Help with relaxation oscillator

[JFS321]

All, I am confused as to exactly how the capacitive relaxation oscillator works.

From the diagram above: Because the lamp is in parallel, why is it not immediately receiving the voltage necessary to light instantly? Thanks.

 

[davenn]

hi there

The neon globe has a minimum strike voltage ... let's say ~ 80V ( 75 - 90V common)
This is the neon's threshold voltage. That voltage will only be reached when the capacitor is charged to that threshold voltage
The neon will then conduct with a flash of light and the voltage across the capacitor will drop to well below the threshold voltage.
The capacitor will then start charging again till that voltage is reached and the neon then discharges again.
this cycle continues on and on ...

The cap doesn't charge instantly ( or near) because of the series resistor limiting current to the capacitor causing it to take time to charge
but when threshold is reached it discharges almost instantly ... ie. it oscillates with a sawtooth pattern

cheers
Dave

 

[JFS321]

Ahhh ok...so a capacitor acts like a voltage sink of sorts...instead of this being like a regular parallel circuit, the voltage across both legs is initially zero because the capacitor must first charge? Or maybe to reword, the battery voltage does not initially reach the bulb because it is being taken by the capacitor? Thanks-

 

[davenn]

Yes, initially, at time T=0, the capacitor "looks" like a short circuit, charge is flowing onto one plate and out of the other plate
as the charge builds up, the voltage potential difference across the capacitor also does. Only when that voltage potential equals the
discharge ( threshold ) voltage of the neon globe will current flow across the gap in the neon

Or maybe to reword, the battery voltage does not initially reach the bulb because it is being taken by the capacitor? Thanks-

The same voltage that is across the capacitor is also across the neon globe, from the time the capacitor starts charging,
that voltage slowly rises as the capacitor charges up
have a look at this ...

cheers
Dave

 

[nsaspook]

The Neon bulb (gas discharge tube) relaxation circuit is a negative resistance oscillator.

The operational voltage and currents are normally designed to be in the unstable portion of the bulbs VI curve.
http://www.g3ynh.info/disch_tube/intro.html

 

[JFS321]

Thank you.

 

[Mike_In_Plano]

Curiously, there is a semiconductor component that behaves like this, the DIAC.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/DIAC

Unfortunately, it lakes the charming flash-flash-flash of the neon bulb.