LEDs no wider than a human hair could soon take on work traditionally handled by lasers, from moving data inside server racks to powering next-generation displays. New research co-authored by UC Santa Barbara doctoral student Roark Chao points to a practical path forward. The study is published in the journal Optics Express.

“We’re talking about devices that are literally the size of a hair follicle,” said Chao, who studies electrical engineering. “If you can engineer how the light comes out, those microLEDs can start to replace lasers in short-distance data communication.”

The work builds on UCSB’s longstanding strengths in gallium nitride research and optoelectronics. Chao is co-advised by Steven P. DenBaars and Jon A. Schuller, both co-authors on the study, which also includes Nobel laureate Shuji Nakamura, whose pioneering work on blue LEDs transformed global lighting and display technologies. The research was conducted in the laboratories of the DenBaars/Nakamura and Schuller groups, where teams focus on gallium nitride materials growth and nanoscale photonics.