A universal, easy-to-apply light-quality index based on natural light spectrum resemblance

Abstract

Light-quality is extremely crucial for any light source to be used for illumination. However, a proper light-quality index is still missing although numerous electricity-driven lighting measures have been introduced since past 150 yr. We present in this communication a universal and easy-to-apply index for quantifying the quality of any given lighting source, which is based on direct comparison of its lumen spectrum with the natural light counterpart having the same color temperature. A general principle for creating high quality pseudo-natural light is accordingly derived. By using organic light-emitting diode technology, for example, daylight-style emission with a 96% natural light resemblance is obtained as a high number of organic emitters with diffused colors spanning throughout the entire visible range are employed. The same principle can be extended to other lighting technology such as light-emitting diode to generate natural light-style emission. © 2014 AIP Publishing LLC.