Microcontroller

Microcontroller
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The die from an Intel 8742, an 8-bit microcontroller that includes a CPU running at 12
MHz, 128 bytes of RAM, 2048 bytes of EPROM, and I/O in the same chip.
A microcontroller (sometimes abbreviated µC, uC or MCU) is a small computer on a

single integrated circuit containing a processor core, memory, and programmable
input/output peripherals. Program memory in the form of NOR flash or OTP ROM is also
often included on chip, as well as a typically small amount of RAM. Microcontrollers are
designed for embedded applications, in contrast to the microprocessors used in personal
computers or other general purpose applications.
Microcontrollers are used in automatically controlled products and devices, such as

automobile engine control systems, implantable medical devices, remote controls, office
machines, appliances, power tools, and toys. By reducing the size and cost compared to a
design that uses a separate microprocessor, memory, and input/output devices,
microcontrollers make it economical to digitally control even more devices and
processes. Mixed signal microcontrollers are common, integrating analog components
needed to control non-digital electronic systems.
Some microcontrollers may use four-bit words and operate at clock rate frequencies as
low as 4 kHz, for low power consumption (milliwatts or microwatts). They will generally
have the ability to retain functionality while waiting for an event such as a button press or
other interrupt; power consumption while sleeping (CPU clock and most peripherals off)
may be just nanowatts, making many of them well suited for long lasting battery
applications. Other microcontrollers may serve performance-critical roles, where they
may need to act more like a digital signal processor (DSP), with higher clock speeds and
power consumption.
Contents
[hide]
• 1 Embedded design
o 1.1 Interrupts
o 1.2 Programs
o 1.3 Other microcontroller features
• 2 Higher integration
• 3 Volumes
• 4 Programming environments
• 5 Types of microcontrollers
• 6 Interrupt latency
• 7 History
• 8 Microcontroller embedded memory technology
o 8.1 Data
o 8.2 Firmware
• 9 See also
• 10 Notes
• 11 External links
[edit] Embedded design

A microcontroller can be considered a self-contained system with a processor, memory
and peripherals and can be used as an embedded system.[1] The majority of
microcontrollers in use today are embedded in other machinery, such as automobiles,
telephones, appliances, and peripherals for computer systems. These are called embedded
systems. While some embedded systems are very sophisticated, many have minimal
requirements for memory and program length, with no operating system, and low
software complexity. Typical input and output devices include switches, relays,
solenoids, LEDs, small or custom LCD displays, radio frequency devices, and sensors for
data such as temperature, humidity, light level etc. Embedded systems usually have no
keyboard, screen, disks, printers, or other recognizable I/O devices of a personal
computer, and may lack human interaction devices of any kind.
[edit] Interrupts
Microcontrollers must provide real time (predictable, though not necessarily fast)
response to events in the embedded system they are controlling. When certain events
occur, an interrupt system can signal the processor to suspend processing the current
instruction sequence and to begin an interrupt service routine (ISR, or "interrupt
handler"). The ISR will perform any processing required based on the source of the
interrupt before returning to the original instruction sequence. Possible interrupt sources
are device dependent, and often include events such as an internal timer overflow,
completing an analog to digital conversion, a logic level change on an input such as from
a button being pressed, and data received on a communication link. Where power
consumption is important as in battery operated devices, interrupts may also wake a
microcontroller from a low power sleep state where the processor is halted until required
to do something by a peripheral event.
[edit] Programs
Microcontroller programs must fit in the available on-chip program memory, since it
would be costly to provide a system with external, expandable, memory. Compilers and
assemblers are used to convert high-level language and assembler language codes into a
compact machine code for storage in the microcontroller's memory. Depending on the
device, the program memory may be permanent, read-only memory that can only be
programmed at the factory, or program memory may be field-alterable flash or erasable
read-only memory.
[edit] Other microcontroller features
Microcontrollers usually contain from several to dozens of general purpose input/output

pins (GPIO). GPIO pins are software configurable to either an input or an output state.
When GPIO pins are configured to an input state, they are often used to read sensors or
external signals. Configured to the output state, GPIO pins can drive external devices
such as LEDs or motors.
Many embedded systems need to read sensors that produce analog signals. This is the
purpose of the analog-to-digital converter (ADC). Since processors are built to interpret
and process digital data, i.e. 1s and 0s, they are not able to do anything with the analog
signals that may be sent to it by a device. So the analog to digital converter is used to
convert the incoming data into a form that the processor can recognize. A less common
feature on some microcontrollers is a digital-to-analog converter (DAC) that allows the
processor to output analog signals or voltage levels.
In addition to the converters, many embedded microprocessors include a variety of timers

as well. One of the most common types of timers is the Programmable Interval Timer
(PIT). A PIT may either count down from some value to zero, or up to the capacity of the
count register, overflowing to zero. Once it reaches zero, it sends an interrupt to the
processor indicating that it has finished counting. This is useful for devices such as
thermostats, which periodically test the temperature around them to see if they need to
turn the air conditioner on, the heater on, etc.
Time Processing Unit (TPU) is a sophisticated timer. In addition to counting down, the
TPU can detect input events, generate output events, and perform other useful operations.
A dedicated Pulse Width Modulation (PWM) block makes it possible for the CPU to
control power converters, resistive loads, motors, etc., without using lots of CPU
resources in tight timer loops.
Universal Asynchronous Receiver/Transmitter (UART) block makes it possible to
receive and transmit data over a serial line with very little load on the CPU. Dedicated
on-chip hardware also often includes capabilities to communicate with other devices
(chips) in digital formats such as I2C and Serial Peripheral Interface (SPI).
[edit] Higher integration

In contrast to general-purpose CPUs, micro-controllers may not implement an external
address or data bus as they integrate RAM and non-volatile memory on the same chip as
the CPU. Using fewer pins, the chip can be placed in a much smaller, cheaper package.
Integrating the memory and other peripherals on a single chip and testing them as a unit
increases the cost of that chip, but often results in decreased net cost of the embedded
system as a whole. Even if the cost of a CPU that has integrated peripherals is slightly
more than the cost of a CPU and external peripherals, having fewer chips typically allows
a smaller and cheaper circuit board, and reduces the labor required to assemble and test
the circuit board.
A micro-controller is a single integrated circuit, commonly with the following features:
• central processing unit - ranging from small and simple 4-bit processors to
complex 32- or 64-bit processors
• volatile memory (RAM) for data storage
• ROM, EPROM, EEPROM or Flash memory for program and operating parameter
storage
• discrete input and output bits, allowing control or detection of the logic state of an
individual package pin
• serial input/output such as serial ports (UARTs)
• other serial communications interfaces like I²C, Serial Peripheral Interface and
Controller Area Network for system interconnect
• peripherals such as timers, event counters, PWM generators, and watchdog
• clock generator - often an oscillator for a quartz timing crystal, resonator or RC
circuit
• many include analog-to-digital converters, some include digital-to-analog
converters
• in-circuit programming and debugging support
This integration drastically reduces the number of chips and the amount of wiring and
circuit board space that would be needed to produce equivalent systems using separate
chips. Furthermore, on low pin count devices in particular, each pin may interface to
several internal peripherals, with the pin function selected by software. This allows a part
to be used in a wider variety of applications than if pins had dedicated functions. Micro-
controllers have proved to be highly popular in embedded systems since their
introduction in the 1970s.
Some microcontrollers use a Harvard architecture: separate memory buses for
instructions and data, allowing accesses to take place concurrently. Where a Harvard
architecture is used, instruction words for the processor may be a different bit size than
the length of internal memory and registers; for example: 12-bit instructions used with 8-
bit data registers.
The decision of which peripheral to integrate is often difficult. The microcontroller

vendors often trade operating frequencies and system design flexibility against time-to-
market requirements from their customers and overall lower system cost. Manufacturers
have to balance the need to minimize the chip size against additional functionality.
Microcontroller architectures vary widely. Some designs include general-purpose

microprocessor cores, with one or more ROM, RAM, or I/O functions integrated onto the
package. Other designs are purpose built for control applications. A micro-controller
instruction set usually has many instructions intended for bit-wise operations to make
control programs more compact.[2] For example, a general purpose processor might
require several instructions to test a bit in a register and branch if the bit is set, where a
micro-controller could have a single instruction to provide that commonly-required
function.
Microcontrollers typically do not have a math coprocessor, so floating point arithmetic is

performed by software.
[edit] Volumes
About 55% of all CPUs sold in the world are 8-bit microcontrollers and microprocessors.
According to Semico, over four billion 8-bit microcontrollers were sold in 2006.[3]
A typical home in a developed country is likely to have only four general-purpose

microprocessors but around three dozen microcontrollers. A typical mid-range
automobile has as many as 30 or more microcontrollers. They can also be found in many
electrical devices such as washing machines, microwave ovens, and telephones.
A PIC 18F8720 microcontroller in an 80-pin TQFP package.
Manufacturers have often produced special versions of their microcontrollers in order to

help the hardware and software development of the target system. Originally these
included EPROM versions that have a "window" on the top of the device through which
program memory can be erased by ultraviolet light, ready for reprogramming after a
programming ("burn") and test cycle. Since 1998, EPROM versions are rare and have
been replaced by EEPROM and flash, which are easier to use (can be erased
electronically) and cheaper to manufacture.
Other versions may be available where the ROM is accessed as an external device rather
than as internal memory, however these are becoming increasingly rare due to the
widespread availability of cheap microcontroller programmers.
The use of field-programmable devices on a microcontroller may allow field update of

the firmware or permit late factory revisions to products that have been assembled but not
yet shipped. Programmable memory also reduces the lead time required for deployment
of a new product.
Where hundreds of thousands of identical devices are required, using parts programmed
at the time of manufacture can be an economical option. These "mask programmed" parts
have the program laid down in the same way as the logic of the chip, at the same time.
[edit] Programming environments

Microcontrollers were originally programmed only in assembly language, but various
high-level programming languages are now also in common use to target
microcontrollers. These languages are either designed specially for the purpose, or
versions of general purpose languages such as the C programming language. Compilers
for general purpose languages will typically have some restrictions as well as
enhancements to better support the unique characteristics of microcontrollers. Some
microcontrollers have environments to aid developing certain types of applications.
Microcontroller vendors often make tools freely available to make it easier to adopt their
hardware.
Many microcontrollers are so quirky that they effectively require their own non-standard
dialects of C, such as SDCC for the 8051, which prevent using standard tools (such as
code libraries or static analysis tools) even for code unrelated to hardware features.
Interpreters are often used to hide such low level quirks.
Interpreter firmware is also available for some microcontrollers. For example, BASIC on
the early microcontrollers Intel 8052[4]; BASIC and FORTH on the Zilog Z8[5] as well as
some modern devices. Typically these interpreters support interactive programming.
Simulators are available for some microcontrollers, such as in Microchip's MPLAB

environment and the Revolution Education PICAXE range. These allow a developer to
analyze what the behavior of the microcontroller and their program should be if they
were using the actual part. A simulator will show the internal processor state and also that
of the outputs, as well as allowing input signals to be generated. While on the one hand
most simulators will be limited from being unable to simulate much other hardware in a
system, they can exercise conditions that may otherwise be hard to reproduce at will in
the physical implementation, and can be the quickest way to debug and analyze
problems.
Recent microcontrollers are often integrated with on-chip debug circuitry that when
accessed by an in-circuit emulator via JTAG, allow debugging of the firmware with a
debugger.
[edit] Types of microcontrollers

See also: List of common microcontrollers
As of 2008 there are several dozen microcontroller architectures and vendors including:
• Parallax Propeller
• Freescale 68HC11 (8-bit)
• Intel 8051
• Silicon Laboratories Pipelined 8051 Microcontrollers
• ARM processors (from many vendors) using ARM7 or Cortex-M3 cores are
generally microcontrollers
• STMicroelectronics STM8 (8-bit), ST10 (16-bit) and STM32 (32-bit)
• Atmel AVR (8-bit), AVR32 (32-bit), and AT91SAM (32-bit)
• Freescale ColdFire (32-bit) and S08 (8-bit)
• Hitachi H8, Hitachi SuperH (32-bit)
• Hyperstone E1/E2 (32-bit, First full integration of RISC and DSP on one
processor core [1996] [1])
• Infineon Microcontroller: 8, 16, 32 Bit microcontrollers for automotive and
industrial applications[6]
• MIPS (32-bit PIC32)
• NEC V850 (32-bit)
• PIC (8-bit PIC16, PIC18, 16-bit dsPIC33 / PIC24)
• PowerPC ISE
• PSoC (Programmable System-on-Chip)
• Rabbit 2000 (8-bit)
• Texas Instruments Microcontrollers MSP430 (16-bit), C2000 (32-bit), and
Stellaris (32-bit)
• Toshiba TLCS-870 (8-bit/16-bit)
• Zilog eZ8 (16-bit), eZ80 (8-bit)
and many others, some of which are used in very narrow range of applications or are
more like applications processors than microcontrollers. The microcontroller market is
extremely fragmented, with numerous vendors, technologies, and markets. Note that
many vendors sell (or have sold) multiple architectures.
[edit] Interrupt latency

