What is LED?

• What is a LED?
  
  LEDs(Light emitting diodes)are becoming more and more widespread in all types of electronics and now in lighting application as well. LED Light bulbs are semiconductors, just like a computer chip. When electricity is passed through them, they emit energy in the form of light. They are "doped" or injected with certain chemicals, that determine their light color. LEDs convert the majority of energy passed through them to light, as opposed to incandescent bulbs that produce light as a by-product of being heated thus they can be up to 90% more efficient than traditional household filament bulbs.
  
  Types of LED bulbs?
  
  There are two basic types of LED light bulbs.
  
  1)Floods or Spotlights -
  LEDs are directional in nature by the way they're built so any application that requires directional lighting such as track lighting, flood/spotlighting and recessed lighting are a great candidate for using LEDs. Some LED bulbs can have an additional lens that can spread or concentrate the light after it exits the LED element.
  
  2)Globe Shape -
  For areas where you need light all around you want to look for a globe-shaped bulb. This "solves" the directional light problem by using a lens at the top of the bulb to disperse the light at wider angles. These however, are a still a work around for the directional nature of LEDs and as result, you get less light output per watt of energy. Most globe bulbs give you about 50 lumens/watt or less.
  
  LED Bulbs What You Need to Know?
  
  1)Bulb Lifetime
  The lifetime of an LED lamp is generally considered to be the point where the light output has declined to 70% of its initial output, measured in lumens. So, a 300 lumen LED bulb with a lifespan of 50,000 hours will have 210 lumens at the end of its lifetime. However, the lifetime of a bulb does not mean it is unusable, only that its light output has degraded to a certain point. The LED bulb may continue to be useful for several thousand hours past its stated lifetime. Unlike old-fashioned light bulbs, it is extremely rare for an LED light to simply burn out. Rather, it will gradually fade over time.
  
  2)Color Temperature
  As a general rule, you should use warmer light indoors, and whiter light outdoors. A color temperature of 2500-4000 Kelvin works great indoors. You should use a bulb with a color temperature of 5000-7000 Kelvin outdoors, as the whiter light allows your eyes to see better at night. White light in the 5000-7000 Kelvin range is also excellent for display cases, boutiques, artwork, or other settings where you need excellent color rendition.
  
  3)Beam Angles
  Typically you'll see bulbs in the 30 to 70 degree range. These are spotlights and will give a much more focused light than traditional incandescent flood lights. The best way to tell is to see an actual picture of the bulb in action since this measurement can vary widely between manufacturers. Even though youll hear comparable to a 50W flood, the LED light will in the majority of cases be more focused than a floodlight. Again the best way to tell is if the site shows you a side-by-side comparison.
  
  Start Using LEDs Now!
  
  LEDs aren't a good alternative for all bulbs in your home. Depending on your situation, they make sense in some places more than others. The more people who adopt LEDs, the quicker prices will come down. There's no doubt that as prices come down, and efficiency/light output of the bulbs increase, in a couple of years every light bulb in the world will be an LED Light bulb and CFLs and incandescent will be a thing of the past. The initial investment may be a little hard to swallow, but in the long run, youll be doing your part for the environment and your wallet and making the world a cleaner, greener, cooler place to live one bulb at a time for generations to come.
  
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  If you need any further information,please do not hesitate to make a contact with us.
  
  
  Company: Shenzhen Dicolor Optoelectronic Co.,Ltd
  Address: Bld8, Tonyfuyu Industry Park, Fuyong Town, Bao'an, Shenzhen
  Website: www.dicolor.cn
  Attn:Mr Tony Du
  E-mail: [email removed]
  Tel:+86 755 29604770-8053
  Mob:+8613631625810
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  10 Jul 2009, 11:14 4