Power light emitting diode and method with current density operation

1. A light emitting diode comprising:

a bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate having a surface region; and

at least one active region formed overlying the surface region; a current density from 175 Amps/cm 2 to 2,000 Amps/cm 2 characterizing the at least one active region; and

wherein the light emitting diode is characterized by an external quantum efficiency (EQE) of at least 50%, and a peak emission wavelength between about 385 nm and about 480 nm.

2. The light emitting diode of claim 1 , wherein the bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate is characterized by a growth on a non-polar orientation.

3. The light emitting diode of claim 1 , wherein the bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate is characterized by a growth orientation in at least one of a plurality of semi-polar crystal planes selected from the (10-1-1), (11-22), (20-21), (20-2-1), (30-31), (30-3-1), (30-32), and (30-3-2) crystal plane, and an offcut of any one of these planes within +/−5 degrees toward the c-direction and/or the a-direction.

4. The light emitting diode of claim 1 , further comprising at least one phosphor operably coupled to the at least one active region to produce a white light emission.

5. The light emitting diode of claim 1 , further comprising a junction area from about 0.0002 mm 2 to about 1 mm 2 .

6. The light emitting diode of claim 1 , wherein the bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate comprises at least one region characterized by a surface dislocation density below about 10 6 cm −2 .

7. The light emitting diode of claim 1 , further comprising an n-type contact electrically coupled to a first side of the at least one active region and a p-type contact electrically coupled to a second side of the at least one active region to form a vertically conducting characteristic.

8. The light emitting diode of claim 1 , wherein the active region is characterized by a junction temperature greater than about 100 degrees Celsius.

9. The light emitting diode of claim 1 , wherein the bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate is characterized by an optical absorption coefficient of less than about 3 cm −1 at wavelengths between about 385 nanometers and about 750 nanometers.

10. The light emitting diode of claim 1 , wherein the bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate is characterized by a resistivity less than about 0.050 ohm-cm.

11. The light emitting diode of claim 1 , wherein the bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate is an n-type semiconductor, with a carrier concentration n between about 10 16 cm −1 and 10 20 cm −3 and a carrier mobility η, in units of centimeters squared per volt-second, such that the logarithm to the base 10 of η is greater than about −0.018557n 3 +1.0671n 2 −20.599n+135.49.

12. The light emitting diode of claim 1 , wherein the at least one active region comprises a total active layer thickness of at least 20 nm.

13. The light emitting diode of claim 1 , wherein the current density is from 400 Amps/cm 2 to 800 Amps/cm 2 .

14. The light emitting diode of claim 1 , wherein the current density is from 200 Amps/cm 2 to 1,000 Amps/cm 2 .

15. The light emitting diode of claim 1 , wherein the current density is from 500 Amps/cm 2 to 1,000 Amps/cm 2 .

16. The light emitting diode of claim 1 , wherein the current density is from 1,000 Amps/cm 2 to 2,000 Amps/cm 2 .

17. The light emitting diode of claim 1 , wherein the bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate is characterized by a growth on a polar orientation.

18. The light emitting diode of claim 1 , wherein the bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate is grown epitaxially, ammonothermally, by hydride vapor phase-epitaxy, by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition, by molecular beam epitaxy, by liquid phase epitaxy, by a flux method, or by a combination of any of the foregoing.

19. The light emitting diode of claim 1 , wherein the bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate comprises at least one region characterized by a surface dislocation density below about 10 7 cm −2 .

20. The light emitting diode of claim 1 , wherein the light emitting diode is operable in a continuous wave mode.

21. The light emitting diode of claim 1 , wherein the light emitting diode is operable in a pulsed mode.

22. The light emitting diode of claim 1 , wherein the light emitting diode is characterized by a lumens per active junction area of greater than 300 lm/mm 2 , for a warm white emission with a correlated color temperature (CCT) of less than about 5,000K, and a color rendering index (CRI) greater than 75.

23. The light emitting diode of claim 1 , wherein the bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate is characterized by a growth on a polar orientation.

24. The light emitting diode of claim 1 , wherein the bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate is characterized by a growth on a c-plane orientation.

25. A light emitting diode comprising:

a bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate comprising a surface region characterized by a c-plane orientation;

one or more n-type epitaxial layers overlying the surface region;

at least one active region formed overlying the one or more n-type epitaxial layers, wherein the at least one active region comprises one or more active layers, a current density from 175 Amps/cm 2 to 2,000 Amps/cm 2 characterizing the at least one active region;

one or more p-type epitaxial layers overlying the at least one active region;

at least one reflective p-type contact overlying the one or more p-type epitaxial layers and electrically coupled to a first side of the at least one active region; and

at least one n-type contact electrically coupled to a second side of the at least one active region;

wherein the light emitting diode is characterized by an external quantum efficiency (EQE) of at least 50%, and a peak emission wavelength between about 385 nm and about 480 nm.