In contrast to general-purpose computers, microcontrollers used in embedded systems
often seek to optimize interrupt latency over instruction throughput. Issues include both
reducing the latency, and making it be more predictable (to support real-time control).
When an electronic device causes an interrupt, the intermediate results (registers) have to
be saved before the software responsible for handling the interrupt can run. They must
also be restored after that software is finished. If there are more registers, this saving and
restoring process takes more time, increasing the latency. Ways to reduce such
context/restore latency include having relatively few registers in their central processing
units (undesirable because it slows down most non-interrupt processing substantially), or
at least having the hardware not save them all (this fails if the software then needs to
compensate by saving the rest "manually"). Another technique involves spending silicon
gates on "shadow registers": one or more duplicate registers used only by the interrupt
software, perhaps supporting a dedicated stack.
Other factors affecting interrupt latency include:
• Cycles needed to complete current CPU activities. To minimize those costs,

microcontrollers tend to have short pipelines (often three instructions or less),
small write buffers, and ensure that longer instructions are continuable or
restartable. RISC design principles ensure that most instructions take the same
number of cycles, helping avoid the need for most such continuation/restart logic.
• The length of any critical section that needs to be interrupted. Entry to a critical
section restricts concurrent data structure access. When a data structure must be
accessed by an interrupt handler, the critical section must block that interrupt.
Accordingly, interrupt latency is increased by however long that interrupt is
blocked. When there are hard external constraints on system latency, developers
often need tools to measure interrupt latencies and track down which critical
sections cause slowdowns.
o One common technique just blocks all interrupts for the duration of the
critical section. This is easy to implement, but sometimes critical sections
get uncomfortably long.
o A more complex technique just blocks the interrupts that may trigger
access to that data structure. This often based on interrupt priorities, which
tend to not correspond well to the relevant system data structures.
Accordingly, this technique is used mostly in very constrained
environments.
o Processors may have hardware support for some critical sections.
Examples include supporting atomic access to bits or bytes within a word,
or other atomic access primitives like the LDREX/STREX exclusive
access primitives introduced in the ARMv6 architecture.
• Interrupt nesting. Some microcontrollers allow higher priority interrupts to
interrupt lower priority ones. This allows software to manage latency by giving
time-critical interrupts higher priority (and thus lower and more predictable
latency) than less-critical ones.
• Trigger rate. When interrupts occur back-to-back, microcontrollers may avoid an
extra context save/restore cycle by a form of tail call optimization.
Lower end microcontrollers tend to support fewer interrupt latency controls than higher
end ones.
[edit] History
This section requires expansion.
The first single-chip microprocessor was the 4-bit Intel 4004 released in 1971. With the
Intel 8008 and more capable microprocessors available over the next several years.
These however all required external chip(s) to implement a working system, raising total
system cost, and making it impossible to economically computerize appliances.
The first computer system on a chip optimized for control applications was the Intel
8048, released in 1975,[citation needed] with both RAM and ROM on the same chip. This chip
would find its way into over one billion PC keyboards, and other numerous applications.
At this time Intels President, Luke J. Valenter, stated that the (Microcontroller) was one
of the most successful in the companies history, and expanded the division's budget over
25%.
Most microcontrollers at this time had two variants. One had an erasable EPROM
program memory, which was significantly more expensive than the PROM variant which
was only programmable once.
In 1993, the introduction of EEPROM memory allowed microcontrollers (beginning with

the Microchip PIC16x84) [2][citation needed]) to be electrically erased quickly without an
expensive package as required for EPROM, allowing both rapid prototyping, and In
System Programming.
The same year, Atmel introduced the first microcontroller using Flash memory.[7]
Other companies rapidly followed suit, with both memory types.
Cost has plummeted over time, with the cheapest 8-bit microcontrollers being available
for under $0.25 in quantity (thousands) in 2009,[citation needed] and some 32-bit
microcontrollers around $1 for similar quantities.
Nowadays microcontrollers are low cost and readily available for hobbyists, with large
online communities around certain processors.
In the future, MRAM could potentially be used in microcontrollers as it has infinite
endurance and its incremental semiconductor wafer process cost is relatively low.
[edit] Microcontroller embedded memory technology

Since the emergence of microcontrollers, many different memory technologies have been
used. Almost all microcontrollers have at least two different kinds of memory, a non-
volatile memory for storing firmware and a read-write memory for temporary data.
[edit] Data
From the earliest microcontrollers to today, six-transistor SRAM is almost always used as
the read/write working memory, with a few more transistors per bit used in the register
file. MRAM could potentially replace it as it is 4-10 times denser which would make it
more cost effective.
In addition to the SRAM, some microcontrollers also have internal EEPROM for data
storage; and even ones that do not have any (or not enough) are often connected to
external serial EEPROM chip (such as the BASIC Stamp) or external serial flash memory
chip.
A few recent microcontrollers beginning in 2003 have "self-programmable" flash

memory[7].
[edit] Firmware
The earliest microcontrollers used hard-wired or mask ROM to store firmware. Later
microcontrollers (such as the early versions of the Freescale 68HC11 and early PIC
microcontrollers) had quartz windows that allowed ultraviolet light in to erase the
EPROM.
The Microchip PIC16C84, introduced in 1993,[8] was the first microcontroller to use
EEPROM to store firmware
Also in 1993, Atmel introduced the first microcontroller using NOR Flash memory to
store firmware.[7]
PSoC microcontrollers, introduced in 2002, store firmware in SONOS flash memory.
MRAM could potentially be used to store firmware.
[edit] See also

• In-circuit emulator
• List of common microcontrollers
• Microarchitecture
• Microbotics
• Programmable logic controller
• PSoC
• Single-board microcontroller
• PIC
[edit] Notes
This article includes a list of references, but its sources remain unclear because it
has insufficient inline citations.
Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations where appropriate. (July
2008)
1. ^ Heath, Steve (2003). Embedded systems design. EDN series for design
engineers (2 ed.). Newnes. pp. 11–12. ISBN 9780750655460.
http://books.google.com/books?id=BjNZXwH7HlkC&pg=PA11.
2. ^ Easy Way to build a microcontroller project
3. ^ http://www.semico.com
4. ^ "8052-Basic Microcontrollers" by Jan Axelson 1994
5. ^ Robert Edwards (1987). "Optimizing the Zilog Z8 Forth Microcontroller
for Rapid Prototyping". p. 3.
http://www.ornl.gov/info/reports/1987/3445602791343.pdf.
6. ^ www.infineon.com/mcu
7. ^ a b c "Atmel’s Self-Programming Flash Microcontrollers" by Odd Jostein
Svendsli 2003
8. ^ Microchip unveils PIC16C84, a reprogrammable EEPROM-based 8-bit
microcontroller" 1993
[edit] External links

Wikibooks has a book on the topic of
Embedded Systems
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Microcontrollers
• Microcontroller at the Open Directory Project

• Microcontroller.com - Embedded Systems industry website with tutorials and
dedicated resources
• Microcontroller
• Embedded Systems Design magazine
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===============
ntegrated circuit
Integrated circuit of Atmel Diopsis 740 System on Chip showing memory blocks, logic
and input/output pads around the periphery
Microchips (EPROM memory) with a transparent window, showing the integrated circuit
inside. Note the fine silver-colored wires that connect the integrated circuit to the pins of
the package. The window allows the memory contents of the chip to be erased, by
exposure to strong ultraviolet light in an eraser device.
In electronics, an integrated circuit (also known as IC, chip, or microchip) is a

miniaturized electronic circuit (consisting mainly of semiconductor devices, as well as
passive components) that has been manufactured in the surface of a thin substrate of
semiconductor material. Integrated circuits are used in almost all electronic equipment in
use today and have revolutionized the world of electronics. Computers, cellular phones,
and other digital appliances are now inextricable parts of the structure of modern
societies, made possible by the low cost of production of integrated circuits.
A hybrid integrated circuit is a miniaturized electronic circuit constructed of individual

semiconductor devices, as well as passive components, bonded to a substrate or circuit
board. A monolithic integrated circuit is made of devices manufactured by diffusion of
trace elements into a single piece of semiconductor substrate, a chip.
Contents
[hide]
• 1 Introduction
• 2 Invention
• 3 Generations
o 3.1 SSI, MSI and LSI
o 3.2 VLSI
o 3.3 ULSI, WSI, SOC and 3D-IC
• 4 Advances in integrated circuits
• 5 Classification
• 6 Manufacturing
o 6.1 Fabrication
o 6.2 Packaging
o 6.3 Chip labeling and manufacture date
• 7 Legal protection of semiconductor chip layouts
• 8 Other developments
• 9 Silicon labelling and graffiti
• 10 Notable ICs
• 11 See also
• 12 References
• 13 Further reading
[edit] Introduction
Synthetic detail of an integrated circuit through four layers of planarized copper

interconnect, down to the polysilicon (pink), wells (greyish), and substrate (green).
Integrated circuits were made possible by experimental discoveries which showed that
semiconductor devices could perform the functions of vacuum tubes and by mid-20th-
century technology advancements in semiconductor device fabrication. The integration of
large numbers of tiny transistors into a small chip was an enormous improvement over
the manual assembly of circuits using electronic components. The integrated circuit's
mass production capability, reliability, and building-block approach to circuit design
ensured the rapid adoption of standardized ICs in place of designs using discrete
transistors.
There are two main advantages of ICs over discrete circuits: cost and performance. Cost
is low because the chips, with all their components, are printed as a unit by
photolithography rather than being constructed one transistor at a time. Furthermore,
much less material is used to construct a packaged IC die than a discrete circuit.
Performance is high since the components switch quickly and consume little power
(compared to their discrete counterparts) because the components are small and
positioned close together. As of 2006, chip areas range from a few square millimeters to
around 350 mm2, with up to 1 million transistors per mm2.[citation needed]
[edit] Invention
Early developments of the integrated circuit go back to 1949, when the German engineer
Werner Jacobi (Siemens AG) filed a patent for an integrated-circuit-like semiconductor
amplifying device [1] showing five transistors on a common substrate arranged in a 2-
stage amplifier arrangement. Jacobi discloses small and cheap hearing aids as typical
industrial applications of his patent. A commercial use of his patent has not been
reported.
The idea of the integrated circuit was conceived by a radar scientist working for the
Royal Radar Establishment of the British Ministry of Defence, Geoffrey W.A. Dummer
(1909–2002), who published it at the Symposium on Progress in Quality Electronic
Components in Washington, D.C. on May 7, 1952.[2] He gave many symposia publicly to
propagate his ideas. Dummer unsuccessfully attempted to build such a circuit in 1956.
A precursor idea to the IC was to create small ceramic squares (wafers), each one
containing a single miniaturized component. Components could then be integrated and
wired into a bidimensional or tridimensional compact grid. This idea, which looked very
promising in 1957, was proposed to the US Army by Jack Kilby, and led to the short-
lived Micromodule Program (similar to 1951's Project Tinkertoy).[3] However, as the
project was gaining momentum, Kilby came up with a new, revolutionary design: the IC.
Robert Noyce credited Kurt Lehovec of Sprague Electric for the principle of p-n junction
isolation caused by the action of a biased p-n junction (the diode) as a key concept behind
the IC.[4]
Jack Kilby's original integrated circuit
Jack Kilby recorded his initial ideas concerning the integrated circuit in July 1958 and
successfully demonstrated the first working integrated circuit on September 12, 1958.[5]
In his patent application of February 6, 1959, Kilby described his new device as “a body
of semiconductor material ... wherein all the components of the electronic circuit are
completely integrated.” [6] Kilby won the 2000 Nobel Prize in Physics for his part of the
invention of the integrated circuit.[7]
Robert Noyce also came up with his own idea of an integrated circuit half a year later
than Kilby. Noyce's chip solved many practical problems that Kilby's had not. Noyce's
chip, made at Fairchild Semiconductor, was made of silicon, whereas Kilby's chip was
made of germanium.
[edit] Generations
In the early days of integrated circuits, only a few transistors could be placed on a chip,
as the scale used was large because of the contemporary technology. As the degree of
integration was small, the design was done easily. Later on, millions, and today billions[8],
of transistors could be placed on one chip, and to make a good design became a task to be
planned thoroughly. This gave rise to new design methods.
[edit] SSI, MSI and LSI
The first integrated circuits contained only a few transistors. Called "Small-Scale
Integration" (SSI), digital circuits containing transistors numbering in the tens provided
a few logic gates for example, while early linear ICs such as the Plessey SL201 or the
Philips TAA320 had as few as two transistors. The term Large Scale Integration was first
used by IBM scientist Rolf Landauer when describing the theoretical concept, from there
came the terms for SSI, MSI, VLSI, and ULSI.
SSI circuits were crucial to early aerospace projects, and vice-versa. Both the Minuteman
missile and Apollo program needed lightweight digital computers for their inertial
guidance systems; the Apollo guidance computer led and motivated the integrated-circuit
technology[dubious – discuss][citation needed], while the Minuteman missile forced it into mass-
production. The Minuteman missile program and various other Navy programs accounted
for the total $4 million integrated circuit market in 1962, and by 1968, U.S. Government
space and defense spending still accounted for 37% of the $312 million total production.
The demand by the U.S. Government supported the nascent integrated circuit market
until costs fell enough to allow firms to penetrate the industrial and eventually the
consumer markets. The average price per integrated circuit dropped from $50.00 in 1962
to $2.33 in 1968.[9] Integrated Circuits began to appear in consumer products by the turn
of the decade, a typical application being FM inter-carrier sound processing in television
receivers.
The next step in the development of integrated circuits, taken in the late 1960s,
introduced devices which contained hundreds of transistors on each chip, called
"Medium-Scale Integration" (MSI).
They were attractive economically because while they cost little more to produce than
SSI devices, they allowed more complex systems to be produced using smaller circuit
boards, less assembly work (because of fewer separate components), and a number of
other advantages.
Further development, driven by the same economic factors, led to "Large-Scale

