[neonixie-l] Sputtering ?
I've noticed black residue collecting on the inside of at least one of my nixie tubes over the past 1-2 years. What's interesting is that it is collecting right where the glass of the tube is touching the glass cover of my case (yes, I goofed on the case; nothing should touch the tubes...). It's a small dot, perhaps 1 mm in diameter so it doesn't bother me much. While I'm not at all surprised that sputtering is likely to be what's happening, I'm rather amazed that it would concentrate on a single point especially because glass is a very good insulator. Furthermore, the tubes are run at DC so there isn't any high-frequency/capacitance issue as far as I can reason. Have any of you folks out there who work with neon signage seen deposits on the inside of tubing near supports, etc ? I wonder if this could be exploited on nixies to keep sputtering from soiling the entire inner surface of the tube and draw it somewhere away from the viewing-area. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups neonixie-l group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to neonixie-l+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send an email to neonixie-l@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web, visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/neonixie-l/cc268424-3a60-4aa2-b8bc-3c5986705bda%40googlegroups.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
Re: [neonixie-l] Sputtering ?
Beat me to it. I have observed this affect on ZM1040 tubes. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups neonixie-l group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to neonixie-l+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send an email to neonixie-l@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web, visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/neonixie-l/732d69fc-13b5-4389-ab62-ab593e2fa8c4%40googlegroups.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
Re: [neonixie-l] Sputtering ?
OK...sounds like time for another experiment: Swap with a non-contacted tube and see if the dot goes away in a few months BTW, the inside of the case is warmer than room-temp so the point where the tube contacts the glass cover will be cooler than the rest of the tube. The clock draws 14 watts, of which ~10 watts is just for the 6091 nixies and their drivers. -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups neonixie-l group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to neonixie-l+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send an email to neonixie-l@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web, visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/neonixie-l/0f2080d5-ef99-4112-aaf3-c89c337e56ea%40googlegroups.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
Re: [neonixie-l] Sputtering ?
I've noticed black residue collecting on the inside of at least one of my nixie tubes over the past 1-2 years. What's interesting is that it is collecting right where the glass of the tube is touching the glass cover of my case (yes, I goofed on the case; nothing should touch the tubes...). It's a small dot, perhaps 1 mm in diameter so it doesn't bother me much. That may not be sputtering, but mercury condensation. The mercury will tend to condense on the coolest part of the tube, so if it's warm in your enclosure, the contact with the case might provide that cool spot. Close examination with a magnifier might reveal telltale tiny beads of mercury there. - John -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups neonixie-l group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to neonixie-l+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send an email to neonixie-l@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web, visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/neonixie-l/B46E2A39-571F-4F6E-9977-FFFDF22DE863%40mac.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
Re: [neonixie-l] Sputtering ?
OK...sounds like time for another experiment: Swap with a non-contacted tube and see if the dot goes away in a few months Or gently warm that part of the case (ideally with the clock off, but it's not required) and see if the spot dissipates. Shouldn't take more than a couple of hours. - John -- You received this message because you are subscribed to the Google Groups neonixie-l group. To unsubscribe from this group and stop receiving emails from it, send an email to neonixie-l+unsubscr...@googlegroups.com. To post to this group, send an email to neonixie-l@googlegroups.com. To view this discussion on the web, visit https://groups.google.com/d/msgid/neonixie-l/D6330B04-CB23-418E-8B45-5138310D719A%40mac.com. For more options, visit https://groups.google.com/d/optout.
