A polarization-matched LED co-developed by Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and Samsung Electro-Mechanics has exhibited a 20% increase in light output and a 25% increase in wall-plug efficiency. And smart LEDs with the function of emitting light and handling date is in vision in the future, according to Professor Fred Schubert, the leader of the project.

An estimated unencapsulated light-extraction efficiency of 73% has been reached by a photonic-crystal structured blue-emitting LED created by researchers of Philips Lumileds (San Jose, CA) and Philips Research(Eindhoven, The Netherlands).

Philips Color Kinetics has been awarded for “Significant Achievement in Solid-State Lighting Research & Development” by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE), which is recognition of its exceptional progress in the development of the highly efficient LED PAR lamp.  

Prototypes of a new type of white light LEDs will be brought out in about four months by Cyberlux, a specialized provider of light emitting diodes (LEDs). The product cost of this new type will be cut substantially than conventional LEDs and more light will be emitted.

It’s reported that Molex Incorporated has added fully-automated LED bonding capabilities in China. Molex also bonded its 500,000,000th LED on a membrane switch using the latest high-speed SMT processes and bonding technology. Molex has been applying LEDs to flex circuits for over 20 years through two innovative methods to bond and encapsulate the components for robust electrical and mechanical reliability, providing customers with a low-cost interactive user interface.

GE Lighting won the Lighting Design Awards for its Vio high power white LEDs in the Light Sources and Controls category, sponsored by Ex-Or. GE Lighting’s Vio high power white LEDs won the award for what judges described as a "major advance in color stability".

The researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute in New York of the US announced the development of a new type of blue LED in collaboration with Samsung Electro-Mechanics. The researches said the blue LED that improves light output by 18%, and the amount of electricity the LED converts into light by 22%.

Recently, the Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) issued a safety alert for operators (SAFO) called “Night Vision Goggle (NVG) Advisory Pertaining to Certain Red Color LEDs.” This SAFO advises operators using NVGs that certain LED lighting systems fall outside the combined visible and near-infrared spectrum of NVGs, and thus will not be visible to them.

ANC Sports Enterprises released new versions of two of the company's state-of-the-art software applications, the Data Interface Solution (DIS) and VisionSOFT 3D interface. The Wachovia Center, home to the Philadelphia 76ers and Flyers is the first venue to feature DIS 3.0 and VisionSOFT 6.5. The newest features of ANC’s revolutionary platforms include animated statistical imagery, automated font resizing, and an immediate, seamless transition to a backup server function.

Taiwan LED chip maker Epistar is reportedly to launch AC-LED products in Q209, the company says it expects to be “the first company in the world to ship AC-LED chips.

Group III-nitride materials have been widely used for visible and ultraviolet LEDs and blue, violet laser diodes in the past decade. Most of these optoelectronic devices are typically fabricated on the conventional polar (0001) c-plane oriented substrate materials. Devices grown on the polar substrate orientation suffer undesirable spontaneous and piezoelectric polarization resulting in significant band bending in the quantum well. This reduces radiative recombination efficiency and lowers device performance.

AIXTRON AG reported that in the fourth quarter 2008 the National Taiwan University (NTU) of Taiwan ordered one Close Coupled Showerhead 3x2" wafer Research Platform MOCVD system for research and development on GaN and related materials and devices and it will be delivered in the third quarter 2009.  

It’s reported that PosterGarden will unveil a unique and earth-friendly LED light for its portable displays at EXHIBITOR2009 in Las Vegas, March 23-25, 2009. PosterGarden notes that the new light, which will fit on its banner stands and popup displays, features its stylish design accents and the latest in LED technology, which is much friendlier to the environment than standard light bulbs and halogen lights.

It’s reported that Lumex has launched its QuantumBrite™ line of LED backlight technologies. Available in edge lit and chips on board formats in both white and vivid color options, the QuantumBrite line of backlight products provides more than twice the intensity of traditional backlights. In particular, the white QuatumBrite LEDs provide high-intensity brightness of up to 10,000 nits allowing for full daylight visibility.

Neo-Neon™ International(HKEX 1868), a global leader in the advancement of LED technology, has introduced a new model in the LED High Power Streetlight Series with Lux Boosting Optical Technology (L-BOT™). With 240 pieces 1-Watt White LED and the newly patented freeform reflective lens design the LED Street Light 240 provides a total luminous flux of 14,550lm. The company says that is another revolutionary breakthrough in the development of core LED Technologies relative to solid-state lighting.

Lighting Fair 2009 hold a seminar titled "LED and organic EL pave the road to the future of illumination". The panel discussion was participated by Shuji Nakamura, a professor of the University of California at Santa Barbara, a developer of blue LED and a leader in the research of GaN-based light-emitting element and Junji Kido, who leads the research of the organic EL as a professor of Yamagata University Graduate School of Science and Engineering.

