The Inda-Gro Light is an Electromagnetic Fluorescent Discharge Light (EFDL). A good EFDL lamp is like a fluorescent lamp on steroids, with no electrodes to wear out quickly, based on Nicola Tesla's well-known principles, light can be generated via a gas discharge through electromagnetic induction to produce a plasma like field inside the tube.
This EFDL Lamp is a light source that combines the principle of electric-magnetic induction and gas discharging. Since there's no electrode and filament inside the lamp it is also known as the "Electrode-less" lamp.
The life time of Electromagnetic Induction Lamp can be up to 100,000 hours, which is 100 times of incandescent lamp, 5-15 times of HID (High Intensity Discharge) lamp and 5-10 times of CFL (Compact Fluorescent Lamp).
Electromagnetic transformers, which consists of rings with metal coils, create an electromagnetic field around a glass tube which contains a gas, using a high or low frequency that is generated by an electronic ballast. The discharge path, induced by the coils, forms a closed loop causing acceleration or avalanche of free electrons, which collide with a solid amalgam of mercury atoms which excite the electrons. As the excited electrons from these atoms fall back from this higher energy state to a lower stable level, a plasma state, as they emit ultraviolet radiation. The UV radiation is converted to visible light as it passes through a 12 phosphor coating on the surface of the tube, which in this instance produces a strong full spectrum response. All but 2-3% of the UV is converted, the small remaining UV is beneficial to plant growth. The unusual shape of an induction lamp maximizes the efficiency of the fields that are generated.
Plant growth and development are significantly influenced be both the quantity and quality of the light received, converted, through a process known as PHOTOSYNTHESIS, into energy which the plant requires to successfully mature.
Proper indoor grow light, with a sun light spectrum, can also mitigate disease pressures that are often seen with plants grown outdoors. These plants are naturally affected by the number of cloudy days versus sunny days, humidity and leaf wetness. Lack of solar radiation may subject the plants to disease that the indoor grower can better control.
Outdoor Sunlight produces a full but seasonally shifting spectrum of light, during the long summer days when the sun is high overhead the sunlight is of longer duration, greater intensity and contains a higher ratio of Blue light, HID/MH lamps color rendering index does not mimic this season's index closely enough, HID lamps produce excessive Yellow light which is not very useful to growth with harmful UV and IR. levels, about 25% of the energy is useful. In greenhouses and outdoors, the long lighting period, the intensity and color content all effect the amount of growth experienced during the summer season.
During the late summer and fall as the sun appears to become closer to the horizon, the light passes through the atmosphere at a progressively sharper angle, through thicker air, and is filtered by this lens to have a higher ratio of Red. But light predominately composed of Red and Blue light is not enough. Natural sunlight also contains Green but appears predominately white, white light actually contains all visible colors of the natural worlds palette, witnessed by viewing visible light as it is passes through a prism. Natural light reflects or absorbs as each plant needs and with each season, the colors we see are those which are largely, but not totally, reflected.
To simulate a fuller spectrum 3 phosphors is not enough, he optimum way to provide a full color spectrum is to use a light source that employs 12 phosphors, viewed by our pupils as white.
Our newest lights by Inda-Gro hold the promise of a full spectrum of colors in suitable proportions, allowing natures automatic spectrum compensation and efficient plant/light interception (absorption) to take effect. The 12custom phosphor coating provides a nicely simulated Rainbow Sun Spectrum.
LED and Spectrum: A very good Spectrum can be accomplished with LED light now, if one uses enough different nm range bulbs, I have yet to see truly enough range employed. To date few manufacturers employ Green, you just can't get a really full spectrum, all of the subtle variations of colors needed without the Green component. LED's lack the total intensity of Induction Lighting.
Future Applications of Horticultural LED Lighting, Specialized Supplemental Light: The experts tell me these lights will not be supplemental, but an essential factor.
RED Booster, This will add Deep Red spectrum to fill in the small section that are difficult or impossible to recreate with Induction grow lighting alone.
The Flower Initiator, this light will be used for mere minutes after light out as a phytochrome trigger, to hasten the instigation of Budding, reducing the phytochrome switch period from 2 hours to mere minutes.