Integration" (LSI) in the mid 1970s, with tens of thousands of transistors per chip.
Integrated circuits such as 1K-bit RAMs, calculator chips, and the first microprocessors,
that began to be manufactured in moderate quantities in the early 1970s, had under 4000
transistors. True LSI circuits, approaching 10000 transistors, began to be produced
around 1974, for computer main memories and second-generation microprocessors.
[edit] VLSI
Main article: Very-large-scale integration
Upper interconnect layers on an Intel 80486DX2 microprocessor die.
The final step in the development process, starting in the 1980s and continuing through
the present, was "very large-scale integration" (VLSI). The development started with
hundreds of thousands of transistors in the early 1980s, and continues beyond several
billion transistors as of 2009.
Multiple developments were required to achieve this increased density. Manufacturers

moved to smaller rules and cleaner fabs, so that they could make chips with more
transistors and maintain adequate yield. The path of process improvements was
summarized by the International Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors (ITRS).
Design tools improved enough to make it practical to finish these designs in a reasonable
time. The more energy efficient CMOS replaced NMOS and PMOS, avoiding a
prohibitive increase in power consumption. Better texts such as the landmark textbook by
Mead and Conway helped schools educate more designers, among other factors.
In 1986 the first one megabit RAM chips were introduced, which contained more than
one million transistors. Microprocessor chips passed the million transistor mark in 1989
and the billion transistor mark in 2005.[10] The trend continues largely unabated, with
chips introduced in 2007 containing tens of billions of memory transistors.[11]
[edit] ULSI, WSI, SOC and 3D-IC
To reflect further growth of the complexity, the term ULSI that stands for "ultra-large-
scale integration" was proposed for chips of complexity of more than 1 million
transistors.
Wafer-scale integration (WSI) is a system of building very-large integrated circuits that

uses an entire silicon wafer to produce a single "super-chip". Through a combination of
large size and reduced packaging, WSI could lead to dramatically reduced costs for some
systems, notably massively parallel supercomputers. The name is taken from the term
Very-Large-Scale Integration, the current state of the art when WSI was being developed.
A system-on-a-chip (SoC or SOC) is an integrated circuit in which all the components

needed for a computer or other system are included on a single chip. The design of such a
device can be complex and costly, and building disparate components on a single piece of
silicon may compromise the efficiency of some elements. However, these drawbacks are
offset by lower manufacturing and assembly costs and by a greatly reduced power
budget: because signals among the components are kept on-die, much less power is
required (see Packaging).
A three-dimensional integrated circuit (3D-IC) has two or more layers of active electronic
components that are integrated both vertically and horizontally into a single circuit.
Communication between layers uses on-die signaling, so power consumption is much
lower than in equivalent separate circuits. Judicious use of short vertical wires can
substantially reduce overall wire length for faster operation.
[edit] Advances in integrated circuits
The die from an Intel 8742, an 8-bit microcontroller that includes a CPU running at 12
MHz, 128 bytes of RAM, 2048 bytes of EPROM, and I/O in the same chip.
Among the most advanced integrated circuits are the microprocessors or "cores", which
control everything from computers and cellular phones to digital microwave ovens.
Digital memory chips and ASICs are examples of other families of integrated circuits that
are important to the modern information society. While the cost of designing and
developing a complex integrated circuit is quite high, when spread across typically
millions of production units the individual IC cost is minimized. The performance of ICs
is high because the small size allows short traces which in turn allows low power logic
(such as CMOS) to be used at fast switching speeds.
ICs have consistently migrated to smaller feature sizes over the years, allowing more
circuitry to be packed on each chip. This increased capacity per unit area can be used to
decrease cost and/or increase functionality—see Moore's law which, in its modern
interpretation, states that the number of transistors in an integrated circuit doubles every
two years. In general, as the feature size shrinks, almost everything improves—the cost
per unit and the switching power consumption go down, and the speed goes up. However,
ICs with nanometer-scale devices are not without their problems, principal among which
is leakage current (see subthreshold leakage for a discussion of this), although these
problems are not insurmountable and will likely be solved or at least ameliorated by the
introduction of high-k dielectrics. Since these speed and power consumption gains are
apparent to the end user, there is fierce competition among the manufacturers to use finer
geometries. This process, and the expected progress over the next few years, is well
described by the International Technology Roadmap for Semiconductors (ITRS).
In current research projects, integrated circuits are also developed for sensoric
applications in medical implants or other bioelectronic devices. Particular sealing
strategies have to be taken in such biogenic environments to avoid corrosion or
biodegradation of the exposed semiconductor materials. As one of the few materials well
established in CMOS technology, titanium nitride TiN turned out as exceptionally stable
and well suited for electrode applications in medical implants.[12][13]
[edit] Classification
A CMOS 4000 IC in a DIP
Integrated circuits can be classified into analog, digital and mixed signal (both analog and
digital on the same chip).
Digital integrated circuits can contain anything from one to millions of logic gates, flip-
flops, multiplexers, and other circuits in a few square millimeters. The small size of these
circuits allows high speed, low power dissipation, and reduced manufacturing cost
compared with board-level integration. These digital ICs, typically microprocessors,
DSPs, and micro controllers work using binary mathematics to process "one" and "zero"
signals.
Analog ICs, such as sensors, power management circuits, and operational amplifiers,
work by processing continuous signals. They perform functions like amplification, active
filtering, demodulation, mixing, etc. Analog ICs ease the burden on circuit designers by
having expertly designed analog circuits available instead of designing a difficult analog
circuit from scratch.
ICs can also combine analog and digital circuits on a single chip to create functions such
as A/D converters and D/A converters. Such circuits offer smaller size and lower cost,
but must carefully account for signal interference.
[edit] Manufacturing
[edit] Fabrication
Main article: Semiconductor fabrication
Rendering of a small standard cell with three metal layers (dielectric has been removed).
The sand-colored structures are metal interconnect, with the vertical pillars being
contacts, typically plugs of tungsten. The reddish structures are polysilicon gates, and the
solid at the bottom is the crystalline silicon bulk.
Schematic structure of a CMOS chip, as built in the early 2000s. The graphic shows
LDD-MISFET's on an SOI substrate with five metallization layers and solder bump for
flip-chip bonding. It also shows the section for FEOL (front-end of line), BEOL (back-
end of line) and first parts of back-end process.
The semiconductors of the periodic table of the chemical elements were identified as the
most likely materials for a solid state vacuum tube. Starting with copper oxide,
proceeding to germanium, then silicon, the materials were systematically studied in the
1940s and 1950s. Today, silicon monocrystals are the main substrate used for integrated
circuits (ICs) although some III-V compounds of the periodic table such as gallium
arsenide are used for specialized applications like LEDs, lasers, solar cells and the
highest-speed integrated circuits. It took decades to perfect methods of creating crystals
without defects in the crystalline structure of the semiconducting material.
Semiconductor ICs are fabricated in a layer process which includes these key process
steps:
• Imaging
• Deposition
• Etching
The main process steps are supplemented by doping and cleaning.
Mono-crystal silicon wafers (or for special applications, silicon on sapphire or gallium
arsenide wafers) are used as the substrate. Photolithography is used to mark different
areas of the substrate to be doped or to have polysilicon, insulators or metal (typically
aluminium) tracks deposited on them.
• Integrated circuits are composed of many overlapping layers, each defined by
photolithography, and normally shown in different colors. Some layers mark
where various dopants are diffused into the substrate (called diffusion layers),
some define where additional ions are implanted (implant layers), some define the
conductors (polysilicon or metal layers), and some define the connections
between the conducting layers (via or contact layers). All components are
constructed from a specific combination of these layers.
• In a self-aligned CMOS process, a transistor is formed wherever the gate layer

(polysilicon or metal) crosses a diffusion layer.
• Capacitive structures, in form very much like the parallel conducting plates of a
traditional electrical capacitor, are formed according to the area of the "plates",
with insulating material between the plates. Capacitors of a wide range of sizes
are common on ICs.
• Meandering stripes of varying lengths are sometimes used to form on-chip

resistors, though most logic circuits do not need any resistors. The ratio of the
length of the resistive structure to its width, combined with its sheet resistivity,
determines the resistance.
• More rarely, inductive structures can be built as tiny on-chip coils, or simulated
by gyrators.
Since a CMOS device only draws current on the transition between logic states, CMOS
devices consume much less current than bipolar devices.
A random access memory is the most regular type of integrated circuit; the highest
density devices are thus memories; but even a microprocessor will have memory on the
chip. (See the regular array structure at the bottom of the first image.) Although the
structures are intricate – with widths which have been shrinking for decades – the layers
remain much thinner than the device widths. The layers of material are fabricated much
like a photographic process, although light waves in the visible spectrum cannot be used
to "expose" a layer of material, as they would be too large for the features. Thus photons
of higher frequencies (typically ultraviolet) are used to create the patterns for each layer.
Because each feature is so small, electron microscopes are essential tools for a process
engineer who might be debugging a fabrication process.
Each device is tested before packaging using automated test equipment (ATE), in a
process known as wafer testing, or wafer probing. The wafer is then cut into rectangular
blocks, each of which is called a die. Each good die (plural dice, dies, or die) is then
connected into a package using aluminium (or gold) bond wires which are welded and/or
Thermosonic Bonded to pads, usually found around the edge of the die. After packaging,
the devices go through final testing on the same or similar ATE used during wafer
probing. Test cost can account for over 25% of the cost of fabrication on lower cost
products, but can be negligible on low yielding, larger, and/or higher cost devices.
As of 2005, a fabrication facility (commonly known as a semiconductor lab) costs over
$1 billion to construct,[14] because much of the operation is automated. The most
advanced processes employ the following techniques:
• The wafers are up to 300 mm in diameter (wider than a common dinner plate).
• Use of 65 nanometer or smaller chip manufacturing process. Intel, IBM, NEC,
and AMD are using 45 nanometers for their CPU chips. IBM and AMD are in
development of a 45 nm process using immersion lithography.
• Copper interconnects where copper wiring replaces aluminium for interconnects.
• Low-K dielectric insulators.
• Silicon on insulator (SOI)
• Strained silicon in a process used by IBM known as strained silicon directly on
insulator (SSDOI)
[edit] Packaging
Main article: Integrated circuit packaging
Early USSR-made integrated circuit
The earliest integrated circuits were packaged in ceramic flat packs, which continued to
be used by the military for their reliability and small size for many years. Commercial
circuit packaging quickly moved to the dual in-line package (DIP), first in ceramic and
later in plastic. In the 1980s pin counts of VLSI circuits exceeded the practical limit for
DIP packaging, leading to pin grid array (PGA) and leadless chip carrier (LCC)
packages. Surface mount packaging appeared in the early 1980s and became popular in
the late 1980s, using finer lead pitch with leads formed as either gull-wing or J-lead, as
exemplified by small-outline integrated circuit -- a carrier which occupies an area about
30 – 50% less than an equivalent DIP, with a typical thickness that is 70% less. This
package has "gull wing" leads protruding from the two long sides and a lead spacing of
0.050 inches.
In the late 1990s, plastic quad flat pack (PQFP) and thin small-outline package (TSOP)
packages became the most common for high pin count devices, though PGA packages are
still often used for high-end microprocessors. Intel and AMD are currently transitioning
from PGA packages on high-end microprocessors to land grid array (LGA) packages.
Ball grid array (BGA) packages have existed since the 1970s. Flip-chip Ball Grid Array
packages, which allow for much higher pin count than other package types, were
developed in the 1990s. In an FCBGA package the die is mounted upside-down (flipped)
and connects to the package balls via a package substrate that is similar to a printed-
circuit board rather than by wires. FCBGA packages allow an array of input-output
signals (called Area-I/O) to be distributed over the entire die rather than being confined to
the die periphery.
Traces out of the die, through the package, and into the printed circuit board have very
different electrical properties, compared to on-chip signals. They require special design
techniques and need much more electric power than signals confined to the chip itself.
When multiple dies are put in one package, it is called SiP, for System In Package. When
multiple dies are combined on a small substrate, often ceramic, it's called an MCM, or
Multi-Chip Module. The boundary between a big MCM and a small printed circuit board
is sometimes fuzzy.
[edit] Chip labeling and manufacture date
Most integrated circuits large enough to include identifying information include four
common sections: the manufacturer's name or logo, the part number, a part production
batch number and/or serial number, and a four-digit code that identifies when the chip
was manufactured. Extremely small surface mount technology parts often bear only a
number used in a manufacturer's lookup table to find the chip characteristics.
The manufacturing date is commonly represented as a two-digit year followed by a two-

