We review the main physical mechanisms that limit the reliability of Light Emitting Diodes (LEDs) for application in solid-state lighting. More specifically, we describe the following failure mechanisms: (ⅰ) the degradation of the active region, due to the generation/propagation of defects; (ⅱ) the worsening of the optical properties of the package of the LEDs; (ⅲ) the degradation of phosphors, both for chip level conversion and for remote-phosphor systems. Moreover, we describe the mechanisms responsible for the failure of LEDs submitted to Electrostatic Discharges, and to "hot-plug" events.
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