Alpha radiation makes sparks, detects smoke, and eliminates static cling

Interesting applications of a strong polonium-210 alpha radiation source. The half life is only 140 days, so the Staticmaster brushes must be replaced every year or so.

Great technical article on ionization smoke detectors: https://circuitcellar.com/wp-content/...

Staticmaster refill: https://www.amazon.com/Static-Master-...

Ionization chamber: https://www.aliexpress.com/item/32838...

Carl Willis' video on spark gap detectors. (check out his whole channel)    • Spark detector for alpha particles  

Polonium poisoning: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Poisoni...
https://sci-hub.tw/10.1088/1361-6498/...

Mightyohm geiger counter: https://mightyohm.com/blog/products/g...

Applied Science on Patreon:   / appliedscience