digit week code, such that a part bearing the code 8341 was manufactured in week 41 of
1983, or approximately in October 1983.
[edit] Legal protection of semiconductor chip layouts

Main article: Integrated circuit layout design protection
Like most of the other forms of intellectual property, IC layout designs are creations of
the human mind. They are usually the result of an enormous investment, both in terms of
the time of highly qualified experts, and financially. There is a continuing need for the
creation of new layout-designs which reduce the dimensions of existing integrated
circuits and simultaneously increase their functions. The smaller an integrated circuit, the
less the material needed for its manufacture, and the smaller the space needed to
accommodate it. Integrated circuits are utilized in a large range of products, including
articles of everyday use, such as watches, television sets, washing machines, automobiles,
etc., as well as sophisticated data processing equipment.
The possibility of copying by photographing each layer of an integrated circuit and

preparing photomasks for its production on the basis of the photographs obtained is the
main reason for the introduction of legislation for the protection of layout-designs.
A diplomatic conference was held at Washington, D.C., in 1989, which adopted a Treaty
on Intellectual Property in Respect of Integrated Circuits (IPIC Treaty). The Treaty on
Intellectual Property in respect of Integrated Circuits, also called Washington Treaty or
IPIC Treaty (signed at Washington on May 26, 1989) is currently not in force, but was
partially integrated into the TRIPs agreement.
National laws protecting IC layout designs have been adopted in a number of countries.
[edit] Other developments

In the 1980s, programmable integrated circuits were developed. These devices contain
circuits whose logical function and connectivity can be programmed by the user, rather
than being fixed by the integrated circuit manufacturer. This allows a single chip to be
programmed to implement different LSI-type functions such as logic gates, adders and
registers. Current devices named FPGAs (Field Programmable Gate Arrays) can now
implement tens of thousands of LSI circuits in parallel and operate up to 1.5 GHz
(Achronix holding the speed record).
The techniques perfected by the integrated circuits industry over the last three decades
have been used to create microscopic machines, known as MEMS. These devices are
used in a variety of commercial and military applications. Example commercial
applications include DLP projectors, inkjet printers, and accelerometers used to deploy
automobile airbags.
In the past, radios could not be fabricated in the same low-cost processes as
microprocessors. But since 1998, a large number of radio chips have been developed
using CMOS processes. Examples include Intel's DECT cordless phone, or Atheros's
802.11 card.
Future developments seem to follow the multi-core multi-microprocessor paradigm,

already used by the Intel and AMD dual-core processors. Intel recently unveiled a
prototype, "not for commercial sale" chip that bears 80 microprocessors. Each core is
capable of handling its own task independently of the others. This is in response to the
heat-versus-speed limit that is about to be reached using existing transistor technology.
This design provides a new challenge to chip programming. Parallel programming
languages such as the open-source X10 programming language are designed to assist
with this task.[15]
[edit] Silicon labelling and graffiti

To allow identification during production most silicon chips will have a serial number in
one corner. It is also common to add the manufacturer's logo. Ever since ICs were
created, some chip designers have used the silicon surface area for surreptitious, non-
functional images or words. These are sometimes referred to as Chip Art, Silicon Art,
Silicon Graffiti or Silicon Doodling.
[edit] Notable ICs
• The 555 common multivibrator sub-circuit (common in electronic timing circuits)
• The 741 operational amplifier
• 7400 series TTL logic building blocks
• 4000 series, the CMOS counterpart to the 7400 series (see also: 74HC00 series)
• Intel 4004, the world's first microprocessor, which led to the famous 8080 CPU
and then the IBM PC's 8088, 80286, 486 etc.
• The MOS Technology 6502 and Zilog Z80 microprocessors, used in many home
computers of the early 1980s
• The Motorola 6800 series of computer-related chips, leading to the 68000 and
88000 series (used in some Apple computers and in the 1980s Commodore Amiga
series).
[edit] See also
Light-emitting diode
"LED" redirects here. For other uses, see LED (disambiguation).
Light-emitting diode
Red, green and blue LEDs of the 5mm diffused type

Type Passive, optoelectronic
Working principle Electroluminescence
Invented Nick Holonyak Jr. (1962)
Electronic symbol
Pin configuration Anode and Cathode

Parts of an LED
LED spotlight using 38 individual diodes for mains voltage power
A light-emitting diode (LED) (pronounced /ˌɛl iː ˈdiː/, L-E-D[1]) is a semiconductor light

source. LEDs are used as indicator lamps in many devices, and are increasingly used for
lighting. Introduced as a practical electronic component in 1962,[2] early LEDs emitted
low-intensity red light, but modern versions are available across the visible, ultraviolet
and infrared wavelengths, with very high brightness.
When a light-emitting diode is forward biased (switched on), electrons are able to
recombine with electron holes within the device, releasing energy in the form of photons.
This effect is called electroluminescence and the color of the light (corresponding to the
energy of the photon) is determined by the energy gap of the semiconductor. An LED is
often small in area (less than 1 mm2), and integrated optical components may be used to
shape its radiation pattern.[3] LEDs present many advantages over incandescent light
sources including lower energy consumption, longer lifetime, improved robustness,
smaller size, faster switching, and greater durability and reliability. LEDs powerful
enough for room lighting are relatively expensive and require more precise current and
heat management than compact fluorescent lamp sources of comparable output.
Light-emitting diodes are used in applications as diverse as replacements for aviation

lighting, automotive lighting (particularly brake lamps, turn signals and indicators) as
well as in traffic signals. The compact size, the possibility of narrow bandwidth,
switching speed, and extreme reliability of LEDs has allowed new text and video displays
and sensors to be developed, while their high switching rates are also useful in advanced
communications technology. Infrared LEDs are also used in the remote control units of
many commercial products including televisions, DVD players, and other domestic
appliances.
Contents
[hide]
• 1 History
o 1.1 Discoveries and early devices
o 1.2 Practical use
o 1.3 Continuing development
• 2 Technology
o 2.1 Physics
o 2.2 Refractive Index
 2.2.1 Transition coatings
o 2.3 Efficiency and operational parameters
o 2.4 Lifetime and failure
• 3 Colors and materials
o 3.1 Ultraviolet and blue LEDs
o 3.2 White light
 3.2.1 RGB systems
 3.2.2 Phosphor-based LEDs
 3.2.3 Other white LEDs
o 3.3 Organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs)
o 3.4 Quantum dot LEDs (experimental)
• 4 Types
o 4.1 Miniature
o 4.2 Mid-range
o 4.3 High power
o 4.4 Application-specific variations
• 5 Considerations for use
o 5.1 Power sources
o 5.2 Electrical polarity
o 5.3 Safety and health
o 5.4 Advantages
o 5.5 Disadvantages
• 6 Applications
o 6.1 Indicators and signs
o 6.2 Lighting
o 6.3 Smart lighting
o 6.4 Sustainable lighting
 6.4.1 Energy consumption
 6.4.2 Economically sustainable
o 6.5 Non-visual applications
o 6.6 Light sources for machine vision systems
• 7 See also
• 8 References
o 8.1 Notes
o 8.2 Further reading
[edit] History
[edit] Discoveries and early devices
Green electroluminescence from a point contact on a crystal of SiC recreates H. J.

Round's original experiment from 1907.
Electroluminescence as a phenomenon was discovered in 1907 by the British

