Some Characteristics of a Pulsed Xenon Lamp for Use as a Light Source in Kinetic Spectrophotometry

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Abstract
This paper presents details of the electrical and optical characteristics of Osram XBO 250, 14 V, 18 A, high pressure xenon arc lamps during 1 msec current pulses of several hundred amperes which are used as analyzing light sources in kinetic spectrophotometry. The lamps are operated continuously at their normal rating between pulses and the arc provides a path of high electrical conductivity for the pulse current. As a result the volume occupied by the discharge and the potential drop between the electrodes do not change very much during a pulse, whereas the radiance of the discharge increases by a large factor which depends on current and wavelength. At 450 A the increase in radiance is about 700× in the far ultraviolet, about 300× in the visible, and about 50× in the infrared. XBO 250 lamps operated in this way can withstand many thousands of pulses without excessive deterioration. A circuit for producing the current pulses is described.