Lighting the World – The Future of Lighting
At University of California Santa Barbara a group of researchers is exploring the future of lighting. One technology in particular they are looking at is lasers – a topic of great interest here at MicroVision.
University of California Television (UCTV) recently profiled UC Santa Barbara’s Solid State Lighting and Display Center (SSLDC) in an episode of “Lighting the World.” The episode highlights their research with different types of lighting and display technology focusing on LED and laser diodes.
According to the center’s co-director, Shuji Nakamura, the next generation of lighting will be based on laser diodes. Professor Nakamura is widely regarded as a pioneer in display technology and is credited with the discovery and development of nitride based semiconductors responsible for blue LEDs and blue laser diodes. In the episode, he predicts that the market will shift from LED to laser based display, as lasers are much more efficient and use less power (5:37). Nathan Pfaff, a graduate student at SSLDC, talks as well about how lasers can provide a more efficient white light with more optical power out for less electrical energy in (4:43).
Energy efficiency is one reason why lasers are at the core of MicroVision’s patented PicoP® display technology. Not only are lasers efficient, they enable images to be projected from a compact form onto any type of surface while staying in focus– as Professor Steven Denbaars, co-director of SSLDC, discusses in the video (1:56). When we were asked to provide images for the project, we were pleased to comply. Check out how our images illustrate the points Professor Denbaars makes about projected displays using lasers.
You can watch the full episode of the video and see for yourself how these researchers are touting lasers as the future of lighting.