The story behind LED development—only the 4th lighting technology developed in human history— is remarkable. The potential ahead of LED lighting to deliver real and measurable advantages— to save energy, last years longer, significantly lower bottom-line costs—is limitless. That said the LED...

Technical Challenges

Several technical challenges exist when manufacturing solid state lighting (SSL) modules and components. The greatest challenge is in keeping up with the changes in LED technology. LED components, such as LED packages and chips, are improving in lumen output, luminous...

Plastic Optic Fiber (POF) is an established, continually evolving technology available since the early 1980s. From the outset, it was a technology not highly visible for years. At times, it was utilized as a media product within another product, attached to a variety of opto-couplers or light sources....

Using thousands of nanometer-scale wires, researchers at the Georgia Institute of Technology have developed a sensor device that converts mechanical pressure – from a signature or a fingerprint – directly into light signals that can be captured and processed optically. The sensor...

Commercial uses for ultraviolet (UV) light are growing, and now a new kind of LED under development at The Ohio State University could lead to more portable and low-cost uses of the technology. The patent-pending LED creates a more precise wavelength of UV light than today’s...

Crash risks while driving at night are higher than during the daytime, but most roadways in the U.S. do not have roadway lighting. In fact, many state and local governments find it difficult to pay for installing, operating and maintaining roadway lighting. Despite these concerns,...

Researchers in Japan have developed a new type of photodiode that can detect in just milliseconds a certain type of high-energy ultraviolet light, called UVC, which is powerful enough to break the bonds of DNA and harm living creatures. Although this radiation doesn't normally reach...

Tiny silicon crystals caused no health problems in monkeys three months after large doses were injected, marking a step forward in the quest to bring such materials into clinics as biomedical imaging agents, according to a recent study. The findings suggest that the silicon nanocrystals,...

Green Tech Energy Services, working in conjunction with its client, the Allentown Parking Authority, needed lighting fixtures in a multi-level parking garage in Allentown, Pennsylvania. They were looking for fixtures that offered a great appearance, price and quantity. Additionally, they...

Aboard a state-of-the-art aircraft might be the last place you would think of yourself enjoying a warm “candlelit” dinner, followed by a good night’s sleep under a starry night sky. The truth is, the latest aircraft cabins seek to provide just that – a revolutionary in-flight experience...

When it comes to highpower lighting applications in the military and harsh industrial environments, reliability and efficiency are key features to consider. To maximize both of these qualities, lightemitting diode (LED) technology is coming into play with brighter, more flexible lighting...

The Energy Policy and Conservation Act of 1975 and its subsequent amendments established minimum efficiency standards for lighting products. While the DOE’s mandatory energy efficiency standards and recently-heightened surveillance efforts are designed to...

Phihong USA (Fremont, CA) recently introduced a new series of waterproof LED drivers for use in a broad range of residential and commercial applications. Designated the PDA040 series, the LED power supplies are available in constant-current outputs of 700, 1050 and 1400mA at a nominal input voltage rating of 120-277...

Dialog Semiconductor plc (Kirchheim/Teck, Germany) has announced a new solid state lighting (SSL) LED driver that integrates boost and flyback converters into a single IC. The iW3623 offers a universal 100 VAC to 277 VAC input range and output power up to 45W. Dialog’s patented Flickerless™ design achieves a near-zero 100 to...

The Verde Series LED GU24 direct replacement lamp by American Illumination (Los Angeles, CA) is one of the few GU24 direct replacement light bulbs available, and is the only one compatible with the GU24 locking ring for simple transitions from CFL to LED. The Verde GU24 bulb replaces the 13W CFL, consuming only 8.5W...