HISTORY ABOUT LED BULB

In 1907, Henry Joseph Round first observed the phenomenon of electroluminescence in a

piece of Silicon Carbide (SiC). The yellow light emitted by it was too dim to be of practical use
and difficulties in working with Silicon Carbide meant that research was abandoned. Further
experiments were carried out in Germany in the late 1920s by Bernhard Gudden and Robert
Wichard Pohl, using phosphor materials made from Zinc Sulphide doped with Copper (ZnS:Cu),
although once again, the low level of light produced meant that no in depth research was carried
out. In 1936 George Destriau published a report on the emission of light by Zinc Sulphide (ZnS)
powders, following the application of an electric current and is widely credited with having
invented the term "electroluminescence".
British experiments into electroluminescence, using the semiconductor Gallium Arsenide
(GaAs) in the 1950s led to the first "modern" Light Emitting Diode (LED), which appeared in
the early 1960s. It is said that early experimental laboratory LEDs needed to sit in liquid nitrogen
while operating and considerable effort was required to make the breakthroughs needed to create
devices that would function efficiently at room temperature. The first commercial LEDs were
only able to produce invisible, infra red light, but still quickly found their way into sensing and
photo-electric applications.
The first visible (red) light LEDs were produced in the late 1960s, using Gallium Arsenide
Phosphate (GaAsP) on a GaAs substrate. Changing to a Gallium Phosphate (GaP) substrate led
to an increase in efficiency, making for brighter red LEDs and allowing the color orange to be
produced.
By the mid 1970's Gallium Phosphate (GaP) was itself being used as the light emitter and
was soon producing a pale green light. LEDs using dual GaP chips (one in red and one in green)
were able to emit yellow light. Yellow LEDs were also made in Russia using Silicon Carbide at
around this time, although they were very inefficient compared to their Western counterparts,
which were producing purer green light by the end of the decade.
The use of Gallium Aluminum Arsenide Phosphates (GaAlAsP) LEDs in the early to
mid 1980sbrought the first generation of super bright LEDs, first in red, then yellow and finally
green. By the early 1990's ultra bright LEDs using Indium Gallium Aluminum Phosphate
(InGaAlP) to produce orange-red, orange, yellow and green light had become available.
The first significant blue LEDs also appeared at the start of the 1990's, once again using
Silicon Carbide - a throwback to the earliest semiconductor light sources, although like their
yellow Russian ancestors the light output was very dim by today's standards. Ultra bright blue
Gallium Nitride (GaN) LEDs arrived in the mid 1990s, with Indium Gallium Nitride (InGaN)
LEDs producing high-intensity green and blue shortly thereafter.
The ultra bright blue chips became the basis of white LEDs, in which the light emitting chip
is coated with fluorescent phosphors. These phosphors absorb the blue light from the chip and
then re-emit it as white light. This same technique has been used to produce virtually any color
of visible light and today there are LEDs on the market which can produce previously "exotic"
colors, such as aqua and pink.

 Scientifically minded readers may have realized by now that the history of LEDs has been a
long, slow "crawl up the spectrum", starting with infra-red. Indeed, the most recently developed
LEDs emit not just pure violet, but genuine ultra-violet "black" light. How much further up the
spectrum LEDs can "go" is a matter of speculation, but who knows ? it may one day even be
possible to produce LEDs which emit X-rays.
However, the story of LEDs has not just been about color, but brightness too. Like
computers, LEDs are following their own kind of "Moore's Law", becoming roughly twice as
powerful (bright) around every eighteen months. Early LEDs were only bright enough to be used
as indicators, or in the displays of early calculators and digital watches. More recently they have
been starting to appear in higher brightness applications and will continue to do so for some time
to come. For instance: all American traffic signals will have been replaced with LEDs by late
2005; the automotive industry has sworn to banish all incandescent bulbs from cars by the end of
the decade, replacing them with LEDs - even in headlights. Most of the large video screens seen
at outdoor events use many thousands of LEDs to produce video pictures. Very soon, LEDs will
be bright enough to light our homes, offices and even our streets as well. The extreme energy
efficiency of LEDs means that solar charged batteries can power LED units by night, bringing
light to the Third World and other areas with no mains electricity.
The once humble Light Emitting Diode has truly come of age and is now making the jump
from mere indicator to a true illuminator!

http://www.trgcomponents.co.uk/trggb/internet/Template.aspx?PageID=4545

A short glance back over the history of the LED:

190
7

The Englishman Henry Joseph Round discovers that inorganic materials can light up when an
electric current is applied. In the same year, he publishes his discovery in the journal "Electrical
World".
Since, however, he was working mainly on a new direction-finding system for marine transport, this
discovery initially is forgotten.

