DEVICE PERFORMANCE CHARACTERISTICS OF LIGHT-EMITTING DIODES

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[Pick the date] [Type the company name] Mehjabin Abdurrazaque

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INTRODUCTION
Light Emitting Diodes are the wonder component of electronic devices. profession capable of communicating with their users. To state the obvious, LEDs are diodes. They are P-N junctions that emit energy at a wavelength that corresponds to visible light when forward biased. Combinations of different semiconductor materials and dopants vary the energy drop across the junction, and the color emitted corresponds to that energy drop. Much work has gone into making every color of the spectrum, and some LEDs incorporate an extra step to mix colors to produce white light. These components use phosphors to absorb blue or ultraviolet light emitted from the die and re-emit it as yellow. Blue and yellow are at sufficiently opposite ends of the visible spectrum to fool our eyes into seeing white light. LEDs are simple and ubiquitous components in electronic assemblies. They have their own electrical and optical properties, knowing which can increase their functionality and decrease their failures. This project focuses on different characteristics of various LEDs to determine the factors influencing them either by experimentation or by a detailed literature search. Blinking

indicators and light sources in every color of the rainbow make the black boxes of our

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TOPIC OF STUDY
Device Performance Characteristics of Light-Emitting-Diodes

OBJECTIVES OF STUDY
Understand basic LED device operation and LED device structures based on the p-n junction. Understand the device performance characteristics of various LEDs. Verify some of the characteristics through experimentation. Analyze the factors influencing the characteristics of an LED.

METHOD OF STUDY
Basis of Experimentation of Sample Light-Emitting-Diodes Experiments had been carried out to study the device characteristics of different lightemitting-diodes.

TOOLS AND TECHNIQUES USED FOR DATA COLLECTION

1. Literature search based on the topic 2. Experimentation

METHOD OF DATA COLLECTION

A single LED from each category available is taken for investigation. Experimentation was carried out to determine Forward and Radiation Flux characteristics. For the other characteristics, cannot be done in the given period of time with the available instruments, were determined from a literature search.

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LITERATURE REVIEW

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A literature search has been carried out, to collect the information and data for various experiments. The required information and data has been from the standard books, monographs and internet sites. Books and Monographs The library at M.E.S Kalladi College, Mannarkkad has a good collection of books dedicated to Semiconductor devices and Electronics. Besides, so many magazines on physics, especially on electronics are also available in the library consistent with the emerging technologies and trends. On-line Open Literature and Internet The Internet also offers a vast open literature for the collection of data. There are so many websites on new trends in LED lighting. Besides, blogs are available on lightemitting-diodes. Electronic Books A vast collection of books are available online. In addition, lectures by eminent persons are also available.

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Light-emitting diodes (LEDs) are small but powerful devices in terms of their diverse applications. LED lights assume greater significance in the context of need for electrical energy conservation and pollution control world over. These are used as indicators in various equipments, for lighting and decorations at homes, and in flashlights, signboards and car lights. The LED has been available for many years now, initially as a red coloured indicator. Later, yellow/amber, green and finally blue coloured LEDs became available, which triggered an explosion in applications. Applications included traffic lights, vehicle lights and wall-washes (mood lighting). Recently blue coloured LEDs have been combined with yellow phosphor to create white light. The amount of light available from LEDs has also increased steadily, and now power levels of 1 W, 3 W and 5 W are fairly common. LED lights differ from traditional light sources in the way these produce light. In incandescent bulbs, a tungsten filament is heated by electric current until it glows or emits light. In fluorescent lamps, an electric arc excites mercury atoms, which emit UV radiation. After striking the phosphor coating on the inner side of the glass tubes, the UV radiation is converted into visible light and emitted. On the other hand LEDs are diodes made from semiconductor materials. This is why they are referred to as solid-state devices. They rely on indium-gallium nitride to convert electricity into photons when current flows through it. An LED is basically a small-area source, often with extra optics added to the chip that shapes its radiation pattern. The specific wavelength or colour emitted by the LED depends on the materials used to make the diode. It depends on the composition and condition of the semiconducting material used, and can be infrared, visible or near-ultraviolet. LED-based light technology is a subject of intense research and development. It is predicted to radically change the energy consumption patterns throughout the world over the next few years. Therefore a phenomenal amount of resources are being devoted to improve the LED technology worldwide.

2.1. THE ELECTROLUMINESCENT PROCESS

The LED converts input electrical energy into output optical radiation in the visible or infrared portion of the spectrum, depending on the semiconductor material. The energy conversion takes place in two stages: first, the energy carriers in the semiconductor are excited to higher states by electrical energy, and second, most of these carriers after having

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lived a mean lifetime in the higher state, give up their energy as spontaneous emission of photons with energy nearly equal to the band-gap,

of the semiconductor. If the

semiconductor can be doped p- and n- type, then the energy of the current carriers can be increased by applying a forward bias to a p-n junction. Under forward bias, minority charge carriers are injected on both sides of the junction and these excess minority carriers diffuse away from the junction, recombining with the majority carriers. The photons emitted have energy h = g. A small fraction of the excess minority carriers do recombine non-radiatively and the excess energy of these carriers are dissipated as heat in the lattice. The rate of radiative recombination is proportional to the forward bias injection rate, and hence to the diode current. Most of the recombination occurs close to the junction, although some minority carriers diffuse
Fig. 2.1: Band diagram of p-n junction diode

away from the junction. The internal quantum efficiency is defined as the rate of

emission of photons divided by the rate of supply of electrons.

Fig 2.2: cross section of a traditional LED

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2.2. TYPES OF LED

There are two basic types of LED structures: edge emitters and surface emitters.

Fig 2.3: Types of LED Edge emitters are more complex and expensive devices, but offer high output power levels and high speed performance. The output power is high because the emitting spot is very small, typically 30-50 m, allowing good coupling efficiency to similarly sized optical fibres. Edge emitters also have relatively narrow emission spectra. The full-width, half-maximum (FWHM) is typically about 7% of the central wavelength. Another variant of the edge emitter is the superradiant LED. These devices are a cross between a conventional LED and a laser. They usually have a very high power density and possess some internal optical gain like a laser, but the optical output is still incoherent, unlike a laser. Super-radiant LEDs have very narrow emission spectra, typically 1-2% of the central wavelength and offer power levels rivalling a laser diode. These devices are popular for fibre optic gyroscope applications. The second type of LED is the surface emitter. Surface emitters have a comparatively simple structure, are relatively inexpensive, offer low-to-moderate output power levels, and are capable of low-to-moderate operating speeds. The total LED chip optical output power is as high as or higher than the edgeemitting LED, but the emitting area is large, causing poor coupling efficiency to the optical fibre. Adding to the coupling efficiency deficit is the fact that surface-emitting LEDs are almost perfect Lambertian emitters. This means that they emit light in all directions. Thus, very little of the total light goes in the required direction for injection into an optical fibre. Infrared LEDs An IR LED, also known as IR transmitter, is a special purpose LED that transmits infrared rays in the range of 760 nm wavelength. Such LEDs are usually made of gallium arsenide or aluminum gallium arsenide. They, along with IR receivers, are commonly used as sensors. The appearance is same as a common LED. Since the human eye cannot see the infrared radiations, it is not possible for a person to identify whether the IR LED is working or not, unlike a common LED. To overcome this problem, the camera on a cell phone can be used. The camera can show us the IR rays being emanated from the IR LED in a circuit.

