White-light lasers challenge LEDs in directional lighting applications

Legacy halogen and metal halide light sources can produce highly directional beams, but with low efficiency and short lifetimes. And while light-emitting diodes (LEDs) are highly efficient with longer life, divergence angles <10° are difficult to produce from compact LED luminaires. Engineers at SoraaLaser (Goleta, CA) have found a solution by developing the first commercial solid-state, highly directional, and efficient white-light laser source with a luminance up to 100X better than LED luminaire devices.1