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Two-finger UV

Hamsters greet all the nations of the universe.

In today's post, we will go beyond the visible light, and plunge into the world of ultraviolet radiation. Find out its nature, find out what sources exist, and then go in search of the unknown. After spending three months with the magic lantern, we were able to capture the phenomena that are rarely seen in everyday life. Experiments on ourselves and substances have shown that everything in life is not so simple as it actually seems.



Have you heard the story that bees can see the world in the ultraviolet spectrum?
This is no accident! In order to lead their daily lives, bees must fulfill a large work plan, which is to collect pollen from the most selected flowers that fall in the way.

To visualize such a perception of the world, take an ultraviolet flashlight and shine on ordinary field daisies. It can be seen how the white petals of the flower absorb radiation and are not particularly distinguished, but the situation with pollen is somewhat different, it begins to glow beautifully in the yellow range of the light visible to us. In addition to ultraviolet radiation, bees still see normal colors, as we are with you, so you can only guess how the picture actually looks in their head.



Ultraviolet sources in fact, there are many. All of them differ from each other in forms, purposes and wavelength. If we take for example the entire spectrum of waves from a short meter radio range to gamma radiation, then human vision can see only a tiny fraction of this entire assortment.

Ultraviolet radiation, depending on the wavelength, is divided into three ranges:

1) UV-A
2) UV-B
3) UV-C

Type UV-A is called long-wave dark light, since it is no longer recognized by our eyes. The intensity of ultraviolet radiation in the UV-B range (280-315 nm) is relatively small (the rays of this range are partially delayed by the atmosphere), but it has a strong damaging effect. In small doses, the ultraviolet radiation of the UV-B range causes a darkening of the skin - called a tan; in large - a sunburn, which leads to an increased risk of skin cancer. The shortest wavelength and most dangerous range of UV-C radiation and vacuum ultraviolet do not have time to reach the Earth's surface and are completely filtered out by the atmosphere.

Found: the shorter the wavelength, the more dangerous the ultraviolet radiation.



We turn to the sources of ultraviolet radiation.This is an EBT-01 lamp, its radiation is in the region of 370 nm. The glass bulb here is black, it serves as a filter that transmits only ultraviolet. As for me, this is the cheapest source for checking money for protective signs. Also, clothes, buttons, candy canes and other things shine in this spectrum.



China now produces in full power ultraviolet LEDs with different wavelengths.Here you can see the LED with a wave of 420 nm, it is not suitable for checking money. Security banknotes respond to 365 nm. Here are two identical in appearance LEDs. Black costs $ 1, and white is 10 times more expensive. Both were bought at the local radio market. You can see how they look opposite each other. At first, I wanted to save money and make a currency detector myself, since a normal flashlight cost as much as $ 26, but this idea was a failure. In general, I had to hand over the bottles and order the proceeds to order the right lamp. Those in the topic immediately guessed what was at stake.



This is an ultraviolet flashlight - “Convoy S2 +” .LED located on board with 365 nm from Nichia, power 3 watts. Aluminum body, anodizing and full waterproof. Exactly what is needed. Its radiation, like all subsequent sources of ultraviolet radiation, lies in a spectrum that is dangerous to the eyes. Therefore, it is desirable to carry out experiments with safety glasses. It is possible without them, if you are already blind.



How to find out which glasses are suitable for these purposes, and which are not ?! Now I will demonstrate.
Already 3 variations of goggles were sold on the local market, but which ones to choose ?! So, we take the necessary instance and check. We bring the plastic to the flashlight, and we see how the place of radiation turned into a dark spot. Amazing what you need!

Polarizing glasses for $ 90 work on the same principle, but they do not work at all in the laboratory, firstly, dark, and secondly, they will break when they collide with stray bullets. Suitable only for the beach. We have dealt with this point, put on protection and move on.



The next source of ultraviolet radiation is used overhead in almost every yard. This is a DRL lamp, power 250 W, used in streetlights. For comparison, next to an ordinary incandescent lamp at the same power. Unlike this old junk, DRL has a greater luminous flux of lumens. The inner walls of the flask are covered with a thin layer of phosphor, which glows from the action of the rigid forces that reign inside the flask.

