Bulb, Omano 100W Mercury Vapor

100 Watt Mercury Vapor Bulb

The Omano 100 watt Mercury vapor bulb is an energy efficient mercury arc bulb designed specifically for Omano FL400 & FL600 model microscopes. Mercury vapor light bulbs are different from other microscope light sources in that they are very bright, long-lasting bulbs with an inner quartz tube that contains mercury vapor. An electric current applied to this vapor causes it to emit bright, full-spectrum light, including both infrared and ultraviolet. Some mercury vapor lights UVB light, which can cause damage to exposed skin.

Mercury vapor bulbs are traditionally used in fluorescence microscopy because of the brightness and quality of the light it emits. However, because of fears over the toxicity of mercury, a push to replace these bulbs with LED illumination has been gaining traction as these bulbs are generally safer and more affordable because they don’t contain mercury, don’t require a warm-up or cool-down time, and don’t emit heat or UV radiation. Mercury vapor bulbs, however, have a lower up-front cost than LED and aren’t a danger unless they break, though it’s important to wear eye protection and to point your bulb at a non-reflective surface whenever testing because of the intensity of the light these powerful bulbs emit.