Development of a Reconfigurable LED Plant-growth Lighting System for Equivalent System Mass Reduction in an ALS

When overhead electric lights are used for plant growth, inefficiency occurs due to inability to accurately target light. Light falls between young plants, but as they grow, shading occurs, requiring more light to achieve acceptable productivity. We have developed an intracanopy light-emitting diode (LED)-based system that can deliver light throughout the foliar canopy of crop stands and keep pace with crop growth. LEDs having narrow red and blue emission wavebands were selected. An array of 16 “Lightsicles” was constructed, each consisting of 20, 2.5 cm² LED “light engines” containing 80 LEDs mounted along a strip. Measurements of light level and power usage have been taken and plant-growth testing is underway.