Light-Radiating Semiconductor Component with a Luminescence Conversion Element

Abstract

The light-radiating semiconductor component has a radiation-emitting semiconductor body and a luminescence conversion element. The semiconductor body emits radiation in the ultraviolet, blue and/or green spectral region and the luminescence conversion element converts a portion of the radiation into radiation of a longer wavelength. This makes it possible to produce light-emitting diodes which radiate polychromatic light, in particular white light, with only a single light-emitting semiconductor body. A particularly preferred luminescence conversion dye is YAG:Ce.

1 - 33 . (canceled) 
     
     
         34 . A light-radiating semiconductor component comprising a semiconductor body having a semiconductor layer sequence configured to emit electromagnetic radiation of a first wavelength range during operation of the semiconductor component; and
 a luminescence conversion element comprising at least one luminescent material,   wherein the luminescence conversion element is operable to convert at least some electromagnetic radiation from the first wavelength range emitted by the semiconductor body into light of at least one second wavelength range, different from the first wavelength range, and   the luminescence conversion element comprises particles of at least one inorganic luminescent material embedded in a light transmitting inorganic material.   
     
     
         35 . The semiconductor component of  claim 34 , wherein the light transmitting inorganic material comprises inorganic glass. 
     
     
         36 . The semiconductor component of  claim 35 , wherein the inorganic glass is a silicate glass. 
     
     
         37 . The semiconductor component of  claim 34 , wherein the luminescence conversion element is a luminescence conversion layer which is arranged on or above the semiconductor body. 
     
     
         38 . The semiconductor component of  claim 37 , further comprising a housing, the housing having a recess in which the semiconductor body is disposed, wherein the luminescence conversion layer is arranged to cover the recess. 
     
     
         39 . The semiconductor component of  claim 37 , further comprising a housing and a covering plate, the housing having a recess in which the semiconductor body is disposed and the covering plate being arranged to cover the recess, wherein the covering plate comprises the luminescence conversion layer. 
     
     
         40 . The semiconductor component of  claim 39 , wherein the covering plate comprises inorganic glass. 
     
     
         41 . The semiconductor component of  claim 38 , wherein the recess is filled with a transparent plastic or an inorganic glass. 
     
     
         42 . The semiconductor component of  claim 39 , wherein the recess is filled with a gas or provided with a vacuum. 
     
     
         43 . The semiconductor component of  claim 34 , wherein the luminescence conversion element is a luminescence conversion encapsulation which encloses at least a part of the semiconductor body. 
     
     
         44 . The semiconductor component of  claim 43  further comprising a housing and two electrical terminals, wherein the housing is made from an opaque plastic and has a recess, the semiconductor body is disposed in the recess, the electrical terminals are embedded in the housing and the semiconductor body is mounted on one of the electrical terminals in the recess. 
     
     
         45 . The semiconductor component of  claim 34 , wherein the luminescence conversion element comprises a plurality of layers having mutually different wavelength conversion properties. 
     
     
         46 . The semiconductor component of  claim 45 , wherein the layers of the plurality of layers are arranged one after the other relative to the semiconductor body. 
     
     
         47 . The semiconductor component of  claim 34 , wherein the inorganic luminescent material is selected from the group consisting of garnets doped with rare earth, aluminates doped with rare earth, alkaline earth metal sulfides doped with rare earth, thiogallates doped with rare earth, and orthosilicates doped with rare earth. 
     
     
         48 . The semiconductor component of  claim 47 , wherein the luminescent material is a Ce-doped garnet. 
     
     
         49 . The semiconductor component of  claim 34 , wherein the luminescent material is YAG:Ce. 
     
     
         50 . The semiconductor component of  claim 34 , wherein the particles have a median particle size of approximately 10 μm. 
     
     
         51 . The semiconductor component of  claim 34 , wherein the luminescence conversion element comprises a plurality of different inorganic luminescent materials. 
     
     
         52 . The semiconductor component of  claim 34 , wherein the luminescence conversion element comprises light scattering particles. 
     