26. The light emitting diode of claim 25 , wherein the c-plane is selected from the (0001) plane, the (000-1) plane, and an offcut of any one of these planes.

27. The light emitting diode of claim 25 , further comprising at least one phosphor operably coupled to the at least one active region to produce a white light emission.

28. The light emitting diode of claim 25 , further comprising a junction area from about 0.0002 mm 2 to about 1 mm 2 .

29. The light emitting diode of claim 25 , wherein the bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate comprises at least one region characterized by a surface dislocation density below about 10 6 cm −2 .

30. The light emitting diode of claim 25 , wherein the active region is characterized by a junction temperature greater than about 100 degrees Celsius.

31. The light emitting diode of claim 25 , wherein the bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate is characterized by an optical absorption coefficient of less than about 3 cm −1 at wavelengths between about 385 nanometers and about 750 nanometers.

32. The light emitting diode of claim 25 , wherein the bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate is characterized by a resistivity less than about 0.050 ohm-cm.

33. The light emitting diode of claim 25 , wherein the bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate is an n-type semiconductor, with a carrier concentration n between about 10 16 cm −3 and 10 20 cm −3 and a carrier mobility η, in units of centimeters squared per volt-second, such that the logarithm to the base 10 of η is greater than about −0.018557n 3 +1.0671n 2 −20.599n+135.49.

34. The light emitting diode of claim 25 , wherein the at least one active region comprises a total active layer thickness of at least 20 nm.

35. The light emitting diode of claim 25 , wherein the current density is from 400 Amps/cm 2 to 800 Amps/cm 2 .

36. The light emitting diode of claim 25 , wherein the current density is from 200 Amps/cm 2 to 1,000 Amps/cm 2 .

37. The light emitting diode of claim 25 , wherein the current density is from 500 Amps/cm 2 to 1,000 Amps/cm 2 .

38. The light emitting diode of claim 25 , wherein the current density is from 1,000 Amps/cm 2 to 2,000 Amps/cm 2 .

39. The light emitting diode of claim 25 , wherein the at least one n-type contact is adjacent the at least one n-type epitaxial layer, is adjacent the substrate, or a combination thereof.

40. The light emitting diode of claim 25 , wherein the bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate is grown epitaxially, ammonothermally, by hydride vapor phase-epitaxy, by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition, by molecular beam epitaxy, by liquid phase epitaxy, by a flux method, or by a combination of any of the foregoing.

41. The light emitting diode of claim 25 , wherein the bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate comprises at least one region characterized by a surface dislocation density below about 10 7 cm −2 .

42. The light emitting diode of claim 25 , wherein the light emitting diode is operable in a continuous wave mode.

43. The light emitting diode of claim 25 , wherein the light emitting diode is operable in a pulsed mode.

44. The light emitting diode of claim 25 , wherein the light emitting diode is characterized by a lumens per active junction area of greater than 300 lm/mm 2 , for a warm white emission with a correlated color temperature (CCT) of less than about 5,000K, and a color rendering index (CRI) greater than 75.

45. A light emitting diode comprising:

a bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate having a surface region characterized by a semipolar orientation; and

at least one active region formed overlying the surface region, a current density from 175 Amps/cm 2 to 2,000 Amps/cm 2 characterizing the at least one active region;

wherein the light emitting diode is characterized by an external quantum efficiency (EQE) of at least 50%, and a peak emission wavelength between about 385 nm and about 480 nm.

46. The light emitting diode of claim 45 , wherein the semipolar orientation is selected from the (10-1-1), (11-22), (20-21), (20-2-1), (30-31), (30-3-1), (30-32), and (30-3-2) crystal plane, and an offcut of any one of these planes within +/−5 degrees toward the c-direction and/or the a-direction.

47. The light emitting diode of claim 45 , further comprising at least one phosphor operably coupled to the at least one active region to produce a white light emission.

48. The light emitting diode of claim 45 , further comprising a junction area from about 0.0002 mm 2 to about 1 mm 2 .

49. The light emitting diode of claim 45 , wherein the bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate comprises at least one region characterized by a surface dislocation density below about 10 6 cm −2 .

50. The light emitting diode of claim 45 , further comprising an n-type contact electrically coupled to a first side of the at least one active region and a p-type contact electrically coupled to a second side of the at least one active region to form a vertically conducting characteristic.

51. The light emitting diode of claim 45 , wherein the active region is characterized by a junction temperature greater than about 100 degrees Celsius.

52. The light emitting diode of claim 45 , wherein the bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate is characterized by an optical absorption coefficient of less than about 3 cm −1 at wavelengths between about 385 nanometers and about 750 nanometers.

