Electronic ballast for gas discharge lamp

An electronic ballast for at least one gas discharge lamp, preferably for a fluorescent lamp (LA) has a with a DC voltage source (U¶BUS¶) connected inverters and an output connected to the inverter load circuit of the lamp (LA), and includes a series resonant circuit. The inverter is formed by two angeorndete in a half bridge arrangement of switches (Q1, Q2), which are controlled by a control circuit (1) so alternately during an ignition phase that their switch-on time (t¶on¶) is gradually increased. In order to avoid the occurrence of excessive current and voltage peaks, the control circuit (1) during the ON time of one of the two switches (Q1, Q2) monitors the amount of pressure applied to the load circuit Stomes and opens in the event that the current exceeds a predetermined reference value , this switch (Q1, Q2) prematurely and switches it back later regularly a.