March 8, 2012
FIRST YOU HAVE TO BREAK THE BAKER'S WINDOW:
LED converts heat into light (Tim Wogan, Mar 8, 2012, Physics World)
A light-emitting diode (LED) that emits more light energy than it consumes in electrical energy has been unveiled by researchers in the US. The device - which has a conventional efficiency of greater than 200% - behaves as a kind of optical heat pump that converts lattice vibrations into infrared photons, cooling its surroundings in the process. The possibility of such a device was first predicted in 1957, but a practical version had proved impossible to create until now. Potential applications of the phenomenon include energy-efficient lighting and cryogenic refrigeration.
Posted by Orrin Judd at March 8, 2012 4:49 PM
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