Scientists in India are reporting that have have made nanoscale crystals of cadmium sulfide that, when coated onto a light-emitting diode (LED), give off a white glow.

The LED emits light at ultraviolet wavelengths and the crystals produce the mix of colors that we perceive as white light.

Sandia National Laboratory estimates that if half of all lighting is based on LEDs by 2025, the world would use 120 gigawatts less electricity, saving $100 billion a year and cutting the carbon-dioxide emissions from power plants by 350 megatons annually.