New $3 LED Bulb Lasts 60 Years

January 29th, 2009 by Ariel Schwartz

The battle between CFL and LED bulbs may finally be over thanks to researchers at Cambridge University who have developed a $3 LED bulb that lasts for 60 years. The bulb, which is smaller than a penny, is 12 times more efficient than tungsten bulbs and three times more efficient than fluorescent bulbs.

Cambridge’s new 100,000 hour, mercury-free LED bulb uses a man-made semiconductor called gallium nitride that is grown on a cheap silicon wafer. Previously, gallium nitride has only been grown on pricey sapphire wafers.

According to researchers working on the project, the first low-cost LED bulbs could be in stores as early as 2011.

Photo Credit: Graham Turner

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Tags: cambridge, CFL, led bulb, light, mercury

About the Author

Ariel Schwartz was formerly the editor of CleanTechnica and is a senior editor at Co.Exist. She has contributed to SF Weekly, Popular Science, Inhabitat, Greenbiz, NBC Bay Area, GOOD Magazine, and more. A graduate of Vassar College, she has previously worked in publishing, organic farming, documentary film, and newspaper journalism. Her interests include permaculture, hiking, skiing, music, relocalization, and cob (the building material). She currently resides in San Francisco, CA.

Anonymous

OK, it’s 2012 now, and I still haven’t seen these on the shelves.
- RWC
  
  ya, me too. I would very much like to find reasonably priced good LED ‘bulbs’ (light sources)!
guest

So I take it they built one of these 60 years ago and it only just stopped working then? If they didn’t then this claim that it will last for 60 years is untested and may as well be called out for what it is. Bullshit.
http://www.hydroponicsxl.com/index.php/grow-lights.html lights grow

Wow, this one is really one of the great invention forever. As I really want to appreciate to the Cambridge university for the developing $3 LED bulb. And the main feature of this bulb is, this one really works for 60 years. Just a tremendous work.
- http://www.lacostepoloshirtscheap.com.au lacoste polo shirts
  
  They each burnt out within a few weeks a a couple months after buying.
  Cheap garbage from China. No quality control. Sam’s Club should be
  ashamed of themselves selling such low value product!
Jessiechen2010

We specialized exporting LED lamps and LED driver.
MSN:jessiechen2010@hotmail.com
Hans-R

Its bull crap. I have a lightbulb that was said to last so long which is of the new. It died long before those old did. Its just a scam cus these are more expensive. Liers.
NightLight

Cities are already using LED street lights because of lower maintenance costs. They are nice and bright. We also see measures in place to prevent light pollution.
Lenny Marsh

Since these bulbs are usually “subsidized” by local power companies, can they PLEASE be made in the U.S.,
employing American workers in plants operating under U.S. environmental rules and regulations? Otherwise, it’ll be the usual Chinese (virtually) slave labor,
in heavily-polluting coal-powered plants, further affecting OUR air, too.
http://www.as3blog.org Rick

Even though it ‘can’ sell for $3, it’s more likely it will sell for 90-$100..
Jackie Hampton

I would be one, or a half-dozen.
Don

How do the know it will last 60 years,??? Have they had one on test stand for 60 years,??? That would lout live many people…
- Josh Cohen
  
  Don, It is possible. Lightbulbs made today are astonishing; they last longer due to the fact they use less energy which in turn saves you money. You should look more into it check out this site you will leanr a lot http://www.T5retrofitkit.com
Lee Zehrer

Bright idea.
Fifth Horseman

There goes my job. I will be replaced by a $3.00 light bulb that in not only cheap, but is not dangerous. That little CFL kept me busy cleaning them up when a drunk would drop one. Maybe I should start a firm that makes these bulbs, get federal money and make my millions. I better do it before the Chinese do it. Since you can make the LEDs for a penny that is 300 times profit.
labman57

Any money-back guarantee if it only lasts 50 years?

Potentially very promising. Of course, the devil is in the details — what is the total lumen capability and the watts/lumens ratio? They may be more efficient that CFLs, but can they provide the same brightness?
Sven

I didn’t know there was a battle between cfls and leds. It’s clear to me that led technology is vastly superior to cfls. Of course, those darned government subsidies to make cfls practically free has assuredly hurt more widespread adoption of leds.
nedmorlef

fat chance this throw away society will get a bulb that lasts 60 yrs. where’s the profit in that?

We’ll get it when they start making tires last the lifetime of a car.

How about a car you can repair over and over like those made before 1970?

