The electronic
ballast has a
rectifier arrangement (1)-which is fed by
AC power supply
voltage (U)-with active step-up converter (SW2), a storage
capacitor (C2), a network for limiting an
inrush current and two outputs, at which a stabilized
DC voltage (U+) referred to housing ground as reference potential (Uref) is output. An
inverter (2) is connected to the
rectifier arrangement, a
load circuit (3) with at least one
fluorescent lamp (La1 and / or La2) being assigned to said
inverter on the output side. The
inverter has a converter network (T1 / 1, T1 / 2, C1, SW3, SW4), preferably designed as a push-pull circuit, with two bridge paths, which, in the steady-state operating condition, are alternatively switched through to the reference potential. In this case, the switching network for limiting the
inrush current comprises a limiting
resistor (R1), which, in series with the storage
capacitor (C2), is connected to reference potential. The
junction point between the storage
capacitor and the limiting
resistor is coupled to the two bridge paths of the converter network in such a way that it is connected, in the steady-state condition of the inverter, via the latter to housing ground and the limiting
resistor, which is thus effective only in the switch-on phase, is bridged.