Definition of "electroluminescence" []

• Direct conversion of electric energy to light by a solid phosphor subjected to an alternating electric field. (noun)
• Emission of light caused by electric discharge in a gas. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "Polymers can also be made to light up, but by another principle, namely electroluminescence, which is used in photodiodes."
• "Light-emitting diodes LEDs represent various types of semiconductor devices that produce incoherent narrow-spectrum light fascicles when powered with a steady-state voltage electrical source, producing the effect known as electroluminescence."
• "In electroluminescence, light is emitted from a thin layer of the polymer when excited by an electrical field."