Single-die LED backlights save power

A The Optoelectronic Manufacturing Corporation (UK) product story

Edited by the Electronicstalk editorial team Oct 23, 2003

A new range of white backlights provide bright, even illumination using LED die.

A new range of white backlights provide bright, even illumination using LED die.

Originally developed for handheld PDAs, the backlights are now being evaluated for other applications including transparency illumination and signage.

Until now, if a designer needed a white light source the choice was fairly limited.

Electroluminescent devices require an additional voltage inverter, and have a limited life, CCFL devices also need an inverter, and old style white LED backlights are based on a multichip matrix which makes them current hungry.

OMC's new backlight with its combination of reflector and diffuser technologies means that panels up to 110 x 90mm can be illuminated from a single solid-state emitting element positioned along one of the panel edges.

If elements are mounted on opposite panel edges the backlight width can be doubled to 220mm; and by stacking elements side by side designers can achieve almost infinite panel length.

Typical specifications for a 90 x 110mm panel with one emitting element are: luminous intensity 123cd/m2; current consumption 160mA at 3.5V; and an operating temperature range from -30 to +70C.