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Energy@Rensselaer: Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute Illuminates the Future of Lighting
University’s Pair of World-Class Research
Centers Investigate the “Whys and Hows” of
Lighting
Lighting technology touches nearly everything we do — from
illuminating our homes and workplaces, to making a left turn at
an intersection, or snapping a photo with a cell phone. Given
the sheer ubiquity of lighting, it’s easy to take the
technology for granted — but lighting is the subject of intense
scrutiny by scientists at two Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute
research centers.
The field of lighting is undergoing a fascinating,
revolutionary transformation. The century-old light bulb is
steadily ceding ground to its high-tech successor, the
light-emitting diode (LED). While the promise of LEDs as a
long-lived, energy-efficient heir to light bulbs is undeniable,
the true promise of LED and solid-state lighting technology
transcends illumination. LEDs offer the potential to control,
manipulate, and use light in entirely new ways for a
surprisingly diverse range of areas. Our understanding of all
types of lighting continues to grow.
Rensselaer is a leading voice in expanding the frontier of
lighting research. The university has assembled a critical mass
of experts and researchers who are investigating the full
spectrum of lighting and lighting research. Much of this
innovation is facilitated through a pair of world-class,
industry-focused research centers: the Lighting Research Center
(LRC) and the Smart Lighting
Engineering Research Center (ERC). The complementary
centers, both situated about 25 kilometers east of where Thomas
Edison perfected the first mass-produced incandescent light
bulb, are using lighting to create a brighter, more sustainable
future.
Established in 1988, the LRC has built an international
reputation as a reliable source for objective information about
lighting technologies and applications. The ERC, launched in
2008, is developing new technologies and applications for
improved and smarter lighting devices and systems.
“LEDs and lighting research present a rich opportunity, in
terms of energy efficiency and human health, and toward
unearthing a host of yet-undiscovered applications,” said Rensselaer
President Shirley Ann Jackson. “With innovation, ingenuity,
and old-fashioned hard work, the LRC and ERC at Rensselaer are
rewriting the rules for making, manipulating, exploiting, and
understanding the effects of lighting. And by partnering
closely with industry, we are ensuring these new technologies
are moving swiftly from the lab to the marketplace.”
Lighting Research Center
The LRC is the world's leading
university-based research and education organization devoted to
lighting. Programs and activities at the center include
laboratory testing and real-world demonstration and evaluation
of lighting products, while also conducting research into
energy efficiency, new products and technologies, lighting
design, and human factors issues. The LRC offers a doctoral
program and one- and two-year master’s degree programs in
lighting, as well as global training programs for government
agencies, utilities, contractors, lighting designers, and other
lighting professionals.
“We see the LRC as the nucleus for independent lighting
research and education, as well as the pre-eminent source of
objective, timely information about lighting technologies,
applications, and about human response to light,” said
Rensselaer Professor and LRC Director
Mark Rea. “For more than two decades, the LRC has
transformed science into real-world applications, while always
remaining true to its mission—advancing the effective use of
light for society and the environment.”
For example, research by Rensselaer Professor
Nadarajah Narendran led to the development of the Scattered
Photon Extraction method for improving white LED
performance by more than 30 percent. Globally, the LRC is
performing laboratory testing of LED-based, off-grid lighting
products under a
World Bank Group contract to improve access to modern,
clean lighting in Sub-Saharan Africa. In another project,
Rensselaer Associate Professor
Mariana Figueiro conducted the
first field studies examining how light impacts teenagers’
sleeping habits and school performance, contributing to a
new
daylighting design guide for schools by Rensselaer
Professor
Russ Leslie.
Smart Lighting ERC
Just as the transistor revolutionized modern
electronics, LEDs are poised to enable the next generation of
future lighting systems with radically new capabilities. The
Smart Lighting Engineering Research Center at Rensselaer,
funded primarily by the National Science Foundation, is
advancing the fundamental scientific and engineering approaches
required to realize this potential of LEDs and solid-state
lighting. The ERC team is working
to create better LEDs, as well as new sensors and systems
required to effectively to monitor and control these LEDs.
“We see the ERC as the advanced research engine for future
solid-state lighting systems that will bring a vast new range
of capabilities to lighting,” said Rensselaer Professor and ERC
Director Robert
Karlicek. “We currently work with the LRC to define
critical human-factor considerations for lighting to ensure
that future LED luminaires, lighting sensors, and control
technologies are both energy efficient and optimized for human
health and safety. These lighting solutions provide additional
benefits, including data delivery and efficient, vivid
displays.”
In one project, Rensselaer Professor
Partha Dutta works with an interdisciplinary team of
undergraduate students to demonstrate the feasibility of
LCD-based virtual windows. To make virtual window technology a
reality, the displays need to be bright and efficient enough to
reproduce light from an actual window. Rensselaer Professors Christian Wetzel and Shawn-Yu
Lin are developing the technologies needed to create a
family of polarized LEDs in various colors that will achieve
the required brightness and reduction in energy
consumption.
Energy and the Environment
Lighting and lighting research at Rensselaer fall
under the university’s strategic research thrust of Energy
and the Environment. The research leaders who work, study,
and innovate at Rensselaer share a common focus: unearthing new
opportunities for solving the 21st century’s most challenging
problems.
“Lighting for illumination, and for televisions and other
display devices, comprises a considerable percentage of energy
usage in the United States and around the world,” said
Rensselaer Provost Robert Palazzo. “This
challenge presents an opportunity, and Rensselaer —
particularly through the ERC and LRC — is deeply committed to
innovating solutions for greater efficiency in lighting
technologies and applications.”
Right now, more than 6.5 billion people are competing for
the Earth’s dwindling supply of fossil fuels. By 2050, there
will be 8 to 10 billion, and major advances in energy
technology will be required to meet their needs. Rensselaer has
faced that challenge by launching and expanding programs in
renewable energy sources and energy conservation. The Institute
is also dedicated to tackling major environmental concerns,
including sustainable development and the global need for clean
water. Lighting technology is a key component of this strategic
thrust.
“The ERC is focused on educating a new class of electrical
engineers and materials scientists who understand both the
fundamental physical science and engineering of advanced
solid-state lighting systems,” said
David Rosowsky, dean of the School of Engineering
at Rensselaer. “This is a critical component of our mission to
educate the next generation of engineering leaders, who have
the multidisciplinary knowledge and experience to innovate
local solutions to the grand, global challenges we will face in
the coming decades.”
For more information on the LRC and Smart Lighting ERC at
Rensselaer, visit:
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Published
May 23,
2011 |
Contact: Michael Mullaney
Phone: (518) 276-6161
E-mail: mullam@rpi.edu |
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