Hehe a Van de Graaf generator would work, but it wouldn’t be a practical way to do it. There are actually several different methods that can be used. This is in fact a very interesting subject because we need to generate voltage that is high enough to send electrons flying at high speeds in many different contexts in everyday life – one of the most common being inside the engine of cars. So right there and then we have one method : just use a car’s ignition coil. Another very common everyday need for high voltage is inside video CRTs; so you can also disassemble an old TV or computer monitor and use its flyback transformer. But if what you’re really interested is in generating sparks and not necessarily in taking pictures, then you should just go all the way to a Tesla coil.

In my case I didn’t do any of that; I just used a high-voltage generator made for Kirlian photography that plugs straight to a wall power socket. I *did* play a lot in the past with Van de Graaf generators and Tesla coils though – I used to do physics demonstrations at my school and those were some of the student’s favorites, together with showing a heavy piece of solid IRON floating in a bowl of mercury. Unfortunately it’s much harder to get a small Van de Graaf generator really GOING in a tropical climate – too much humidity.

And yes, definitely don’t try this while holding your cell phone.

Best,
Sergio