With this work, we demonstrate a three-stage degradation behavior of GaN based LED chips under current/thermal co-stressing. The three stages in sequence are the initial improvement stage, the platform stage, and the rapid degradation stage, indicating that current/thermal co-stressing activates positive effects and negative ones simultaneously, and the dominant degradation mechanisms evolve with aging time. Degradation mechanisms are discussed. Electric current stress has dual characters: damaging the active layers by generating defects and at the same time improving the p-type conductivity by activating the Mg-dopant. High temperature stresses will promote the effects from electric current stresses. The activation of the Mg-dopant will saturate, whereas the generation of defects is carried on in a progressive way. Other mechanisms, such as deterioration of ohmic contacts, also operate. These mechanisms compete/cooperate with each other and evolve with aging time, resulting in the observed three-stage degradation behavior. There exist risks to predict the lifetime of LEDs by a model with a constant accelerated factor.

Derating of the working current level does not work for improving GaN-based light-emitting diode (LED) devices' reliability. The present work demonstrates that it is not the levels but the specific components of the applied electrical currents weighing more on LEDs' degradation. Existing defects are sources for tunneling currents and Shockley-Read-Hall (SRH) non-radiative recombination current, and the component of tunneling currents and SRH non-radiative recombination current in the applied electrical current will in turn induce fast increase of defect density. The current component from electron tunneling to deep levels in the vicinity of mixed/screw dislocations will affect more on LEDs' degradation than other components, such as heavy-hole tunneling via intermediate state. In a whole, the overflow leakage current from the active region and Auger recombination currents in the applied electrical current will generate positive effects to alleviate LEDs' degradation.

In this paper, the design of a luminaire for badminton court illumination is demonstrated from concept through computer simulation, construction trials, on-site installation, comparison with simulations and, finally, evaluations of the illuminated environment before and after the installation of the luminaires. The luminaire is composed of two high-performance light-emitting diode lighting modules, volume scattering diffusers with a one-shot transmittance higher than 70% and a reflecting cavity with a reflectivity higher than 85%. The luminaire has three different exit faces forming three Lambertian-like light sources with low luminance so as to reduce glare to the players when looking at the flight of the shuttlecock. Under similar total electric power consumption, compared to the original traditional lighting, the average illuminance on the ground is enhanced by about 300% and the uniformity is obviously improved. A questionnaire was issued to players before and after the installation of the new light-emitting diode luminaires. The new installation gained much more positive responses for brightness, comfort and number of usable courts from the players than the old installation.

The present work demonstrates that aging at higher temperatures significantly aggravates “efficiency droop” in the n-side-up vertical-structured GaN-based light-emitting diodes (LEDs). The observed luminous efficiency droop is over 40% at the measuring current of 350 mA. This phenomenon closely relates with creeping of Au80Sn20 eutectic bonds. On one hand, the plastic deformation accumulated during creeping at higher aging temperatures will make the LED epilayers tensile strained at room temperature. The tensile strain induces a change of the internal quantum efficiency (IQE). The maximum variation of IQE related with strain states was around 20%. On the other hand, creeping under the thermal-mismatching induced tensile stress activates voids' nucleation and growth in the solder bonds. The distribution profile of voids in solder bonds will be mapped on the multiple quantum-well structure in vertical-structured LED chips. Local current densities can be much higher than the average current density used in the calculation of LED's efficiencies. Therefore, the efficiency roll-off value will shift toward the smaller bias direction and the total internal quantum efficiency will decrease as current increases.

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