Corporations don’t make money on stuff that lasts.
- http://www.zacharyshahan.com Zachary Shahan
  
  @nedmorlef: too true
http://www.itsashirt.com Itsashirt T shirts

I don’t like buing lightbulbs that last longer than I do…
http://www.itsashirt.com Itsashirt T shirts

I don’t like buing lightbulbs that last longer than I do…
http://www.itsashirt.com Itsashirt T shirts

I don’t like buing lightbulbs that last longer than I do…
Spuffler

I have 2 Lights of America LED lamps, purchased at WalMart in Rochester NH.

1 LED lamp is a 120V ’40W incandescent replacement lamp’. Light output is rather blue, and only projects in one hemisphere – with the base down, in a table lamp stand and a white lamp shade over it, the upper half of the shade is illuminated, the lower half is not, the separation is a clearly distinct line. Failure #1: not as omnidirectional as either CFL or incandescent.

Other LED lamp is a 12 VDC bipin reflector type intended for track lighting. It consumes less than 2 watts, I am powering it with a 12VDC 300mA wall transformer (1.5 watts would be 120 mA load, plenty of room). In this lamp, 4 individual LEDs out of 20 total are not working, bulb has approximately 1200 hrs on it. I would call this lamp to be clearly ‘end of life’ (I’m a career Electronic Engineering Development Technician, I’ve done MTBF studies and reliability testing in the past). Failure #2: longevity is not as advertised. Even when this lamp was new, light output was really low compared to the incandescent it is to replace.

All in all, LED lighting is best for niche applications where acceptance is determined by the user, and, LED companies needs to admit LED does NOT match lumen outputs of incandescents in both directionality and intensity.
Spuffler

I have 2 Lights of America LED lamps, purchased at WalMart in Rochester NH.

1 LED lamp is a 120V ’40W incandescent replacement lamp’. Light output is rather blue, and only projects in one hemisphere – with the base down, in a table lamp stand and a white lamp shade over it, the upper half of the shade is illuminated, the lower half is not, the separation is a clearly distinct line. Failure #1: not as omnidirectional as either CFL or incandescent.

Other LED lamp is a 12 VDC bipin reflector type intended for track lighting. It consumes less than 2 watts, I am powering it with a 12VDC 300mA wall transformer (1.5 watts would be 120 mA load, plenty of room). In this lamp, 4 individual LEDs out of 20 total are not working, bulb has approximately 1200 hrs on it. I would call this lamp to be clearly ‘end of life’ (I’m a career Electronic Engineering Development Technician, I’ve done MTBF studies and reliability testing in the past). Failure #2: longevity is not as advertised. Even when this lamp was new, light output was really low compared to the incandescent it is to replace.

All in all, LED lighting is best for niche applications where acceptance is determined by the user, and, LED companies needs to admit LED does NOT match lumen outputs of incandescents in both directionality and intensity.
/ smart guy

i wonder how many lumens they put out…..
James

Watch how fast this gets swept under the rug and forgotten about.
James

Watch how fast this gets swept under the rug and forgotten about.
James

Watch how fast this gets swept under the rug and forgotten about.
steve garner

I am all for L.E.D. bulbs. I think some of the

manufacturers should offer a promotional price

so some of us can afford them. Any one know of

such?
steve garner

I am all for L.E.D. bulbs. I think some of the

manufacturers should offer a promotional price

so some of us can afford them. Any one know of

such?
steve garner

I am all for L.E.D. bulbs. I think some of the

manufacturers should offer a promotional price

so some of us can afford them. Any one know of

such?
http://extremegreenvillage.com Bob

Now this definitely makes my head spin!!!

What is important is can these LEDs be plant growing LEDs at $3 a light?
http://extremegreenvillage.com Bob

Now this definitely makes my head spin!!!

What is important is can these LEDs be plant growing LEDs at $3 a light?
http://extremegreenvillage.com Bob

Now this definitely makes my head spin!!!

What is important is can these LEDs be plant growing LEDs at $3 a light?
http://www.linkedin.com/in/katherineaustin k. austin

Just wrote an article about this, and you’re jumping to conclusions that aren’t yet proven. First of all, the Cambridge group has barely managed to grow the LED wafers on small pieces of silicon in the lab, which is a long, long way from mass production.

Secondly, it turns out that the sapphire substrate is only a tiny portion of the cost of LED bulb manufacture– one 2-inch sapphire substrate costs about $25 and can be used to make 1,000 LEDs, so the silicon is not really a very exciting “breakthrough”.

Thirdly, the consensus in the field is that Humphries (the Cambridge researcher putting out the press releases on which the news articles are based– and on which his grant renewals depend) has a habit of over-hyping his results, and that the problems with silicon substrates will still be difficult to solve large scale.

