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discharge tube

American  

noun

Electronics.
  1. gas tube.


discharge tube British  

noun

  1. electronics an electrical device in which current flow is by electrons and ions in an ionized gas, as in a fluorescent light or neon tube

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

discharge tube Scientific  
  1. A closed vessel having electrodes at either end and containing a gas at low pressure. When a sufficient voltage is applied to the electrodes, an electric current flows through the gas. Discharge tubes can be used to prevent current flow below a certain voltage; they can also function as lamps by the use of ionizing gas, which glows when current flows through the tube.


Etymology

Origin of discharge tube

First recorded in 1895–1900