Britannica AI Icon

electric-filament lamp

lighting

Quick Summary

An electric-filament lamp, also known as a lightbulb, is a type of incandescent lamp. It produces light by heating a fine electrical conductor, called a filament, to a high temperature using an electric current. This filament is enclosed within a glass shell, often filled with an inert gas like nitrogen to prevent the filament from burning out. Early versions used carbon filaments, but more efficient tungsten filaments were later developed. While initially a significant advancement over gas lighting, incandescent lamps have largely been replaced by more energy-efficient technologies like fluorescent and LED lamps due to concerns about energy consumption and global warming.12

Summary created from Britannica articles using AI. AI can make mistakes, so verify using Britannica articles.

Ask Britannica AI about this topic

Britannica doesn't have a full article on this topic, so we've curated a list of our relevant coverage.