The solid-state lighting revolution

Abstract

For THE last 125 years we have been able to shine light whenever and wherever we need it by simply flipping a switch. This revolution started when Thomas Edison developed the first commercial electric light bulb in 1879, and very little has changed since. The reason for this is partly because new technologies have all followed the same old paradigm: fragile, gas-filled glass envelopes with metal end-caps that produce an orb of steady, white light. However, this may soon change with the dawn of the second lighting revolution: solid-state lighting.