3 December 2013

Osram launches Oslon Square LED for longer lifetime at high temperatures

Since excessive heat generation is one of the main reasons why light-emitting diodes fail, Osram Opto Semiconductors GmbH of Regensburg, Germany has launched the Oslon Square, an LED that withstands high ambient temperatures. To ensure that the colors of several LEDs in a luminaire remain uniform even at higher temperatures, they are measured and binned at 85°C (very close to the temperature encountered in lighting applications within buildings, in everything from spotlights to retrofit light sources).

Osram has optimized the heat dissipation of the Oslon Square to allow an increase in the junction temperature. “With our new conversion technology, we can produce significantly thinner converter layers,” says Ivar Tangring, SSL Product Development at Osram Opto. “The thinner layers better dissipate the heat, thus enabling the higher temperatures in the LED,” he adds. The Oslon Square can hence reach a lifetime of considerably more than 50,000 hours, even at high temperatures of up to 135°C in the LED.

Osram Opto says that measuring and binning at operating temperatures of 85°C is of great significance to users who further process the LEDs into luminaires. Users receive precise information on parameters such as luminous flux or color stability, which they need to optimally define the properties of their products.
Further, the improved temperature behavior leads to higher luminous efficacy in the application (greater luminous flux for the applied electrical power), helping users to optimize the price/performance ratio of their luminaires, says Tangring. Due to the higher permitted junction temperatures, fewer large heat sinks are required, simplifying the design of lamps and luminaires because they can be smaller and therefore less costly.

Picture: The new Oslon Square LED.

With housing dimensions of 3mm x 3mm and a beam angle of 120°, Osram Opto says that its Oslon Square is particularly suitable for the various applications in buildings. With a correlated color temperature (CCT) ranging over 2400-5000K, it can generate either warm-white or cold-white light. The color rendering index (CRI) is over 80 and the luminous flux is 202lm (at 3000K, with a drive current of 700mA). Product variations with a different color temperature spectrum and higher color rendering indices are to follow. The typical voltage (at 700mA) is 2.9V (the maximum is 3.2V), while the maximum current is 1.8A (previously it was 1.5A) and the thermal resistance (Rth) is 3K/W (previously it was 3.8K/W).

At present, the new LED is undergoing quality testing: The certification process under the LM-80 long lifetime standard is underway. The results of the 3000 hour test are expected at the end of 2013, and those of the 6000 hour test in spring 2014.

Tags: Osram

Visit: www.osram-os.com