experimenter H. J. Round of Marconi Labs, using a crystal of silicon carbide and a cat's-
whisker detector.[4][5] Russian Oleg Vladimirovich Losev reported on the creation of a
first LED in 1927.[6][7] His research was distributed in Russian, German and British
scientific journals, but no practical use was made of the discovery for several decades.[8][9]
Rubin Braunstein of the Radio Corporation of America reported on infrared emission
from gallium arsenide (GaAs) and other semiconductor alloys in 1955.[10] Braunstein
observed infrared emission generated by simple diode structures using gallium
antimonide (GaSb), GaAs, indium phosphide (InP), and silicon-germanium (SiGe) alloys
at room temperature and at 77 kelvin.
In 1961, American experimenters Robert Biard and Gary Pittman working at Texas
Instruments,[11] found that GaAs emitted infrared radiation when electric current was
applied and received the patent for the infrared LED.
The first practical visible-spectrum (red) LED was developed in 1962 by Nick Holonyak
Jr., while working at General Electric Company.[2] Holonyak is seen as the "father of the
light-emitting diode".[12] M. George Craford,[13] a former graduate student of Holonyak,
invented the first yellow LED and improved the brightness of red and red-orange LEDs
by a factor of ten in 1972.[14] In 1976, T.P. Pearsall created the first high-brightness, high
efficiency LEDs for optical fiber telecommunications by inventing new semiconductor
materials specifically adapted to optical fiber transmission wavelengths.[15]
Until 1968, visible and infrared LEDs were extremely costly, on the order of US $200 per
unit, and so had little practical use.[16] The Monsanto Company was the first organization
to mass-produce visible LEDs, using gallium arsenide phosphide in 1968 to produce red
LEDs suitable for indicators.[16] Hewlett Packard (HP) introduced LEDs in 1968, initially
using GaAsP supplied by Monsanto. The technology proved to have major uses for
alphanumeric displays and was integrated into HP's early handheld calculators. In the
1970s commercially successful LED devices at under five cents each were produced by
Fairchild Optoelectronics. These devices employed compound semiconductor chips
fabricated with the planar process invented by Dr. Jean Hoerni at Fairchild
Semiconductor.[17] The combination of planar processing for chip fabrication and
innovative packaging methods enabled the team at Fairchild led by optoelectronics
pioneer Thomas Brandt to achieve the needed cost reductions. These methods continue to
be used by LED producers.[18]
[edit] Practical use
The first commercial LEDs were commonly used as replacements for incandescent and
neon indicator lamps, and in seven-segment displays,[19] first in expensive equipment such
as laboratory and electronics test equipment, then later in such appliances as TVs, radios,
telephones, calculators, and even watches (see list of signal uses). These red LEDs were
bright enough only for use as indicators, as the light output was not enough to illuminate
an area. Readouts in calculators were so small that plastic lenses were built over each
digit to make them legible. Later, other colors grew widely available and also appeared in
appliances and equipment. As LED materials technology grew more advanced, light
output rose, while maintaining efficiency and reliability at acceptable levels. The
invention and development of the high power white light LED led to use for
illumination[20][21] (see list of illumination applications). Most LEDs were made in the
very common 5 mm T1¾ and 3 mm T1 packages, but with rising power output, it has
grown increasingly necessary to shed excess heat to maintain reliability,[22] so more
complex packages have been adapted for efficient heat dissipation. Packages for state-of-
the-art high power LEDs bear little resemblance to early LEDs.
Illustration of Haitz's Law. Light output per LED as a function of production year, note
the logarithmic scale on the vertical axis.
[edit] Continuing development
The first high-brightness blue LED was demonstrated by Shuji Nakamura of Nichia
Corporation and was based on InGaN borrowing on critical developments in GaN
nucleation on sapphire substrates and the demonstration of p-type doping of GaN which
were developed by Isamu Akasaki and H. Amano in Nagoya. In 1995, Alberto Barbieri at
the Cardiff University Laboratory (GB) investigated the efficiency and reliability of high-
brightness LEDs and demonstrated a very impressive result by using a transparent contact
made of indium tin oxide (ITO) on (AlGaInP/GaAs) LED. The existence of blue LEDs
and high efficiency LEDs quickly led to the development of the first white LED, which
employed a Y3Al5O12:Ce, or "YAG", phosphor coating to mix yellow (down-converted)
light with blue to produce light that appears white. Nakamura was awarded the 2006
Millennium Technology Prize for his invention.[23]
The development of LED technology has caused their efficiency and light output to rise
exponentially, with a doubling occurring about every 36 months since the 1960s, in a way
similar to Moore's law. The advances are generally attributed to the parallel development
of other semiconductor technologies and advances in optics and material science. This
trend is normally called Haitz's Law after Dr. Roland Haitz. [24]
In February 2008, 300 lumens of visible light per watt luminous efficacy (not per
electrical watt) and warm-light emission was achieved by using nanocrystals.[25]
In 2009, a process for growing gallium nitride (GaN) LEDs on silicon has been reported.
Epitaxy costs could be reduced by up to 90% using six-inch silicon wafers instead of
two-inch sapphire wafers.[26]
[edit] Technology
The inner workings of an LED
I-V diagram for a diode. An LED will begin to emit light when the on-voltage is
exceeded. Typical on voltages are 2–3 volts
[edit] Physics
The LED consists of a chip of semiconducting material doped with impurities to create a
p-n junction. As in other diodes, current flows easily from the p-side, or anode, to the n-
side, or cathode, but not in the reverse direction. Charge-carriers—electrons and holes—
flow into the junction from electrodes with different voltages. When an electron meets a
hole, it falls into a lower energy level, and releases energy in the form of a photon.
The wavelength of the light emitted, and thus its color depends on the band gap energy of
the materials forming the p-n junction. In silicon or germanium diodes, the electrons and
holes recombine by a non-radiative transition which produces no optical emission,
because these are indirect band gap materials. The materials used for the LED have a
direct band gap with energies corresponding to near-infrared, visible or near-ultraviolet
light.
LED development began with infrared and red devices made with gallium arsenide.
Advances in materials science have enabled making devices with ever-shorter
wavelengths, emitting light in a variety of colors.
LEDs are usually built on an n-type substrate, with an electrode attached to the p-type
layer deposited on its surface. P-type substrates, while less common, occur as well. Many
commercial LEDs, especially GaN/InGaN, also use sapphire substrate.
Most materials used for LED production have very high refractive indices. This means
that much light will be reflected back into the material at the material/air surface
interface. Thus, light extraction in LEDs is an important aspect of LED production,
subject to much research and development.
[edit] Refractive Index
Idealized example of light emission cones in a semiconductor, for a single point-source

emission zone. The left illustration is for a fully translucent wafer, while the right
illustration shows the half-cones formed when the bottom layer is fully opaque. The light
is actually emitted equally in all directions from the point-source, so the areas between
the cones shows the large amount of trapped light energy that is wasted as heat.[27]
The light emission cones of a real LED wafer are far more complex than a single point-
source light emission. Typically the light emission zone is a 2D plane between the
wafers. Across this 2D plane, there is effectively a separate set of emission cones for
every atom.
Drawing the billions of overlapping cones is impossible, so this is a simplified diagram
showing the extents of all the emission cones combined. The larger side cones are clipped
to show the interior features and reduce image complexity; they would extend to the
opposite edges of the 2D emission plane.
Bare uncoated semiconductors such as silicon exhibit a very high refractive index relative
to open air, which prevents passage of photons at sharp angles relative to the air-
contacting surface of the semiconductor. This property affects both the light-emission
efficiency of LEDs as well as the light-absorption efficiency of photovoltaic cells. The
refractive index of silicon is 4.24, while air is 1.00002926[28]
Generally a flat-surfaced uncoated LED semiconductor chip will only emit light
perpendicular to the semiconductor's surface, and a few degrees to the side, in a cone
shape referred to as the light cone, cone of light,[29] or the escape cone.[27] The maximum
angle of incidence is referred to as the critical angle. When this angle is exceeded photons
no longer penetrate the semiconductor, but are instead reflected both internally inside the
semiconductor crystal, and externally off the surface of the crystal as if it were a mirror.
[27]
Internal reflections can escape through other crystalline faces, if the incidence angle is
low enough and the crystal is sufficiently transparent to not re-absorb the photon
emission. But for a simple square LED with 90-degree angled surfaces on all sides, the
faces all act as equal angle mirrors. In this case the light can not escape and is lost as
waste heat in the crystal.[27]
A convoluted chip surface with angled facets similar to a jewel or fresnel lens can
increase light output by allowing light to be emitted perpendicular to the chip surface
while far to the sides of the photon emission point.[30]
The ideal shape of a semiconductor with maximum light output would be a microsphere
with the photon emission occurring at the exact center, with electrodes penetrating to the
center to contact at the emission point. All light rays emanating from the center would be
perpendicular to the entire surface of the sphere, resulting in no internal reflections. A
hemispherical semiconductor would also work, with the flat back-surface serving as a
mirror to back-scattered photons.[31]
[edit] Transition coatings
Many LED semiconductor chips are potted in clear or colored molded plastic shells. The
plastic shell has three purposes:
1. Mounting the semiconductor chip in devices is easier to accomplish.

2. The tiny fragile electrical wiring is physically supported and protected from
damage
3. The plastic acts as a refractive intermediary between the relatively high-index
semiconductor and low-index open air.[32]
The third feature helps to boost the light emission from the semiconductor by acting as a
diffusing lens, allowing light to be emitted at a much higher angle of incidence from the
light cone, than the bare chip is able to emit alone.
[edit] Efficiency and operational parameters
Typical indicator LEDs are designed to operate with no more than 30–60 milliwatts
[mW] of electrical power. Around 1999, Philips Lumileds introduced power LEDs
capable of continuous use at one watt [W]. These LEDs used much larger semiconductor
die sizes to handle the large power inputs. Also, the semiconductor dies were mounted
onto metal slugs to allow for heat removal from the LED die.
One of the key advantages of LED-based lighting is its high efficiency, as measured by
its light output per unit power input. White LEDs quickly matched and overtook the
efficiency of standard incandescent lighting systems. In 2002, Lumileds made five-watt
LEDs available with a luminous efficacy of 18–22 lumens per watt [lm/W]. For
comparison, a conventional 60–100 W incandescent light bulb emits around 15 lm/W,
and standard fluorescent lights emit up to 100 lm/W. A recurring problem is that
efficiency falls sharply with rising current. This effect is known as droop and effectively
limits the light output of a given LED, raising heating more than light output for higher
current.[33][34][35]
In September 2003, a new type of blue LED was demonstrated by the company Cree Inc.
to provide 24 mW at 20 milliamperes [mA]. This produced a commercially packaged
white light giving 65 lm/W at 20 mA, becoming the brightest white LED commercially
available at the time, and more than four times as efficient as standard incandescents. In
2006, they demonstrated a prototype with a record white LED luminous efficacy of 131
lm/W at 20 mA. Also, Seoul Semiconductor plans for 135 lm/W by 2007 and 145 lm/W
by 2008,[36] which would be nearing an order of magnitude improvement over standard
incandescents and better than even standard fluorescents. Nichia Corporation has
developed a white LED with luminous efficacy of 150 lm/W at a forward current of 20
mA.[37]
Practical general lighting needs high-power LEDs, of one watt or more. Typical operating
currents for such devices begin at 350 mA.
Note that these efficiencies are for the LED chip only, held at low temperature in a lab.
Lighting works at higher temperature and with drive circuit losses, so efficiencies are
much lower. United States Department of Energy (DOE) testing of commercial LED
lamps designed to replace incandescent lamps or CFLs showed that average efficacy was
still about 46 lm/W in 2009 (tested performance ranged from 17 lm/W to 79 lm/W).[38]
Cree issued a press release on February 3, 2010 about a laboratory prototype LED
achieving 208 lumens per watt at room temperature. The correlated color temperature
was reported to be 4579 K.[39]
[edit] Lifetime and failure
Main article: List of LED failure modes
Solid state devices such as LEDs are subject to very limited wear and tear if operated at
low currents and at low temperatures. Many of the LEDs made in the 1970s and 1980s
are still in service today. Typical lifetimes quoted are 25,000 to 100,000 hours but heat
and current settings can extend or shorten this time significantly. [40]
The most common symptom of LED (and diode laser) failure is the gradual lowering of
light output and loss of efficiency. Sudden failures, although rare, can occur as well.
Early red LEDs were notable for their short lifetime. With the development of high-
power LEDs the devices are subjected to higher junction temperatures and higher current
densities than traditional devices. This causes stress on the material and may cause early
light-output degradation. To quantitatively classify lifetime in a standardized manner it
has been suggested to use the terms L75 and L50 which is the time it will take a given
LED to reach 75% and 50% light output respectively.[41]
Like other lighting devices, LED performance is temperature dependent. Most

manufacturers’ published ratings of LEDs are for an operating temperature of 25 °C.
LEDs used outdoors, such as traffic signals or in-pavement signal lights, and that are
utilized in climates where the temperature within the luminaire gets very hot, could result
in low signal intensities or even failure.[42]
LED light output actually rises at colder temperatures (leveling off depending on type at
around −30C[citation needed]). Consequently, LED technology may be a good replacement in
uses such as supermarket freezer lighting[43][44][45] and will last longer than other
technologies. Because LEDs emit less heat than incandescent bulbs, they are an energy-
efficient technology for uses such as freezers. However, because they emit little heat, ice
and snow may build up on the LED luminaire in colder climates.[42] This lack of waste
heat generation has been observed to cause sometimes significant problems with street
traffic signals and airport runway lighting in snow-prone areas, although some research
has been done to try to develop heat sink technologies to transfer heat to other areas of
the luminaire.[46]
[edit] Colors and materials

Conventional LEDs are made from a variety of inorganic semiconductor materials, the
following table shows the available colors with wavelength range, voltage drop and
material:
Wavelength
Color Voltage (V) Semiconductor material
(nm)
Gallium arsenide (GaAs)
Infrared λ > 760 ΔV < 1.9
Aluminium gallium arsenide (AlGaAs)
Aluminium gallium arsenide (AlGaAs)
Gallium arsenide phosphide (GaAsP)
1.63 < ΔV <
Red 610 < λ < 760 Aluminium gallium indium phosphide
2.03
(AlGaInP)
Gallium(III) phosphide (GaP)
2.03 < ΔV < Aluminium gallium indium phosphide
Orange 590 < λ < 610
2.10 (AlGaInP)
2.10 < ΔV < Aluminium gallium indium phosphide
Yellow 570 < λ < 590
2.18 (AlGaInP)
Indium gallium nitride (InGaN) / Gallium(III)
nitride (GaN)
1.9[47] < ΔV < Gallium(III) phosphide (GaP)
Green 500 < λ < 570
4.0 Aluminium gallium indium phosphide
(AlGaInP)
Aluminium gallium phosphide (AlGaP)
Zinc selenide (ZnSe)
Indium gallium nitride (InGaN)
2.48 < ΔV <
Blue 450 < λ < 500 Silicon carbide (SiC) as substrate
3.7
Silicon (Si) as substrate — (under
development)
2.76 < ΔV <
Violet 400 < λ < 450 Indium gallium nitride (InGaN)
4.0
Dual blue/red LEDs,
2.48 < ΔV <
Purple multiple types blue with red phosphor,
3.7
or white with purple plastic
Diamond (235 nm)[48]
Boron nitride (215 nm)[49][50]
3.1 < ΔV < Aluminium nitride (AlN) (210 nm)[51]
Ultraviolet λ < 400
4.4 Aluminium gallium nitride (AlGaN)
Aluminium gallium indium nitride (AlGaInN)
— (down to 210 nm)[52]
White Broad spectrum ΔV = 3.5 Blue/UV diode with yellow phosphor
[edit] Ultraviolet and blue LEDs