P a g e | 10 Organic Light-Emitting Diodes In an OLED (organic light-emitting diode) the emissive electroluminescent layer is a film of organic which emits light in response to an electric current. This layer of organic semiconductor material is situated between two electrodes. Generally, at least one of these electrodes is transparent. The conductive Indium tin oxide is used for this purpose. When a positive bias is applied to the ITO, electrons and holes are injected into the device and under influence of the applied electrical field these carriers travel through the organic layer or layers. The current in OLEDs is typically space charge limited, i.e., limited by the bulk of the semiconductor. In other words, the measured current is a drift current, determined by the mobility of charge carriers. Charge transport occurs in the vertical direction, perpendicular to the stack of the organic layers, and the carrier mobility in the organic semiconductor element of OLEDs is typically low. When a pair of oppositely charged carriers meets, excitons are formed and radiative relaxation of these excitons results in light-emission.

Fig 2.4: Schematic illustration of the working principle of a basic two-layer OLED, comprising a hole-transporting layer HTL and an electron-transport layer ETL
Source: Device Architecture and Materials for Organic Light-Emitting Devices - Sarah Schols

Quantum Dot Light-Emitting Diodes Quantum-dot-based LEDs are characterized by pure and saturated emission colours with narrow bandwidth, and their emission wavelength is easily tuned by changing the size of the quantum dots. Moreover, QD-LED combine the colour purity and durability of QDs with efficiency, flexibility, and low processing cost of organic light-emitting devices. QD-LED structure can be tuned over the entire visible wavelength range from 460 nm (blue) to 650 nm (red). The structure of QD-LED is similar to basic design of OLED. The major difference is that the light emitting centres are cadmium selenide (Cd Se) nano-crystals, or quantum dots. A layer of cadmium-selenium quantum dots is sandwiched between layers of electron-transporting and hole-transporting organic materials. An applied electric field causes electrons and holes to move into the quantum dot layer, where they are captured in the quantum dot and recombine, and

P a g e | 11 emitting photons. The spectrum of photon emission is narrow, characterized by its full width at half the maximum value.

2.3. MATERIALS USED IN LED

Wavelength (nm) Colour Name Fwd Voltage (at 20mA) 1.5 Intensity 5mm LEDs 16mW @50mA Viewing Angle LED Dye Material GaAIAs/GaAs -- Gallium Aluminium Arsenide/Gallium Arsenide GaAIAs/GaAs -- Gallium Aluminium Arsenide/Gallium Arsenide GaAIAs/GaAs -- Gallium Aluminium Arsenide/Gallium Aluminum Arsenide GaAIAs/GaAs -- Gallium Aluminium Arsenide/Gallium Aluminum Arsenide GaAsP/GaP - Gallium Arsenic Phosphide / Gallium Phosphide InGaAIP - Indium Gallium Aluminum Phosphide InGaAIP - Indium Gallium Aluminum Phosphide InGaAIP - Indium Gallium Aluminum Phosphide GaAsP/GaP - Gallium Arsenic Phosphide / Gallium Phosphide InGaAIP - Indium Gallium Aluminum Phosphide InGaAIP - Indium Gallium Aluminum

940

Infrared

15

880

Infrared

1.7

18mW @50mA

15

850

Infrared

1.7

26mW @50mA

15

660

Ultra Red High Eff. Red Super Red Super Orange Super Orange Orange Super Yellow Super Pure

1.8

2000mcd @50mA 200mcd @20mA 3500mcd @20mA 4500mcd @20mA 6500mcd @20mA 160mcd @20mA 5500mcd @20mA 7000mcd @20mA

15

635

2.0

15

633

2.2

15

620

2.2

15

612

2.2

15

605

2.1

15

595 592

2.2 2.1

15 15

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Yellow 585 Yellow "Incandescent" White Pale White Cool White Super Lime Yellow Super Lime Green High Efficienc y Green Super Pure Green Pure Green Aqua Green Blue Green Super Blue Ultra Blue 2.1 100mcd @20mA 2000mcd @20mA 4000mcd @20mA 6000mcd @20mA 1000mcd @20mA 1000mcd @20mA 200mcd @20mA 350mcd @20mA 80mcd @20mA 10,000mcd @20mA 2000mcd @20mA 3000mcd @20mA 100mcd @20mA 15

4500K

3.6

20

6500K

3.6

20

8000K

3.6

20

574

2.4

15

570

2.0

15

Phosphide GaAsP/GaP - Gallium Arsenic Phosphide / Gallium Phosphide SiC/GaN -- Silicon Carbide/Gallium Nitride SiC/GaN -- Silicon Carbide/Gallium Nitride SiC/GaN - Silicon Carbide / Gallium Nitride InGaAIP - Indium Gallium Aluminum Phosphide InGaAIP - Indium Gallium Aluminum Phosphide GaP/GaP - Gallium Phosphide/Gallium Phosphide InGaAIP - Indium Gallium Aluminum Phosphide GaP/GaP - Gallium Phosphide/ Gallium Phosphide SiC/GaN - Silicon Carbide / Gallium Nitride SiC/GaN - Silicon Carbide / Gallium Nitride SiC/GaN - Silicon Carbide / Gallium Nitride SiC/GaN - Silicon Carbide / Gallium Nitride

565

2.1

15

560

2.1

15

555

2.1

15

525

3.5

15

505

3.5

45

470

3.6

15

430

3.8

15

Table 2.1: Materials used and corresponding wavelengths emitted

P a g e | 13 The band gap in the (Al, Ga, In) N-based materials system ranges from 1.9 eV (In N) to 3.4 eV (GaN) to 6.2 eV (Al N). The band structure is currently thought to be a direct band gap across the entire alloy range. Therefore, almost the entire visible range of wavelengths is spanned in the Group III nitride alloy system. This direct band gap is especially fortuitous as it allows for high quantum efficiency light emitters to be fabricated in this system. Group III nitrides possess several remarkable physical properties that make them particularly attractive for reliable solid state device applications. The wide band gap materials possess low dielectric constants with high thermal conductivity pathways. Group III nitrides exhibit fairly high bond strengths and very high melting temperatures. The large bond strengths could possibly inhibit dislocation motion and improve reliability in comparison to other II-VI and III-V materials. In addition, the nitrides are resistant to chemical etching and should allow GaN-based devices to be operated in harsh environments. These properties may lead to devices with superior reliability.

