Nanoco hopes for a warm glow with Osram

MANCHESTER’S Nanoco has signed a follow-on joint development agreement with the light bulb manufacturer Osram with the aim of giving LED lighting a warmer glow.

Nanoco makes quantum dots – tiny fluorescent particles of semiconductor material which have the ability to emit light. They are in demand by the makers of electronic goods because they consume less power than existing systems.

For the past three years the company has been working with Osram on ways to apply its technology to general lighting.

It said current methods for producing white light from a blue LED tend to produce light that lacks warmth and fails to show true colours.

Nanoco believes its quantum dots have the potential to overcome these issues, which it says are limiting the widespread adoption of LEDs in general lighting.

The company said: “Considerable technical progress has been made to date in optimising the method for incorporating Nanoco’s cadmium-free quantum dots with blue LEDs. During this latest phase of work with Osram, which is for a 12-month period, it is intended to further the product development.”