What is a Tesla coil?

Answer 1

Tesla coils were used comercialy in sparkgap radio transmitters for wireless telegraphy until the 1920s. Today modified Tesla coils are as igniters for high power gas discharge lamps, such as the Mercury vapor and sodium types used for street lighting.

Answer 2

== == A Tesla Coil is basically a step-up transformer with an air core; used to produce high voltages at high frequencie. It works with the following items and steps:

TRANSFORMER - Takes 110 volt wall socket current, and steps it up to several thousand volts (depending on the transformer).

CAPACITOR - Acts like a battery, and takes the stepped-up voltage and stores it until it's fully charged. Once fully charged, the SPARK-GAP fires, releasing all of the capacitors stored energy in a sngle powerful burst or pulse.

SPARK-GAP - From the SPARK-GAP, the current flows to the large PRIMARY COIL.

PRIMARY COIL - The PRIMARY COIL, is usually made from thick copper wire or even pipe, consisting of 5-25 turns or coils. This large copper coil produces a strong magntic field as the current flows through it, the current is then picked up by the SECONDARY COIL.

SECONDARY COIL - This SECONDARY COIL, acts like another transformer, and consists of numerous turns or coils of smaller gauge copper wire. Here the current continues building by the effects of the magnetic field on the copper, until it reaches massive voltage levels. This current moves up into the DISCHARGE SPHERE.

DISCHARGE SPHERE - The DISCHARGE SPHERE also acts like a simple capacitor (storage battery), before discharging the current as sparks and corona.

To see numerous Tesla Coils and other high voltage items, please visit:

http://www.rb59.com/tesla-coil/tesla-coil.html

Answer 3

A Tesla coil is a type of electrical circuit designed to produce very high voltage, high frequency alternating current using a resonant transformer. The transformer coils are only loosely coupled without the usual iron core and the secondary coil is only loosely wound to provide good insulation between the windings and prevent flashover between the wires. The coil is usually wound into a toroidal (doughnut) shape to allow an even charge distribution around it by avoiding any sharp edges or points. A Tesla coil apparatus is most often used to demonstrate corona discharge and lightning effects at small scale, but may also be used as a type of radio transmitter. It may also be used as a radio receiver circuit. Tesla coils may produce very high voltages in the range of several hundred thousand volts.