| Abstract from DBPedia | Fluorescence is the emission of light by a substance that has absorbed light or other electromagnetic radiation. It is a form of luminescence. In most cases, the emitted light has a longer wavelength, and therefore a lower photon energy, than the absorbed radiation. A perceptible example of fluorescence occurs when the absorbed radiation is in the ultraviolet region of the electromagnetic spectrum (invisible to the human eye), while the emitted light is in the visible region; this gives the fluorescent substance a distinct color that can only be seen when the substance has been exposed to UV light. Fluorescent materials cease to glow nearly immediately when the radiation source stops, unlike phosphorescent materials, which continue to emit light for some time after. Fluorescence has many practical applications, including mineralogy, gemology, medicine, chemical sensors (fluorescence spectroscopy), fluorescent labelling, dyes, biological detectors, cosmic-ray detection, vacuum fluorescent displays, and cathode-ray tubes. Its most common everyday application is in (gas-discharge) fluorescent lamps and LED lamps, in which fluorescent coatings convert UV or blue light into longer-wavelengths resulting in white light which can even appear indistinguishable from that of the traditional but energy- inefficient incandescent lamp. Fluorescence also occurs frequently in nature in some minerals and in many biological forms across all kingdoms of life. The latter may be referred to as biofluorescence, indicating that the fluorophore is part of or is extracted from a living organism (rather than an inorganic dye or stain). But since fluorescence is due to a specific chemical, which can also be synthesized artificially in most cases, it is sufficient to describe the substance itself as fluorescent.蛍光（けいこう、英: fluorescence）とは、発光現象の分類。
* 最も広義には、ルミネセンスによる光（発光）全般を指す。
* 広義には、ルミネセンスのうち、電子の励起源として、エネルギーの高い短波長の光（電磁波）を照射することにより生じる発光を指す（フォトルミネセンス）。この項では主にこの意味の蛍光について述べる。
* 狭義には、広義の蛍光のうち、励起のための電磁波を止めるとすぐに発光が消失する、発光寿命が短いものを指す（厳密な定義は各種ある）。発光寿命が長いものは燐光と呼ぶ（フォトルミネセンス以外のルミネセンス全般でもこのような発光寿命の違いで「蛍光」・「燐光」の使い分けはなされている。）。 なお、蛍（ホタル）の発光は体内の酵素の化学反応により生じるエネルギーを励起源とする発光（バイオルミネセンス）（最も広義の蛍光の1つ）であり、広義の蛍光（光をエネルギー源とする発光のフォトルミネセンス）とはメカニズムが異なる。 (Source: http://dbpedia.org/resource/Fluorescence) |