Major companies are working toward lower-cost, higher-brightness LED bulbs, however (absolutely the wave of the future) by standardizing production and making the light engines modular, so that economies of scale can be introduced. Prices for home-quality lighting LEDs will be coming down soon, and since they last for so many years, you’ll actually save money by using them instead of CFLs.
http://www.linkedin.com/in/katherineaustin k. austin

Just wrote an article about this, and you’re jumping to conclusions that aren’t yet proven. First of all, the Cambridge group has barely managed to grow the LED wafers on small pieces of silicon in the lab, which is a long, long way from mass production.

Secondly, it turns out that the sapphire substrate is only a tiny portion of the cost of LED bulb manufacture– one 2-inch sapphire substrate costs about $25 and can be used to make 1,000 LEDs, so the silicon is not really a very exciting “breakthrough”.

Thirdly, the consensus in the field is that Humphries (the Cambridge researcher putting out the press releases on which the news articles are based– and on which his grant renewals depend) has a habit of over-hyping his results, and that the problems with silicon substrates will still be difficult to solve large scale.

Major companies are working toward lower-cost, higher-brightness LED bulbs, however (absolutely the wave of the future) by standardizing production and making the light engines modular, so that economies of scale can be introduced. Prices for home-quality lighting LEDs will be coming down soon, and since they last for so many years, you’ll actually save money by using them instead of CFLs.
Jason

Let see they just made CFL’s dimmable but their dimming capabilities are not very good at the lower range, they tend to flicker. When the LED replaement is put out shure the non dimmable will be cheap and good CR factors will be horrendous making people shy away again. Lets just see how they will perform in the real world.
Jason

Let see they just made CFL’s dimmable but their dimming capabilities are not very good at the lower range, they tend to flicker. When the LED replaement is put out shure the non dimmable will be cheap and good CR factors will be horrendous making people shy away again. Lets just see how they will perform in the real world.
Jason

Let see they just made CFL’s dimmable but their dimming capabilities are not very good at the lower range, they tend to flicker. When the LED replaement is put out shure the non dimmable will be cheap and good CR factors will be horrendous making people shy away again. Lets just see how they will perform in the real world.
summers zhou

We should have known profit from the led lightings whose long lifespan,stabilities of light glare as well as green conservations.In addition,high power but

less source consumption,real a energy savings.By the way,WjGOOD does well .
summers zhou

We should have known profit from the led lightings whose long lifespan,stabilities of light glare as well as green conservations.In addition,high power but

less source consumption,real a energy savings.By the way,WjGOOD does well .
summers zhou

We should have known profit from the led lightings whose long lifespan,stabilities of light glare as well as green conservations.In addition,high power but

less source consumption,real a energy savings.By the way,WjGOOD does well .
http://1GreenProduct.com Aaron Dalton

Sounds great, but I agree that the real question is when it will come to market and how much it will cost. For a good solution available right now, check out the new Pharox LED bulb. Requires just 4 watts of energy (!) to replace a 40-watt incandescent. Prices on this latest generation of LED bulbs are getting more reasonable too… http://tinyurl.com/d2ar8o

– Aaron Dalton, Editor, 1GreenProduct.com
http://1GreenProduct.com Aaron Dalton

Sounds great, but I agree that the real question is when it will come to market and how much it will cost. For a good solution available right now, check out the new Pharox LED bulb. Requires just 4 watts of energy (!) to replace a 40-watt incandescent. Prices on this latest generation of LED bulbs are getting more reasonable too… http://tinyurl.com/d2ar8o

– Aaron Dalton, Editor, 1GreenProduct.com
- MikeBravo
  
  Sorry, but 40 watt equivalent is not enough light for a piss ants reading lamp. When an LED gives me enough lumens to light a room like a 150 watt incandescent, then I will be interested.
  - Shaboinkin
    
    If I recall, most of the wattage that goes in incandescent light bulbs go towards heat. You only get 10-20 watts of actual light out of them.
    
    When they say 40 watts for these type of lights, all 40 watts goes towards lighting the thing. There’s not much heat loss in LEDs
    - Shaboinkin
      
      ”
      all 40 watts”
      
      well, most of it. It’s more
      efficient.
Uncle B

Now is the time to get a seed – starter grow bed going, and may be hydroponics in the winter months will pay off with nice greens for Northern climates! If this is true, and the power consumption is the typically low LED levels, we have a food miracle on our hands! Growing indoor gardens in the darker months will become child’s play! One Web site now instructs on the use of xmas LEDs and has great success, these larger, brighter fixtures will revolutionize home gardening and have the potential to feed hungry people world wide! They will also reduce power consumption by a credible factor and obviate the use of heavy copper wiring in homes for lighting, a huge environmental and cash savings! We are on the threshold of a new era! Post (GRD) great republican depression Americans will have been conditioned by the catastrophic events of the GRD to make mind bending changes in their lives, this will be one of them, more solar and wind powered homes, more greenhouses, and may be they will even see their way to doing things mathematical metrically, as the entire world outside their small backwards little space does! Who knows! Electing Obama was a miracle, seeing GM go to the bottom and beg for socialistic government help was another! Come on G d, fill in the rest of the blanks, we are waiting!
Uncle B

