A healthy glow
“Back in the day when we used radioactive materials such as Radium and Tritium, we were made to have regular medical check-ups. After the transition to Super-LumiNova, the workshops where lume was applied had to be thoroughly decontaminated. There’s an urban legend that says certain places in La Chaux-de-Fonds still glow in the dark!”, jokes Frédéric Thierry, director of Monyco, a leader in the application of luminescent substances since 1926.
Toxicity aside, what distinguishes these different materials? Radium – invented in 1968 – and Tritium – first used in the late 1940s – naturally irradiate light (and radioactivity!), whereas Super-LumiNova pigments must first become charged with light which they then release in the dark. This strontium-based lume is non-radioactive, more precious than gold, and has replaced its radioactive counterparts on watch dials… although certain collectors still take a shine to the distinctive look of Tritium or Radium markings on a dial. Some brands, such as Omega, have even gone as far as to use artificial ageing to recreate this unique patina on contemporary styles. As a safe way to enjoy Tritium’s prolonged glow (around 25 years), MB-Microtech has developed a means of capturing Tritium gas in mineral glass microtubes. This technology has been used, for example, by Ball Watch.