Nixie Clock Resources, Nixie Displays, Nixie Tubes

A Nixie tube is a cold-cathode gas-filled display tube that shows numerals as a soft orange glow. Inside a glass envelope filled mostly with neon sit a wire-mesh anode and a stack of separate cathodes, each shaped like one of the digits zero to nine. Applying a high voltage between the anode and one chosen cathode ionises the gas around that cathode, surrounding the selected numeral with a glowing discharge. Because the digit shapes lie at slightly different depths, the lit numeral appears to float within the tube.

Nixie tubes were widely used in instruments, calculators and counters from the late 1950s through the 1970s before seven-segment LED and liquid-crystal displays replaced them. They require a relatively high supply voltage, typically over a hundred volts, and driving circuitry able to switch that voltage to the correct cathode. The name Nixie is associated with the Burroughs Corporation, which popularised the devices.

Today these tubes are prized for their warm, distinctive appearance, and building a Nixie clock is a popular electronics project. Such a clock combines a timekeeping circuit, often a microcontroller, with a high-voltage supply and driver stages that light the appropriate cathodes to display hours and minutes. Because the original tubes are no longer mass-produced, hobbyists rely on surviving stock, and the retro aesthetic has made these clocks collectible. Related cold-cathode and vacuum displays, such as the vacuum fluorescent display, offer alternative glowing readouts.

Frequently asked questions

How does a Nixie tube display a digit?: It contains separate digit-shaped cathodes in a neon-filled tube. Applying a high voltage to one cathode ionises the gas around it, making that numeral glow orange.
Are Nixie tubes still made?: Original mass production ended decades ago, so most clocks use surviving stock of old tubes, though small specialist runs have appeared. Their scarcity adds to their collectible appeal.
Why do Nixie clocks need a high-voltage supply?: The gas discharge that lights each digit requires more than a hundred volts, so a Nixie clock includes a step-up supply and driver circuitry to switch that voltage to the correct cathode.

Tubes: Datasheets, General, Nixie Clocks, Old radio, Special Tubes, Tube audio amplifiers, Tube guitar amplifiers, Vacuum Fluorescent Display

Nixie Clock Displays

7-Segment To Nixie Decoder 7-Segment To Nixie Decoder

Biquinary tubes Biquinary tubes

Boost converter high voltage supply for NIXIEs If you want to build a simple DC/DC converter to lighten up your NIXIEs and you don't care to much about the conversion efficiency

Counter tubes Counter tubes, These tubes combines the function of a counter and display device

Display and counting tubes

Driving IN-9 Neon Displays pdf file

Driving Nixies With Discrete Transistors the most popular Nixie driver transistor is the MPSA42, pdf file

How to drive nixie tubes How it works, Basic cathode driver circuits, Multiplexing nixie tubes, Sample schematics, Getting nixie manuals and data

Nixie counter 4060, 74HC574, 74141, ZM1000

Nixie & Dekatron Tubes Nixie tubes were a common form of numeric display for electronic equipment from the mid-1950's thru the early 1970's, when they were supplanted by 7-segment LED displays, ...

Nixie Displays Gas-Discharge Display, Nixie tube drive circuits

Nixie HV Switching PSU Nixie HV Switching PSU

Nixie pagina

Nixie Thermostat

Nixie tube A nixie tube is an electronic device for displaying numerals or other information, in the form of a glass tube containing multiple cathodes and a wire mesh anode, filled with neon and often a little mercury and/or argon, ...

Nixie Tube Data Archive private information and collector page for Nixie and other display tubes, How Nixie tubes work

Nixie tubes Nixie tubes data

Nixie tubes How Nixie tubes work, How to drive nixie tubes

Nixie tubes Although the term 'Nixie' is a trademark, it has come into the English language as a generic term for cold-cathode gas-discharge numerical and symbol indicator tubes, ...

Nixie tubes The private information and collector page for Nixie and other display tubes, Nixie tubes side viewed with numerals or alphanumeric display, ...

Nixie Tube Cross-Reference Data Table Notes

Nixie Tube Thermostat This project consists of a thermostat for an office heating/cooling system which employs a PIC18F252 microcontroller and three nixie cold-cathode display tubes

Ronald's electronic project site

Valve & Nixie Socket Calculator This program lets you determine the pin circle diameter of a tube base from measurements more readily made with a micrometer. The data should be entered in millimetres and the results will be in the same units

Nixie Clock projects

6 Digit Numitron Clock RCA DR-2000 Numitrons using a standard 9 pin tube socket

Build a Nixie Tube Digital Clock This design uses no exotic or obsolete components other than the nixie tubes themselves. It was designed to be very compact, and does not use a mains transformer, allowing it to be built into a nice small case. It's designed for 230v (220-240V) mains operation, but can be modified for 115v (110-120V), and can be configured for 50 or 60Hz supplies

DCF-Nixie-Clock

Decatron Clock Project

Dieter's Nixie- Clock

Digital clock using 4 ZM1040 NIXIE TUBES mux 2x2 with a PIC16F876

Digitale Nixieröhrenuhr

Fred's 4 Letter Word

Hacking a WWVB Radio Controlled Analog Clock movement Radio Controlled Nixie Clock

Homemade Nixie Clock ZM1172 Nixie tubes, This Nixie Clock is a 2 x 3 Multiplexed version using a PIC16F876 and two 74141 open collector hight voltage drivers

Homemade Nixie Clock Nixie Clock, Display is Multiplexed using NPN transistors to drive all cathodes, PNP transistors is used to drive all the anodes. The clock logic and multiplexing is done using a PIC16F876 microcontroller with FLASH memory. Programming is done i C using HI-Tech Compiler and MPLAP and homemade AN586 type of programmer

IN-14 Nixie Clock IN-14 Nixie Clock

IN-18 Nixie Clock IN-18 Nixie Clock

IN-18 Tube data IN-18 Tube data

Neil's Nixie Clock Page

Nixie Clock dual anode ZM1030, Connections of the ZM1030 and ZM1032 NIXIE tubes, driver circuit for the ZM1030

Nixie Clock Nixie tubes were a common form of numeric display for electronic equipment from the mid-1950's thru the early 1970's, when they were supplanted by 7-segment LED displays

Nixie Clock

Nixie clock PIC16F876

Nixie Clock alarm Nixie Clock alarm circuit

Nixie Clock Board 68HC705 CPU and 74141 cathode driver, 6844A, B-5092, B-5032 and ZM1020, ZM1020 tubes

Nixie Clock Gallery A Nixie is basically a set of diodes in a glass tube containing a little neon gas. The cathodes are numerals, ...

Nixie Clock Gallery

Nixie clock project ZM1020

Nixie clock project a Nixie Tube clock using surplus Russian IN-18 Nixie Tubes coupled with a Trimble GPS timing receiver

Nixie clock project How to build a Nixie clock, DCF77 radio controlled Nixie clock, Here you will find all the information you'll need to build a DCF77 radio controlled Nixie clock

Nixie clock projects

Nixie-Clocks

Nixie-clock using neon lamps as logic

Nixie Clock Z570M-1-V1

Nixie Driver Schematic Nixie Controller Schematic

Nixie tube clock Nixie tube clock

Nixie Tube Digital Wristwatch

Nixie Tube Propeller Clock Nixie Tube Propeller Clock the world's first propeller clock using a nixie tube

Nixie Tube Propeller Clock pdf file

Nixie-Uhren

Nixie – Uhr mit 6 russischen IN-18 Röhren

NIX-IN-17 NIX-IN-17. An ATmega48 based Nixie Clock