QuarkStar: A Brighter Idea
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A Brighter Idea

Lighting the Way to the Future: Discover QuarkStar's Revolutionary Technologies​
As solid-state lighting's deep tech innovation team, QuarkStar is leading the charge in transforming the way we experience light. Our developed technologies allow us to sculpt light like an architectural material, offering radically new forms, functions, and fixtures of light and lighting. With photon level control at every scale, the possibilities are endless.

​Join us.
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QuarkStar Inside™ 
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QuarkStar's Refractive Optical Technology Key to Lighting Innovations
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​Lighting & Innovation:
 ​
It Takes a Platform
​

A new article by Clifton Stanley Lemon
The history of innovation shows that seeing a problem in a completely different way often sparks innovation.​​
Rather than asking, 
“how can we adapt LEDS to lighting?”


QuarkStar dared ask 
“how can we adapt lighting to LEDs?”
In this insightful article, discover how QuarkStar is revolutionizing the lighting industry with its innovative approach and cutting-edge technology.

Read full article ›​​
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Sylvania Lighting wins Red Dot Design Award for the Concord Equinox LED Downlight

​Sylvania Lighting has been awarded with the Red Dot Design Award 2023 in the Lighting Design category for its innovative Concord Equinox LED downlight. 
​

Concord Equinox has been developed in partnership with QuarkStar, who provided the optical technology for this project.

QuarkStar’s system of light refraction allows, for the first time, an indirect component to be integrated into a downlight without supplementary optics.​

​


Read more about the Red Dot win ›​​
Concord by Sylvania Reinvents the Downlight in Partnership with QuarkStar 
CONCORD EQUINOX
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THE NEW VISION OF DOWNLIGHT
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A Unique and Innovative Solution for Architectural Lighting
Using QuarkStar’s award-winning system of light refraction, Concord Equinox provides functional downlighting with simultaneous upper lighting. The halo effect can be regulated with a unique adjustable optic system which helps to create the desired lighting effect. 

​Winner of the 2023 international Red Dot Design Award the 
entire body of the luminaire has a durable design, developed to be perfectly integrated into all types of ceilings or formwork. 

Read more about Concord Equinox ›          Explore our downlights innovations ›​

Intellectual Property Portfolio​ ›
QuarkStar:
​A Universe of Innovation
500+ patents filed (US, EU, CN, JP)
250+ patents granted
(with new patents every month)
Current applications
       ●  Industrial
       ●  Commercial
       ●  Horticulture
       ●  Automotive
       ●  LiFi & IoT
       ●  LED filament bulbs
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Our IP portfolio of over 500 patent applications, with >50% already granted, provides our partners with protected technologies that overcome current limitations of solid-state lighting.​
Learn more ›

News Updates


QuarkStar Wins DOE L-Prize® Phase 1
In partnership with Nichia
DOE L-Prize Phase 1 Winner is QuarkStar – The Announcement
by Jennifer M. Granholm,
​U.S. Secretary of Energy
QuarkStar is thrilled to be a WINNER of DOE’s L-Prize (Phase 1), part of a multi-million-dollar competition to energize U.S. commercial lighting innovation.
Learn more ›
“A decade ago DOE awarded our very first L-Prize to a technology you might have heard about a little bit – an LED replacement for the everyday lightbulb... the purpose was to raise the bar for lighting efficiency, quality, connectivity, and environmental footprint. And this time we are really targeting transformational innovations to light commercial buildings.” ​​
―Jennifer M. Granholm, U.S. Secretary of Energy
“Currently available technologies and systems may excel in one performance area, but often at the expense of others … a key innovation of this L-Prize is that a winning system must demonstrate exceptional achievement in all areas.” 
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QuarkStar's L-Prize Winning Submission with Nichia partnership