Blue LEDs.
Blue LEDs are based on the wide band gap semiconductors GaN (gallium nitride) and
InGaN (indium gallium nitride). They can be added to existing red and green LEDs to
produce the impression of white light, though white LEDs today rarely use this principle.
The first blue LEDs were made in 1971 by Jacques Pankove (inventor of the gallium
nitride LED) at RCA Laboratories.[53] These devices had too little light output to be of
much practical use. In the late 1980s, key breakthroughs in GaN epitaxial growth and p-
type doping[54] ushered in the modern era of GaN-based optoelectronic devices. Building
upon this foundation, in 1993 high brightness blue LEDs were demonstrated.[55]
By the late 1990s, blue LEDs had become widely available. They have an active region
consisting of one or more InGaN quantum wells sandwiched between thicker layers of
GaN, called cladding layers. By varying the relative InN-GaN fraction in the InGaN
quantum wells, the light emission can be varied from violet to amber. AlGaN aluminium
gallium nitride of varying AlN fraction can be used to manufacture the cladding and
quantum well layers for ultraviolet LEDs, but these devices have not yet reached the level
of efficiency and technological maturity of the InGaN-GaN blue/green devices. If the
active quantum well layers are GaN, instead of alloyed InGaN or AlGaN, the device will
emit near-ultraviolet light with wavelengths around 350–370 nm. Green LEDs
manufactured from the InGaN-GaN system are far more efficient and brighter than green
LEDs produced with non-nitride material systems.
With nitrides containing aluminium, most often AlGaN and AlGaInN, even shorter
wavelengths are achievable. Ultraviolet LEDs in a range of wavelengths are becoming
available on the market. Near-UV emitters at wavelengths around 375–395 nm are
already cheap and often encountered, for example, as black light lamp replacements for
inspection of anti-counterfeiting UV watermarks in some documents and paper
currencies. Shorter wavelength diodes, while substantially more expensive, are
commercially available for wavelengths down to 247 nm.[56] As the photosensitivity of
microorganisms approximately matches the absorption spectrum of DNA, with a peak at
about 260 nm, UV LED emitting at 250–270 nm are to be expected in prospective
disinfection and sterilization devices. Recent research has shown that commercially
available UVA LEDs (365 nm) are already effective disinfection and sterilization
devices.[57]
Deep-UV wavelengths were obtained in laboratories using aluminium nitride (210 nm),
[51]
boron nitride (215 nm)[49][50] and diamond (235 nm).[48]
[edit] White light
There are two primary ways of producing high intensity white-light using LEDs. One is
to use individual LEDs that emit three primary colors[58]—red, green, and blue—and then
mix all the colors to form white light. The other is to use a phosphor material to convert
monochromatic light from a blue or UV LED to broad-spectrum white light, much in the
same way a fluorescent light bulb works.
Due to metamerism, it is possible to have quite different spectra that appear white.
[edit] RGB systems
Combined spectral curves for blue, yellow-green, and high brightness red solid-state
semiconductor LEDs. FWHM spectral bandwidth is approximately 24–27 nm for all
three colors.
White light can be formed by mixing differently colored lights, the most common method
is to use red, green and blue (RGB). Hence the method is called multi-colored white
LEDs (sometimes referred to as RGB LEDs). Because these need electronic circuits to
control the blending and diffusion of different colors, these are seldom used to produce
white lighting. Nevertheless, this method is particularly interesting in many uses because
of the flexibility of mixing different colors,[59] and, in principle, this mechanism also has
higher quantum efficiency in producing white light.
There are several types of multi-colored white LEDs: di-, tri-, and tetrachromatic white
LEDs. Several key factors that play among these different methods, include color
stability, color rendering capability, and luminous efficacy. Often higher efficiency will
mean lower color rendering, presenting a trade off between the luminous efficiency and
color rendering. For example, the dichromatic white LEDs have the best luminous
efficacy (120 lm/W), but the lowest color rendering capability. Conversely, although
tetrachromatic white LEDs have excellent color rendering capability, they often have
poor luminous efficiency. Trichromatic white LEDs are in between, having both good
luminous efficacy (>70 lm/W) and fair color rendering capability.
Multi-color LEDs offer not merely another means to form white light, but a new means to
form light of different colors. Most perceivable colors can be formed by mixing different
amounts of three primary colors. This allows precise dynamic color control. As more
effort is devoted to investigating this method, multi-color LEDs should have profound
influence on the fundamental method which we use to produce and control light color.
However, before this type of LED can play a role on the market, several technical
problems need solving. These include that this type of LED's emission power decays
exponentially with rising temperature,[60] resulting in a substantial change in color
stability. Such problems inhibit and may preclude industrial use. Thus, many new
package designs aimed at solving this problem have been proposed and their results are
now being reproduced by researchers and scientists.
[edit] Phosphor-based LEDs
Spectrum of a “white” LED clearly showing blue light which is directly emitted by the
GaN-based LED (peak at about 465 nm) and the more broadband Stokes-shifted light
emitted by the Ce3+:YAG phosphor which emits at roughly 500–700 nm.
This method involves coating an LED of one color (mostly blue LED made of InGaN)
with phosphor of different colors to form white light; the resultant LEDs are called
phosphor-based white LEDs.[61] A fraction of the blue light undergoes the Stokes shift
being transformed from shorter wavelengths to longer. Depending on the color of the
original LED, phosphors of different colors can be employed. If several phosphor layers
of distinct colors are applied, the emitted spectrum is broadened, effectively raising the
color rendering index (CRI) value of a given LED.[62]
Phosphor based LEDs have a lower efficiency than normal LEDs due to the heat loss
from the Stokes shift and also other phosphor-related degradation issues. However, the
phosphor method is still the most popular method for making high intensity white LEDs.
The design and production of a light source or light fixture using a monochrome emitter
with phosphor conversion is simpler and cheaper than a complex RGB system, and the
majority of high intensity white LEDs presently on the market are manufactured using
phosphor light conversion.
The greatest barrier to high efficiency is the seemingly unavoidable Stokes energy loss.
However, much effort is being spent on optimizing these devices to higher light output
and higher operation temperatures. For instance, the efficiency can be raised by adapting
better package design or by using a more suitable type of phosphor. Philips Lumileds'
patented conformal coating process addresses the issue of varying phosphor thickness,
giving the white LEDs a more homogeneous white light.[63] With development ongoing,
the efficiency of phosphor based LEDs generally rises with each new product
announcement.
The phosphor based white LEDs encapsulate InGaN blue LEDs inside phosphor coated
epoxy. A common yellow phosphor material is cerium-doped yttrium aluminium garnet
(Ce3+:YAG).
White LEDs can also be made by coating near ultraviolet (NUV) emitting LEDs with a
mixture of high efficiency europium-based red and blue emitting phosphors plus green
emitting copper and aluminium doped zinc sulfide (ZnS:Cu, Al). This is a method
analogous to the way fluorescent lamps work. This method is less efficient than the blue
LED with YAG:Ce phosphor, as the Stokes shift is larger, so more energy is converted to
heat, but yields light with better spectral characteristics, which render color better. Due to
the higher radiative output of the ultraviolet LEDs than of the blue ones, both methods
offer comparable brightness. A concern is that UV light may leak from a malfunctioning
light source and cause harm to human eyes or skin.
[edit] Other white LEDs
Another method used to produce experimental white light LEDs used no phosphors at all
and was based on homoepitaxially grown zinc selenide (ZnSe) on a ZnSe substrate which
simultaneously emitted blue light from its active region and yellow light from the
substrate.[64]
[edit] Organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs)
Main article: Organic light-emitting diode

Demonstration of a flexible OLED device
In an organic light emitting diode (OLED), the electroluminescent material comprising

the emissive layer of the diode is an organic compound. The organic material is
electrically conductive due to the delocalization of pi electrons caused by conjugation
over all or part of the molecule, and the material therefore functions as an organic
semiconductor.[65] The organic materials can be small organic molecules in a crystalline
phase, or polymers.
The potential advantages of OLEDs include thin, low cost displays with a low driving
voltage, wide viewing angle and high contrast and colour gamut.[66] Polymer LEDs have
the added benefit of printable[67][68] and flexible[69] displays. OLEDs have been used to
make visual displays for portable electronic devices such as cellphones, digital cameras,
and MP3 players while possible future uses include lighting and televisions.[66]
[edit] Quantum dot LEDs (experimental)
A new method developed by Michael Bowers, a graduate student at Vanderbilt

University in Nashville, involves coating a blue LED with quantum dots that glow white
in response to the blue light from the LED. This method emits a warm, yellowish-white
light similar to that made by incandescent bulbs.[70]
Quantum dots are semiconductor nanocrystals that possess unique optical properties.[71]
Their emission color can be tuned from the visible throughout the infrared spectrum. This
allows quantum dot LEDs to create almost any color on the CIE diagram. This provides
more color options and better color rendering than white LEDs. Quantum dot LEDs are
available in the same package types as traditional phosphor based LEDs.
In September 2009 Nanoco Group announced that it has signed a joint development
agreement with a major Japanese electronics company under which it will design and
develop quantum dots for use in light emitting diodes (LEDs) in liquid crystal display
(LCD) televisions.[72]
[edit] Types
LEDs are produced in a variety of shapes and sizes. The 5 mm cylindrical package (red,
fifth from the left) is the most common, estimated at 80% of world production.[citation needed]
The color of the plastic lens is often the same as the actual color of light emitted, but not
always. For instance, purple plastic is often used for infrared LEDs, and most blue
devices have clear housings. There are also LEDs in SMT packages, such as those found
on blinkies and on cell phone keypads (not shown).
The main types of LEDs are miniature, high power devices and custom designs such as
alphanumeric or multi-color.
[edit] Miniature
Different sized LEDs. 8 mm, 5 mm and 3 mm, with a wooden match-stick for scale.
Main article: Miniature light-emitting diode
These are mostly single-die LEDs used as indicators, and they come in various-sizes from
2 mm to 8 mm, through-hole and surface mount packages. They are usually simple in
design, not requiring any separate cooling body.[73] Typical current ratings ranges from
around 1 mA to above 20 mA. The small scale sets a natural upper boundary on power
consumption due to heat caused by the high current density and need for heat sinking.
A green surface-mount LED mounted on a circuit board.
[edit] Mid-range
Medium power LEDs are often through-hole mounted and used when an output of a few
lumen is needed. They sometimes have the diode mounted to four leads (two cathode
leads, two anode leads) for better heat conduction and carry an integrated lens. An
example of this is the Superflux package, from Philips Lumileds. These LEDs are most
commonly used in light panels, emergency lighting and automotive tail-lights. Due to the
larger amount of metal in the LED, they are able to handle higher currents (around 100
mA). The higher current allows for the higher light output required for tail-lights and
emergency lighting.
[edit] High power
See also: Solid-state lighting and LED lamp
High-power light emiting diodes (Luxeon, Lumileds)
High power LEDs (HPLED) can be driven at currents from hundreds of mA to more than
an ampere, compared with the tens of mA for other LEDs. Some can emit over a
thousand lumens.[74][75] Since overheating is destructive, the HPLEDs must be mounted on
a heat sink to allow for heat dissipation. If the heat from a HPLED is not removed, the
device will fail in seconds. One HPLED can often replace an incandescent bulb in a
torch, or be set in an array to form a powerful LED lamp.
Some well-known HPLEDs in this category are the Lumileds Rebel Led, Osram Opto
Semiconductors Golden Dragon and Cree X-lamp. As of September 2009 some HPLEDs
manufactured by Cree Inc. now exceed 105 lm/W [76] (e.g. the XLamp XP-G LED chip
emitting Cool White light) and are being sold in lamps intended to replace incandescent,
halogen, and even fluorescent lights, as LEDs grow more cost competitive.
LEDs have been developed by Seoul Semiconductor that can operate on AC power
without the need for a DC converter. For each half cycle, part of the LED emits light and
part is dark, and this is reversed during the next half cycle. The efficacy of this type of
HPLED is typically 40 lm/W.[77] A large number of LED elements in series may be able
to operate directly from line voltage. In 2009 Seoul Semiconductor released a high DC
voltage capable of being driven from AC power with a simple controlling circuit. The
low power dissipation of these LEDs affords them more flexibility than the original AC
LED design.[78]
[edit] Application-specific variations
• Flashing LEDs are used as attention seeking indicators without requiring external
electronics. Flashing LEDs resemble standard LEDs but they contain an
integrated multivibrator circuit which causes the LED to flash with a typical
period of one second. In diffused lens LEDs this is visible as a small black dot.
Most flashing LEDs emit light of one color, but more sophisticated devices can
flash between multiple colors and even fade through a color sequence using RGB
color mixing.
Calculator LED display, 1970s.
• Bi-color LEDs are actually two different LEDs in one case. They consist of two
dies connected to the same two leads antiparallel to each other. Current flow in
one direction emits one color, and current in the opposite direction emits the other
color. Alternating the two colors with sufficient frequency causes the appearance
of a blended third color. For example, a red/green LED operated in this fashion
will color blend to emit a yellow appearance.
• Tri-color LEDs are two LEDs in one case, but the two LEDs are connected to
separate leads so that the two LEDs can be controlled independently and lit
simultaneously. A three-lead arrangement is typical with one common lead
(anode or cathode).[citation needed]
• RGB LEDs contain red, green and blue emitters, generally using a four-wire
connection with one common lead (anode or cathode). These LEDs can have
either common positive or common negative leads. Others however, have only
two leads (positive and negative) and have a built in tiny electronic control unit.
• Alphanumeric LED displays are available in seven-segment and starburst format.
Seven-segment displays handle all numbers and a limited set of letters. Starburst
displays can display all letters. Seven-segment LED displays were in widespread
use in the 1970s and 1980s, but rising use of liquid crystal displays, with their
lower power needs and greater display flexibility, has reduced the popularity of
numeric and alphanumeric LED displays.
[edit] Considerations for use