192
1

The Russian physicist Oleg Lossew again observes the "Round effect" of light emission. In the
succeeding years, from 1927 to 1942, he examined and described
this phenomenon in greater detail.

193
5

The French physicist Georges Destriau discovers light emission in zinc sulfide. In honor of the
Russian physicist, he calls the effect "Lossew light". Today Georges Destriau is credited as the
inventor of electroluminescence.

195
1

The development of a transistor marks a scientific step forward in semiconductor physics. It is now
possible to explain light emission.

196
2

The first red luminescence diode (type GaAsP), developed by American Nick Holonyak, enters the
market. This first LED in the visible wavelength area marks the birth of the industrially-produced
LED.

197
1

As a result of the development of new semiconductor materials, LEDs are produced in new colors:
green, orange and yellow. The LED's performance and effectiveness continues to improve.

199
3

Japanese Shuji Nakamura develops the first brilliant blue LED and a very efficient LED in the green
spectrum range (InGaN diode). Sometime later he also designs a white LED..

199
5

The first LED with white light from luminescence conversion is presented and is launched on the
market two years later.

200
6

The first light-emitting diodes with 100 lumens per watt are produced. This efficiency can be
outmatched only by gas discharge lamps.

201
0

LEDs of a certain color with a gigantic luminous efficacy of 250 lumens per watt are already being
developed under laboratory conditions. Progress continues to surge ahead. Today, further
development towards OLED is seen as the technology of the future.

http://www.osram.com/osram_com/news-and-knowledge/led-home/professionalknowledge/led-basics/led-history/index.jsp

HOW DO LED LIGHT BULBS WORK

An LED is a small light bulb that easily fits into an electrical circuit. These light bulbs do not get
hot and they are illuminated by the constant movements of the electrons located in the
semiconductor material. The average life of an LED is around 50,000 hours, and it surpasses the
life of the typical incandescent bulb by several tens of thousands of hours. Nowadays, you can
find LED lights in a variety of applications, including LCD TVs.
There is a strong reason why people are looking for cost-effective and energy-efficient lighting
solutions for their homes: these lighting choices lower the utility bills and also take care of the
problem of non-renewable energy sources. In the US alone, almost 90% of the energy relies on
non-renewable sources. LEDs are by far the most efficient lights available on the market, and
they have become so popular that they can be easily found in home-goods and hardware stores.
Unfortunately, these innovative light bulbs are still a mystery to many people, because their
mechanism is radically different than the one of standard light bulbs. Here you will find detailed
information about how LEDs work and how are they able to generate constant and reliable lights
without any maintenance.
The answer lies in the name of the light bulb: LED stands for Light Emitting Diodes and it
refers to a special type of diode that is especially created to provide light when electricity passes
through it. These diodes are basically semiconductors that are used to control the direction of the
electricity flow.
The average light emitting diode does this through what is known as a p-n junction, which is
formed of a p-type semiconductor (which contains positively charged carriers) and an n-type
semiconductor (which contains electrons). The connection between these two types of
semiconductors is known as a p-n junction. These junctions are the building blocks of every
semiconductor electronic device.

Light emitting diodes are modified in order to produce a form of light radiation, and the electrons
from n-type semiconductors simply connect to the carriers in the p-type semiconductor, and the
electricity flow is unidirectional: it is possible only from n to p, not the other way round. When
the junction is formed, electrons located in the diode change their state and start to emit photons:
electrons change their orbit by moving from a higher orbit to a lower one when they do that,
they automatically lose energy in the form of light. The more energy is lost, the more powerful
the photons of light. This is when the color starts to change and light is being emitted by the
LED.
The color that is emitted by the LED is somehow influenced by the material of the bulb as well
as the current that runs through it. The semiconductor materials can be designed to limit the
amount of energy that flows through them, and this will automatically change the color of the
light this is how you obtain a multi-color LED bulb. When the LED starts to produce light, this
phenomenon is known as electroluminescence, and this is different from any other kind of
light emission because it provides no heat. When the traditional light bulbs emit light, that
process is called incandescence because they emit heat along with the light (thus the name
incandescent light bulbs).
Generally speaking, LED lights are designed to emit one color of light, but over the past years
manufacturers have come up with bicolor light bulbs, and the most popular colors at the moment
are red, green and blue (although there is a wide variety of colored LED bulbs available on the
market). In the case of large LED displays, the manufacturers use a combination of LEDs that
aim to give a wide range of colors (these displays use a 3-LED pixel).
The improved intensity and the low cost have broadened the applications. The LED contains a
pair of leads along with a plastic body that is encased around the leads and the semiconductor
this way, the light is emitted through the bulb plastic. However, most LED bulbs have a round
shape that aims to focus the light and focus it in one particular direction. A regular LED bulb
does not depend on the voltage and it requires no maintenance over the years.

