Dec

15

A Light Bulb Checkup

December 15, 2011 | 4 Comments

Consumer Reports’ (CR) is out with its latest light bulb tests finding which bulbs were the best performers.  The question and answer format shines some light on a few of the most common questions consumers have about compact fluorescent lights, light-emitting diode, halogens and incandescent bulbs.  The ratings are at the end of the article. [...]

Nov

2

The OLED Is Coming Better Cheaper and Flexible

November 2, 2011 | 1 Comment

Regular readers know the LED and its organic OLED cousin are getting poised to compete with the compact florescent and incandescent light sources.  The past few days has seen two OLED breakthroughs that are quite similar and worth a very close look. Current OLEDs are made of glass substrates and encapsulated between two layers of [...]

Jun

21

The Incredible Shrinking LED

June 21, 2011 | Leave a Comment

Many expect that LED technology is the electric light source for the future.  It would be a very good bet.  LEDs offer very low power consumption and long life.  The current downside is the initial investment and the replacement cost projection.  The economics work, but it takes years. University of Miami professor at the College [...]

Mar

16

Cracks in the Cost of LEDs

March 16, 2011 | 8 Comments

Bridgelux of Livermore California is claiming a breakthrough in using silicon to fabricate light-emitting diodes (LEDs). Their answer might be a breakthrough in producing LEDs at affordable prices with performance worthy of converting consumers. Light-emitting diodes are expected to be the new-wave components in many lighting applications because of their superior energy efficiency and longevity. [...]

Feb

1

Doubling Up LED Output

February 1, 2011 | 2 Comments

Dr. Salah Bedair, a professor of electrical and computer engineering at North Carolina State University and co-author materials science professor Nadia El-Masry have developed a new LED building technique that reduces defects in the gallium nitride (GaN) films used to create LEDs, making them more efficient. Bedair explains, LED lighting relies on GaN thin films [...]

Mar

25

Better Light Emitting Diodes and Solar Cells

March 25, 2010 | 5 Comments

Researchers Cun-Zheng Ning and Alian Pan at Arizona State University are developing nanowires could lead to better light-emitting diodes (LEDs) that could replace less energy-efficient incandescent light bulbs and more efficient photovoltaic cells for generating energy from sunlight. The research effort is to improve quaternary alloy semiconductor nanowire materials. Quaternary alloys are made of semiconductors [...]

Feb

11

A Totally Organic Light to Paste on the Wall

February 11, 2010 | 1 Comment

Swedish and American researchers have succeeded in producing a new type of lighting component that’s inexpensive to produce and can be fully recycled. Using the new super material graphene, the invention as an example could pave the way for glowing wallpaper made entirely of plastic.  The emerging field of “organic” or “plastic” electronics has already [...]

Sep

21

A Great New Light Bulb

September 21, 2009 | 5 Comments

Vu1 Corporation announced last week that their new technology for a light bulb is going into production. It’s a very interesting take on an old technology.  Energy efficient like the compact florescent and pleasing to the eye like an incandescent, the new bulb has a good future. Vu1’s introduction is for their Electron Stimulated Luminescence [...]

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