Group 18 · The Noble Gases
Aurora on your desk.
Five noble gases, sealed at low pressure in glass ampules. Excite them with a plasma ball, and each one glows in its signature color. The science gift that lights up our interest in science!
Tell Me More
How they glow.
Same physics as the aurora borealis, running at desk scale.
Low pressure gives room to run.
At normal atmospheric pressure, gas atoms are packed too tightly for the physics to work. These ampules are sealed at partial vacuum, giving electrons enough room to accelerate before they smack into an atom. Physicists call it the mean free path.
High voltage kicks the electrons.
Bring a plasma ball or Tesla coil close, and the electromagnetic field zips through the gas. Electrons jump to higher energy states, then fall back down. The energy they shed on the way down comes out as a photon.
Each element has its own color.
The exact color that photon comes out is dictated by the element's atomic structure. Different gaps between electron energy levels release different colors. Every neon sign, every mercury vapor lamp, every aurora on Earth uses the same trick, one atom at a time.
The five colors.
Each noble gas emits a unique spectrum when excited. This is what your desk lights up with.
Helium
Peach
Second most abundant in the universe. Nearly absent from Earth's atmosphere.
Neon
Red-orange
The color that gave every neon sign its name. And its category.
Argon
Violet
Nearly one percent of the air you are breathing right now.
Krypton
Pale blue-white
Greek for "hidden." Named after how difficult it was to find in the atmosphere.
Xenon
Brilliant blue
The gas behind car HID headlights, camera flashes, and plasma cutter arcs.
The set
Noble Gas Element Collection
Five stable noble gases in low-pressure glass ampules, ready for the plasma ball. Ships with a display stand for the shelf, the desk, or the science teacher's whiteboard tray.
- Five ampules: He, Ne, Ar, Kr, Xe
- 10 × 40 mm sealed glass ampules, low pressure
- Includes acrylic display stand
- Great gift for the science lover
For the science lover in your life.
Some ideas on who this lights up for.
The physics teacher.
A classroom demo that survives a decade of lesson plans. Dim the lights, bring the plasma ball on Discharge Tube Day and watch the room stop scrolling.
The science-curious kid.
Who needs a textbook when you've got emission spectra on your desk?! Pair the ampules and a plasma ball together for maximum effect at the next sleepover!
The desk-collector nerd.
The ampules and the stand slot cleanly onto any office shelf or workbench. Sits quietly until a visitor asks what it is...then everyone lights up.
Also available
Same gases, cube format.
Each noble gas also comes as an individual 10 mm sealed glass cube. Buy one to complete a cube-format collection, or all five to build the family a second way.
Helium
10 mm cube
$16.50
Neon
10 mm cube
$16.50
Argon
10 mm cube
$16.50
Krypton
10 mm cube
$19.50
Xenon
10 mm cube
$20.00
Or the whole family in one click.
Turn the lights out. Get Ready for the Show.
Five colors, one small ceremony that never gets old.