自從1906年第一顆發光二極體(LED)被發明出來，經過了90年的發展，直到日本的日亞化學(Nichia)在1996年發表高亮度的藍光和白光LED技術，LED才被視為具有潛力成為新一代的照明光源。然而LED光源具有較窄的發光頻譜，和過去傳統白熾光源(incandescent)、螢光燈(fluorescent)的光譜能量分布相比，在許多特性上有很大的差異。因而本文的重點主要探討LED做為一般照明光源使用時所擁有的優點與問題，此外，也簡單地介紹一些現有的室內照明注意事項。

LEDs make a rapid progress during the last few years since Nichia Co. successfully delivered the high power blue and white LED chips in 1996. After that, LED-based luminaries become a promising approach for future lighting applications. Unlike the conventional incandescent or fluorescent sources, LEDs have relatively narrow spectral power distribution, which leads to some unique characteristics and needs to be considered in lighting criterion. This article is aimed to briefly introduce the LED-based lighting options and design considerations in many aspects such as color rendering, luminous efficiency and color temperature.