Gizmodo: light emitting diode

180-Inch 3D LED Wall is First Step to Scaring Time Travelers From 1985

Elaine Chow — Wed, 03 Dec 2008 00:00:00 EST

Imagine one-upping Adam Frucci by posing with a 180-inch screen... that displays 3D! NewSight could give you a chance with their new gargantuan 3D video wall. Sadly, it uses LEDs for pixels, making the resolution all Monet-like.

Unlike Panasonic's behemoth, Newsight's 3D Wall most likely will never make it into a trajillionaire's AV room. However, you will probably see it in Times Square one day, especially given its ability to combine with three other displays to make a 360-inch monster.

And then all you have to do is come out with some 3D shark movie with scary ass advertisements and it'll be like Back to the Future II is finally coming true. [Tech On]

Make's LED History Movie Is Pretty Cool, Includes DIY Instructions

Kit Eaton — Mon, 24 Nov 2008 04:33:00 EST

We all take LEDs pretty much for granted, but the guys over at MAKE have done a good job with this movie that shows the history behind the little glowing things. Turns out the Light Emitting Diode was one of those devices that was more or less discovered by accident, during an experiment at Marconi labs into a Cat's-Whisker Schottky barrier diode made from a chunk of silicon carbide: so MAKE, of course, shows you how to recreate that for yourself. Check it out: it's fascinating stuff. [Makezine]

Build Your Own LED Light Cube

Elaine Chow — Fri, 12 Sep 2008 00:30:00 EDT

Nothing brightens up a tech geek's room like an awesome LED cube, and Hack n' Mod has got a couple of do-it-yourself instructions for building your own glowy box thing. You can get started with a small, less ambitious 3x3x3 cube design, maybe step it up to a 4x4x4 design if you're more confident, and ultimately build your own 8x8x8 cube (like the one after the jump)! Of course, you could always just buy one from LED Cube manufacturers like Seekway, but where's the fun in that? [Hack n' Mod]

Purdue University Breakthrough Could Lead to Low-Cost, Mass-Produced LEDs

Jack Loftus — Sun, 20 Jul 2008 16:00:00 EDT

The researchers at Purdue University are just full of bright ideas these days, and this weekend was no exception. Thanks to a major breakthrough, they may have overcome a major obstacle for "solid state lighting," which laymen like to call LED (light emitting diode). That obstacle? Cost. LEDs are expensive, mostly because their innards are created on a substrate of sapphire. That means only a few gadgets and luxury cars headlights have benefited from the tech so far. Purdue researchers solved the conundrum with a technique that creates the LEDs on low-cost, metal-coated silicon wafers. This is great news for energy conservation, because while LEDs are much more efficient than their incandescent brethren, they are also 20 times more expensive to produce. [Purdue University]