Recently, The UK Technology Strategy Board (TSB) has announced funding for twelve innovative research projects to accelerate the development of more energy-efficient lighting, lasers and displays. The R&D projects are intended to help British manufacturers to stay ahead of international competition - and contribute to the UK's climate change goals.

The projects will see businesses working collaboratively with other businesses and academic institutions to develop and deploy technologies in areas such as more efficient LEDs, laser diodes, white-light fibre lasers and holographic optics. Other projects will see the integration of new and existing component technologies into working systems. The total value of the twelve projects is in excess of GBP15.5 million, with the Technology Strategy Board contributing over GBP7m of this figure. The Engineering and Physical Sciences Research Council (ESPRC) is contributing nearly GBP1m to five of the projects.

Some of the funded LED projects are listed below:

Title: LED lighting for the 21st Century [LL21C]
Summary: The LL21C consortium will demonstrate a novel electrically isolated ultra thin GaN LED (EIUT LED) capable of 95% light extraction and designed for general lighting applications.
Partners: PhotonStar LED, University of Cambridge

Title: Low Cost Holographic Optical Elements for Next Generation Lighting Systems: NAHO (Nano Aligned Holographic Optics)
Summary: The NAHO project will develop the technology for production in the UK of edge-lit lighting devices for use in buildings, based on silver halide holographic optical elements (HOEs) illuminated by state-of-the-art LEDs. These will increase efficiency of existing LED flat lighting screens from 45% up to 90% and enable a significant reduction in energy use.
Partners: Harman Technology Ltd, De Montfort University, Concord (Part of Havells-Sylvania)

Title: Enhanced Display Viewability using High Efficiency Advanced LED Backlight Arrays (ENDVIEW)
Summary: This project will deliver enhanced display viewability of dynamic images through the application of high performance LED arrays and novel optics systems.
Partners: GE Aviation Systems, University of Greenwich, University of Abertay Dundee, National Physical Laboratory, Thin Film Solutions Ltd, Raymarine plc, NCR Financial Solutions Group Ltd, Design LED Products Ltd

Title: MENDIPs - Manufacturing emissive nanotechnology devices in polymers
Summary: MENDIPs will create a sustainable controlled pilot manufacturing capability for the production of PLED devices. MENDIPs will also facilitate new auto/architectural/medical device applications as a result of reproducible and repeatable manufacturing processes being created.
Partners: PolyPhotonix, Sanko Gosei Ltd, Centre for Process Innovation Ltd

The TSB's Chief Executive, Iain Gray, said: "We are committed to stimulating the development and deployment of technologies which, as well as benefiting society, also represent major business opportunities for the UK. Advanced light and laser sources are an area where the UK has an excellent reputation for world-class research activity, a healthy industrial base and the capability to exploit the results globally."