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What is Neon?

 The term "neon" is used to describe several varieties of cold-cathode lighting.  All neon is "cold cathode".  A cold cathode tube is much like the fluorescent tubes you see lighting your home and office, bent into custom shapes and designs, with custom colors. The operating principle, and efficiency are identical.

Cold cathode and neon have an important advantage however.  Instead of a hot filament at the ends of the tube, a larger, heavier duty electrode is used that operates a much lower temperatures.  These "cold cathode" electrodes are nearly indestructible in the electrical sense.  There is no filament to burn out, and they are unaffected by startups and shutdowns.  This is the reason neon can be connected to an on-off flasher with no reduction in lifetime.

Georges Claude is generally credited with inventing neon.  It was actually the cold-cathode neon electrode he perfected in 1910  that led the way to the modern neon tube.  By 1912, the first commercial neon sign was sold in the US. While today's neon tubes look similar to their cousins from the 1930's, great advances have been made that mirror the fluorescent lamp industry.  High efficiency phosphorescent emitters, more efficient electrodes with lower voltage drops, and high-efficiency electronic switching power supplies.  Neon today remains one of the most efficient and long-life illumination sources.  This is why cold cathode is used extensively for lighting and other illumination tasks, not just for neon signs.

Many other mediums have desired a piece of the neon pie - hoping to obtain a market share of cold cathode's unique place in the world of lighting.  Some have been successful in certain applications, like LED's.  Other's, like fiber optics have failed miserably.  While both of these mediums offer advantages in niche markets, neither combine the elegance, durability, and range of colors as neon.

In an attempt to sell products, many manufacturers have made very deceptive claims about their products suitability as a "replacement" for neon.  Many too have claimed  that it's inefficient, short-lived, or "un-green" - none of which are remotely true.

Neon was challenged before in the 1960's and 1970's, with the advent of plastic signs.

Neon does have disadvantages:  it is glass, and can break.  It also requires a skilled craftsman to design and fabricate.  Neither of these properties mesh well with high-speed, mass-production attitude the sign and display industries are pushing.

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