Two French institutions Francais du Design and Equip’Hotel Paris honored Philips MASTER LED, a solid-state light bulb identical in form factor to a conventional light bulb for its innovative design and sustainability. Philips notes its MASTER LED is the first LUXEON Rebel based replacement bulb that delivers on the promise of high efficiency, uncompromised quality light, and long-life, in a package that makes it simple for people to use and feel good about using.

Latest OLED lighting technologies were demonstrated at Lighting Fair 2009, an exhibition of lighting technologies and equipment that runs from March 3 to 6, 2009, at Tokyo Big Sight. Now some OLED lighting manufacturer is showing off their OLED lighting devices.

Starchips announces SCT2024 the latest member of its LED Display Driver Family. SCT2024 is a constant current LED driver with 16-bit Serial-In / Parallel-Out interface capability. In application, an external resistor is used to set full-scale constant current from 5mA up to 45mA. The built shift registers and data latches making SCT2024 effective solution in driving LED display. The output enable (OE) function gates all 16 outputs on and off, and is fast enough to be used as PWM input for LED intensity control.

Global Lighting Technologies (GLT) has introduced new high-brightness LED-based backlight assemblies that enable independent control of the brightness and color of individual zones within the backlight. The company says they can be used to achieve color fading, pulsing, or steady state illumination, and can be utilized in a wide array of consumer electronics displays as well as in keypads/keyboards used in mobile phones and laptop and desktop PCs.

UV LEDs are reportedly beginning to challenge the traditional $500M UV lamp business. The report notes that the UV lighting business is a market of about $500 million with traditional UV lamp technology. Thanks to its compactness, lower cost of ownership and environmental friendly composition, UV LEDs are expected to replace traditional lamps and also open the door to many new applications, especially portable ones.

Macroblock launches a new 40V PWM-embedded 3-channel constant current LED driver, MBI6030, for LED architectural lighting applications. MBI6030 may cascade over 250 RBG LED clusters or large LED pixels at a distance of 2 meters between two clusters or pixels. Moreover, MBI6030 provides 16-bit gray scales at a low clock frequency of 4MHz.

At the International Nanotechnology Exhibition & Conference (nano tech 2009), Toshiba Corp showcased a near-ultraviolet LED that is being developed for use in next-generation LED lighting. The company says the LED features a high external quantum efficiency of 36% and an emission wavelength of 380nm band.

Recently, Universal Display Corporation, an innovator behind today's and tomorrow's displays and lighting through its UniversalPHOLED(TM) phosphorescent OLED technology, announced that the company's research advances in white OLED lighting performance was honored by the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) during the DOE's Annual Solid-State Lighting Workshop. With the support of the DOE, Universal Display has been working on developing highly-efficient white OLEDs for use in myriad lighting applications.

Cree, Inc. announces it will work with both the United States Air Force Research Laboratory (AFRL) Propulsion Directorate and high-power module pioneer Powerex, Inc., to develop a demonstration dual switch 1200-volt, 100-amp power module featuring all-SiC semiconductors and capable of operating at junction temperatures up to 200 degrees C. The combination of advanced SiC devices and innovative package design allows the module to operate at temperatures beyond those achievable with a silicon IGBT-based module.

Lynk Labs Inc., the leading supplier of AC LED device, light engine and power supply technology, has been awarded its first U.S. patent for an AC LED drive method and aparatus. The newly awarded patent, U.S. Patent, No. 7,489,086 is entitled “AC light emitting diode and AC LED drive methods and apparatus."

Researchers at Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute have developed and demonstrated a new polarization-matched LED. The new type of LED, developed in collaboration with Samsung Electro-Mechanics, exhibits an 18% increase in light output and a 22% increase in wall-plug efficiency, which essentially measures the amount of electricity the LED converts into light.

Philips Lumileds has launched a free online tool that makes it easier for manufacturers of LED-based luminaires to show compliance with ENERGY STAR® standards. The new tool addresses the requirements of the “Chromaticity and Spatial Uniformity” test in the ENERGY STAR® specification for LED lighting that requires the beam of light to appear the same color to the human eye, regardless of which area of the beam the viewer looks at or where they are at in relation to the light source.

Gallium Nitride (GaN), a man-made semiconductor used to make LEDs, emits brilliant light but uses very little electricity. New GaN LED lighting has the potential to make LEDs a household fixture, but high production costs have made GaN lighting too expensive for wide spread use in homes and offices. However the Cambridge University based Centre for Gallium Nitride has developed a new way of making GaN which could produce LEDs for a tenth of current prices.

CRW Tech has developed new architectural lighting fixtures utilizing its innovative LED Projection Lighting System. The LED projection lighting engine produces nearly double the amount of surface light intensity achievable utilizing standard low power LED bulbs.