Quantum dots or tiny semiconductors are just a few billionths of a meter in size. Still, they have been used by researchers to create smart, color-controllable white light devices that are more effective than standard LEDs by easily reproducing daylight conditions in a single light, according to a report by Phys.
Next-Gen Smart Lighting
This next-generation smart lighting system was created by researchers from the University of Cambridge. But more interestingly, it was a convergence of many disciplines - such as color science, cutting-edge computer techniques, nanotechnology, novel fabrication process, and electronics.
The researchers discovered that they could replicate daylight more precisely by employing more than the three primary lighting hues found in conventional LEDs.
The new design's preliminary tests revealed better color reproduction, a broader operational range than present smart lighting systems, and a wider spectrum of white light customization, as noted by Phys.
Given that ambient light availability and qualities are related to wellness, the broad adoption of smart lighting systems-which can adjust to individual moods-may benefit human health.
Additionally, circadian rhythms, which control the daily cycle of sleep and wakefulness, can be used to control smart lighting and turns it into reddish-white in the morning and evening and bluish-white during the day.
Phys noted that a room is considered to have proper levels of visual comfort when it has enough natural or artificial light, effective glare control, and views of the outside.
Since illumination determines an object's color, smart white lighting must precisely reflect the color of the objects it surrounds. Currently, available technology accomplishes this by utilizing three separate light hues at once.
Phys said that since the 1990s, quantum dots had been researched and developed as light sources because of their excellent color purity and tunability.
They exhibit great color performance in both wide color controllability and high color reproduction capabilities because of their distinctive optoelectronic features.
Quantum-Dot Light-Emitting Diodes
The Cambridge researchers created an architecture for the next generation of smart white lighting using quantum-dot light-emitting diodes (QD-LEDs). They brought together material-level parameter extraction, device-level optoelectronic simulation, and system-level color optimization.
Together with a novel approach for charge transport and light emission modeling, the researchers developed a computational design structure based on a color optimization algorithm employed in neural networks for machine learning.
Comparing the Cambridge-developed QD-LED system to contemporary LED-based smart lights, which have a CCT between 2200K and 6500K, the CCT range of the Cambridge-developed QD-LED system was 2243K (reddish) to 9207K (bright midday sun).
The QD-LED system has a color rendering index (CRI) of 97 as opposed to the current ranges of smart bulbs, which are between 80 and 91. The CRI is a measurement of the colors lit by the light in contrast to daylight (CRI=100).
World's First
According to Professor Jong Min Kim from Cambridge's Department of Engineering, co-author of the research, a completely optimized, high-performance quantum-dot-based smart white lighting system is a "world's first."
"This is the first milestone toward the full exploitation of quantum-dot-based smart white lighting for daily applications," Kim said.
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Written by Joaquin Victor Tacla