To make these ambitions real, the Project Tango team of QuarkStar and Nichia made use of:
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For more information see our press release.
And feel free to reach out directly to us. Thank you.
Email us ›
QuarkStar Recognized by Fast Company as Best Workplaces for Innovators in United States 2022
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“Congratulations on QuarkStar earning recognition as one the top companies with a culture of innovation that empowers employees at every level to blaze trails and break new ground.” 
Fast Company/Accenture
Best Workplace for Innovators 2022
More from Fast Company on the Best Workplaces for Innovations:
  • “We’re looking to honor companies that are accomplishing real innovation, not merely laying the groundwork for future breakthroughs. In other words, real projects with tangible results.”
  • “We’re looking for current hotbeds of innovation, organizations that are working to sustain a creative culture and aren’t resting on the laurels of a handful of breakthroughs a decade ago.”
Read more ›
​​QuarkStar Profiled in LEDs Magazine
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​“​LEDs Magazine's new department provides an inside look at a leading individual or firm involved in the LED and SSL manufacturing, design, and supply chain. Our first subject is SSL technology developer QuarkStar, which recently won an L-Prize.”
​Wanda Lau
​June 2, 2022

The Ultimate Debut for a New Lighting Technology

Lighting the galleries of the largest museum project in North America

QuarkStar Lights Up a Galaxy of Art: QuarkStar is the primary lighting supplier ​for the centerpiece building of the largest museum project in North America, the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston's Rich and Nancy Kinder Building.
Learn more ›
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“Subtle LED lighting that achieves remarkably consistent illumination”
Wall Street Journal
Photo credits - Richard Barnes
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“QuarkStar’s revolutionary technology bridges the natural and artificial”
“QuarkStar’s Edge-X technology delivers something previously never before seen in the lighting world: evenly distributed sheets of light easily spanning 16-ft gallery walls and daylight matching color-tuning from a single row of LEDs”
LD+A Issue May 2021
“QuarkStar’s Edge-X technology delivers something previously never before seen in the lighting world: evenly distributed sheets of light easily spanning 16-ft gallery walls and daylight matching color-tuning from a single row of LEDs”
LD+A Issue May 2021
Transform Spaces with QuarkStar's Q-Wall Luminaire
QuarkStar proudly presents the Q-Wall luminaire, our groundbreaking solution for wall washing and the fixture that is beautifully illuminating the galleries of the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston's Rich and Nancy Kinder Building. Powered by patented Edge-X™ optical technology, the Q-Wall delivers impeccable 1:3 wall uniformity while showcasing sleek aesthetics with a minimal profile.

Revolutionize your space with infinite runs of uniformly illuminated walls. 

​Experience the exceptional with Q-Wall today!
Contact Us
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QuarkStar Technologies ›
Partnering Light with Space​

Light Sheets and Filaments ​​›​
Linear arrays and Planar sources coupled to sophisticated optics.
Edge-X​ ›


​Technology family with module luminaire-level capabilities, superior distribution control, and brand new capabilities.
Advanced Light Sources​ ›
Advanced Light Sources are Fixtures in a Package – offering large scale spatial control from package-sized sources. ​
Controls ›
​in Space, Time, and Color
● New ways to control light in Space, Time, & Color. 
​
● Unparalleled Color & Lumen Maintenance over product lifetimes. 
● New approaches to IoT Networking & Self-commissioning.
Awards for QuarkStar Products & Innovations
​WINNER
US DOE 2022 L-Prize® Competition
​(Phase 1)​
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WINNER
​US DOE Next Generation Luminaire
Competition for Emerging Technology
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​WINNER
UK 2021 Innovation Award
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​WINNER
US DOE Next Generation Luminaire
Competition for Asymmetric Lighting
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​Top Ten Products
​
LightFair
​
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​One of the 20 Hottest
Lighting Companies in the World
​
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​Best Innovation of
​Light+Building

(shared award)
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Featured News

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Sylvania Lighting wins Red Dot Design Award 
for the Concord Equinox LED Downlight

◼︎ May 10 2023​ | Sylvania​ Press Release

09/05/2023, Budapest, Hungary – Sylvania Lighting has been awarded with the Red Dot Design Award 2023 in the Lighting Design category for its innovative Concord Equinox LED downlight...

​Read more ›​​
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QuarkStar: Award-winning Waveguide Technology
◼︎ February 26 2023 | The Light Review Podcast

Developments in lighting technology have tended to focus on – no, more than tended, have always been focused absolutely on – light sources. It’s little wonder, of course. We have shifted from light created by hot tungsten filaments and excited gas discharge tubes into a world dominated by solid state electronics. what we have not spent so much time thinking about is how we manage to get efficient illumination from the source material – the optical systems.​..

