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A Brief Overview of Plasma Globes
So you’re still reading? You mean you haven’t already thrown out
the manual and started playing with your plasma globe? Well, keep
reading and we’ll tell you a bit about plasma globes and how they
work. (And please, keep this manual. You may need it.)
Who Invented the Plasma Globe?
The plasma globe, in its infant form, was
invented by Nikola Tesla (1856-1943),
although he didn’t call it a plasma globe—
the name for his invention was the “Inert
Gas Discharge Tube.” It was a machine
that used high-frequency electricity to
create lightning-like electrical phenomena
inside of a glass chamber. It wasn’t until
1971 that Bill Parker, a physics student at
MIT, conceived the plasma globe as we
know it today. Building upon the principles
that Tesla had pioneered, Parker came up
with techniques to create the many different colors and effects that
can be seen in modern plasma globes.
What Is Plasma, And What Does It Have to Do
With Plasma Globes?
Plasma globes got their name because
they really do contain “plasma.” Plasma
is often referred to as the “fourth state
of matter.” It is the most common state
of matter in the universe—the stars
themselves are made of it. Plasma occurs
when a gas becomes electrically charged
Nikola Tesla holding one of his famous
“wireless” lamps.
A plume of plasma rises off the surface of
the Sun in a “Solar Prominence”