2.4. DEVICE PERFORMANCE CHARACTERISTICS

2.4.1. Current Voltage Characteristics of LED
A semiconductor diodes behaviour in a circuit is given by its currentvoltage characteristic, or IV graph. The shape of the curve is determined by the transport of charge carriers through the so-called depletion layer or depletion region that exists at the pn junction between differing semiconductors. When a pn junction is first created, conduction-band (mobile) electrons from the n-doped region diffuse into the p-doped region where there is a large population of holes (vacant places for electrons) with which the electrons "recombine". When a mobile electron recombines with a hole, both hole and electron vanish, leaving behind an immobile positively charged donor (dopant) on the n side and negatively charged acceptor (dopant) on the p side. The region around the pn junction becomes depleted of charge and thus behaves as an insulator. However, the width of the depletion region (called the depletion width) cannot grow without limit. For each electronhole pair that recombines, a positively charged dopant ion is left behind in the n-doped region, and a negatively charged dopant ion is left behind in the pdoped region. As recombination proceeds more ions are created, an increasing electric field develops through the depletion zone that acts to slow and then finally stop recombination. At this point, there is a "built-in" potential across the depletion zone. This potential difference is termed as the barrier potential.

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Fig 2.5: p-n junction under (a) Zero bias (b) Forward bias Under forward bias minority carriers diffuse into the neutral regions where they recombine.

If an external voltage is placed across the diode with the same polarity as the built-in potential, the depletion zone continues to act as an insulator, preventing any significant electric current flow (unless electron/hole pairs are actively being created in the junction). This is the reverse bias phenomenon. However, if the polarity of the external voltage opposes the built-in potential, recombination can once again proceed, resulting in substantial electric current through the pn junction (i.e. substantial numbers of electrons and holes recombine at the junction). For silicon diodes, the built-in potential is approximately 0.7 V (0.3 V for Germanium and 0.2 V for Schottky). Thus, if an external current is passed through the diode, about 0.7 V will be developed across the diode such that the p-doped region is positive with respect to the n-doped region and the diode is said to be "turned on" as it has a forward bias.
For efficient operation it is important to know the forward threshold voltage, the reverse breakdown voltage and the reverse leakage current at breakdown. Curve shows typical characteristics of a low resistance LED. Compared to curve 2 which is a normal LED, it is clear that the forward voltage required to produce the same current value is lower. Resistance referred here does not mean the term electrical resistance but instead indicates the slope of Fig. 2.6.: i-v characteristics a tangent for the characteristic curve at the

specified current or voltage differential resistance.

P a g e | 15 In general, using an LED with a lower forward voltage allows easier circuit design. For an LED with a larger forward voltage, the power consumption will be larger when operated at the same current value. This will cause a subsequent rise in temperature in the diode, resulting in detrimental effects such as a decrease in the output power, peak emission wavelength shift and deterioration of the LED. specified current or voltage differential resistance.

2.4.2. Radiation Flux and Forward Current Characteristics of LED

An increase in the current through the diode implies a growth in the electron flow at the junction. This will results in increased number of recombination and hence, the amount of radiation. The linearity of the radiation flux current characteristics is important for modulation in analog transmission. Some LEDs can exhibit non-linearity depending on material properties and device configuration. It is also important to note that the edge emitters radiate less optical power into air than surface emitters, although the radiation intensity at the emitting face can be very high in the former. This is because interfacial recombination and re-absorption can play a more dominant role in edge-emitting LEDs. However, because of the higher radiation intensity from them, coupling into fibres with smaller numerical apertures is more efficient.

Fig. 2.7: Radiant output power vs. DC drive current characteristic The linearity between the radiation output power vs. forward current characteristics enables estimation of the approximate radiant power at a different current value, if the radiant power at a certain value is measured. However, if the temperature of the emission area increases due to the ambient temperature and heat generated from the LED chip itself, the radiant power decreases and saturation is seen in the characteristic graph. In pulsed operation, the saturation state varies according to the pulse width and duty ratio.

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2.4.3. Spectral Response

The spectral response of an LED is the plot of the relative output intensity against the wavelength in nanometers. The spectral line-width is measured in units of wavelength between the half maximum intensity points and termed the full width at half maximum.

Fig 2.8: spectral response

2.4.4. Performance Deterioration

When an LED is used for long periods of time, performance deterioration may take place. Common deterioration phenomena include a decrease in the output power and variations of the forward voltage. It is thought that these deteriorations result from the crystal dislocation and shift caused by heat generation in the emission area. These can be observed as a dark line or dark spot in the emission pattern. Deterioration may possibly

occur from an external stress. If the LED is driven with stress applied to the LED chip, its performance may unduly deteriorate. This stress may also issue from mechanical distortion on the Sufficient LED. Fig 2.9: Output power vs. Time characteristic care package. must be

exercised when mounting the

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2.5. CHARACTERISTICS PLOTTED BY OTHER RESEARCHERS

Fig 2.10: Super red LED

Fig 2.11: Super bright Green LED

Fig 2.12: Blue LED

Source: KINGBRIGHT The Super Bright Red source color devices are made with Gallium Aluminum Arsenide Red Light Emitting Diode. The Super Bright Green source color devices are made with Gallium Phosphide Green Light Emitting Diode. The Blue source color devices are made with GaN on SiC Light Emitting Diode.

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AN OUTLINE OF EXPERIMENTATION

P a g e | 19 Experiment No. 1

FORWARD CHARACTERISTICS OF LIGHT-EMITTING-DIODES

To plot the forward characteristics curve of various LEDs drive current vs. forward voltage

Apparatus and Accessories:

A variable DC supply (0 12V), a micro-ammeter, a mille-ammeter, multimeter, resistance and LEDs of different colours and ratings

Circuit Arrangement:
LEDs are current controlled devices. i.e., the intensity of their light output is proportional to the current passing through them. They also have a maximum current rating which may not be exceeded, otherwise they can be damaged. To limit the amount of current through an LED a current limiting resistor is typically inserted in series with it. Value of the resistance is calculated as per Ohms law. Most LED datasheets will tell you the forward voltage drop. Given the voltage of the source maximum LED current -

Vs, the forward voltage drop - Vf, the

Imax,

it is easy to compute the resistor based on Ohms Law:

R = (Vs - Vf) / Imax

E1.1

The maximum voltage given is 12V; the voltage rating is taken as 3V and maximum current through the diode as 15mA. Thus, value of the resistor is 600. For convenience, we had chosen 1K resistor for all diodes in every experiments. A micro-ammeter is used to measure current through the diode since the maximum current through the diode is in the order of mille-amperes.

