Microstructured light guiding plate for single-sided light emission as light source for room illumination

Microstructured light guiding plates (LGP) open up new capabilities in the design of energy efficient and flexible light sources for room lighting. One desirable application is the illumination of office rooms by LGPs located mainly at the façade. Starting with the requirements of an ideal light distribution curve for uniform room lighting, suitable optical microstructures have been designed and investigated by numerical ray tracing methods to be integrated in façade elements. The maximum of the desired light distribution curve for the test case is at an angle of 96° with respect to the vertical direction. The designed micro-system meets this requirement very well at an angle of 98° and a light cone width of 25°. The light emission of the proposed LGP is highly efficient with 80% coupling efficiency.