[edit] Power sources
Main article: LED power sources
The current/voltage characteristic of an LED is similar to other diodes, in that the current
is dependent exponentially on the voltage (see Shockley diode equation). This means that
a small change in voltage can cause a large change in current. If the maximum voltage
rating is exceeded by a small amount, the current rating may be exceeded by a large
amount, potentially damaging or destroying the LED. The typical solution is to use
constant current power supplies, or driving the LED at a voltage much below the
maximum rating. Since most common power sources (batteries, mains) are not constant
current sources, most LED fixtures must include a power converter. However, the I/V
curve of nitride-based LEDs is quite steep above the knee and gives an If of a few
milliamperes at a Vf of 3 V, making it possible to power a nitride-based LED from a 3 V
battery such as a coin cell without the need for a current limiting resistor.
[edit] Electrical polarity
Main article: Electrical polarity of LEDs
As with all diodes, current flows easily from p-type to n-type material.[79] However, no
current flows and no light is emitted if a small voltage is applied in the reverse direction.
If the reverse voltage grows large enough to exceed the breakdown voltage, a large
current flows and the LED may be damaged. If the reverse current is sufficiently limited
to avoid damage, the reverse-conducting LED is a useful noise diode.
[edit] Safety and health
The vast majority of devices containing LEDs are "safe under all conditions of normal
use", and so are classified as "Class 1 LED product"/"LED Klasse 1". At present, only a
few LEDs—extremely bright LEDs that also have a tightly focused viewing angle of 8°
or less—could, in theory, cause temporary blindness, and so are classified as "Class 2".[80]
In general, laser safety regulations—and the "Class 1", "Class 2", etc. system—also apply
to LEDs.[81]
While LEDs have the advantage over fluorescent lamps that they do not contain mercury,
they may contain other hazardous metals such as lead and arsenic. A study published in
2011 states: "According to federal standards, LEDs are not hazardous except for low-
intensity red LEDs, which leached Pb [lead] at levels exceeding regulatory limits (186
mg/L; regulatory limit: 5). However, according to California regulations, excessive levels
of copper (up to 3892 mg/kg; limit: 2500), Pb (up to 8103 mg/kg; limit: 1000), nickel (up
to 4797 mg/kg; limit: 2000), or silver (up to 721 mg/kg; limit: 500) render all except low-
intensity yellow LEDs hazardous.".[82]
[edit] Advantages
• Efficiency: LEDs emit more light per watt than incandescent light bulbs.[83] Their
efficiency is not affected by shape and size, unlike fluorescent light bulbs or
tubes.
• Color: LEDs can emit light of an intended color without using any color filters as
traditional lighting methods need. This is more efficient and can lower initial
costs.
• Size: LEDs can be very small (smaller than 2 mm2[84]) and are easily populated
onto printed circuit boards.
• On/Off time: LEDs light up very quickly. A typical red indicator LED will
achieve full brightness in under a microsecond.[85] LEDs used in communications
devices can have even faster response times.
• Cycling: LEDs are ideal for uses subject to frequent on-off cycling, unlike
fluorescent lamps that fail faster when cycled often, or HID lamps that require a
long time before restarting.
• Dimming: LEDs can very easily be dimmed either by pulse-width modulation or
lowering the forward current.
• Cool light: In contrast to most light sources, LEDs radiate very little heat in the
form of IR that can cause damage to sensitive objects or fabrics. Wasted energy is
dispersed as heat through the base of the LED.
• Slow failure: LEDs mostly fail by dimming over time, rather than the abrupt
failure of incandescent bulbs.[86]
• Lifetime: LEDs can have a relatively long useful life. One report estimates
35,000 to 50,000 hours of useful life, though time to complete failure may be
longer.[87] Fluorescent tubes typically are rated at about 10,000 to 15,000 hours,
depending partly on the conditions of use, and incandescent light bulbs at 1,000–
2,000 hours.
• Shock resistance: LEDs, being solid state components, are difficult to damage
with external shock, unlike fluorescent and incandescent bulbs which are fragile.
• Focus: The solid package of the LED can be designed to focus its light.
Incandescent and fluorescent sources often require an external reflector to collect
light and direct it in a usable manner.
[edit] Disadvantages
• Fluorescent lamps are typically more efficient than LEDs (for lamps with the
same CRI).
• High initial price: LEDs are currently more expensive, price per lumen, on an
initial capital cost basis, than most conventional lighting technologies. The
additional expense partially stems from the relatively low lumen output and the
drive circuitry and power supplies needed.
• Temperature dependence: LED performance largely depends on the ambient
temperature of the operating environment. Over-driving an LED in high ambient
temperatures may result in overheating the LED package, eventually leading to
device failure. Adequate heat sinking is needed to maintain long life. This is
especially important in automotive, medical, and military uses where devices
must operate over a wide range of temperatures, and need low failure rates.
• Voltage sensitivity: LEDs must be supplied with the voltage above the threshold
and a current below the rating. This can involve series resistors or current-
regulated power supplies.[88]
• Light quality: Most cool-white LEDs have spectra that differ significantly from a
black body radiator like the sun or an incandescent light. The spike at 460 nm and
dip at 500 nm can cause the color of objects to be perceived differently under
cool-white LED illumination than sunlight or incandescent sources, due to
metamerism,[89] red surfaces being rendered particularly badly by typical phosphor
based cool-white LEDs. However, the color rendering properties of common
fluorescent lamps are often inferior to what is now available in state-of-art white
LEDs.
• Area light source: LEDs do not approximate a “point source” of light, but rather
a lambertian distribution. So LEDs are difficult to apply to uses needing a
spherical light field. LEDs cannot provide divergence below a few degrees. In
contrast, lasers can emit beams with divergences of 0.2 degrees or less.[90]
• Blue hazard: There is a concern that blue LEDs and cool-white LEDs are now
capable of exceeding safe limits of the so-called blue-light hazard as defined in
eye safety specifications such as ANSI/IESNA RP-27.1–05: Recommended
Practice for Photobiological Safety for Lamp and Lamp Systems.[91][92]
• Electrical Polarity: Unlike incandescent light bulbs, which illuminate regardless

of the electrical polarity, LEDs will only light with correct electrical polarity.
• Blue pollution: Because cool-white LEDs (i.e., LEDs with high color
temperature) emit proportionally more blue light than conventional outdoor light
sources such as high-pressure sodium vapor lamps, the strong wavelength
dependence of Rayleigh scattering means that cool-white LEDs can cause more
light pollution than other light sources. The International Dark-Sky Association
discourages using white light sources with correlated color temperature above
3,000 K.[93]
• Droop: The efficiency of LEDs tends to decrease as one increases current.[94][95][96]
[97]
[edit] Applications
LED lighting in the aircraft cabin of an Airbus A320 Enhanced.
A large LED display behind a disc jockey.
LED destination signs on buses, one with a colored route number.
LED digital display that can display 4 digits along with points.
Traffic light using LED
Western Australia Police car using LED
Printhead of an Oki LED printer
LED daytime running lights of Audi A4

LED panel light source used in an experiment on plant growth. The findings of such
experiments may be used to grow food in space on long duration missions.
LED Illumination.
LED uses fall into four major categories:
• Visual signals where light goes more or less directly from the source to the human
eye, to convey a message or meaning.
• Illumination where light is reflected from objects to give visual response of these
objects.
• Measuring and interacting with processes involving no human vision.[98]
• Narrow band light sensors where LEDs operate in a reverse-bias mode and
respond to incident light, instead of emitting light.
[edit] Indicators and signs
The low energy consumption, low maintenance and small size of modern LEDs has led to
uses as status indicators and displays on a variety of equipment and installations. Large-
area LED displays are used as stadium displays and as dynamic decorative displays.
Thin, lightweight message displays are used at airports and railway stations, and as
destination displays for trains, buses, trams, and ferries.
One-color light is well suited for traffic lights and signals, exit signs, emergency vehicle
lighting, ships' navigation lights or lanterns (chromacity and luminance standards being
set under the Convention on the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at
Sea 1972, Annex I and the CIE) and LED-based Christmas lights. In cold climates, LED
traffic lights may remain snow covered.[99] Red or yellow LEDs are used in indicator and
alphanumeric displays in environments where night vision must be retained: aircraft
cockpits, submarine and ship bridges, astronomy observatories, and in the field, e.g. night
time animal watching and military field use.
Because of their long life and fast switching times, LEDs have been used in brake lights
for cars high-mounted brake lights, trucks, and buses, and in turn signals for some time,
but many vehicles now use LEDs for their rear light clusters. The use in brakes improves
safety, due to a great reduction in the time needed to light fully, or faster rise time, up to
0.5 second faster than an incandescent bulb. This gives drivers behind more time to react.
It is reported that at normal highway speeds, this equals one car length equivalent in
increased time to react. In a dual intensity circuit (i.e., rear markers and brakes) if the
LEDs are not pulsed at a fast enough frequency, they can create a phantom array, where
ghost images of the LED will appear if the eyes quickly scan across the array. White
LED headlamps are starting to be used. Using LEDs has styling advantages because
LEDs can form much thinner lights than incandescent lamps with parabolic reflectors.
Due to the relative cheapness of low output LEDs, they are also used in many temporary
uses such as glowsticks, throwies, and the photonic textile Lumalive. Artists have also
used LEDs for LED art.
Weather/all-hazards radio receivers with Specific Area Message Encoding (SAME) have
three LEDs: red for warnings, orange for watches, and yellow for advisories & statements
whenever issued.
[edit] Lighting
Main article: LED lamp
With the development of high efficiency and high power LEDs it has grown possible to
use LEDs in lighting and illumination. Replacement light bulbs have been made, as well
as dedicated fixtures and LED lamps. LEDs are used as street lights and in other
architectural lighting where color changing is used. The mechanical robustness and long
lifetime is used in automotive lighting on cars, motorcycles and on bicycle lights.
LED street lights are employed on poles and in parking garages. In 2007, the Italian
village Torraca was the first place to convert its entire illumination system to LEDs.[100]
LEDs are used in aviation lighting. Airbus has used LED lighting in their Airbus A320
Enhanced since 2007, and Boeing plans its use in the 787. LEDs are also being used now
in airport and heliport lighting. LED airport fixtures currently include medium-intensity
runway lights, runway centerline lights, taxiway centerline & edge lights, guidance signs
and obstruction lighting.
LEDs are also suitable for backlighting for LCD televisions and lightweight laptop
displays and light source for DLP projectors (See LED TV). RGB LEDs raise the color
gamut by as much as 45%. Screens for TV and computer displays can be made thinner
using LEDs for backlighting.[101]
LEDs are used increasingly commonly in aquarium lights. Particularly for reef
aquariums, LED lights provide an efficient light source with less heat output to help
maintain optimal aquarium temperatures. LED-based aquarium fixtures also have the
advantage of being manually adjustable to emit a specific color-spectrum for ideal
coloration of corals, fish, and invertebrates while optimizing photosynthetically active
radiation (PAR) which raises growth and sustainability of photosynthetic life such as
corals, anemones, clams, and macroalgae. These fixtures can be electronically
programmed to simulate various lighting conditions throughout the day, reflecting phases
of the sun and moon for a dynamic reef experience. LED fixtures typically cost up to five
times as much as similarly rated fluorescent or high-intensity discharge lighting designed
for reef aquariums and are not as high output to date.
The lack of IR/heat radiation makes LEDs ideal for stage lights using banks of RGB
LEDs that can easily change color and decrease heating from traditional stage lighting, as
well as medical lighting where IR-radiation can be harmful.
LEDs are small, durable and need little power, so they are used in hand held devices such
as flashlights. LED strobe lights or camera flashes operate at a safe, low voltage, instead
of the 250+ volts commonly found in xenon flashlamp-based lighting. This is especially
useful in cameras on mobile phones, where space is at a premium and bulky voltage-
raising circuitry is undesirable. LEDs are used for infrared illumination in night vision
uses including security cameras. A ring of LEDs around a video camera, aimed forward
into a retroreflective background, allows chroma keying in video productions.
LEDs are used for decorative lighting as well. Uses include but are not limited to
indoor/outdoor decor, limousines, cargo trailers, conversion vans, cruise ships, RVs,
boats, automobiles, and utility trucks. Decorative LED lighting can also come in the form
of lighted company signage and step and aisle lighting in theaters and auditoriums.
[edit] Smart lighting
Light can be used to transmit broadband data, which is already implemented in IrDA
standards using infrared LEDs. Because LEDs can cycle on and off millions of times per
second, they can be wireless transmitters and access points for data transport.[102] Lasers
can also be modulated in this manner.
[edit] Sustainable lighting
Efficient lighting is needed for sustainable architecture. A 13 watt LED lamp emits 450
to 650 lumens.[103] which is equivalent to a standard 40 watt incandescent bulb. [104] A
standard 40 W incandescent bulb has an expected lifespan of 1,000 hours while an LED
can continue to operate with reduced efficiency for more than 50,000 hours, 50 times
longer than the incandescent bulb.
[edit] Energy consumption

