Photonic Lattice LEDs are new class of light-emitting device

The term “power LED” usually describes one of two types of LED assemblies: a conventional 1 mm² power chip in a power package, or an array of chips (1 mm² or smaller) combined in one of several different types of power packaging formats (semiconductor chip(s), package, encapsulant and heat sink).

While the performance of power LED devices has improved dramatically over the past 10 years, the basic concepts haven’t changed too much over the past forty years: one or more small LED semiconductor chips attached to a metal packaging structure and covered by an encapsulant/lens to help extract and shape the light output.

Conventional power LEDs have gradually evolved through incremental improvements in semiconductor and packaging materials and manufacturing processes.

Here we describe a new generation of ultra-high-power photonic lattice LEDs, which operate at input powers as high as 100 W and are orders of magnitude brighter than conventional power LEDs. These are the first commercially available LEDs using photonic crystal concepts to manage light extraction from the LED.

+++++++

This article was published in the August 2007 issue of LEDs Magazine.

To read the full version of this article, please visit our Magazine page, where you can download FREE electronic PDF versions of all issues of LEDs Magazine.

You can also request a print copy of LEDs Magazine (available by paid subscription) and sign up for our free weekly email newsletter.