What is a 2mW Green HeNe tube worth?

Whats a 2mW HeNe tube worth without the power supply? can you use a normal powersupply? I have an opportunity to get one.

Re: What is a 2mW HeNe tube worth?

632.8nm? 543.5nm? 594.5nm? 611.9nm?



-Trevor

Re: What is a 2mW HeNe tube worth?

Normal power supply won't work. HeNe tubes (depending on power) need a couple kilovolts at low current to operate.

Re: What is a 2mW HeNe tube worth?

Wow sorry guys its been a long day! cant believe I forgot to mention that 543.5nm


Whats it worth and
Will a regular 632 hene powersupply work?

Re: What is a 2mW HeNe tube worth?

Green tubes generally have higher voltage requirements than red tubes - green tubes are generally longer since the gain on the green line is lower.

If you know any model info, we can see about finding you a datasheet.

If you know tube length, Sam can probably give you a really accurate estimate of the voltage requirement.

-Trevor

Re: What is a 2mW HeNe tube worth?

If it's a tested working tube putting out more than the minimum rated power then anywhere from $100-$200. IIRC Meredith Instruments sells them new for $200. They are more common and hence cheaper than yellow or orange, but still far more rare than red.

Yes the power requirements do not vary by wavelength, but physically larger tubes do require higher voltage than smaller ones and the low gain "other color" HeNe tubes are much larger for a given output power. A 2mW GreNe will be about the size and power requirement as a 7-10mW red. Sam's FAQ does have a fairly large listing of HeNe tube characteristics and power requirements. An educated guess is 2800V 6.5mA with a 75 Ohm ballast resistor.

Re: What is a 2mW HeNe tube worth?

Melles Griot LGR 192

Found the psu specs

$100 new is my opportunity...what do you guys think?

Re: What is a 2mW HeNe tube worth?

Here's the chart from the FAQ, my recollection is that the 192 is the same tube as the 193 but one is a bare tube and one is a complete head:

Green (543.5 nm), random polarization:

Minimum e/2 c/2L Supply Nominal
Output Beam Diver- Mode Opr/Strt Tube Tube Size Model
Power Diam gence Spacing (Rb=75K) Current Diam/Lgth 05-LGR-
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------
.08 mW .88 mm 2.35 mR NA-MM .88/8 kV 3.7 mA 25/149 mm 004
.2 mW .63 mm 1.26 mR 732 MHz 1.56/8 kV 4.5 mA 29/215 mm 025
.2 mW .75 mm .92 mR 373 MHz 2.62/10 kV 6.5 mA 37/410 mm 171
.3 mW .81 mm .99 mR 574 MHz 2.20/10 kV 6.5 mA 37/269 mm 321
.5 mW .80 mm 1.01 mR 438 MHz 2.39/10 kV 6.5 mA 37/351 mm 141
.5 mW .80 mm 1.01 mR 438 MHz 2.39/10 kV 6.5 mA 37/351 mm 151
.5 mW 1.35 mm 1.10 mR NA-MM 1.94/10 kV 6.5 mA 37/351 mm 252
.8 mW .89 mm .92 mR 373 MHz 2.62/10 kV 6.5 mA 37/410 mm 173
1.0 mW 1.3 mm 1.00 mR NA-MM 1.87/10 kV 6.5 mA 37/351 mm 161
1.0 mW .80 mm .86 mR 328 MHz 2.75/10 kV 6.5 mA 37/475 mm 293
1.5 mW .86 mm .81 mR 328 MHz 2.75/10 kV 6.5 mA 37/475 mm 193
2.0 mW .86 mm .81 mR 328 MHz 2.75/10 kV 6.5 mA 37/475 mm 393

Re: What is a 2mW HeNe tube worth?

Go for it.

Edit:^@Helios

Re: What is a 2mW HeNe tube worth?

I just bought one from Sam (Laser Faq) for the same price but a different series Melles Groit. It seems like a good deal but keep in mind the power supply could run another $50-100 or more.

Re: What is a 2mW HeNe tube worth?

If you keep an eye out, you can find a reasonably priced power supply. Several months ago I bought a 1mW HeNe head and lab PSU for $10 on ebay. The PSU turned out to be the wrong one for that little head and I use it with one of my green heads.

I got my green HeNe for $95 shipped with PSU. I had to spend about another 20 or so in parts to rig up a power adapter to feed the 12v HV PSU. Works great except the tube is sealed in a head so no plasma goodness for me (yet).

You might be able to trade it for a bare tube. Personally I prefer the nice aluminum heads because the tube is protected, otherwise I just have to find something to mount the tube in to use it. A $10 red tube looks just about the same as an expensive green tube as far as plasma goes.

Yeah that's why I'm looking for a cheap red tube. This head aside from one or two small scratches it looks brand new.