​Read more ›​​
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Lighting and Innovation Part 3: It Takes a Platform
◼︎ May 2023​ | Light Now

How many designers does it take to change a lightbulb? Answer: Does it have to be a light bulb? While this old joke lampoons the legendary persnickety design thinking personified by Steve Jobs and others, the response is quite valid. Who in the lighting industry today is asking this question or similar ones? Who’s coming up with compelling answers?​...

​Read more ›​​
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QuarkStar and Sylvania present new solution to European downlight segment
◼︎ December 2022​ | LEDs Magazine

Last month, solid-state lighting skunkworks QuarkStar and architectural lighting provider Sylvania announced their collaboration on a new LED luminaire that launched as part of Sylvania’s high-end Concord lineup...

​Read more ›​​
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Sylvania launches a game-changing range of innovative lighting to rival conventional downlights​
◼︎ November 2022​ | Sylvania​ Press Release

Today Sylvania launched its next generation of premium luminaires that uses QuarkStar’s award-winning light refraction technology. The Equinox, part of Concord by Sylvania range, delivers a high-end premium lighting solution that re-invents how downlights can be used by architects and lighting designers and revolutionises how spaces are lit...​
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Read more ›​
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QuarkStar Recognized as Fast Company 2022 Best Workplaces for Innovators United States
◼︎ September 2022​ | Fast Company

Fast Company and Accenture have recognized QuarkStar as Best Workplaces for Innovators United States 2022. "Congratulations on QuarkStar earning recognition as one the top companies with a culture of innovation that empowers employees at every level to blaze trails and break new ground." - Fast Company/Accenture
​
Read more ›​

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QuarkStar and Nichia Win US Department of Energy L-Prize (Phase 1) Competition 
◼︎ June 2022​ | QuarkStar Press Release

QuarkStar, a deep tech startup dedicated to advancements in solid-state lighting, along with its L-Prize® partner Nichia, the world's largest supplier of LEDs, are honored to have their submission "Project Tango" chosen as a winner in the U.S. Department of Energy's L-Prize Phase 1 competition. The results were announced personally by the U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm...

Read more ›​
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Profiles in Lighting: QuarkStar
◼︎ June 2022​ | LEDs Magazine

LEDs Magazine's new department provides an inside look at a leading individual or firm involved in the LED and SSL manufacturing, design, and supply chain. Our first subject is SSL technology developer QuarkStar, which recently won an L-Prize...

Read more ›​
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L-Prize Concept Phase winners propose next-generation SSL design
◼︎ June 2022​ | LEDs Magazine

During the Department of Energy (DOE) Solid-State Lighting R&D Workshop on Feb. 3, U.S. Secretary of Energy Jennifer Granholm announced the winners of the Concept Phase of DOE’s latest L-Prize competition. The program aims to spark innovation with interoperable LED lighting systems in commercial building applications. These systems can include LED luminaires, sensors, control devices, and interfaces...

Read more ›
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LED innovations transform SSL market prospects over two decades
◼︎ January 2022​ | LEDs Magazine

Dr. Robert Steele, a co-founding member of Team QuarkStar, is considered the LED and SSL industry’s pioneer of market research and forecasting. In this 2022 article for LEDs Magazine, Dr Steele surveys the remarkable history of the LED, and the evolution of its applications and markets over the past two decades.​..

Read more ›
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Platinum Award Winner – QuarkStar
◼︎ August 2021​ | Build Back Better

A new international award celebrating and rewarding innovation. QuarkStar was independently nominated for this new international award based on QuarkStar’s premier role in the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston’s newly completed centerpiece building. To learn more about this innovative project and see an independent review of the QuarkStar technology...

