By Scott Watson

The word “LED” is a short form for “Light Emitting Diode”.  Simply puts, LEDs are tiny diodes that conduct current only in one direction. There are lots of practical aspects you can learn about LEDs. They are actually wonderful electrical devices that can accomplish a lot when put into use.  You can also learn a lot from their electrical behaviors.

LEDs are actually known for having higher voltages than the ordinary diodes found in electronics.  This is mainly because; they are not made of silicon element. They are rather made from varieties of semiconductors.  However, the basic characteristics of LEDs are quite similar to that of many other diodes seen in electronics.

As Light emitting devices, LEDs have a lot to offer.  Actually, every kind of diode emits   some levels of light.  For instance, a simple IC emits light but the issue is that, the light it emits is very minute.   LEDs are carefully designed to optimize the emission of light in their various capacities. Hence, they have higher voltages than many other diodes found in electronics. They are simply designed to generate more light anywhere they are found or used.

In the electronic world, LEDs are mainly optimized to generate the right colored light using the lowers voltage.  This makes them to be very economical when used for various purposes. They take time to dissipate their energy levels.

All over the world today, light bulbs are greatly used. They can easily be seen anywhere. You find them in offices, homes,   hotels and indeed everywhere.  There are over 20 billion light bulbs in use all over world.   They showcase in diverse shapes, designs and colors.  It may interest you to know that majoring of the bulbs in use all over the world are simply Light emitting diodes (LEDs).  This is a real fact since LEDs are known for producing quality light than many other incandescent bulbs out there.  In most cases, LEDs are known to be very efficient and can also be used for a variety of purposes.  There’s a lot to learn about their practical aspects. You can even learn   how to generate practical lighting designs by putting them into good use.

Classes of LEDs
In the recent times, LEDs have been categorized into two classes namely Small devices and Power devices.   Let’s take a look at them.

Small Devices
Actually, the Small devices have been in use since the early 1970s.  They showcase in a variety of colors such as green, blue, red, yellow and orange.  They are usually very minute in size. These days, they come in billions of shapes and designs.  They are used in various gadgets and electronics all over the world.  For instance, they serve as backlights to various mobile phones and mobile devices.  They are also used in designing flashlights and elevator pushbuttons.   They are also used in manufacturing automobile dashboards, road signage, incandescent bulb replacements, traffic lights, fluorescent tube replacements, truck taillights and a lot more.   Basically, the small LEDs are known for their awesome power level or their inherent current drive capacity. For instance, the red small LED found in various gadgets   has a current drive capacity of 20mA.  Other white LEDs have higher forward voltage measuring up to 3.6V while many other smaller LEDs can also run up to a capacity of 100mA.  In most cases, such smaller LEDs serve as indicators. They are not actually the real sources of light.  They can be up to 14 in number   just to make up a working flashlight.   About 100s of such LEDs also make up dim fluorescent tube replacements.

Power Devices
The Power devices or LEDs are mainly run at 350mA.  They are of higher voltage than the small LEDs.  Such Power LEDs are mainly used in locations that require much lighting other than the use of simple indicators.  They can be used in manufacturing big flashlights, large screen Television sets,   incandescent bulb replacements, automotive headlights, projector lights, airstrip runaway lighting and other gadgets.

Apart from the above classes of LEDs, there are still other basic classifications that can be explored.  For instance, LEDs can be categorized in their colors.   They can showcase in a variety of colors such as white, red, blue, yellow and so on.    They may also have varying voltages. This is because they are made of varying semiconductor elements.

Meanwhile, White LED seems to attract so much attention. This is because; they are not made of single elements.  Actually, they are made of a mixture of colors yet, they still remain whitish in appearance.   Currently, there are two major ways of generating white light. The first method is the use of an LED that generates blue light while the blue light is turned to white by an element known as Phosphor.  The second method is the use of various colored LEDs which are combined together.

In any case, the above exposition as already seen focuses on introducing LEDs and their practical aspects.  There’s a lot to learn about these wonderful devices. They have been in use over the years.  Every since they were introduced in the electronic world, they have continued to undergo various changes. The electronic technology is always very dynamic. This also affects the LEDs and every other device. They keep changing in their shapes, designs and functions.Today, there are wide varieties of LEDs used for various purposes.  They are virtually seen in most gadgets and other electronic devices. They showcase in a variety of sizes, colors and shapes.  Many of them serve great purposes when used in manufacturing mobile devices. There’s a lot you can learn about the practical designs of LEDs. You’ll get to know more about this as you keep studying the devices. LEDs have continued to daze the electronic world with their unique functions. They are simply wonderful devices with excellent functions. You can sure   of increasing your electronic knowledge about LEDs when you take time to know more about their make-ups and functions.