Light without heat? It's called Electroluminesce when a material generates light directly from electrical current. It's found everywhere from aircraft control panels to Indiglo watches. It's a great way to light up your tech project, from backlighting LCD panels to prettying up a case mod. If you're not careful, however, you could damage the material, or, worse, give yourself a really really nasty shock.

In this episode of Systm, Dr. Kiki and David Calkins give you all the info you need to safely add EL to any project.

Wondering where to buy EL material? It's easy to purchase online from sites like Electro Luminescence Inc. but it's not super cheap. Think around $60 for an A4 sized sheet and toss in another $10 - $30 for a power inverter.