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xerography
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Light shining on the item to be copied is reflected off a mirror, through a lens, and off a second mirror to form an image on a photosensitive (selenium-coated) drum. The drum's surface charge varies with the light and dark areas of the image. The toner drum delivers tiny black particles (toner) to the dark, charged areas of the image. The toner-based image is then transferred to paper rolled onto the drum, the negatively charged toner particles being attracted by a positive charge under the sheet, and the paper is heated to set the toner. The copy paper itself originally provided the treated surface, but the innovation of the selenium-coated drum permitted the use of ordinary paper. Light projection permits the printed image to be enlarged or reduced by any desired percentage. First xerographic image Xerox Model A copier electrophotography patent
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xerography

image-forming process
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Light shining on the item to be copied is reflected off a mirror, through a lens, and off a second mirror to form an image on a photosensitive (selenium-coated) drum. The drum's surface charge varies with the light and dark areas of the image. The toner drum delivers tiny black particles (toner) to the dark, charged areas of the image. The toner-based image is then transferred to paper rolled onto the drum, the negatively charged toner particles being attracted by a positive charge under the sheet, and the paper is heated to set the toner. The copy paper itself originally provided the treated surface, but the innovation of the selenium-coated drum permitted the use of ordinary paper. Light projection permits the printed image to be enlarged or reduced by any desired percentage.
xerography
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Category: Science & Tech
Key People:
Chester F. Carlson
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xerography, Image-forming process that relies on a photoconductive substance whose electrical resistance decreases when light falls on it. Xerography is the basis of the most widely used document-copying machines (see photocopier). The process was invented in the 1930s by U.S. physicist Chester F. Carlson (1906–1968) and developed in the 1940s and ’50s by Xerox Corp. (then called Haloid). Light passing through or reflected from a document reaches a selenium-coated drum surface onto which negatively charged particles of ink (toner) are sprayed, forming an image of the document on the drum. As a sheet of paper is passed close to the drum, a positive electric charge under the sheet attracts the negatively charged ink particles, transferring the image to the copy paper. Heat briefly applied fuses the ink particles to the paper. The first commercially successful xerographic copier was introduced in 1959.

This article was most recently revised and updated by William L. Hosch.