History of Cree LEDs

[Fallingwater]

What were the first Crees? Did we start with the P4s or was there something before those?
What's the model history?
I'm aware of the P4, Q4 and Q5, but I don't know what was inbetween and before.
I've googled, but I haven't found anything relevant.

 

[Fallingwater]

*bump*

 

[Marduke]

I just typed "cree bins" into Google, and the first three hits were for this:
http://cree.com/products/pdf/XLamp7090XR-E_B&L.pdf

Which has their binning code explained and layed out in B&W (well, black, blue, and white...)

 

[extas]

CREE the company was incorporated in 1987. They were founded by a group of researchers, that were intent on commercializing the use of SIC (silicon carbide) as a semiconductor. one of the first target markets they drilled down to was the Blue LED. And due to the potential market they have stayed with it. Silicon Carbide is one of the 4 holy grail semiconductor substrates that can advance the use of semiconductors into harsh environments, it can handle much higher temperatures (vs silicon), it is a better conductor of heat, it is more resistant to radiation.

all of the CREE Leds are based on SIC substrates, and are protected by a large in house patent portfolio and an extensive cross-licensing deal with nichia japan. They have been a player in the LED market for a long time, but really no one cared until they had the XR-E. I know most of the public info due to being an investor since around 2000. for a detailed timeline of their history (with leds) go to:

http://cree.com/about/milestones.htm

CREE did not come out of nowhere, they are an example of US innovation and technical leadership. They have a commanding lead with their SIC-based technology, and they are finally on track with getting their house in order to push things from the lab (where they are historically strong) into an enterprise operation (that can make money).

this is all IMO and not a financial recommendation.

-ex

 

[Fallingwater]

I just typed "cree bins" into Google, and the first three hits were for this:
http://cree.com/products/pdf/XLamp7090XR-E_B&L.pdf
Which has their binning code explained and layed out in B&W (well, black, blue, and white...)

I found that out myself, but I'm more interested in the practical point of view.

The XR-E was the product that launched them in flashlights, so what was the first emitter type that people really looked at with amazement and statements of "this is so much better than the Luxeon"? Was it the P4 or was there something before that?

 

[evan9162]

The XL3-7090 was about on-par with Luxeons of the same era in terms of luminous output.

But - they had a strange beam profile, did not use a conformal phosphor coating (poor focusing in reflectors), had horrible off-axis color quality (turned very green on the sides), and had an exceptionally high Vf (4V at 700mA). They also had the same basic shape of a package that the XR-Es do. With all of those issues, they weren't compelling enough of a product for many to consider, especially with the vastly different package and beam profile.

I believe the Xlamp XL7090 was their first competitor to the Luxeon line of products. It was basically the same as the XL3-7090, but only rated for 350mA. It pretty much shared all of the same characteristics as the XL3 that I covered above, again making it less popular than the Luxeons.

Only when the XR-E came out was it a compelling enough product for the beam profile and packaging differences to be outweighed by the sheer difference in output that the XR-E had vs. Luxeons available. When you nearly double output and efficiency vs. your competitor, it makes it a very compelling proposition to switch.

 

[MikeSalt]

The whole Cree/Luxeon affair reminds me of the AMD/Intel episode. Intel (Luxeon) were top dog, and somewhat a little complacent. Then, out of the blue came the AMD Athlon (Cree XR-E) that completely shook up the competition. It has taken the Core2 (Rebel 80/100) just to catch up.

 

[extas]

if i remember correctly, a few posters here were able to get samples of the CREE XR during most of 2006, but the commercial availability wasn't there. at the time CREE was not really being all that helpful. then in oct 2006 they announced the xr-e. if you CPF search for "XR-E N4" you will see one of the early posts about the XR-E. it looks like the first really available ones were the P3-P4 with N4 being passed over quickly. if you look at that thread you will see alot of discussion about reflectors and such, showing how little experience people had with it.

then by Dec 2006 there is an explosion of flashlights with it.

Oct 2006 they annouced the XR-E with limited N4 and general P3 - P4 bins.

within 3 months there were Chinese Lights available.

before that there were only XR Xlamps.

and now in 13 months we have R2. So thats lightning fast, for any corporation to advance commercial tech, lol its as fast as Intel with the Core to Core2 to the Core2 45nm processors. actually nearly parallel, just a coincidence tho.

-ex

 

[yellow]

actually it were P2 and P3
... which kicked the Luxes butt