Several participants work with or have experience with LEDs. Not surprisingly, they are one of the “hottest” topics around. Because LEDs are directional emitters (as opposed to blackbody radiators) their output measurements must be conducted differently. There has been some discussion here about the correct way to account for output as a function of angle. How do we account for the total output? And what quantity might we be measuring?
Design, or elaborate upon, a test setup for LEDs that will allow total output (including the name of the relevant radiometric or photometric quantity) and directional output. Can you estimate the uncertainty in your results? What kind of signal magnitude do you expect for a particular LED or LED type? Visual aids such as graphs and drawings are appreciated.
http://www.nist.gov/pml/div685/grp03/spectroradiometry_spectral.cfm
http://www.ledsmagazine.com/index.html
The first step in designing this test setup is to mount the LEDs onto a surface in a uniform pattern, such as on a flat board or panel. A rotating platform should then be placed underneath the board so that it can rotate around its center axis, enabling us to measure different angles between 0°-180°. To capture radiation data at each angle, we will need an array of photo detectors which can accurately measure both total and directional output at each angle relative to a given reference point. The detector should also be equipped with filters which will enable us to differentiate between visible light (400nm – 700nm) and infrared radiation beyond 700 nm wavelength range (LEDs Magazine).
The readings from these detectors can then be used to create graphical representations showing how much power is emitted from the LED’s in different directions such as spherical maps or pole charts. This data can also help us estimate signal magnitude for particular type of LED depending upon its beam spread characteristics. Finally, uncertainty in our results can be determined by calculating standard deviation within our measured sample set over certain fixed period time intervals (NIST).
In conclusion, combining radiometric & photometric technique along with proper detector array & filters helps producing reliable test results when measuring total & directional outputs from various type/brands of LEDs available today
This article examines and attempts to explain public scepticism surrounding the European Union (coined Euroskepticism). Since 1990, there has been an increasing move to make European Union decision making more democratic with increased oversight of national parliaments, greater powers for the European Parliament, majority voting within the Council, and an increase in EU referendums. This has sought to bring to an end to an era where European elites bargained treaties in the shadow of an apathetic and generally approving public. Hooghe seeks to understand what drives European Union decision making in the modern era, as well as Euroskepticism. This move was embodied in the rejection of the European Constitutional Treaty in 2005, forcing a rethink of the permissive consensus that the people in charge of the European Union were above accountability. To this day, the matter of European integration has been strictly labelled as a contentious issue.
Hooghe begins his examination by establishing two, diametrically opposed theories of European Union politics. One theory is a bottom up view of preference formation. In this argument, voter’s preferences provide a structure of incentives for party position in the context of electoral competition. Whichever party can best capitalise on voter preferences will be better situated to acquire political power. In the context of the European Union, policy makers must gauge the public mood on European integration and make decisions from that.
Another theory is the top down approach, whereby political parties cue and directly influence the opinions and decisions of the public. Political parties, according to this theory, hold the ideological maps to help navigate highly technical and multi-faceted issues (such as those facing European integration). The public can rarely grasp the complexities of these issues, and thus look to political parties for guidance.
Hooghe, in his analysis, agrees with the bottom up approach to explain Euroskepticism. Euroskepticism, then, is best understood as a rational response by citizens (and thus political parties) for whom centralized European Union power is a threat to their own personal interests, not as a result of dissent o