Development of a local UV-LED water treatment value chain from epitaxy to product integration

Purpose and goal

In this project, a local value-chain for manufacturing UV-LEDs has been established. The entire value-chain from advanced epitaxy to device fabrication, packaging and product integration has been implemented through a close collaboration between Watersprint AB, RISE Research Institutes of Sweden AB and NanoLund at Lund University. The collaboration has contributed to creating an innovative research environment and enabled efficient and fast exploration of the possibilities of the LED-technology.

Expected results and effects

The partners constitute a unique competence in UV-LED technology, spanning from material science to product integration. Epitaxy technology for UV nano-LEDs has been developed, processes for device fabrication, packaging and characterization have been established and new methods for testing devices have been implemented. Through this work, Watersprint has improved their products. Methods for taking nano-LEDs from the laboratory to tests in real applications have been developed. The project has laid a foundation for a long-term collaboration in UV-LED water purification.

Planned approach and implementation

The developement of LED properties and device fabrication was designed based on the requirements of Watersprint and compatibility with their product line. The LED material was developed by advanced material characterization and iterative device evaluation by LU and RISE. This work enabled rapid improvement of the LED properties. A number of different LEDs and packaging solutions were studied and evaluated by RISE and Watersprint.