One kilowatt-hour of electricity will cause 1.34 pounds (610 g) of CO2 emission.[105]
Assuming the average light bulb is on for 10 hours a day, one 40-watt incandescent bulb
will cause 196 pounds (89 kg) of CO2 emission per year. The 13-watt LED equivalent
will only cause 63 pounds (29 kg) of CO2 over the same time span. A building’s carbon
footprint from lighting can be reduced by 68% by exchanging all incandescent bulbs for
new LEDs in warm climates. In cold climates, the energy saving may be lower, since
more heating is needed to compensate for the lower temperature.
[edit] Economically sustainable
LED light bulbs could be a cost-effective option for lighting a home or office space
because of their very long lifetimes. Consumer use of LEDs as a replacement for
conventional lighting system is currently hampered by the high cost and low efficiency of
available products. 2009 DOE testing results showed an average efficacy of 35 lm/W,
below that of typical CFLs, and as low as 9 lm/W, worse than standard incandescents.[103]
The high initial cost of the commercial LED bulb is due to the expensive sapphire
substrate which is key to the production process. The sapphire apparatus must be coupled
with a mirror-like collector to reflect light that would otherwise be wasted.
[edit] Non-visual applications
The light from LEDs can be modulated very quickly so they are used extensively in
optical fiber and Free Space Optics communications. This include remote controls, such
as for TVs and VCRs, where infrared LEDs are often used. Opto-isolators use an LED
combined with a photodiode or phototransistor to provide a signal path with electrical
isolation between two circuits. This is especially useful in medical equipment where the
signals from a low-voltage sensor circuit (usually battery powered) in contact with a
living organism must be electrically isolated from any possible electrical failure in a
recording or monitoring device operating at potentially dangerous voltages. An
optoisolator also allows information to be transferred between circuits not sharing a
common ground potential.
Many sensor systems rely on light as the signal source. LEDs are often ideal as a light
source due to the requirements of the sensors. LEDs are used as movement sensors, for
example in optical computer mice. The Nintendo Wii's sensor bar uses infrared LEDs. In
pulse oximeters for measuring oxygen saturation. Some flatbed scanners use arrays of
RGB LEDs rather than the typical cold-cathode fluorescent lamp as the light source.
Having independent control of three illuminated colors allows the scanner to calibrate
itself for more accurate color balance, and there is no need for warm-up. Further, its
sensors only need be monochromatic, since at any one time the page being scanned is
only lit by one color of light. Touch sensing: Since LEDs can also be used as
photodiodes, they can be used for both photo emission and detection. This could be used
in for example a touch-sensing screen that register reflected light from a finger or stylus.
[106]
Many materials and biological systems are sensitive to, or dependent on light. Grow
lights use LEDs to increase photosynthesis in plants[107] and bacteria and viruses can be
removed from water and other substances using UV LEDs for sterilization.[57] Other uses
are as UV curing devices for some ink and coating methods, and in LED printers.
Plant growers are interested in LEDs because they are more energy efficient, emit less
heat (can damage plants close to hot lamps), and can provide the optimum light
frequency for plant growth and bloom periods compared to currently used grow lights:
HPS (high pressure sodium), MH (metal halide) or CFL/low-energy. However, LEDs
have not replaced these grow lights due to higher price. As mass production and LED kits
develop, the LED products will become cheaper.
LEDs have also been used as a medium quality voltage reference in electronic circuits.
The forward voltage drop (e.g., about 1.7 V for a normal red LED) can be used instead of
a Zener diode in low-voltage regulators. Red LEDs have the flattest I/V curve above the
knee. Nitride-based LEDs have a fairly steep I/V curve and are useless for this purpose.
Although LED forward voltage is far more current-dependent than a good Zener, Zener
diodes are not widely available below voltages of about 3 V.
[edit] Light sources for machine vision systems
Machine vision systems often require bright and homogeneous illumination, so features
of interest are easier to process. LEDs are often used for this purpose, and this is likely to
remain one of their major uses until price drops low enough to make signaling and
illumination uses more widespread. Barcode scanners are the most common example of
machine vision, and many low cost ones use red LEDs instead of lasers. Optical
computer mice are also another example of LEDs in machine vision, as it is used to
provide an even light source on the surface for the miniature camera within the mouse.
LEDs constitute a nearly ideal light source for machine vision systems for several
reasons:
The size of the illuminated field is usually comparatively small and machine vision
systems are often quite expensive, so the cost of the light source is usually a minor
concern. However, it might not be easy to replace a broken light source placed within
complex machinery, and here the long service life of LEDs is a benefit.
LED elements tend to be small and can be placed with high density over flat or even-
shaped substrates (PCBs etc.) so that bright and homogeneous sources can be designed
which direct light from tightly controlled directions on inspected parts. This can often be
obtained with small, low-cost lenses and diffusers, helping to achieve high light densities
with control over lighting levels and homogeneity. LED sources can be shaped in several
configurations (spot lights for reflective illumination; ring lights for coaxial illumination;
back lights for contour illumination; linear assemblies; flat, large format panels; dome
sources for diffused, omnidirectional illumination).
LEDs can be easily strobed (in the microsecond range and below) and synchronized with
imaging. High-power LEDs are available allowing well lit images even with very short
light pulses. This is often used to obtain crisp and sharp “still” images of quickly moving
parts.
LEDs come in several different colors and wavelengths, allowing easy use of the best
color for each need, where different color may provide better visibility of features of
interest. Having a precisely known spectrum allows tightly matched filters to be used to
separate informative bandwidth or to reduce disturbing effects of ambient light. LEDs
usually operate at comparatively low working temperatures, simplifying heat
management and dissipation. This allows using plastic lenses, filters, and diffusers.
Waterproof units can also easily be designed, allowing use in harsh or wet environments
(food, beverage, oil industries).
[edit] See also

Electronics portal
Energy portal
• Display examples
• Laser diode
• LED circuit
• LED lamp
• LED as light sensor
• Luminous efficacy
• Nixie tube
• Photovoltaics
• Seven-segment display
• Solar lamp
• Solid-state lighting (SSL)
[edit] References
[edit] Notes
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[edit] Further reading
• Shuji Nakamura, Gerhard Fasol, Stephen J Pearton (2000). The Blue Laser
Diode: The Complete Story. Springer Verlag. ISBN 3540665056.
http://books.google.com/?id=AHyMBJ_LMykC&printsec=frontcover.
[edit] External links
Look up light-emitting diode in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Light-emitting diode
• Light-emitting diode at the Open Directory Project

• Rensselaer Electrical Engineering Department LED information arranged in
textbook form, aimed at introductory to advanced audience
[show]v · d · eLamps and lighting

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How Light Emitting Diodes Work
by Tom Harris
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Harris, Tom. "How Light Emitting Diodes Work" 31 January 2002.

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Inside this Article
1. Introduction to How Light Emitting Diodes Work

2. What is a Diode?
3. How Can a Diode Produce Light?
4. LED Advantages
5. Lots More Information
6. See all Solid State Electronics articles
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Solid State Electronics Image Gallery
Light emitting diodes form the numbers on digital clocks, send data from remote
controls and light up traffic signals. See more solid state electronics pictures.
Light emitting diodes, commonly called LEDs, are real unsung heroes in the electronics
world. They do dozens of different jobs and are found in all kinds of devices. Among
other things, they form the numbers on digital clocks, transmit information from remote
controls, light up watches and tell you when your appliances are turned on. Collected
together, they can form images on a jumbo television screen or illuminate a traffic light.
Basically, LEDs are just tiny light bulbs that fit easily into an electrical circuit. But unlike
ordinary incandescent bulbs, they don't have a filament that will burn out, and they don't
get especially hot. They are illuminated solely by the movement of electrons in a
semiconductor material, and they last just as long as a standard transistor.
Related Technology
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• Fabric Displays
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In this article, we'll examine the simple principles behind these ubiquitous blinkers,
illuminating some cool principles of electricity and light in the process.
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Microcontroller

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

A microcontroller (sometimes abbreviated µC, uC or MCU) is a small computer on a

Microcontrollers are used in automatically controlled products and devices, such as

[edit] Embedded design

[edit] Other microcontroller features

Microcontrollers usually contain from several to dozens of general purpose input/output

In addition to the converters, many embedded microprocessors include a variety of timers

[edit] Higher integration

A micro-controller is a single integrated circuit, commonly with the following features:

The decision of which peripheral to integrate is often difficult. The microcontroller

Microcontroller architectures vary widely. Some designs include general-purpose

Microcontrollers typically do not have a math coprocessor, so floating point arithmetic is

A typical home in a developed country is likely to have only four general-purpose

Manufacturers have often produced special versions of their microcontrollers in order to

The use of field-programmable devices on a microcontroller may allow field update of

[edit] Programming environments

Simulators are available for some microcontrollers, such as in Microchip's MPLAB

[edit] Types of microcontrollers

[edit] Interrupt latency

Other factors affecting interrupt latency include:

• Cycles needed to complete current CPU activities. To minimize those costs,

In 1993, the introduction of EEPROM memory allowed microcontrollers (beginning with

Other companies rapidly followed suit, with both memory types.

[edit] Microcontroller embedded memory technology

A few recent microcontrollers beginning in 2003 have "self-programmable" flash

PSoC microcontrollers, introduced in 2002, store firmware in SONOS flash memory.

MRAM could potentially be used to store firmware.

[edit] See also

[edit] External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Microcontrollers

• Microcontroller at the Open Directory Project

[show]v · d · eCPU technologies

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In electronics, an integrated circuit (also known as IC, chip, or microchip) is a

A hybrid integrated circuit is a miniaturized electronic circuit constructed of individual

Synthetic detail of an integrated circuit through four layers of planarized copper

Jack Kilby's original integrated circuit

[edit] SSI, MSI and LSI

Further development, driven by the same economic factors, led to "Large-Scale

Main article: Very-large-scale integration

Upper interconnect layers on an Intel 80486DX2 microprocessor die.

Multiple developments were required to achieve this increased density. Manufacturers

[edit] ULSI, WSI, SOC and 3D-IC

Wafer-scale integration (WSI) is a system of building very-large integrated circuits that

A system-on-a-chip (SoC or SOC) is an integrated circuit in which all the components

[edit] Advances in integrated circuits

A CMOS 4000 IC in a DIP

Main article: Semiconductor fabrication

The main process steps are supplemented by doping and cleaning.