
Heinz Behling
PROJECTS: Pocket Jacob’s Ladder
LADDER LOGIC
The functional principle is pretty simple (Figure
A
). A voltage is applied to the ladder electrodes
from a transformer — say, from a neon sign,
microwave oven, or model train, or, in our case,
the output from our little high voltage generator.
If that voltage is high enough, an arc forms where
the gap between the electrodes is shortest. (For
an arc to “make the jump” across the gap, you
need about 1,000 volts per millimeter.) This arc
is simply air that has been ionized by the voltage,
making it electrically conductive. The electrical
energy flowing across the arc is partly converted ...