Procedure:
The resistor is attached to the anode of the LED. Connect it in forward bias - the anode of the LED to the positive terminal. A micro-ammeter is connected in series at the cathode wire so as to read the current through the diode cathode wire connected to the positive terminal of the ammeter. Connect the negative terminal of the ammeter to the negative terminal of the voltage source.

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Fig. E1.1: Circuit for V-I characteristics of LED 1. Note down the specifications of the meters and correction values. 2. Turn the voltage source to its minimum settings, and switch it on. 3. Adjust the power supply till the striking voltage is attained. 4. Note the input voltage (VI) and the diode current (IR). Measure the potential differences across the resistor (VR) and the diode (VD). 5. Calculate the diode voltage from load and input voltage: V D = VI - V R Take mean of the two values. 6. Slowly increase the input voltage in convenient steps and repeat step 4. 7. The experiment is repeated till the maximum voltage is reached. 8. Plot forward voltage against the drive current with voltage and current along X and Y axes respectively. 9. Change LED and repeat the whole experiment.

Precautions:
1. While doing the experiment do not exceed the ratings of the diode. This may lead to damage of the diode. 2. Connect Ammeter in correct polarity as shown in the circuit diagram. per the circuit diagram. 4. Too much current may blow the fuse inside the ammeter. 3. Do not switch ON the power supply unless you have checked the circuit connections as

Cleanup and Recycling:

There may be a chance for the diodes to burn out. The dead LEDs cannot be reused. Package the burnt out LED bulbs safely, and ship them to LED Light Bulb Recycling. Because LED bulbs don't contain mercury and are not considered a hazardous material, they may be safely recycled. Everything else in the experiment can be reused.

P a g e | 21 Experiment No. 2

RADIANT OUTPUT POWER AND DC DRIVE CURRENT

To plot the variation of radiant output power with forward current

How to measure radiant output power?

For radiant flux measurement, the radiant power is measured when a specified forward current flows into the diode. Flux along the vertical direction is measured by covering the horizontal part. The radiant power is then measured using an optical sensor.

Fig. E2.1: Measuring radiant power using an optical sensor

Apparatus and Accessories:

A variable DC supply (0 12V), a micro-ammeter, a mille-ammeter, multimeter, resistance and LEDs of different colours and ratings, optical sensor

Circuit Arrangement:
The circuit for the experiment No.: 1 is used for this experiment.

Fig. E2.2: Circuit for lighting LED for flux measurement

P a g e | 22

Procedure:
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. Turn the voltage source to its minimum settings, and switch it on. Adjust the power supply till the striking voltage is attained. Note the input voltage (VI) and the diode current (IR). Measure the potential differences across the resistor (VR) and the diode (VD). Measure the radiant power using an optical sensor. Slowly increase the diode current in convenient steps and repeat steps 3 and 4. The experiment is repeated till the maximum voltage is reached. Change LED and repeat the whole experiment. Plot forward current against the radiant flux with current and flux along X and Y axes respectively.

Precautions:
1. Prevent stray radiation by covering the contact region of LED and the optical sensor. 2. Note down the equilibrium value of power. Avoid fluctuating readings.

Cleanup and Recycling:

The dead LEDs cannot be reused. Give them to LED Light Bulb Recycling. Everything else in the experiment can be reused.

P a g e | 23 Experiment No. 3

WAVELENGTH OF THE LIGHT EMITTED BY LEDs

To determine the wavelength of the light emitted by LEDs

Apparatus and Accessories:

A variable DC supply (0 12V), multimeter, resistance and LEDs of different colours and ratings, optic sensor device, grating, holder, meter stick

Circuit Arrangement:

Fig. E3.1: Lighting the LED A suitable resistance is connected to the anode as per Ohms law. For convenience, again 1K is used.

Experimental Setup for Wavelength Determination Using Diffraction Grating:

Fig. E3.2: Arrangement for diffraction

P a g e | 24 The equipment consists of an LED, diraction grating with holder and a screen with meter stick attached. The whole experiment is done in a dark room to reduce noise in the experiment. The theory is similar to Double slit case, except here, instead of just using two slits, the light beam will pass through the multiple slits of the diraction grating. By measuring the angles at which the interference peaks or maxima occur, we can determine the wavelength of the LED light by knowing the spacing of the grating (grating constant). We can geometrically construct the case of light diraction from a diraction grating; this gives the condition for nth maxima to be

Nn = sinn

E3.1

where n = atan(x/Z), n is the order number (n = 0, 1, 2...), x is the distance of the nth maxima from the central maxima (n = 0), N is the number of lines per mm in the grating, and Z is the distance between the grating and the screen.

Procedure:
1. Place the LED, grating and the stick (horizontally) in a line. The grating must adjusted so that the light passes through its centre and touches the reference point in the metre stick. 2. Measure the distance between the central maximum and the centre of the grating, Z. 3. Measure the distance between the central and secondary maxima on both sides, x and x. 4. Calculate the mean distance, x. 5. Compute n = atan(x/Z). 6. The wavelength emitted, = sin n /(n N) 7. Find the wavelength by changing Z and determine the mean value. 8. Repeat the experiment for other LEDs.

Precautions:
1. To get a clear image pass light emitted from the LED through a small hole or pinhole. 2. Prevent stray radiation as much as possible. 3. The image may not be pointed, so determine the centre of image and calculate the distance between image centers. 4. Use an opaque white coloured scale.

P a g e | 25 Fig E3.3 Experimental setup - wavelength of the light emitted by an LED

P a g e | 26

AC LINE-POWERED LED CIRCUITS

Figure E4: Circuits for driving LED's directly from the AC line

Figure E4 shows two circuits that can be used to drive LED's directly from the AC line without a need for a transformer-based DC supply. Both circuits employ a series non-polarized capacitor to achieve a large voltage drop that causes the LED's to see a lower voltage across them. A 1-K series resistor is also used to limit the current through the circuit, especially during the periods when the capacitor is minimally charged and acts like a short circuit. For this circuit to work properly, the capacitor must conduct current in both AC directions to prevent it from becoming fully charged permanently and causing the circuit to become open. This is the purpose of the 1N914 diode in the first circuit - to provide a current path during the negative cycle. It also limits the reverse voltage across the LED. The LED lights up during each positive cycle. In the second circuit, the ordinary diode is replaced by another LED that lights up during the negative cycle to complement the one that lights up during the positive cycle.

