In electrodeless HID lamps the radio frequency (RF) source is separated from a lamp housing in which vessel containing plasma arc is mounted. This lamp housing is usually designed to maximize the amount of RF energy incident on the plasma arc. The plasma arc, however, cannot convert the entire amount of incident RF energy into light and a portion instead is released as propagating radiation or remains localized RF electromagnetic fields in the vicinity of lamp. In this invention, we introduce field suppression probes: Small, configurable structures that are made of conductive materials that mount directly to the lamp housing or alternately the lamp fixture that is able to suppress unused RF energy that is emanated from the lamp housing or plasma. These probes, when configured with the lamp, can substantially suppress the unused RF energy and prevent EMI emissions and reduce RF feedback that can adversely affect the lamp.

Electrodeless high intensity discharge lamps have the promise of higher reliability and higher efficiency than traditional electroded high intensity discharge lamps. However most electrodeless HIDs operate in the frequency range of around 400 MHz to 2.5 GHz resulting in expensive, inefficient RF drivers that reduce the overall efficacy of the lamp. Operating the lamp at lower frequencies results in substantial increase in the size of the resonators used in traditional electrodeless HIDs. In this invention a novel design is used to lower the operating frequency of the resonator without increasing the size of the resonator. This provides an avenue to increase the conversion efficiency of the RF driver and the efficacy of the lamp system.

The invention is directed to a sealed high intensity illumination device configured to receive a laser beam from a laser light source. A sealed chamber is configured to contain an ionizable medium. The chamber includes a reflective chamber interior surface having a first parabolic contour and parabolic focal region, a second parabolic contour and parabolic focal region, and an interface surface. An ingress surface is disposed within the interface surface configured to admit the laser beam into the chamber, and an egress surface disposed within the interface surface configured to emit high intensity light from the chamber. The first parabolic contour is configured to reflect light from the first parabolic focal region to the second parabolic contour, and the second parabolic contour is configured to reflect light from the first parabolic contour to the second parabolic focal region.

The invention relates to a device for producing UV light. Said device provides light from light sources that operate in accordance with different physical principles. The device comprises a chamber having several gas-filled plasma chambers (11, 12), wherein the chamber has at least one area (37, 39) transparent to UV light and/or VUV light. A first group (11) of plasma chambers is filled with an ionizable gas containing mercury and a second group (12) of plasma chambers is filled with a gas that forms excimers when suitably excited.

A high brightness laser-sustained broadband light source includes a gas containment structure and a pump laser configured to generate a pump beam including illumination of a wavelength at least proximate to a weak absorption line of a neutral gas contained in the gas containment structure. The broadband light source includes one or more anamorphic illumination optics configured to focus the pump beam into an approximately elliptical beam waist positioned in or proximate to the center of the gas containment structure. The broadband light source includes one or more first collection optics configured to collect broadband radiation emitted by the plasma in a direction substantially aligned with a longer axis of the elliptical beam waist.

A novel compact air-cavity electrodeless high intensity discharge lamp is disclosed that provides added flexibility in its design to improve performance and reliability. A coupling sleeve surrounds a bulb assembly that can replace the output coupling element require for effective operation of the lamp. The coupling sleeve couples the RF energy from the input coupling element to the bulb and the bulb assembly serves to provide the heat sinking needed for the bulb to operate within the temperature range necessary to achieve optimum performance with good reliability. Changing the design of the bulb assembly does not impact the resonant frequency of the air-cavity resonator. De-coupling the bulb assembly design from the operating frequency of the resonator gives more flexibility to designer to optimize the overall performance of the electrodeless HID lamp.

An apparatus for artificial weathering or lightfastness testing of samples or for simulating solar radiation, the apparatus comprises a weathering chamber, an electrodeless lamp provided in the weathering chamber and comprising a bulb filled with a composition that emits light when in a plasma state, and a radio frequency source being arranged so that it radiate a radio frequency field into the bulb to generate a luminous plasma for emitting a radiation comprising spectral emission characteristics similar to natural solar radiation.

An excimer lamp includes a housing portion having a sealed internal space, an internal electrode, and a discharge gas with which the internal space is filled. One end side of the internal electrode is electrically connected to a power supply member provided with a metal foil electrically connected to the internal electrode and is sealed together with the power supply member to one end side of the housing portion via a sealing portion. The other end side of the internal electrode protrudes into the internal space. A protrusion length, being a length of the internal electrode in the internal space and a length from one end of the internal space to the other end of the internal electrode, is equal to or less than a length from the other end of the internal electrode to the other end of the internal space in a direction along the axis.

A system for powering an excimer bulb includes a first inductor configured to be coupled to a first terminal of the excimer bulb. The system further includes a first transistor coupled to the first inductor and having an on state configured to allow current to flow through the first inductor and an off state. The system further includes a second transistor configured to be coupled to the first terminal of the excimer bulb and having an on state configured to allow current to flow through the excimer bulb and an off state. The system further includes a controller coupled to the first transistor and the second transistor, and to control operation of the first transistor and the second transistor to power the excimer bulb.

Methods and systems for producing a change in a medium. A first method and system (1) place in a vicinity of the medium at least one upconverter including a gas for plasma ignition, with the upconverter being configured, upon exposure to initiation energy, to generate light for emission into the medium, and (2) apply the initiation energy from an energy source including the first wavelength λ.sub.1 to the medium, wherein the emitted light directly or indirectly produces the change in the medium. A second method and system (1) place in a vicinity of the medium an agent receptive to microwave radiation or radiofrequency radiation, and (2) apply as an initiation energy the microwave radiation or radiofrequency radiation by which the agent directly or indirectly generates emitted light in the infrared, visible, or ultraviolet range to produce at least one of physical and biological changes in the medium.