53. The light emitting diode of claim 45 , wherein the bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate is characterized by a resistivity less than about 0.050 ohm-cm.

54. The light emitting diode of claim 45 , wherein the bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate is an n-type semiconductor, with a carrier concentration n between about 10 16 cm −3 and 10 20 cm −3 and a carrier mobility η, in units of centimeters squared per volt-second, such that the logarithm to the base 10 of η is greater than about −0.018557n 3 +1.0671n 2 −20.599n+135.49.

55. The light emitting diode of claim 45 , wherein the at least one active region comprises a total active layer thickness of at least 20 nm.

56. The light emitting diode of claim 45 , wherein the current density is from 400 Amps/cm 2 to 800 Amps/cm 2 .

57. The light emitting diode of claim 45 , wherein the current density is from 200 Amps/cm 2 to 1,000 Amps/cm 2 .

58. The light emitting diode of claim 45 , wherein the current density is from 500 Amps/cm 2 to 1,000 Amps/cm 2 .

59. The light emitting diode of claim 45 , wherein the current density is from 1,000 Amps/cm 2 to 2,000 Amps/cm 2 .

60. The light emitting diode of claim 45 , wherein the bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate is grown epitaxially, ammonothermally, by hydride vapor phase-epitaxy, by metalorganic chemical vapor deposition, by molecular beam epitaxy, by liquid phase epitaxy, by a flux method, or by a combination of any of the foregoing.

61. The light emitting diode of claim 45 , wherein the bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate comprises at least one region characterized by a surface dislocation density below about 10 7 cm −2 .

62. The light emitting diode of claim 45 , wherein the light emitting diode is operable in a continuous wave mode.

63. The light emitting diode of claim 45 , wherein the light emitting diode is operable in a pulsed mode.

64. The light emitting diode of claim 45 , wherein the light emitting diode is characterized by a lumens per active junction area greater than 300 lm/mm 2 , for a warm white emission with a correlated color temperature (CCT) of less than about 5,000K, and a color rendering index (CRI) greater than 75.

65. A light emitting diode comprising:

a bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate having a surface region characterized by a nonpolar orientation; and

at least one active region formed overlying the surface region, a current density from 175 Amps/cm 2 to 2,000 Amps/cm 2 characterizing the at least one active region;

wherein the light emitting diode is characterized by an external quantum efficiency (EQE) of at least 50%, and a peak emission wavelength between about 385 nm and about 480 nm.

66. The light emitting diode of claim 65 , wherein the nonpolar orientation is selected from the (10-10) plane and a miscut from 0.1 degrees to 3 degrees toward the (0001) plane or the (1-210) plane.

67. The light emitting diode of claim 65 , further comprising at least one phosphor operably coupled to the at least one active region to produce a white light emission.

68. The light emitting diode of claim 65 , further comprising a junction area from about 0.0002 mm 2 to about 1 mm 2 .

69. The light emitting diode of claim 65 , wherein the bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate comprises at least one region characterized by a surface dislocation density below about 10 6 cm −2 .

70. The light emitting diode of claim 65 , further comprising an n-type contact electrically coupled to a first side of the at least one active region and a p-type contact electrically coupled to-a second side of the at least one active region to form a vertically conducting characteristic.

71. The light emitting diode of claim 65 , wherein the active region is characterized by a junction temperature greater than about 100 degrees Celsius.

72. The light emitting diode of claim 65 , wherein the bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate is characterized by an optical absorption coefficient of less than about 3 cm −1 at wavelengths between about 385 nanometers and about 750 nanometers.

73. The light emitting diode of claim 65 , wherein the bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate is characterized by a resistivity less than about 0.050 ohm-cm.

74. The light emitting diode of claim 65 , wherein the bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate is an n-type semiconductor, with a carrier concentration n between about 10 16 cm −3 and 10 20 cm −3 and a carrier mobility η, in units of centimeters squared per volt-second, such that the logarithm to the base 10 of η is greater than about −0.018557n 3 +1.0671n 2 −20.599n+135.49.

75. The light emitting diode of claim 65 , wherein the at least one active region comprises a total active layer thickness of at least 20 nm.

76. The light emitting diode of claim 65 , wherein the current density is from 400 Amps/cm 2 to 800 Amps/cm 2 .

77. The light emitting diode of claim 65 , wherein the current density is from 200 Amps/cm 2 to 1,000 Amps/cm 2 .

78. The light emitting diode of claim 65 , wherein the current density is from 500 Amps/cm 2 to 1,000 Amps/cm 2 .

79. The light emitting diode of claim 65 , wherein the current density is from 1,000 Amps/cm 2 to 2,000 Amps/cm 2 .

80. The light emitting diode of claim 65 , wherein the bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate is grown epitaxially, ammonothermally, by hydride vapor phase-epitaxy, by metalorganic by chemical vapor deposition, by molecular beam epitaxy, by liquid phase epitaxy, by a flux method, or by a combination of any of the foregoing.