P a g e | 27

P a g e | 28

Colour of LED Transparent

Input Voltage Vi (Volt)

Load Voltage VL (Volt)

Diode Current ID (Ampere)

Diode Voltage VD (Volt) Theoretical = V i - VL

2.74 2.95 3.94 4.11 4.30 1.755 1.797 1.851 1.888 1.980 2.080 2.130 2.220 1.50 1.59 1.67 1.76 1.82 1.85 1.85 1.86 1.87 1.89 1.90 1.92 1.93 1.96 1.792 1.850 1.900 1.940 1.930

Practical

Mean

2.75 3.00 Blue 6.91 8.73 11.38 1.78 1.85 1.94 Green 2.00 4.68 7.45 9.25 11.50 1.50 1.60 1.70 1.84 1.93 4.10 Red 4.50 5.12 6.50 7.01 8.00 9.00 10.00 11.00 1.89 Yellow 4.37 7.14 8.99 10.95

0.015 0.050 2.970 4.620 7.080 0.025 0.053 0.089 0.112 2.700 5.370 7.120 9.280 0.002 0.010 0.027 0.078 0.114 2.250 2.650 3.260 4.630 5.120 6.100 7.080 8.070 9.040 0.098 2.520 5.240 7.050 9.020

16 x 10-6 52 x 10 2 x 10 4 x 10 24 x 10 54 x 10 92 x 10 114 x 10
-6 -3 -3

2.72 2.98 3.91 4.07 4.24 1.709 1.740 1.764 1.771 1.965 2.050 2.100 2.160 1.490 1.592 1.631 1.679 1.698 1.820 1.830 1.840 1.860 1.860 1.870 1.880 1.890 1.890 1.680 1.830 1.875 1.896 1.913

2.7275 2.9650 3.9250 4.0900 4.2700 1.7320 1.7685 1.8075 1.8295 1.9725 2.0650 2.1150 2.1900 1.4940 1.5910 1.6520 1.7205 1.7570 1.8350 1.8400 1.8500 1.8650 1.8750 1.8850 1.9000 1.9100 1.9250 1.7360 1.8400 1.8875 1.9180 1.9215

6 x 10-3
-6 -6 -6

-6

2 x 10-3 4 x 10 6 x 10 2 x 10 26 x 10 68 x 10 120 x 10 2 x 10 3 x 10 4 x 10 5 x 10 6 x 10 7 x 10 102 x 10

-3 -3

8 x 10-3
-6

10 x 10-6
-6 -6

-6 -3

2 x 10-3
-3

4 x 10-3
-3 -3 -3 -3

8 x 10-3
-6 -3 -3

2 x 10 4 x 10 8 x 10

6 x 10-3
-3

P a g e | 29 92 x 10-6 128 x 10
-6 -3 -3

2.50 2.75 White 5.80 8.00 10.00 11.93 Opaque 1.80 1.90 2.00 Green 4.90 6.97 9.30 11.53 1.75 2.00 2.03 2.06 4.70 Red 5.08 6.78 8.02 9.00 10.10 11.08 1.72 4.75 Yellow 7.21 9.36 11.40 Table 4.1: Forward characteristics

0.085 0.110 2.990 5.100 7.030 8.880 0.043 0.085 0.128 2.940 4.940 7.210 9.420 0.029 0.122 0.134 0.145 2.750 3.140 4.780 5.970 6.940 8.080 8.960 0.035 2.900 5.310 7.450 9.420

2.415 2.640 2.810 2.900 2.970 3.050 1.757 1.815 1.872 1.960 2.030 2.090 2.110 1.721 1.878 1.896 1.915 1.950 1.940 2.000 2.050 2.060 2.020 2.120 1.685 1.850 1.900 1.910 1.980

2.48 2.50 2.79 2.88 2.94 3.00 1.697 1.735 1.755 1.949 2.020 2.050 2.100 1.694 1.754 1.756 1.764 1.910 1.927 1.972 2.000 2.020 2.040 2.060 1.630 1.828 1.873 1.905 1.929

2.4475 2.5700 2.8000 2.8900 2.9550 3.0250 1.7270 1.7750 1.8135 1.9545 2.0250 2.0700 2.1050 1.7075 1.8160 1.8260 1.8395 1.9300 1.9335 1.9860 2.0250 2.0400 2.0300 2.0900 1.6575 1.8390 1.8865 1.9075 1.9545

2 x 10 4 x 10 8 x 10

6 x 10-3
-3

40 x 10-6 88 x 10-6 130 x 10

-6

2 x 10-3 4 x 10 6 x 10 31 x 10 136 x 10 150 x 10

-3 -3

8 x 10-3
-6

126 x 10-6
-6 -6 -3 -3

2 x 10 2 x 10 5 x 10 7 x 10 8 x 10 2 x 10 6 x 10 8 x 10

4 x 10-3
-3

6 x 10-3
-3 -3

36 x 10-6
-3

4 x 10-3
-3 -3

P a g e | 30

FORWARD CHARACTERISTICS OF TRANSPARENT LEDs

Fig 4.1

Fig 4.2

P a g e | 31
Fig 4.3

Fig 4.4

P a g e | 32 Fig 4.5

P a g e | 33

FORWARD CHARACTERISTICS OF OPAQUE LEDs

Fig 4.6

Fig 4.7

P a g e | 34 Fig 4.8

P a g e | 35 The forward characteristics of LEDs shows that the curve varies for different LEDs depending on the nature of the diode dimensions, materials used etc. But all the curves are increasing linearly with the diode voltage, if the errors are neglected. The linearity of forward characteristic accounts for the enhanced electron flow at the junction. When electrons do not have sufficient energy to overcome the barrier potential, no current will flow through the diode. But when external voltage is applied in forward bias, electrons gain kinetic energy under the external electric field: K.E = eV . If this energy is sufficient for overcoming the opposing force by the barrier, the electron will flow to p region. But as electrons flow across the junction and recombine with the holes, depletion region widens and current flow is limited. To increase the current flow then external potential has to be increased. THRESHOLD VOLTAGE The forward potential difference across the diode at which significant emission of photons initiates is called the striking voltage. From experiments, striking voltage for different LEDs is:

Colour of LED Blue Green Red White Yellow

Striking Voltage - volts about 2.7 about 1.7 about 1.4 about 2.4 about 1.7

Table 4.2: Colour and striking voltage Striking voltage also indicates the value of forward bias required to give significant forward current. DC drive current is in micro-amperes nearer to striking voltage. Then it increases rapidly in the mille-ampere region for a small change in diode voltage. LEDs are normally used in this region below the maximum current rated for the diode.

The diode turn-on is distributed over a range of voltages rather than occurring abruptly at the threshold voltage. The non-abrupt turn-on is referred to as sub-threshold turn-on or premature turn-on. The sub-threshold current can be caused by carrier transport through surface states or deep levels in the bulk of the semiconductor.

P a g e | 36

Fig 4.9: I-V with clearly discernable sub-threshold turn-on, caused by defects or surface states

PARASITIC RESISTANCE Frequently a diode has unwanted or parasitic resistances. The effect of a series resistance and a parallel resistance is shown in Fig. 4.10. A series resistance can be caused by excessive contact resistance or by the resistance of the neutral regions. A parallel resistance can be caused by any channel that bypasses the p-n junction. This bypass can be caused by damaged regions of the p-n junction or by surface imperfections.