LEDs are simply diodes that are designed to give off light. When a diode is
forward-biased so that electrons and holes are zipping back and forth across
the junction, they're constantly combining and wiping one another out. Sooner
or later, after an electron moves from the n-type into the p-type silicon, it will
combine with a hole and disappear. That makes an atom complete and more
stable and it gives off a little burst of energy (a kind of "sigh of relief") in the
form of a tiny "packet" or photon of light.
This diagram summarizes what happens:
1. N-type silicon (red) has extra electrons (black).
2. P-type silicon (blue) has extra holes (white).
3. Battery connected across the p-n junction makes the diode forward
biased, pushing electrons from the n-type to the p-type and pushing
holes in the opposite direction.
4. Electrons and holes cross the junction and combine.
5. Photons (particles of light) are given off as the electrons and holes
recombine.

http://www.eslightbulbs.com/how-do-led-light-bulbs-work

http://www.explainthatstuff.com/diodes.html

ADVANTAGES AND DIS ADVANTAGES OF LED BULB

Advantages include:
* A very low energy consumption level. This contributes directly to savings on your light bill!
* Lasts much longer than traditional lighting. It has been known to last up to 50,000 hours. That's
way more than any other available lighting type.
* Can easily resist thermal shocks and vibrations. Normal light bulbs are useless when you drop
or bump them. Not LED lights.
* Great for spotlighting due to a directional distribution. All of the light molecules can easily be
sent in one direction without losing energy.
* There is no infrared lighting from LED lights. And there is no UV radiation, which is better for
you and the environment.
* Contains no mercury making it safer.
* Cool to the touch so no need to worry about burning or turning off the lights for 30 minutes
before you change them.
* They make great colored lights from anywhere on the light spectrum
Disadvantages include:
* A very limited variety and selection for your home compared to other types of lighting.
* Hard to find in smaller towns where consumers may have a smaller interest in this lighting
alternative.
* Significantly more expensive than regular lighting and not budget conscious.
* Not good for residential flood lighting. You will need extra equipment to make this work
* Although they are available in many colors, the quality of the colors is not quite as good as
with regular lighting.
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B ENE FITS AND DRAWBACKS OF L EDS

LEDs offer a huge variety of benefits but at the same time they cannot be viewed as
the optimum solution for every lighting-related application. Here, in no particular

order, we list some of the main advantages of LEDs, together with some of the
challenges faced by these devices.

Lifetime
As solid-state light sources, LEDs have very long lifetimes and are generally
very robust. While incandescent bulbs may have an expected lifetime (to
failure) of 1000 hours, LEDs are often quoted of having a lifetime of up to
100,000 hours - more than 11 years. However, this figure is extremely
misleading; like all other light sources, the performance of LEDs degrades
over time, and this degradation is strongly affected by factors such as
operating current and temperature.
At present, there is no standard definition of lifetime for LEDs, although
various parties have suggested that lifetime should be the time taken for the
LEDs output to fall to some percentage (such as 70% or 50%) of its original
value.
Standardization
The general lack of standardization in the LED field is an ongoing issue.
Various standards relating to LEDs exist in areas such as automotive lighting
and traffic signals. Other efforts are being conducted by bodies such as CIE,
NEMA and IES.
Low maintenance
The long lifetime of LEDs reduces the need to replace failed lamps, and this
can lead to significant savings, particularly in the cost of sending out
maintenance crews. This also makes LED fixtures useful for installation
in relatively inaccessible locations. However, if tasks like cleaning the light
fixture or performing electrical checks need to be carried out regularly, then
the light sources could be replaced at the same time, negating the "low
maintenance" advantage.
Efficiency
LEDs are high-efficiency light sources. White LEDs with efficacies of 25 lm/W
and up are commercially available, exceeding the performance of
incandescent and some fluorescent sources. The directional nature of light

