TO220 LEDs?

I browsed the new Maplin (UK) catalogue today and saw some 1W LEDs in a TO 220 package. For the uninitiated these are the same package used for many high power transistors, triacs, voltage regulators and other stuff, and look like a small rectangle with a heatsink tab on one end and two or three legs sticking out the other.

I suppose this makes sense since it facilitates easy fixing to a standard heatsink with a wide range of standard insulating shims and screw isolators to ensure isolation from the heatsink. I can imagine these being ideal for use in long strips where a thin PCB runs under the legs making connection. It should allow quite dense linear packing if the heatsink is up to the job.

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Clive Mitchell
http:/www.bigclive.com
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Relevant Pages

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