Life savers spark in the dark4/4/2023 Ultraviolet light has a shorter wavelength than visible light. Methyl salicylate, or oil of wintergreen, is fluorescent, meaning it absorbs light of a shorter wavelength and then emits it as light of a longer wavelength. This brighter light is produced by the wintergreen flavoring. This is why all hard, sugary candies will produce a faint glow when cracked.īut when you bite into a Wint-O-Green Life Saver, a much greater amount of visible light can be seen. In this excited state, and in order to get rid of the excess energy, these nitrogen molecules emit light - mostly ultraviolet (nonvisible) light, but they do emit a small amount of visible light as well. When they collide, the electrons impart energy to the nitrogen molecules, causing them to vibrate. These free electrons bump into nitrogen molecules in the air. Triboluminescence occurs when molecules, in this case crystalline sugars, are crushed, forcing some electrons out of their atomic fields. When you rip a piece of tape off the roll, it will produce a slight glow for the same reason. Triboluminescence is the emission of light resulting from something being smashed or torn. This effect is called triboluminescence, which is similar to the electrical charge build-up that produces lightning, only much less grand. "Actually, all hard sugar-based candies emit some degree of light when you bite them, but most of the time, that light is very faint. Why do Wint-O-Green Life Savers spark in the dark?
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