Performance and application of high-power ultraviolet AlGaInN light-emitting diodes

We report on high output power from the quaternary AlGaInN multiple quantum well (MQW) ultraviolet light emitting diodes (UV LEDs) in the 340 nm and 280 nm wavelength range. The output power up to 1.5 mW from a 100 μm diameter device with bare-chip configuration was measured under room temperature cw operation. The internal quantum efficiency was estimated to be between 7 and 10%. In addition, the output power and external quantum efficiency for fully packaged 1x1mm² large area device were as high as 54.6 mW and 1.45%, respectively, at the injection current of 200 A/cm² under pulsed operation. The devices were incorporated into prototype system for fluorescence based bio-sensing. We also report the performance of 285 nm UV LEDs.