List of light sources

This is a list of sources of light, including both natural and artificial sources, and both processes and devices.

Additional recommended knowledge

Essential Laboratory Skills Guide

Safe Weighing Range Ensures Accurate Results

Daily Sensitivity Test

Natural

• Astronomical objects
  • Stars
  • Star clusters
  • Galaxies
  • Nebulae
  • quasars
  • accretion disks
• Bioluminescence
  • Glowworms (Arachnocampa and Phengodidae) and Fireflies (Lampyridae)
  • Aequorea victoria (a type of jellyfish)
  • Antarctic krill
  • Lux operon
• Lightning
• Aurorae
• Sunlight (Solar radiation)
  • Skylight
  • Moonlight (via reflection)
  • planets, particularly Venus (via reflection)
  • comets (via reflection)
  • meteors (via reflection) of a meteoroid
  • meteor showers (via reflection)
  • asteroids (via reflection)
  • asteroid showers (via reflection)
• Triboluminescence
• Magma, plasma
• Body of water (via reflection of moonlight and sunlight)

Direct chemical

• Chemoluminescence (Lightsticks)
• Fluorescence
• Phosphorescence

Combustion-based

See also: Combustion

• Argon flash
• Acetylene/Carbide lamps
• Betty lamp
• Butter lamp
• Candles
• Fire
• Gas lighting
• Kerosene lamps
• Lanterns
• Limelights
• Oil lamps
• Rushlights
• Safety lamps
  • Davy lamps
  • Geordie lamps
• Torches

Electric

Arc lamps

Main article: Arc lamp

• Yablochkov candles

Incandescent lamps

See also: Incandescence

• Carbon button lamp
• Conventional incandescent light bulbs
  • Flashlight
• Globar
• Nernst lamp

Electroluminescent (EL) lamps

Main article: Electroluminescence

LED / semiconductor

• Light-emitting diodes
  • Organic light-emitting diodes
  • Polymer light-emitting diodes
  • Solid-state lighting
  • LED lamp

Gas discharge lamps

Main article: Gas discharge lamp

• Fluorescent lamps
  • Compact fluorescent lamps
  • Black light
• Inductive lighting
• Hollow cathode lamp
• Neon and argon lamps
• Plasma lamps
• Xenon flash lamps

High-intensity discharge lamps

Main article: High-intensity discharge lamp

• Ceramic discharge metal halide lamps
• Hydrargyrum medium-arc iodide (HMI) lamps
• Mercury-vapor lamps
• Metal halide lamps
• Sodium vapor lamps
• Xenon arc lamps
• Sulfur lamps

Nuclear

• Radioluminescent paint (formerly used on watch and clock dials)
• Self-powered lighting

Other

See also

• Photometry (optics) Main Photometry/Radiometry article - explains technical terms
• Spectrometer