Ideally, for black lights, you would use 365nm LED’s.
When you buy an LED, you can specify exactly what wavelength you wish it to emit. The wavelength of light emitted from an LED is very specific. This article is going to focus on the bulbs, known as black lights, that are designed to primarily emit long wave ultraviolet light. That is why the sun and most light bulbs can charge phosphorescent paint. The sun and almost all types of white light bulbs emit some long wave ultraviolet light. Medium and short wave ultraviolet will not reflect in a mirror due to passing through the glass. Most polished metal surfaces and cheap plastic mirrors only reflect 60-70%. Like visible light, it retains 80-90% of its brightness with a good mirror. Long wave ultraviolet light does reflect efficiently off of mirrored surfaces. The result is that when you turn a BL light off, your glow in the dark items will appear to glow less. In addition, Blacklight bulbs will cause your 'night vision' to readjust to the bright light. However, it is hard to see objects fluoresce due to the large volume of visible light. BL bulbs are often used in bug catchers.īL bulbs emit more long wave UV than BLB bulbs. These bulbs are made of a clear glass and emit a relatively large amount of blue visible light along with the long wave ultraviolet light. There are also "Black Light" or BL bulbs. This bulb uses cobalt blue glass and emits very little purple visible light in addition to the long wave ultraviolet light. Black light fixtures contain a bulb called a "Black Light Blue" or BLB bulb. Terms for black light bulbs are a bit different than for the fixtures. 365nm is the range where most our products perform the best. Traditional black lights emit an average wavelength of 365nm and have a filter to eliminate anything below 320 nm and put our less visible light to make UV reactive products "pop" with color. The ideal black light has the shortest wavelength possible without going below the dangerous 320 nm threshold and has minimal visible light (above 400 nm). Medium and short wave ultraviolet light can lead to eye damage. Long wave ultraviolet (UVA) used for true black lights is relatively safe on the eyes. 400 - 320 nm UVA, Long Wave, Black Light.
The ultraviolet spectrum is broken down into subcategories depending on wavelength: Ultraviolet light will cause fluorescent or phosphorescent pigments to fluoresce, emitting visible light. The color above red is called infra-red and the color below violet is called ultraviolet. However, other invisible “colors” exist above and below this spectrum. Unlike some insects, humans can only view the spectrum from red to violet.
The colors visible to humans are determined by the wavelength of light energy. This article will discuss various bulbs and give you the information to choose an efficient black light for your project. This problem has dramatically increased recently with the advent of falsely labeled UV LED’s. Unfortunately, manufacturers use the words “Black Light” and “UV” carelessly and confusion follows. Black lights are by far the most efficient way to charge glow in the dark paint and it is mandatory for fluorescent UV Reactive paint.Īnyone using phosphorescent or fluorescent paint and wants the best results possible will also need to understand black lights and the long wave ultraviolet light they emit.
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