The DRL reaches its operating mode within 7 minutes after turning on, while the Ilyich bulb lights up to full brightness almost instantly. So, take a hammer and try to get to the most delicious. We are interested in the inner flask.



This high-pressure mercury lamp is a source of hard ultraviolet radiation.According to some reports, excited mercury atoms emit light with a wavelength of 184, 254, 300, 313, 365, 405 nm, longer waves from the list do not interest us. Here a whole bunch of small in combination with radiation at 254 nm, which just kills various microbes most intensively. The emission spectrum of luminous mercury vapor depends on the pressure in the flask. They can be divided into several types. Conventional fluorescent lamps have a low pressure in the bulb. DRL has a high pressure of about 100 kPa. But all this is nothing, in comparison with ultrahigh pressure lamps, roughly speaking, it is a mercury grenade in hands.

Why does the DRL lamp go into full 7 minutes mode ?!It's all about the drops of mercury that are inside the flask. For 7 minutes in a plasma, they heat up and evaporate, which leads to an increase in arc conductivity, an increase in power, and an increase in ultraviolet radiation. A few minutes after the death lamp was turned on, the room actively smells of ozone. In fact, we are now conducting quartzization, disinfecting the room by enriching the bacteria with a high-energy wave, which actively leads to their premature death. It is advisable to ventilate the released ozone after the procedures. This method of disinfection of premises is actively used in hospitals, where a lot of suspicious people come every day.



Especially for the filming of the issue, they lent me an interesting device, whose name is UFO-B.Structurally, the artifact consists of an ultraviolet emitter and two heating elements on the sides. I suppose the lamp will have other spectral characteristics. On the side of the case there is a timer from zero to 24 minutes. When turned on, the lamp and heaters light up. They always work together. The manual says that the UV-B irradiator is a portable device that simulates the ultraviolet radiation of the sun. The irradiator is intended for preventive exposures at home only to practically healthy people.

Irradiation is carried out on the recommendation of a doctor.Between courses of exposure, a break should be at least 2 months. Safety glasses should be included. And it is written in capital letters: it is forbidden to use a device with a damaged filter. The spectral characteristics of the lamp could not be found. And since there is no data on the lamp, then everything is in order, there is nothing to fear.



The person who gave the device says that he purchased it in the USSR with the goal of cleaning and rewriting microcircuits. Once there was no arduino and other modern controllers, programming was a whole ritual process, which had to tinker with a lot. By the way, the legs of the microcircuit are gold-plated, probably it was worth a fortune at the time.



Structurally, the lantern consists of an aluminum casing, an LED with a driver, a reflector and a bunch of rubber bands, which ensure the lamp is waterproof.



The LED here is Japanese, three-watt. Nichia, in 1993, first gave birth to a blue LED, since then everything has gone, gone. The LED here decently heats up, because its substrate is tightly pressed to the brass body, inside which there is a driver, limiting the current to a value of 700 mA. But the LED is not yet an indicator of quality, when there is no good reflector nearby, it is made of aluminum, coated inside with a reflective layer.



To demonstrate the focusing of a ray of light, lower the flashlight into the water and look at the picture. We see a fairly direct focused beam, also a small part of the light diverges on the sides. This expands the visible area while searching for various luminous artifacts.

Initially, the lantern comes with ordinary glass, for sale it is sold separatelyWood filter - a glass that transmits only a certain spectrum of radiation. Typically, such LEDs, in addition to ultraviolet light, also have some stray glow, which must be filtered. On a convoy, this filter has almost no effect on the perception of illuminated objects. The light intensity decreases slightly, but in principle, there is no difference.



At some point, we wondered if it was possible to get a tan from a 365 nm flashlight ?! It should have a good effect on the skin. Why not put on an experiment. If you direct the light of the flashlight directly into your hand, you can feel a little heat, while the Wood filter remains cold. For the experience I had to get a tattoo, modern, glamorous, in gilding. We direct the flashlight to the side of the picture and begin to slowly drive the source from side to side.



