WHITE LEDS

Yogesh Kumar
2008ph10643
Group no. 3
Course- EPL335
WORKING OF AN LED
 p-n junction diode
 Forward bias

 Photon release during

recombination process
 Direct band-gap semiconductors
USES
 Automotive lighting(brake lamps, indicators, turn
signals)
 White LEDs in Anti collision systems

 Text displays

 Sensors

 Communication Technology(high switching rates)

 Infra red LEDs in remote controls

 White LEDs can be used for lighting purposes

UNIQUE PROPERTIES
 High energy efficiency
 Low power consumption

 High life-time

 High switching speed

 Compatible

 Intensity independent colors

 Temperature dependent output

WHITE LED
Mainly two basic methods to make White LEDs –
1. Mixing of primary color( Red, Green & Blue) LEDs
(RGB white LEDs)
 Can be used to make LEDs of different colors

 Color of LED is determined using RGB color space

model
 Low intensity LEDs

2. Phosphor coating(Phosphor Based LEDs)

 High intensity LEDs
RGB COLOR SPACE MODEL

 Three parameters x,
y( Chromaticity co-
ordinates) & Y and one
more parameter z(=1-x-y)
 x & y represents intensity
of color using “CIE1931
color space”
 Y represents brightness of
color

 Fig: CIE 1931 color space

WHITE LED USING CIE MODEL
 The x and y coordinates are determined using the CIE
1931 color space
 Any color enclosed in the triangle formed by the
coordinate points representing the three color can be
obtained
 Ratio of luminance(brightness) of three colors
determines the resultant color
PHOSPHOR BASED LEDS
 Commercial high intensity white LEDs
 LED of one color(mostly blue LED made of InGaN or GaN)
are coated with layer of phosphor of distinct color
 Blue light goes Stokes shift and the spectrum is broadened

 Cerium-doped yttrium Aluminium garnet (Ce3+:YAG) is a

commonly used phosphor
 UV LEDs can be coated with europium-based red and blue
emitting phosphors plus green emitting copper and
Aluminium doped zinc sulfide (ZnS:Cu, Al)
 Simpler and cheaper than RGB system
PHOSPHOR BASED LED

fig: spectrum broadening due to Stokes shift

LIMITATIONS OF WHITE LEDS
 Complicated packaging
 Larger energy consumption due to heat produced in
Stokes shift
 Low color rendering index

 High color temperature

STRAIN ADJUSTED WHITE LED
 Single chip
 Phosphor free

 4-period MQW (multiple

quantum well) active
region- 3nm InGaN well
and 14 nm GaN barrier
 InGaN ultra-layer
(strained)
 Light is emitted in InGaN
well
 Indium rich quantum dots
emit yellow; In poor QDs
emits blue resulting white fig: white LED with InGaN ultra
light layer
STRAIN ADJUSTED WHITE LEDS

fig: spectrum of a single chip white LED