New Technology Applied to Make an Old Technology More Efficient
Dr.
Bingqing Wei, ECE Assistant Professor, and colleagues have
reported the fabrication and testing of light bulbs made
from macroscopic single-walled and double-walled carbon nanotube
filaments. The prospects for more efficient light bulbs could
have a dramatic effect on every segment of society given the
extent that this "everyday" item is used.
Their work "Carbon nanotube filaments in household light
bulbs," (Applied Physics Letters, Vol. 84, No. 24, pp.
4869-4871, 14 June 2004) reports comparisons with bulbs containing
tungsten filaments. The nanotube bulbs have lower threshold
voltage and higher brightness at the same voltage when compared
to their tungsten filament counterparts. Additionally, the
resistance of the nanotube filaments did not change with temperature
up to about 1750 degrees K. This means that the nanotube filaments
could be used to make precision resistors that work at high
temperatures.Review comments in Nature include, "Now carbon
filaments might make a comeback, thanks to a discovery that
bundles of carbon nanotubes provide robust filaments in household
bulbs and have some advantages over tungsten."The site
for Physics Web, http://www.physicsweb.org/article/news/8/6/3 , is an article discussing this research.Dr. Wei has published
more than 120 papers in refereed international journals, including
Nature and Science, in his field of interest "Carbon Nanotubes
and Nanotechnology." These articles can be found at http://www.ece.lsu.edu/bwei/webpage.htm
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