24 May
2005
24 May
'05
5:52 p.m.
I seem to recall that neon's behave as diodes. I
might be wrong.
I'm fairly sure you are.
Neons do have interesting DC-vs-AC behaviour, but it's not diodish;
rather, it's a matter of which electrode light is emitted near. (I
can't remember whether it's the positive or the negative.) You have to
do something like AC to get both electrodes lit up.
What's more interesting about neons is that their current/voltage curve
exhibits hysteresis - there is a range of voltages which will sustain
but not initiate current flow.
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