phosphor

Noun

WordNet 3.0

Noun (1)

  1. a synthetic substance that is fluorescent or phosphorescent; used to coat the screens of cathode ray tubes
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Webster's Dictionary (GCIDE)

Phosphor \Phos"phor\ (f[o^]s"f[^o]r or f[o^]s"f[o^]r), n. [Cf. G. phosphor. See Phosphorus.]

1.Phosphorus. [Obs.] --Addison. [1913 Webster]

2.The planet Venus, when appearing as the morning star; Lucifer. [Poetic and Rare] --Pope. --Tennyson. [1913 Webster]

3.A phosphorescent substance. [archaic] [PJC]

4.A substance capable of exhibiting luminescence. This term is now most commonly used to refer to substances used in fluorescent lights, image intensifiers, or cathode-ray tubes (CRT's), which luminesce when excited by ultraviolet radiation or an electron beam. In color CRT's, three different phosphors, each giving different colors when excited, are used. [PJC]

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