     
         53 . The semiconductor component of  claim 34 , wherein the first wavelength range comprises at least light from the one of the following spectral ranges: ultraviolet spectral range, blue spectral range, green spectral range. 
     
     
         54 . The semiconductor component of  claim 34 , wherein the first wavelength range comprises at least light from the blue spectral range. 
     
     
         55 . The semiconductor component of  claim 53 , wherein the luminescence conversion element includes a luminescent material that is luminescent in a blue spectral region. 
     
     
         56 . The semiconductor component of  claim 34 , wherein the electromagnetic radiation emitted by the semiconductor body has a luminescence intensity maximum at a wavelength λ≦520 nm. 
     
     
         57 . The semiconductor component of  claim 56 , wherein the light emitted by the semiconductor body has a luminescence intensity maximum at a wavelength of between 420 nm and 460 nm. 
     
     
         58 . The light-radiating semiconductor component of  claim 34 , wherein the semiconductor component is operable to emit white light, the white light being composed of visible light of the first wavelength range emitted by the semiconductor body and of visible light of the at least one second wavelength range emitted by the luminescence conversion element. 
     
     
         59 . The light-radiating semiconductor component of  claim 58 , wherein the luminescence conversion element is operable to convert electromagnetic radiation from the first wavelength range into light of a plurality of second wavelength ranges having mutually different colors, such that the white light is composed of light from the first wavelength range emitted by the semiconductor body and of light from each of the second wavelength ranges emitted by the luminescence conversion element. 
     
     
         60 . The semiconductor component of  claim 34 , wherein a part of the light from the blue spectral range emitted by the semiconductor body is converted into the yellow spectral region by the luminescence conversion element. 
     
     
         61 . The semiconductor component of  claim 34 , wherein the semiconductor body is operable to emit ultraviolet light and the luminescence conversion element is configured for converting at least a portion of the ultraviolet light into visible light. 
     
     
         62 . A display device, comprising a display and a plurality of the semiconductor components of  claim 34 , wherein the semiconductor components are disposed to illuminate the display. 
     
     
         63 . The display device of  claim 62 , wherein the display is a liquid crystal display. 
     
     
         64 . A full-color LED display device comprising a plurality of the light-radiating semiconductor components of  claim 34 . 
     
     
         65 . A method for producing the semiconductor component of  claim 34 , wherein producing the luminescence conversion element involves a sol gel technique. 
     
     
         66 . A light-radiating semiconductor component comprising a semiconductor body having a semiconductor layer sequence configured to emit electromagnetic radiation of a first wavelength range during operation of the semiconductor component;
 a transparent encapsulation; and   a luminescence conversion layer comprising at least one luminescent material,   wherein the first wavelength range comprises at least light from the one of the following spectral ranges: ultraviolet spectral range, blue spectral range, green spectral range;   the luminescence conversion layer is operable to convert at least some electromagnetic radiation from the first wavelength range emitted by the semiconductor body into light of at least one second wavelength range, different from the first wavelength range;   the luminescence conversion layer comprises at least one inorganic luminescent material;   the transparent encapsulation is made from inorganic glass; and   the luminescence conversion layer is applied to the transparent encapsulation.   
     
     
         67 . The semiconductor component of  claim 66 , wherein the inorganic luminescent material is used in powder form. 
     
     
         68 . The semiconductor component of  claim 66 , further comprising a housing, the housing having a recess in which the semiconductor body is disposed, wherein at least a part of the luminescence conversion layer and at least a part of the transparent encapsulation are arranged to cover the recess. 
     
     
         69 . The semiconductor component of  claim 66 , wherein the luminescence conversion layer comprises particles of at least one inorganic luminescent material embedded in a light transmitting inorganic material. 
     
     
         70 . The semiconductor component of  claim 69 , wherein the light transmitting inorganic material comprises inorganic glass. 
     
     
         71 . The semiconductor component of  claim 70 , wherein the inorganic glass is a silicate glass.