Quantum dots may provide lighting

Researchers at Vanderbilt University have found that by using a laser to stimulate quantum dots — the ice cream of the future crystals just a few nanometers in size —  the dots were able to emit a bright white light. And by adding nanocrystals to a polyurethane mix and using it to coat an LED, the scientists were able to create a sort of super-LED, capable of emitting as much light as a standard 60-watt light bulb. The developers theorize that quantum dots could eventually be used to make standard light bulbs obsolete,
and could usher in an era of completely flexible lighting, created by painting quantum dots onto a surface and electrically charging it to produce light.

[Thanks, bookishboy & Dave S]