Where to find high-power UV and/or blue LEDs

[2xTrinity]

Essentially, I'm going to be building a much larger version of the Time Fountain
concept pictured here with a few other guys. Basically, a fountain with fluorescein in the water, lit up by strobing UV lights in order to make it look like the droplets are frozen in midair.

As an alternative to wiring up tons of 5mm LEDs, my idea to get a few high power emitters, with narrow-angle TIR optics, and position them around the "faucet" at the top of the fountain, with the beams aimed straight down. This would cause the drops, and the water in the basin of water directly below to fluoresce. I would then do my best to eliminate any and all line-of-sight spill from that section using some sort of black baffle to prevent direct line-of-sight to the bright emitters.

I know that both UV and blue light will cause fluorescein to fluoresce, so does anyone know where I might be able to find either one in a high flux emitter?

 

[richdsu]

You can get Cree UV Emitter : led-tech.de

http://www.led-tech.de/en/High-Powe...eries/CREE-XL-7090-Emitter-LT-982_120_79.html

Last time, I got my emitters from Sandwich Shoppe, now sold out !!!

Heard from somewhere, Cree is not going to produce UV emitter any more, better grab some before out-of-production.

:twothumbs

 

[WeLight]

Cree has put out an EOL in July and will no longer produce UV power leds
We can support XR-E in Blue and Royal if your interested

 

[Ken_McE]

http://www.thefoxgroupinc.com/p1-1.html

 

[2xTrinity]

http://www.thefoxgroupinc.com/p1-1.html

Interesting, I didn't know LEDs existed with wavelengths as short at 350nm, that would certainly be good for detecting trace biological fluids etc that don't usually fluoresce at the ~400nm range.

For the purposes of this display, a completely invisible UV wavelength is a disadvantage due to the eye safety issue -- no way to tell if a misaligned emitter is throwing shortwave radation into people's eyes.

That's why at this point I'm actually leaning toward blue -- most of the time fountains I've seen on You-Tube have used 400nm UV LEDs, but I'm convinced that blue would actaully be better -- for one thing, the fluorescein dye has its peak absorption at 490nm (blue range) and the blue LEDs are a lot more power-efficient than the UV, so the bottom line should be a much brighter fountain from the same number of emitters.

 

[PhotonWrangler]

350nm is still a good distance away from shortwave uv. It's only a tiny bit shorter than the regular fluorescent black lights which operate at 365nm.

And 350nm will fluoresce your corneas if you're exposed to it, so there's no way that you wouldn't know you're being illuminated by it. You'll notice a strong bluish haze when it's hitting your eyes.

 

[lasercrazy]

Any us based sites that sell 3 watt uv crees? I've looked eveywhere but they seem to have disappeared...