Fig 4.10: Effect of series and parallel resistance DIFFERENTIAL RESISTANCE For the transparent blue LED used in the study, at approximately 2.7V diode current is 16A. For an increase of 0.2375V then, current increased by 36A. Due to the unavailability of higher range micro-ammeters, the next value had been taken in mille-amperes. A current of 2mA needed approx. 3.9V. i.e., an increase of 1.948mA needed an increase of 0.96V. Thus, resistance can be calculated as: R = V/I

P a g e | 37 Change in voltage volts 0.2375 0.9600 0.1650 0.1800 Change in current ampere 0.000036 0.001948 0.002000 0.002000 Differential resistance - ohm 6597.2 492.8 82.5 90

Table 4.3: Differential resistance of blue transparent LED For the green transparent LED striking voltage is around 1.7V and current 24A. It shows that the energy needed for the electrons to recombine is much lesser than in the case of a blue LED with higher frequency. Similarly the differential resistances are: Change in voltage volts 0.0365 0.0390 0.0220 0.1430 0.0925 0.0500 0.0750 Change in current ampere 0.000030 0.000038 0.000022 0.001886 0.002000 0.002000 0.002000 Differential resistance - ohm 1216.6 1026.3 1000 75.8 46.2 25 37.5

Table 4.4: Differential resistance for green transparent LED For red transparent LED, striking voltage is about 1.4V and current is 2A. Change in voltage volts 0.0970 0.0610 0.0685 0.0365 0.0780 0.0150 0.0150 Change in current ampere 0.000008 0.000016 0.000042 0.000052 0.001880 0.001000 0.001000 Differential resistance - ohm 12125 3812.5 1630.9 701.9 41.4 15 15

Table 4.5: Differential resistance for red transparent LED The last two rows are intentionally left same to show that for a same amount of change in the voltage, the change in current remains constant. i.e., an increase from 1.835V to 1.85V and 1.85V to 1.865V resulted in raising current by 0.001A. This enables to determine the forward current

P a g e | 38 at a certain value of diode voltage, if a voltage-current value at another point is known. It can be inferred that increase in the number of electron flow or excited electrons per unit voltage increase is a constant. From this external potential needed for exciting an electron in the diode can be calculated. It can also be seen from the tables of differential resistance that in the operating region, the resistance decreased with increase in voltage. It even decreased from thousands of ohms to a few ohms.

Evaluation of parasitic resistances from differential resistance The diode parallel resistance can be evaluated near the origin of the IV diagram where V<<g /e. For this voltage range, the p-n junction current can be neglected and the parallel resistance is given by Rp = dV/dI |near origin

LED

Voltage difference near origin (Volt) V1 V2 2.9650 1.7685 1.5910 1.8400 2.5700 1.7750 1.8160 1.8390 dV 0.2375 0.0365 0.0970 0.1040 0.1225 0.0480 0.1085 0.1815

Current difference near origin (Ampere) I1 0.000016 0.000024 0.000002 0.000102 0.000092 0.000040 0.000031 0.000036 I2 0.000052 0.000054 0.000010 0.002000 0.000128 0.000088 0.000126 0.002000 dI 0.000036 0.000030 0.000008 0.001898 0.000036 0.000048 0.000095 0.001964

Parallel resistance (Ohm) Rp 6597.22 1216.67 12125.00 54.79 3402.78 1000.00 1142.11 92.41

Transparent Blue Green Red Yellow White Opaque Green Red Yellow 1.7270 1.7075 1.6575 2.7275 1.7320 1.4940 1.7360 2.4475

Table 4.6: Parallel parasitic resistance The series resistance can be evaluated at a high voltage where V > Eg /e. For sufficiently large voltages, the diode IV characteristic becomes linear and the series resistance is given by Rs = dV/dI |at voltages exceeding turn-on However, it may not be practical to evaluate the diode resistance at high voltages due to device heating effects. But from tables of differential resistances, at moderately high voltages

P a g e | 39

exceeding turn-on, series resistances can be calculated approximately. It is obvious that series resistance is much less than parallel resistance.
Series resistance (Ohm) Rp 90.00 37.50 15.00 1.75 35.00 17.50 60.00 23.50

LED

Voltage difference near origin (Volt) V1 V2 4.2700 2.1900 1.9250 1.9215 3.0250 2.1050 2.0900 1.9545 dV 0.1800 0.0750 0.0150 0.0035 0.0700 0.035 0.060 0.047

Current difference near origin (Ampere) I1 0.004 0.006 0.007 0.006 0.006 0.006 0.007 0.006 I2 0.006 0.008 0.008 0.008 0.008 0.008 0.008 0.008 dI 0.002 0.002 0.001 0.002 0.002 0.002 0.001 0.002

Transparent Blue Green Red Yellow White Opaque Green Red Yellow 2.0700 2.0300 1.9075 4.090 2.115 1.910 1.918 2.955

Table 4.6: Series parasitic resistance

The effect of series resistance is obvious in the characteristics; in order to attain a certain value of current it needed more voltage than the ideal case.

P a g e | 40 Fig 4.11

Fig 4.12

P a g e | 41 Fig 4.13

From the comparison of characteristics of transparent and opaque LEDs, the curves do not vary greatly. For yellow LEDs, the curves are approximately parallel. The variations can be accounted for the usage of different LEDs, but not for the transparency of the shield. It can be said that if the transparent shield of a diode is replaced by an opaque one of any colour, without disturbing the solid, the forward characteristic curve remains invariant. It is due to the fact that for a diode, the current through it depends on the material used and the dimensions.

P a g e | 42

Colour of LED

Input Voltage Vi (Volt)

2.80 2.98 3.21 3.37 6.41 8.76 11.05 13.06 1.63 1.80 1.90 2.00 2.05 4.43 7.09 8.96 11.01 12.80 1.70 1.73 1.83 1.93

Load Voltage VL (Volt)

0.022 0.036 0.072 0.104 2.550 4.720 6.860 8.740 0.004 0.035 0.074 0.114 0.137 2.450 5.020 6.830 8.830 10.510 0.009 0.045 0.076 0.116 2.200 4.820 7.320 8.980 10.840 0.009 0.033 0.068 0.074

Diode Current ID (Ampere)

Diode Voltage VD (Volt) Theoretical = V i - VL

2.778 2.944 3.138 3.266 3.860 4.040 4.190 4.320 1.626 1.765 1.826 1.886 1.913 1.980 2.070 2.130 2.180 2.290 1.691 1.685 1.754 1.814 1.880 1.670 1.590 1.620 1.620 1.591 1.632 1.767 1.756

Practical

Mean

Output Power (dB)

Transparent
22 x 10-6 40 x 10 80 x 10 120 x 10 2 x 10 4 x 10 6 x 10 8 x 10 3 x 10
-6 -6