produced by LEDs allows the design of luminaires with higher overall

efficiency.
Low power consumption
The low power consumption of LEDs leads to significant energy savings that
can often drive the installation of LED-based systems, for example traffic
signals. National programs to develop effective solid-state lighting industries
in the US and Japan have been driven by the potential energy savings
associated with using LEDs.
Brightness
Although LEDs have high efficiency and consume a small amount of power,
the devices produce a small total number of lumens. For example, a 60 W
incandescent bulb with an efficiency of 20 lm/W produces 1200 lumens. A
one-watt LED with an efficiency of 30 lm/W produces only 30 lumens i.e. 40
such LEDs are required to produce the same amount of light as the
incandescent bulb.
Heat
LEDs don't produce heat in the form of infrared radiation, which makes
incandescent bulbs hot to the touch. The absence of IR radiation allows LED
fixtures to be positioned in locations where heating from conventional
sources would cause a particular problem e.g. illuminating food or textiles.
However, LEDs do produce heat at the semiconductor junction within the
device. The wall-plug efficiency (optical power out divided by electrical
power in) of LED packages is typically in the region of 5-40%, meaning that
somewhere between 60 and 95% of the input power is lost as heat.
Without very efficient thermal management and heat sinking this causes the
junction temperature of the LED to rise, which causes the LED characteristics
to change. Driving LEDs above their rated current causes the junction
temperature to rise to levels where permanent damage may occur.
Cost
In many applications, LEDs are expensive compared with other light sources,
when measured by metrics such as dollars-per-lumen. LED manufacturers

continue to work towards reducing their production costs while at the same
time increasing the light output of their devices.
However, the high initial cost of LED-based systems is offset by lower energy
consumption, lower maintenance costs and other factors.
Small form-factors
LEDs are very small - typical high-brightness LED chips measure 0.3 mm by
0.3 mm, while high-power devices can be 1 mm x 1 mm or larger. There are
many examples where the availability of small, high-brightness devices have
enabled significant market advancement. The obvious example is in mobile
phone handsets, where blue, green and white LEDs are now used in most
models to backlight keypads and liquid-crystal display (LCD) screens.
Instantaneous switch-on
LEDs switch on rapidly, even when cold, and this is a particular advantage
for certain applications such as vehicle brake lights.
Color
LEDs are available in a broad range of brilliant, saturated colors (although
performance varies across the spectrum), and white devices are also
available. Modules containing different-colored LEDs (typically red, green and
blue, or RGB) can be tuned to a huge range of colors, and easily dimmed.
RGB modules provide a much wider gamut of colors than white LEDs or other
traditional white light sources, which is a particular advantage in applications
such as backlighting liquid-crystal displays (LCDs).
RGB LEDs and color mixing
LED characteristics change with time, temperature and current, and from
device to device. For RGB LEDs, the performance of different-colored devices
changes at different rates. This can result in variation of lamp color and
intensity, and poor reproducibility.
White LEDs
The color of white LEDs can be very inconsistent, although manufacturers
have narrowed their binning ranges. White LEDs with the same correlated

color temperature can have different color tints perceptible to the human
eye.
Semiconductor processing
Fabricating LEDs is a complex high-temperature process involving the growth
of crystalline layers across the surface of a semiconductor wafer. The quality
of these layers determines the properties of the LED. Reproducibility is
difficult to achieve across a single wafer, or from wafer to wafer, or from day
to day. Some LEDs processed from a wafer will yield high quality devices,
while others from the same wafer will have much lower quality and will end
up in low-end applications such as children's toys.

Design ability
LEDs open up many new design options, some of which were previously
inconceivable.
Environmental
LEDs do not contain mercury and in many cases steps are being taken to
replace lead-containing solders (used mainly to fix LEDs to circuit boards)
with lead-free material, in line with European directives. The energy-efficient
nature of LEDs also makes them environmentally friendly.
Drivers
LEDs are low-voltage light sources, generally requiring a constant DC voltage
or current to operate optimally. Designing and implementing an effective
driver is key to obtain all the benefits of LEDs.
Knowledge gap
In general, there is a gap in understanding between the LED manufacturers
and the lighting community. The former group do not include the latter in
their product development activities and do not provide information that is
directly comparable to the information available for competing light sources.
The latter do not understand a huge amount about LEDs and are unfamiliar
with crucial issues such as thermal management, or why white LED
performance is not highly consistent.