ca. 1890 – 1920 — Photograph of Thomas Edison’s electric lamp, patented January 27, 1880. Undated. — Image by © Bettmann/CORBIS
Those who long for the good old days of incandescent lighting can cheer…the lowly light bulb is making a fablous comeback!
She’ll be dressed up a bit on the inside with “a special crystal structure” surrounding the filament that MIT researchers say will make the bulb more efficient:
They refer to the technique as ‘recycling light’ because the energy which would usually escape into the air is redirected back to the filament where it can create new light. “It recycles the energy that would otherwise be wasted,” said Professor Marin Soljacic.
Sir Joseph Wilson Swan, Thomas Alva Edison, et al would be so pleased. Let’s hope these new-fangled bulbs will be bright as the researchers who made them.