2.77 2.89 3.03 3.10 3.86 4.08 4.26 4.36 1.612 1.710 1.788 1.757 1.766 1.942 2.030 2.090 2.150 2.180 1.670 1.708 1.748 1.750 1.860 1.920 1.970 1.980 1.950 1.573 1.632 1.654 1.663

2.774 2.917 3.084 3.183 3.860 4.060 4.225 4.340 1.619 1.738 1.807 1.822 1.840 1.961 2.050 2.110 2.165 2.235 1.681 1.697 1.751 1.782 1.870 1.795 1.780 1.800 1.785 1.582 1.632 1.711 1.710

-39.3 -32.6 -26.0 -24.0 -9.3 -8.6 -7.5 -5.8 -47.6 -45.7 -43.8 -42.3 -41.2 -27.1 -24.1 -23.1 -21.9 -21.4 -42.8 -32.6 -29.9 -25.8 -16.5 -11.4 -10.7 -9.9 -9.1 -44.9 -44.4 -43.7 -43.5

-6 -3 -3 -3 -3 -6 -6 -6

Blue

40 x 10 80 x 10 120 x 10 140 x 10

-6 -6 -3 -3 -3 -3 -3 -6 -6 -6

Green

2 x 10 4 x 10 6 x 10 8 x 10

10 x 10 10 x 10 40 x 10 80 x 10 120 x 10 2 x 10 4 x 10 6 x 10 8 x 10 8 x 10

-6 -3 -3 -3 -3 -3

Red

4.08 6.49 8.91 10.60 12.46 1.60 1.70 1.80 1.83

10 x 10 40 x 10 68 x 10 80 x 10

-6 -6 -6 -6

Yellow

P a g e | 43 120 x 10-6 2 x 10 4 x 10 6 x 10 8 x 10 1 x 10
-3 -3 -3 -3 -3

1.92 4.19 6.76 8.47 10.47 12.49 2.44 2.66 2.84 2.90 White 2.93 2.96 5.58 8.04 10.18 12.15 Opaque 1.64 1.78 1.89 2.00 Green 4.86 6.88 8.80 10.82 12.50 1.65 1.72 1.82 1.92 Yellow 4.58 6.96 8.72 10.72 12.64

0.114 2.33 4.85 6.56 8.49 10.44 0.002 0.033 0.090 0.116 0.126 0.139 2.630 4.990 7.060 8.980 0.006 0.041 0.076 0.119 2.890 4.850 6.710 8.650 10.270 0.014 0.035 0.078 0.120 2.720 5.050 6.780 8.790 10.590

1.806 1.860 1.910 1.910 1.980 2.050 2.438 2.627 2.750 2.784 2.804 2.821 2.950 3.050 3.120 3.170 1.634 1.739 1.814 1.881 1.970 2.030 2.090 2.170 2.230 1.636 1.685 1.742 1.800 1.860 1.910 1.940 1.930 2.050

1.690 1.815 1.860 1.870 1.890 1.910 2.4 2.56 2.62 2.65 2.64 2.66 2.92 3.01 3.06 3.11 1.618 1.699 1.730 1.754 1.945 2.000 2.040 2.080 2.120 1.592 1.626 1.651 1.665 1.820 1.850 1.880 1.900 1.940

1.748 1.838 1.885 1.890 1.935 1.980 2.419 2.594 2.685 2.717 2.722 2.741 2.935 3.030 3.090 3.140 1.626 1.719 1.772 1.818 1.958 2.015 2.065 2.125 2.175 1.614 1.656 1.697 1.733 1.840 1.880 1.910 1.915 1.995

-40.9 -29.6 -26.4 -25.4 -24.4 -23.2 -35.0 -21.8 -17.6 -17.1 -16.8 -15.9 -13.3 -9.5 -8.3 -7.2 -39.5 -39.0 -38.4 -37.4 -23.1 -21.0 -19.9 -18.7 -18.1 -38.6 -37.5 -36.6 -35.1 -23.0 -20.2 -19.2 -18.0 -17.2

10 x 10 36 x 10 92 x 10 120 x 10 134 x 10 142 x 10

-6 -6 -6

-6 -6 -6 -3 -3 -3 -3

2 x 10 4 x 10 6 x 10 8 x 10

8 x 10-6 40 x 10 80 x 10 120 x 10 2 x 10 4 x 10 6 x 10 8 x 10
-6 -6

-6 -3 -3 -3 -3 -3 -6 -6 -6

10 x 10 20 x 10 40 x 10 80 x 10 120 x 10 1 x 10 4 x 10 6 x 10 8 x 10

-6 -3 -3 -3 -3 -3

10 x 10

Table 4.8: Radiation output power vs. drive current

P a g e | 44 Fig 4.14

Fig 4.15

P a g e | 45 Fig 4.16

P a g e | 46 Radiation from an LED is due to recombination of electrons and holes. The nature of the radiation, to which part of the EM spectrum does it belong, is determined by the energy gap of the material. In fact, energy gap of a material denotes the energy needed for a valence electron to reach conduction band or to create free electrons. An electron absorbing energy hv to become free will emit the same radiation during recombination with a hole. Thus radiation from a diode varies from material to material. If the energy gap is in the region of visible spectrum, the LED will emit light radiations. Striking voltage is the external potential at which significant electron flow initiates. It also indicates the sufficient radiation needed to measure the amount of radiation. So, at striking voltage LED lights up. From the evaluation forward characteristics it has been seen that current flow through the diode varies linearly with the diode voltage. The amount of recombination depends on the number of electron reaching the p region crossing the barrier and hence intensity of radiation or radiation flux depends on the number of electrons recombining with holes. This number is influenced by the external voltage. In fact, the number of electrons crossing the junction per unit time is the current through the diode. Therefore, when current through the diode increases, radiation flux also increases. Radiation output power vs. diode current shows this relationship. In all the characteristic curves, as diode current increased radiation output power also increased. Of all the diodes, super blue diode silicon carbide/gallium nitride showed the greatest power at a given value of current after the striking voltage.

Fig 4.17: InGaN-based LEDs extend the range of LEDs into blue and achieve efficiencies exceeding tungsten light bulbs.

