Assignment of

LED
Submitted by : TALHA YASEEN
Roll no : 24
Class : BS IT (2nd)
Subject : Basic Electronics
Submitted to : USMAN AHMAD
History:
In 1907, British experimenter in Marconi labs Henry Joseph Round noticed for the
first time that when a potential of 10volts is applied to carborundum (silicon
carbide) crystal, it emits yellowish light. However, first to investigate it and to
propose a working theory was Oleg Vladimirovich Losev from Russia. In 1927,
Oleg published a paper “Luminous carborundum detector and detection effect and
oscillations with crystals“.For decades no progress was made for different reasons.
Rubin Braunstein that worked at Radio Corporation of America, reported in 1955
that some simple diodes emit infrared light when connected to a current. In 1961,
Gary Pittman and Bob Biard from Texas Instruments found that that gallium-
arsenide diode emits infrared light every time it is connected to current. The same
year they received patent for infrared LED. Nick Holonyak Jr., employed in
General Electric, developed in 1962 first light-emitting diode that emitted light in
the visible part of the frequency range. It was a red LED. In 1972, M. George
Craford , who was a graduate student of Holonyak, invented the first yellow LED
and a brighter red LED. Thomas P. Pearsall developed high brightness light-
emitting diode in 1976, for use with fiber optics in telecommunications. Shuji
Nakamura of Nichia Corporation made first blue LED in 1979 but it was too
expensive for commercial use until 1994. Light emitting diodes can now be made
in one or in more colors.
 At first Light-emitting diodes were very expensive, some US$200 per piece.
Because of that, they were used as indicators only in highly professional
laboratory equipment

Working Principle:
A light-emitting diode is a two-lead semiconductor light source. It is a p–n junction
diode that emits light when activated. When a suitable voltage is applied to the
leads, electrons are able to recombine with electron holes within the device,
releasing energy in the form of photons. This effect is called electroluminescence,
and the color of the light (corresponding to the energy of the photon) is determined
by the energy band gap of the semiconductor
 Working principle : Electroluminescence
Advantages of LEDs:
 Very low voltage and current are enough to drive the LED.
 Voltage range – 1 to 2 volts. Current – 5 to 20 milliamperes
 Total power output will be less than 150 milliwatts.
 The response time is very less – only about 10 nanoseconds.
 The device does not need any heating and warm up time.
 Miniature in size and hence lightweight.
 Have a rugged construction and hence can withstand shock and vibrations.
 An LED has a lifespan of more than 20 years.
Disadvantages:
 A slight excess of voltage or current can damage the device.
 The device is known to have a much wider bandwidth compared to the laser.
 The temperature depends on the radiant output power and wavelength.
Physics Of LED:
An LED, or light-emitting diode, is a light source based on a semiconductor –
materials that are neither pure conductors nor insulators but have an electrical
conductivity somewhere in between.
When a voltage passes through the LED, electrons recombine with holes in the
semiconductor, emitting light in the process.
The colour of the light emitted depends on the range of energies within the
semiconductor where no electron states are possible – known as its “band gap”.
The first visible-light LEDs were red and, later, green, and were typically used to
replace traditional light bulbs in power-indicator lights in electronic equipment
such as TVs, and in simple displays such as those used by old calculators.
TYPES OF LEDs:
Different color LEDs require different forward voltages to operate. Red LEDs
require the least voltage, while blue requires higher voltage. Typically, a red LED
requires about 2 volts, while blue LEDs require around 4 volts. Based on the color
of LED, it can be divided into:

Visible LEDs:
The colors emitted by LEDs various with the temperatures & currents. Different
colors are given off at different temperatures & current. LED colors are often given
in “nm”, or nanometers, which is the wavelength of the light. LEDs are not
perfectly monochromatic, but rather produce wavelengths over a small region of
the spectrum.

Infrared LEDs:
Infrared LEDs are sometimes called IREDs – Infra Red Emitting Diodes. The
infrared band can be divided into Near Infrared (NIR) and Far Infrared (IR). Far
infrared does not come in the range of LEDs. NIR can be further divided into two
bands, longwave and shortwave NIR.

Ultraviolet LEDs:
LEDs emit UV-A which is 400 nm of wavelength. Ultraviolet UV-B causes
sunburns, UV-C is dangerous as it kills things. However it is advisable not to stare
into an ultraviolet LED.

White LEDs:
White LEDs have a color temperature. Color Temperature is a measure of the
relative amounts of red or blue – higher color temperatures have more blue.
Applications:
 Modern LEDs are available across the visible, ultraviolet, and infrared
wavelengths, with very high brightness. ... Light-emitting diodes are used
in applications as diverse as aviation lighting, automotive headlamps,
advertising, general lighting, traffic signals, camera flashes, lighted
wallpaper and medical devices.

 With millions of existing products on the market, and more on the way each
day, chances are LEDs are used in almost everyone. From indication lights,
computer components, watches, medical devices, tanning equipment, the list
goes on and on.
Sign Applications With LEDs:
Full Color Video, Monochrome Message Boards, Traffic/VMS, Transportation -
Passenger Information
Illumination With LEDs:
Architectural Lighting, Signage (Channel Letters), Machine Vision, Retail
Displays, Emergency Lighting (Exit Signs), Neon and bulb Replacement,
Flashlights, Accent Lighting - Pathways, Marker Lights
Signal Application With LEDs:
Traffic, Rail, Aviation, Tower Lights, Runway Lights, Emergency/Police Vehicle
Lighting
Automotive Applications With LEDs:
Instrument Panels & Switches, Courtesy Lighting, CHMSL, Rear Stop/Turn/Tai,
Retrofits, New Turn/Tail/Marker Lights
Consumer Electronics & General Indication:
Household appliances, VCR/ DVD/ Stereo/Audio/Video devices, Toys/Games
Instrumentation, Security Equipment, Switches
Mobile Applications With LEDs:
Mobile Phone, PDA's, Digital Cameras, Lap Tops, General Backlighting
Photo Sensor Applications With LEDs:
Medical Instrumentation, Bar Code Readers, Color & Money Sensors, Encoders,
Optical Switches, Fiber Optic Communication.

Signal Application:
The low energy consumption, low maintenance and small size of LEDs has led to
use as status indicators and display on a vriety of equipment and installations.large
area LED display are used as stadium display, and dynamic decorative display,and
dynamic message sings on freeways. Thin , lightweight message display are used at
airports and railway stations, and as destination display for train,buses, trams and
ferries.One color light is suited for traffic lights and signals, exit signs, emergency
vehicle lighting, ships’ navigation lights or lanterns (chromacity and luminance
standards being set under the convention on the international regulation for
preventing collision at sea 1972, annex I and the CIE) and LED based christmas
lights. In cold climates, LED trrafic lights. In cold climates,LED traffic lights may
remain snow covered. [181] Red or yellow LEDs are used in indicator and
alphanumeric displays in environments were night vision must be retained: aircraft
cockpits, submarine and ship bridges, astronomy observatories, and in the field, e.g.
night time animal watching and military field use.