Washington, D.C. — The U.S. Department of Energy announced that it would dole out almost $21 million for a total of 13 projects aimed at advancing solid-state lighting (SSL) research and product development.

The agency said it wants to accelerate solid-state lighting technology from the lab to the marketplace because it has the potential to more than double the efficiency of lighting systems, significantly reduce its carbon footprint and transform the environment. SSL lighting is an advanced technology that creates light with considerably less heat than incandescent and fluorescent lamps, allowing for increased energy efficiency. Unlike incandescent and fluorescent bulbs, SSL uses a semi-conducting material to convert electricity directly into light, which maximizes the light’s energy efficiency, the DOE said in a release. Solid-state lighting encompasses a variety of light-producing semi-conductor devices, including light-emitting diodes (LEDs) and organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs).

Once used only for indicator lights to illuminate the numbers on digital clocks and light up watches, LEDs are now found in a variety of applications including brake lights, flashlights, traffic signals, and more recently, streetlights. OLED technology is more commonly used commercially, such as in small screens for mobile phones, portable digital music players, digital cameras, and now televisions.