Lighting Solutions Group: Projects

Efficient Blue and Green LEDs
Producing a brilliant white LED requires a combination of red, green, and blue lights. Although breakthroughs in LED technology have made this possible, efficiency is still a challenge because lights in the blue and green spectrum lose efficiency at high voltages and temperatures. Institute researchers are developing new semiconductor materials and thermal management strategies that will greatly improve energy performance.

High-brightness LEDs
Commercial-quality LEDs must produce enough light to rival incandescents and compact fluorescents. However, much of the light produced in an LED becomes trapped and dissipates before it can be used. At the Institute for Energy Efficiency, we are using a variety of approaches to free those photons, including innovative surface textures, reflectors, and other technologies.

Bulk Crystal Growth
Institute researchers have pioneered the growth of semiconducting crystalline materials made from gallium nitride (GaN) and are now pursuing the faster growth rates and level of quality needed for commercial production.

Laser Diodes
A technology closely-related to LEDs, laser diodes are used in applications such as electronic displays, high-density DVDs and medical diagnostics. Improvements being made by UC Santa Barbara researchers are making these devices smaller, cheaper, and more efficient.