UV-C LED efficiency doubled on the road toward mercury-free disinfection

Battling germs with UV-C radiation: disinfection with light is achieving global importance in hospitals, offices, kitchens, and bathrooms. Even tap water can be disinfected using UV-C radiation. ams OSRAM has now completed a technological breakthrough in this field within the scope of the evaluation of a new UV-C LED. The LED delivers over 10% efficiency at 200mW power, a wavelength of 265nm, and a lifespan exceeding 20,000 hours. With these specifications, it can replace traditional mercury discharge lamps in the future. The LED’s efficiency has been validated by Germany’s National Metrology Institute Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB).

Eliminating pathogens on surfaces, in liquids, or in the air is vital for safeguarding human health and the environment in everyday life and across various industries. Residue-free disinfection using energy-rich UV-C radiation is playing an increasingly significant role in this context.

Alongside UV-C LEDs, radiation sources mainly include low-pressure and medium-pressure discharge lamps. Due to their mercury content, these lamps pose health and environmental risks during production, operation, and disposal. The demand for more sustainable alternatives, such as UV-C LEDs, is steadily increasing. So far, however, their efficiency has not yet matched traditional technology to compete with established mercury vapour lamps across all applications fully.

“We are increasingly focusing our research and development efforts on sustainable products. As a leading LED manufacturer, our goal is to unlock and continuously enhance UV-C LED technology to enable an ever-growing number of applications,” explains Dr Ulrich Steegmueller, senior vice president of Research and Development in Business Unit Opto Semiconductors at ams OSRAM. To this end, the company is working on multiple technological advancements in the areas of epitaxy, as well as chip and package design. The company recently succeeded in optimising the extraction of UV-C radiation from the LED, thereby increasing the radiation output available for applications. The LED achieved wall plug efficiency (WPE) exceeding 10%, while also delivering a long lifespan of more than 20,000 hours. The company has, therefore, managed to nearly double the previous LEDs’ WPE of around 5.3% with all other conditions remaining unchanged.

This peak value has also been validated by the Physikalisch-Technische Bundesanstalt (PTB): the institute’s measurements confirm a WPE of 10.2%. In addition to improved optical performance, the company has successfully demonstrated that the samples tested exhibit a lifespan as long as that of high-power LEDs currently available on the market.

Peak efficiency and excellent lifespan validation underscore that this is a major technological and sustainable milestone for the company’s future developments. The new UV-C LEDs are expected to be available from late 2026 and will complement the existing product portfolio for advanced UV-C lighting solutions. The company safeguards its innovations in UV-C LED technology with more than 200 high-quality patent assets, securing a strong intellectual property position in this area.