Has your Luxeon ever died of age?

I have never heard of this happening, but I am sure it has happened before to at least a few people. For those who have had LEDs that passed away after serving well, can you share your experience?

Not possible for this to have happened yet. They're supposed to last over 100,000 hours, that's over 11 years. Luxeons haven't been around that long. If it died sooner than that it was either because it was overdriven or had a manufacturing defect.

Nope. No luxeons of mine died.

I had a Nichea light die once (Streamlight 4aa LED). One bulb flickered and died, soon to be followed by others. I think it was due to being overdriven...which Streamlight has fixed in recent upgrades.

Hmm another test to start next to my "10 yr shelf life test" HEHEHE....

I've never had a Luxeon or other LED expire of natural causes, but I've blown out at least a couple them via overdriving/insufficient heatsinking. /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/jpshakehead.gif :toliet: /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/jpshakehead.gif

I've smoked a couple /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/grin.gif but none have died of old age.

smoookiiinn
i have run some 1 watts now for as long as they have been out. solid non stop in my desk light, put 3 more into the circuit to complete the lamp rescentally, and there is not much difference in output level between the old and the new.
1/2 the time they only run at 1/2 power.
ask me in 3 years, if i havent replaced them with thermodynamic laser optical hypercrystaline polyangenite amorphious hydrocarbonated visual wavelenght tranducers.

Occasonally they burn out but as for aging, they just get dimmer without really expiring. It hasn't been a problem in flashlights. It's been a problem in things like automotive lights and traffic lights, which are lit a lot more hours per day than a flashlight. It's been especially an issue with the Luxeon V, which has been re-labelled as being for "portable" applications since apparently a lot of them were installed in walk/don't walk signs, and started crapping out after a few years.

I accidently pumped over 5amps at 3v into a 1w one time... /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/ohgeez.gif It took me a week to find the lens after it shot accross the room /ubbthreads/images/graemlins/str.gif

Led Blind: are you serious? It exploded!?!? COOL!!! It must of been more than 3v to push 5amps to it.

Most of the failures in traffic lights/etc are due to poor electrical drivers (such as simple resistor, and not regulated smooth power) or mecahnical (loss of heatsinking, exptreme temparatures inside the housing, water/vibration). This happens with the 5mm leds the same way for the same reasons.

I don't think Lumileds rates Luxeons at 100k hours when driven at maximum current levels. Lux I is 50k hours, Lux III is 20k-50k depending on drive level, and I don't remember what the Lux V colors are rated at. We all know about the Lux V Portable. Remember that those lifespan numbers depend on laboratory temperature conditions (junction temp of 25C) that just isn't going to happen in most apps.

Just got one of my LuxIII in an ARC AA mod dead today, still waiting for the autospy. Probably heat related.

[ QUOTE ]
idleprocess said:
Remember that those lifespan numbers depend on laboratory temperature conditions (junction temp of 25C) that just isn't going to happen in most apps.

[/ QUOTE ]

Incorrect.

DS25 (Luxeon emitter DS) on page 11, and DS45 (Luxeon III DS) on page 9 both state that the lifetime estimate is based on Tj <= 90C.

DS40 (Luxeon V portable DS) on page 8 states different lifetime estimates based on 3 heat sink temperatures of 35C (700mA), 75C (700mA), and 85C (600mA). If heat sink = star board, then that would roughly translate to Tjs of 87C, 127C, and 130C respectively.

My BB400 has gotten steadily dimmer since I got it and now my Infinity Ultra is brighter. It still draws about 450 mA and that never changed. So I don't know if it's the Lux or the sammie.

My error. I guess it's just flux that's rated at 25C.