Now is the time to get a seed – starter grow bed going, and may be hydroponics in the winter months will pay off with nice greens for Northern climates! If this is true, and the power consumption is the typically low LED levels, we have a food miracle on our hands! Growing indoor gardens in the darker months will become child’s play! One Web site now instructs on the use of xmas LEDs and has great success, these larger, brighter fixtures will revolutionize home gardening and have the potential to feed hungry people world wide! They will also reduce power consumption by a credible factor and obviate the use of heavy copper wiring in homes for lighting, a huge environmental and cash savings! We are on the threshold of a new era! Post (GRD) great republican depression Americans will have been conditioned by the catastrophic events of the GRD to make mind bending changes in their lives, this will be one of them, more solar and wind powered homes, more greenhouses, and may be they will even see their way to doing things mathematical metrically, as the entire world outside their small backwards little space does! Who knows! Electing Obama was a miracle, seeing GM go to the bottom and beg for socialistic government help was another! Come on G d, fill in the rest of the blanks, we are waiting!
Rob

LED replacement light bulbs are here TODAY. I just bought a bunch at Sam’s Club. Made by Lights of America, $14.86 for 3, 40W of soft white light for 1.5W of power consumption. Just replaced a bunch of 7W CFL’s in our ceiling fans. Turn-on time is instant and they work great in cold temps outside, unlike a lot of CFL’s. Color is perfect….they just need to market them with frosted glass to reduce the glare when you look at it.
Rob

LED replacement light bulbs are here TODAY. I just bought a bunch at Sam’s Club. Made by Lights of America, $14.86 for 3, 40W of soft white light for 1.5W of power consumption. Just replaced a bunch of 7W CFL’s in our ceiling fans. Turn-on time is instant and they work great in cold temps outside, unlike a lot of CFL’s. Color is perfect….they just need to market them with frosted glass to reduce the glare when you look at it.
Rob

LED replacement light bulbs are here TODAY. I just bought a bunch at Sam’s Club. Made by Lights of America, $14.86 for 3, 40W of soft white light for 1.5W of power consumption. Just replaced a bunch of 7W CFL’s in our ceiling fans. Turn-on time is instant and they work great in cold temps outside, unlike a lot of CFL’s. Color is perfect….they just need to market them with frosted glass to reduce the glare when you look at it.
- Greg
  
  I bought these. A waste of money. They each burnt out within a few weeks a a couple months after buying. Cheap garbage from China. No quality control. Sam’s Club should be ashamed of themselves selling such low value product!
armando solis

wow hopefully it will be in production.
armando solis

wow hopefully it will be in production.
Steve

just watching is right. Ive never even heard of these so called “led lights”. I call shenanigans.
Steve

just watching is right. Ive never even heard of these so called “led lights”. I call shenanigans.
justwatching

Always in the future !!!

I have been hearing this kind of song and dance for 50 years.

It is just a scheme to get investor money and it never pays a dividend.
justwatching

Always in the future !!!

I have been hearing this kind of song and dance for 50 years.

It is just a scheme to get investor money and it never pays a dividend.
justwatching

Always in the future !!!

I have been hearing this kind of song and dance for 50 years.

It is just a scheme to get investor money and it never pays a dividend.
http://Baosol.com Andrew Michler

Really a lot more mercury, and carbon, and soot will be reduced at your local coal plant rather than not using a cfl.
http://Baosol.com Andrew Michler

Really a lot more mercury, and carbon, and soot will be reduced at your local coal plant rather than not using a cfl.
http://Baosol.com Andrew Michler

Really a lot more mercury, and carbon, and soot will be reduced at your local coal plant rather than not using a cfl.
Scott_T

Color isnt too hard to adjust in LEDs since its just a mixture of phosphorescent materials.
Scott_T

Color isnt too hard to adjust in LEDs since its just a mixture of phosphorescent materials.
David Diez

I wonder how the color will be in the early models. It took awhile for CFLs to get it right.
David Diez

I wonder how the color will be in the early models. It took awhile for CFLs to get it right.
http://templatecascade.com Emiliano Jordan

Nice… The really big story here is “Mercury Free”! Can’t wait, hopefully they’re out before 2011
http://templatecascade.com Emiliano Jordan

Nice… The really big story here is “Mercury Free”! Can’t wait, hopefully they’re out before 2011