Gallium nitride transistors promise brighter future for LEDs

New advances in transistor technology could make the light-emitting diode (LED) the commercial light source of the future. Although known for long life and low energy consumption, the LED uses a DC power supply, or driver, to overcome its sensitivity to current fluctuations, and it’s the high-frequency, high-speed switching transistors in this driver that’s made the LED so costly for use in large-scale commercial applications dominated by fluorescent and incandescent lighting.