Quantum Dots Will Replace Light Bulbs...Eventually

An accidental discovery announced this week has taken LED lighting to a new level, suggesting it could soon offer a cheaper, longer-lasting alternative to the traditional light bulb. The miniature breakthrough adds to a growing trend that is likely to eventually make Thomas Edison's bright invention obsolete.

The main light source of the future will almost surely not be a bulb. It might be a table, a wall, or even a fork. If the new process can be developed into commercial production, light won't come just from newfangled bulbs. Quantum dot mixtures could be painted on just about anything and electrically excited to produce a rainbow of colors, including white.

The breakthrough was made by Michael Bowers, a graduate student at Vanderbilt University. He was trying to make "quantum dots" -- crystals only a few nanometers long.

"The new device gives off a warm, yellowish-white light that shines twice as bright and lasts 50 times longer than the standard 60 watt light bulb."