Read more ›
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Inside the Museum: QuarkStar's revolutionary technology bridges the natural and artificial
◼︎ May 2021 | LD+A

QuarkStar’s Edge-X™ technology delivers something previously never before seen in the lighting world: evenly distributed sheets of light easily spanning 16-ft gallery walls and daylight matching color-tuning from a single row of LEDs, all from a footprint so small when the museum saw it placed in a ceiling mockup...
​

Read more ›
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​Houston museum uses QuarkStar optics to uniformly light art galleries
◼︎ March 2021 | LEDs Magazine

Fixtures that hide within the building architecture and spectral tuning bring natural light effects into the exhibit spaces in the new Kinder Building at the Museum of Fine Arts, Houston. The relatively diminutive optical element can spread LED light uniformly over extensive areas such as walls while allowing the solid-state lighting (SSL) fixture to be essentially hidden in a room’s architectural features or recessed into the ceiling. Meanwhile, a multi-channel LED light engine enables the museum lighting to match the abundant natural light that the building design draws into the public spaces and galleries...

​Read more ›
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Ground-breaking optics debut in £330 million art gallery
◼︎ January 2021​ | LUX Review

INNOVATIVE lighting optics developed by technologists in the US are being used for the first time in a new £330 million (US$450 million) art gallery.QuarkStar’s radical Edge-X technology has been specified by top lighting design practice L’Observatoire International for the newly opened Kinder Building, centrepiece of a massive expansion to the Museum of Fine Arts in Houston. The expansion was the largest fine art gallery project in North America in 2020, designed by US ‘starchitect’ Steven Holl...

Read more ›
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"Taking Optics-Based Beam Distribution to a Whole New Level"
◼︎ November 2019 | LEDs Magazine

"At the end of the day, optics in SSL applications serve the primary task of controlling beam distribution. [QuarkStar] takes that task to a new level... The company [QuarkStar] has developed some compelling demonstration optics, especially Edge-X for general illumination applications... "

Read more ›
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Technological breakthroughs: QuarkStar is 'completely changing the conceptual approach to lighting'
◼︎ March 2019​ | Lux - La revue de l'eclairage (France)

​The French publication Lux highlights QuarkStar’s Edge-X technology as a completely novel approach. “Holder of numerous patents, winner of many awards, the American start-up QuarkStar has completely rethought LED lighting in order to surpass current performances at all levels.”

​Read more ›
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QuarkStar reinvents the downlight, finessing the limitations of glare
◼︎ March 2019 | QuarkStar Update

Winner of the Light+Building Lux Innovation Award, this is being called the first fundamental innovation in downlights in their 75 year history.This is a brand new downlight concept that makes use of the versatility and unprecedented performance capabilities of QuarkStar’s Edge-X technology. It has been further developed to significantly decrease the problems of glare, ubiquitous in traditional downlight designs. The first commercial products have an expected 2022 release...

Read more ›​
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Sylvania licenses radical lens tech from US start-up
◼︎ March 2019​ | LUX Review (London)

[Sylvania] has signed a deal to get access to the radical Edge-X technology from innovative US start-up QuarkStar. It’s understood the company will initially use the ‘light shaping’ lens development in its downlight and linear lighting ranges under the Concord brand. The Edge-X optics essentially guide the output from LEDs and sculpt the distribution of light in a space. One of the benefits to clients is that fewer luminaires are needed in a space to get the same effect as traditional optics...

Read more ›​
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QuarkStar presents two keynote talks at the 20th Anniversary  Strategies in Light
◼︎ March 2019 | QuarkStar Presentation

As a team composed of industry experts with decades of collective experience in the SSL industry and Silicon Valley entrepreneurial know-how, QuarkStar is uniquely positioned to provide perspectives on the development of the LED lighting industry and where its future is leading. 20 Years of Strategies in Light: Reflections on the Evolution of the LED Industry​ presented by Dr. Robert Steele, QuarkStar’s chief market analyst and founder and co-chair of Strategies in Light and From Black Death to White Light": The LED Revolution That Almost Didn’t Happen presented by Dr. Eric Bretschneider, QuarkStar CTO and ​Chair of the IES Solid-State Lighting Subcommittee...

​​​Read more ›​
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Focus shifts from lumens to color
QuarkStar CTO's solution of the previously unsolved major problem of color shift prediction forms basis of new industry standard TM-35

◼︎ February 2019​ | LEDs Magazine - Blog

"[The model] has the potential to change how the solid-state lighting (SSL) industry utilizes test and measurement guidance, and effectively end the notion that the lumen is the only light characteristic that matters with regard to LED lifetime performance..."​

Read more ›​

More News and In-depth Discussions › 

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