P a g e | 47 Brightness and wattage are actually two different things. Lumens are the units used to measure light intensity or brightness, while wattage is a measure of how much power the light source uses. Since a light-emitting diode (LED) bulb uses as much as 90 percent less electricity than a regular incandescent bulb, the LED requires only about 9 watts to produce a comparable amount of brightness to a 75 watt incandescent. White LED has highest output power then to super blue LED. This can be accounted as white LED is actually a mixture of blue and yellow radiations, the opposite extreme ends of the spectrum and can befool eyes by appearing as white. A current flow through the diode is sum of current by electron and hole flows. There are cases in which radiative and non-radiative transition occur. Radiation flux is thus dependent on the recombination yielding radiative transitions. There exists several recombination processes dealing with the important radiative transitions between the valence and the conducting bands. The recombination of an intrinsic free electron or a hole and free excitons is assisted indirectly by a phonon interaction in the gap materials. In donor impurities, there exist free to bound or bound excitons recombination for neutral acceptors, and donor acceptor pair recombination. The non-radiative transitions are mainly involved with auger effect, and also for deep impurities multi-phonon emission is possible. From the characteristics, Blue LED gives maximum radiation output power. In other words, it is the most efficient LED among them. Efficiency of an LED is the rate of photon emission over the rate of supply of electrons. It is because GaN have the reduced electron leakage and lower efficiency droop a phenomenon that provokes LEDs to be their most efficient when they receive low-density electric currents, but to lose their efficiency as higher density currents are fed into the device. The better efficiency of red LED is accounted by its smaller diode ideality factor. The ideality factor of a diode is a measure of how closely the diode follows the ideal diode equation. The ideal diode equation assumes that all the recombination occurs via band to band or recombination via traps in the bulk areas from the device (i.e. not in the junction). However recombination does occur in other ways and in other areas of the device. These recombinations produce ideality factors that deviate from the ideal. The green and yellow LEDs have a greater ideality factor from the I-V characteristics, and also they encounter relatively high electron leakage and efficiency droop. Apart from these factors, sub-threshold turn on also affects the efficiency. Efficiency is the greatest for no sub-threshold turn on diodes. Efficiency depends upon wavelength shifts too. Smaller the shifts, greater is the efficiency.

P a g e | 48

Colour of LED

Input Voltage Vi (Volt) Transparent 12.50 8.79 11.00

Output Power (dB) -7.60 -11.90 -7.80 -7.14 -9.60 1.80

Wavelength of the light (nm) 540 630 687 663 728 713 307 436 720 793

Blue Green Yellow Yellow - Orange Red Blue region Green region White Yellow region Red region Yellow Red
Table 4.9: Wavelength emitted by LED

Yellow Orange

8.76 12.47 10.91

Opaque 10.9 10.1

-17.9 -8.9

693 745

The wavelengths determined through are found to be in the range of visible spectrum. The diode yellow orange, on diffraction provided two patterns of yellow 1 and orange. During experiment, at low radiation power, pattern was not clear and at extremely high power, pattern showed widened image, overlapped maxima, making it impossible to resolve them. This increased difficulties to determine the spectral responses of LEDs. A slight variation can be noted in the case of green transparent LED. This is because the light is in the region of green and yellow overlapping.

P a g e | 49

LUMINAIRE EFFICACY
The use of light-emitting diodes (LEDs) as a general light source has forced changes in test procedures used to measure lighting performance. Lighting energy efficiency is a function of both the light source (the light bulb or lamp) and the fixture, including necessary controls, power supplies and other electronics, and optical elements. The complete unit is known as a luminaire. Traditionally, lighting energy efficiency is characterized in terms of lamp ratings and fixture efficiency. The lamp rating indicates how much light (in lumens) the lamp will produce when operated at standard room/ambient temperature (25 degrees C). The luminous efficacy of a light source is typically given as the rated lamp lumens divided by the nominal wattage of the lamp, abbreviated lm/W. The fixture efficiency indicates the proportion of rated lamp lumens actually emitted by the fixture; it is given as a percentage. Fixture efficiency is an appropriate measure for fixtures that have interchangeable lamps for which reliable lamp lumen ratings are available. However, the lamp rating and fixture efficiency measures have limited usefulness for LED lighting at the present time, for two important reasons: 1) There is no industry standard test procedure for rating the performance of LED devices or packages. 2) The luminaire design and the manner in which the LEDs are integrated into the luminaire have a material impact on the performance of the LEDs. Given these limitations, how can LED luminaires be compared to traditional lighting technologies? As an example, the table below compares two recessed down-light fixtures, one using a 13-watt CFL and the other using an array of LEDs. The table differentiates data related to the light source and data resulting from actual luminaire measurements. Luminaire photometry shows that in this case the LED fixture has input wattage and light output similar to the CFL fixture, and matches the CFL products luminaire efficacy. This example is based on a currently available, residential-grade, six-inch diameter down-light. LED down-light performance continues to improve rapidly, with some LED retrofit products surpassing CFL down-lights in luminaire efficacy.

P a g e | 50 Table 4.10

For all light sources, there is a difference between rated luminous flux of the lamp and actual performance in a luminaire. However, traditional light sources installed in luminaires operate relatively predictably because the performance of traditional light sources in a wide range of luminaire types, applications, and use conditions is well documented and understood. LED technology is at a far earlier stage of development, so experience and documentation of performance within luminaires is lacking. The efficiency of LEDs is very sensitive to heat and optical design, which increases the relative importance of luminaire design. Ensuring necessary light output and life of LEDs requires careful thermal management, typically requiring the use of the fixture housing as a heat sink or at least as an element in the heat removal design. Luminaires therefore have a fundamental and typically large effect on the luminous flux produced by the LEDs, and on the rate of lumen depreciation over time. LED drop-in replacement lamps, such as Edison-based reflector lamps or MR-16 replacements, are in theory designed to provide the necessary heat sinking for the LEDs, but given their installation in fixtures not specifically designed for LEDs, good heat management will be a challenge. In summary, luminous fluxand by extension, luminous efficacymust be measured at the luminaire level for two primary reasons: 1) no standard procedures are available for rating LED devices on their own, and; 2) the amount of light emitted by a fixture cannot be predicted reliably based on available information about LED devices and fixtures. he lighting industry has adopted luminaire efficacy as the preferred measure of LED performance, as evident in the development of a new test procedure based on this approach.

P a g e | 51

SECTION FIVE

P a g e | 52

CONCLUSION
Light-emitting diodes are forward biased p-n junctions which emit spontaneous radiations. The phenomenon behind them is the process of electroluminescence. Of course, the material used to manufacture the light-emitting diode governs the type of radiation emitted. Besides, the structure determines the characteristics of these diodes. Surface imperfections can cause parasitic resistances that deviates the current-voltage characteristic of a diode from its ideal case. The radiation output power of an LED is affected by electron leakage, the efficiency droop, diode ideality factor, wavelength shift, and sub-threshold turn on. For blue LEDS with smaller efficiency droops and electron leakage, have the better efficiency. The performance of the LED is the light produced per diode and it has been shown that it depends on many factors ranging from the material and size to temperature. Knowing extends of influence of these factors - disrupting LEDs from the ideal case - the performance of LEDs can be improved. While many generally use luminaire efficacy as a measure of performance, it should be seen as a standalone metric, but should be assessed in the light of other parameters like temperature, etc, relevant to the application. In general, high performance LEDs offer a greater light output in a smaller footprint, and high luminous intensity for low currents.