What are the differences between incandescent lamps and tungsten lamps?
Incandescent lamps and tungsten lamps are actually the same type of lamps, and their differences mainly lie in the name and certain technical details. Under normal circumstances, the so-called incandescent lamp refers to the use of tungsten wire as a filament bulb. When the current is passed through the tungsten wire, the tungsten wire will heat up due to resistance, reaching an incandescent state, and then emit light. This process of luminescence is based on the principle of thermal radiation, that is, the tungsten wire is heated to a white hot state by an electric current.
1.Incandescent
Specifically, incandescent lamps work by the fact that when an electric current passes through the filament, it rapidly heats to a high temperature, ionizing the gas around the filament (usually nitrogen or argon, sometimes halogen gas) and producing plasma. The gas molecules in this plasma emit visible light because of the high temperature. Since this process is mainly achieved by heating, it is called the "white heating principle".
2.tungsten lamps
Tungsten lamps usually refer to the filament inside the bulb that is made of tungsten, a high melting point metal. Because tungsten has a very high melting point (about 3422 degrees Celsius), it is very suitable for use as a filament material that can withstand high temperatures without melting easily. Tungsten lamps can produce a continuous spectrum, so in some applications, such as spectrophotometers, they are used as a visible light source.
Some small tungsten lamps may be filled with halogen gas (such as iodine or a mixture containing iodine), such bulbs are called halogen lamps. Halogen lamps usually have a longer service life than ordinary incandescent lamps because halogen gas can reduce the sublimation of tungsten wires, making the filament more stable at high temperatures. These types of bulbs are also often used in car direction lights because of their longer life and higher brightness.
In summary, the difference between incandescent lamps and tungsten lamps is mainly that the name is different, and their working principle, composition and luminous efficiency are similar. Incandescent lamps, because of their low efficiency, are gradually being replaced by more energy-efficient lamps, such as fluorescent lamps and LED lamps. Tungsten lamps are still used in some specific occasions because of their high efficiency, long life and good color rendering.