Two days later, about 10 radiation sessions were obtained. Each was lasting no more than 5 minutes. In general, in 50 minutes with interruptions, the exposed skin area significantly changed its color. He became reddish, while trying to erase the sticker a slight burning sensation was felt, as after tanning in the sun. Interestingly, but the picture completely interrupted the skin, all complex forms and details are remarkably visible on a red background. After 2 days, this area turned brown. Hence the conclusion that under a 365 nm flashlight you can safely sunbathe.



Now we pass to the monetary part itself. From this moment until the end of the story, we will use the Convoy S2 + flashlight as a source of ultraviolet radiation, since the luminescence of various materials is most noticeable from it. Analyzing the complexity and variety of colors of protective drawings, it was concluded that Ukrainian money is the most secure currency in the world. Euros with bucks do not protect so much.



For ten years I have accumulated a small collection of different money from the world.There are even royal banknotes. With the help of a flashlight, the most interesting specimens were selected. On Karbovanets, a modest figure with a banknote denomination was lit on the left. 10 bucks compared to the euro is generally an empty place. But the one who surprised me the most was Uncle Lenin, who was resting on 50 and 100 ruble notes. You look at what complex forms of protective drawing. And this is the year 1991. Euro against this background nervously smokes on the sidelines. More modest signs were placed on ten-ruble notes. Interestingly, 90% of the entire monetary collection does not have a single luminous mark.



A similar area of ​​collecting also affected brands. The protection here is more modest.
Of all brands, 10 percent have protection, all other samples are just paper with paint.



Walking at night around the area, in the field of view of the lantern came across something unusual, which fluoresced bright yellow. There was no ordinary flashlight at hand. But these were definitely some plants, so I had to tear them in place for further study. What was the surprise when I saw my hands. They shone with a bright yellow-orange color. Later it became clear that it was celandine. When he got to the laboratory, it was immediately decided to make an uzvar from it, the leaves and other compound plants were placed in a test tube, and filled with distilled water. A further procedure was digesting the plant for 10 minutes. The resulting composition is filtered and we get a brown, bitter-tasting liquid.



Let’s drop a finger there, they say celandine has healing properties. We will now be treated, while checking the quality of fluorescence. The painted hand went hunting ...

If the solution gets on clothes, it is difficult to wash it, in normal light everything will be fine, and spots will be visible in the ultraviolet. In general, the use of such a liquid can be found in the whole sea.



The following sample is a collectible of true gourmets.This uranium glass is supposedly Bohemian, about a hundred years old, I will not even voice the value of the item. We had to tinker a lot to find such an instance. Uranium glass is obtained by adding salts and uranium oxides to the glass mass. This thing is radioactive, its background is 400 micro-roentgen per hour, which is 20 times higher than normal, because its production has long been stopped. Glass stained with uranium compounds exhibits green fluorescence. Collectors of such utensils have practically devastated the uranium glass market.



Over time, we managed to get a couple more copies, they are slightly different in color, more light green compared to the Bohemian model.But it is worth shining on the dishes, as the glow becomes exactly the same. In fact, there are very few types of glass that have a similar glow.



Now let's look at the culinary moments that could surprise. This is a regular fried sesame seed prepared for making sushi. Its seeds have phosphorescent abilities. If you drive along the package with a flashlight, you can see a damping train of light. Afterglow has only the tips of the seeds. Interestingly, they have there in the composition.



In terms of genetic modifications, nature went much further than man, you can watch this in the following videos. Three months with an ultraviolet lamp allowed us to photograph unusual insects at night, at the same time we will look into the world of plants and various botany. During the filming, I repeatedly had to poke my nose into someone else's garden. I hope my wife does not hear it ...

You can see the flora by clicking on the link.



You can see the fauna by clicking on the link.



As the saying goes: The further he climbed, the closer he got out.


Full project video on YouTube
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