Sponsored by the Sigma Xi FIU Chapter & IEEE Photonics Society Miami Chapter
Friday, February 23, 2024, 10:00AM EC 2300
Dr. Michael Shur
Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
A Sigma Xi Distinguished Lectureship Event
Abstract: Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs) are 20 times more efficient than incandescent bulbs and nearly 3 times more efficient than compact fluorescent lamps. It is even more important that LEDs can produce light optimized for specific needs and applications, such as light for treating seasonal affective disorder, growing plants, and preserving or even “restoring” paintings and objects of art. Many emerging applications are in medicine, lighting for seniors, merchandising, the automotive industry, photography, the film industry, and theatre lighting. We are truly in the middle of the smart lighting revolution. All these applications will benefit from new metrics of light quality - color rendition metrics demonstrated by a smart LED lamp - the “color rendition engine”. But LEDs go beyond the visible range: they are capable of producing ultraviolet (UV) light. UV radiation has numerous applications in water and air purification, algae control, sterilization, biological threat identification, medicine, biology, industrial processes, defense, and homeland security. UV LEDs are environmentally friendly and compact sources consuming low power and emitting at many wavelengths. Research is now underway to use these LEDs for algae control, increasing yield, improving quality, and extending the storage time of fruits and vegetables. UV LEDs will help reduce waste, alleviate the problem of world hunger, purify water, kill bacteria and viruses, and solve the tremendous problem of Hospital Acquired Infections that lead to nearly 100,000 deaths annually in the United States alone.