81. The light emitting diode of claim 65 , wherein the bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate comprises at least one region characterized by a surface dislocation density below about 10 7 cm −2 .

82. The light emitting diode of claim 65 , wherein the light emitting diode is operable in a continuous wave mode.

83. The light emitting diode of claim 65 , wherein the light emitting diode is operable in a pulsed mode.

84. The light emitting diode of claim 65 , wherein the light emitting diode is characterized by a lumens per active junction area greater than 300 lm/mm 2 , for a warm white emission with a correlated color temperature (CCT) of less than about 5,000K, and a color rendering index (CRI) greater than 75.

85. A lighting fixture comprising the light emitting diode of claim 1 .

86. A lighting fixture comprising the light emitting diode of claim 25 .

87. A lighting fixture comprising the light emitting diode of claim 45 .

88. A lighting fixture comprising the light emitting diode of claim 65 .

89. A lamp comprising the light emitting diode of claim 1 .

90. The lamp of claim 89 , wherein the lamp is a replacement lamp.

91. The lamp of claim 89 , wherein the lamp conforms to a form factor selected from an A-lamp, a fluorescent tube, a compact fluorescent lamp (CFL), a metallic reflector (MR) lamp, an MR16 lamp, a parabolic reflector (PAR) lamp, a reflector bulb (R), a single end quartz halogen lamp, a double end quartz halogen lamp, a candelabra, a globe bulb, a high bay lamp, a troffer lamp, and a cobra head lamp.

92. A lamp comprising the light emitting diode of claim 25 .

93. The lamp of claim 92 , wherein the lamp is a replacement lamp.

94. The lamp of claim 92 , wherein the lamp conforms to a form factor selected from an A-lamp, a fluorescent tube, a compact fluorescent lamp (CFL), a metallic reflector (MR) lamp, an MR16 lamp, a parabolic reflector (PAR) lamp, a reflector bulb (R), a single end quartz halogen lamp, a double end quartz halogen lamp, a candelabra, a globe bulb, a high bay lamp, a troffer lamp, and a cobra head lamp.

95. A lamp comprising the light emitting diode of claim 45 .

96. The lamp of claim 95 , wherein the lamp is a replacement lamp.

97. The lamp of claim 95 , wherein the lamp conforms to a form factor selected from an A-lamp, a fluorescent tube, a compact fluorescent lamp (CFL), a metallic reflector (MR) lamp, an MR16 lamp, a parabolic reflector (PAR) lamp, a reflector bulb (R), a single end quartz halogen lamp, a double end quartz halogen lamp, a candelabra, a globe bulb, a high bay lamp, a troffer lamp, and a cobra head lamp.

98. A lamp comprising the light emitting diode of claim 65 .

99. The lamp of claim 98 , wherein the lamp is a replacement lamp.

100. The lamp of claim 98 , wherein the lamp conforms to a form factor selected from an A-lamp, a fluorescent tube, a compact fluorescent lamp (CFL), a metallic reflector (MR) lamp, an MR16 lamp, a parabolic reflector (PAR) lamp, a reflector bulb (R), a single end quartz halogen lamp, a double end quartz halogen lamp, a candelabra, a globe bulb, a high bay lamp, a troffer lamp, and a cobra head lamp.

101. A lamp, wherein the lamp conforms to a MR16 form factor and comprises a light emitting diode comprising:

a bulk gallium and nitrogen containing substrate having a surface region characterized by a c-plane orientation;

at least one active region formed overlying the surface region, a current density from 175 Amps/cm 2 to 2,000 Amps/cm 2 characterizing the at least one active region; and

at least one phosphor operably coupled to the at least one active region to produce a white light emission;

wherein the light emitting diode is characterized by an external quantum efficiency (EQE) of at least 50%, and a peak emission wavelength between about 385 nm and about 480 nm.

102. The lamp of claim 101 , wherein the current density is from 400 Amps/cm 2 to 800 Amps/cm 2 .

103. The lamp of claim 101 , wherein the current density is from 200 Amps/cm 2 to 1,000 Amps/cm 2 .

104. The lamp of claim 101 , wherein the current density is from 500 Amps/cm 2 to 1,000 Amps/cm 2 .

105. The lamp of claim 101 , wherein the current density is from 1,000 Amps/cm 2 to 2,000 Amps/cm 2 .

106. The lamp of claim 101 , wherein the light emitting diode is characterized by a lumens per active junction area of greater than 300 lm/mm 2 , for a warm white emission with a correlated color temperature (CCT) of less than about 5,000K, and a color rendering index (CRI) greater than 75.