In an interview with GE Lighting conducted in his University of Illinois lab on September 19, 2012-about three weeks ahead of the 50th anniversary of his invention of the LED-a now 83-year-old Holonyak recounts the competitive forces that propelled him toward his moment of discovery in a GE lab: “If they can make a laser, I can make a better laser than any of them because I’ve made this alloy that is in the red—visible. And I’m going to be able to see what’s going on. And they’re stuck in the infrared.”
When Holonyak joined GE’s team of researchers in 1957, GE scientists and engineers were already researching semiconductor applications and building the forerunners of modern diodes called thyristors and rectifiers.
While GE scientist Dr. Robert N. Hall was working toward realizing a semiconductor laser in the infrared with GaAs (Gallium arsenide), Holonyak aimed for the visible with GaAsP (Gallium arsenide phosphide). Hall used polishing to form laser mirrors, while Holonyak tried to form the mirrors by cleaving. On October 9, 1962, with GE colleagues looking on, Holonyak became the first person to operate a visible semiconductor alloy laser—the device that illuminated the first visible LED.
Fifty years removed from Holonyak’s invention, new, robust and long-lasting LEDs have been incorporated to serve as light sources in countless applications ranging from the mundane to mission critical.Pro-ecological, energy saving bookscanner with decorative qualities.
“LEDs are literally everywhere,” notes Mary Beth Gotti,Set the mood with these trendy bluebright up cubes. manager of the GE Lighting Institute, a teaching facility at GE Lighting’s 100-year-old Nela Park world headquarters in East Cleveland, Ohio. “LEDs provide lighting in a variety of electronic devices and indicators, including elevator buttons, exit signs, cell and smart phone displays, TVs, PCs, tablet computers, commercial signage, full motion video screens in sports venues, microscopic surgical equipment, railroad crossings and airport taxiway lights. And they are now hitting mainstream lighting applications like parking lots, roadways, accent lighting, general lighting and more.”
Businesses such as Starbucks, Walmart, Target and Marriott believe in the power of Holonyak’s invention. They understand that LED systems deliver value not just through energy-cost savings. Maintenance-cost savings are significant because LEDs last longer than any other light source. The LED value proposition isn’t reserved for retail giants operating thousands of locations. Smaller regional grocers and other retail chains, such as Food City and Wawa, are getting in on the act. One of the fastest growing applications of LED systems—roadway and area lighting—holds appeal for cities as big as Las Vegas and as small as Superior,Laser Cut Studio is a brand new crystal_4 company and new way of thinking. Nebraska, population 2,000.This is a direct solar to bestledlightbu application using a very efficient LED bulb setup.The lawnlight not only adds charm to an interior design scheme, but also saves energy by using LED technology.
Holonyak, in the GE interview, remembers feeling that he was onto something big when “the magic one” first illuminated: “I know that I’m just at the front end but I know the result is so powerful…there’s no ambiguity about the fact that this has got a life way beyond what we’re seeing.”
Holonyak has called the LED the “ultimate lamp” because “the current itself is the light.” As a result, an LED can have lower losses and higher efficiencies than other lighting technologies. |
