A lucent waveguide plasma light source has a quartz waveguide body with a central through bore. The bore has orifices at its opposite ends, opening centrally of flat, end faces of the body. Between these the body has a circular cylindrical periphery. A drawn quartz tube is inserted into the body. The tube has its one end closed and a collar which locates the tube in the bore and is fused to the faces at the orifices of the bore. The tube is evacuated and charged with excitable material and closed as a sealed void. A Faraday cage and an antenna in a bore in the body are provided for feeding microwave energy to the light source. When powered with microwaves, resonance is established in the wave guide and a plasma is established in the void, wherein Light radiates and leaves the waveguide and Faraday cage radially of the periphery.