al), tin (Sn) and platinum (Pt) are good conductors, while iron (Fe) and lead ( Pb), for example, they are to a lesser extent.

Insulators or dielectrics. They are materials in which the electrons that rotate in the last orbit of their molecules are strongly attracted to the nucleus. This prevents them from moving freely through the molecular structure to which they belong, so they do not conduct heat or electricity. Among the good insulating materials are mica, Teflon, porcelain, plastics, etc. Air is also considered a good insulator of heat and electricity. 

Semiconductors. As the name suggests, these materials are not exactly good conductors of electricity, but when they are excited their electrons can pass to the conduction band and facilitate the electronic flow, although always in only one direction. Hence its name of “semiconductors.” 

Among the elements or semiconductor materials most used by the industry to manufacture electronic devices such as diodes, transistors, integrated circuits and microprocessors are silicon (Si), germanium (Ge) and gallium arsenide (GaAs).

Filed Under: Science & Technology, Topics

About Miranda Jackson

I am a chemistry researcher and research various household products to make life easier and enjoyable for people around the world.

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