Almost 1/5th of global electricity is used for lighting, accounting for c.1.9bn tons of CO2 pa.
High Brightness Light Emitting Diodes (HBLEDs) are globally recognised as a highly
efficient, long lasting & versatile light source, offering significant promise in the target of
improved environmental & economic performance within the future energy demands for
lighting.
Whilst technological advancements have improved the efficiency of HBLED lighting
systems, currently only 25% of the power utilised is converted into visible light, with the
remaining 75% generating heat that is dissipated through the substrate on which the LED is
mounted. Without efficient thermal management, increased temperature within LED chips
leads to a drop in efficiency, reliability & LED lifespan & is recognized as the main cause of
failure.
Cambridge Nanotherm (CNL) has developed & patented a highly innovative nanoceramicaluminium
substrate to addresses the demand for efficient thermal management within
HBLEDs. Despite the significant breakthroughs that CNL’s substrate has made in the
reduction of thermal resistance and LED working temperatures, there is scope for much larger
efficiency gains. These gains are restricted, the cause of which lies in the use of epoxy resin
adhesive layer used to connect the conductor layer to the nanoceramic substrate.
This project seeks to explore the technical feasibility of a direct metallisation process to apply
the conductor layer directly to their unique nanoceramic substrate in order to create a highly
thermally efficient substrate material for the electronics industry. CNL believe the use of
direct metallisation will allow them to offer a breakthrough 75% reduction in thermal
resistance and increase operating temperatures to c.400°C, at a significantly lower cost than
the current market offering.
The project will prove this process at bench-scale & if successful, pre-production prototyping
& scale up will ensue with expected market entry in 2016.