How does electroluminescence produce light from electrical energy without heating a material greatly?

Electroluminescence produces light through the direct conversion of electrical energy into radiation, bypassing the thermal excitation required by incandescent lamps. Unlike incandescence, where light is a byproduct of high temperatures, electroluminescence is a form of "cold light" where emission occurs while the material remains relatively cool.12

This process occurs through two primary mechanisms:

• Intrinsic Electroluminescence: An electric field accelerates electrons until they collide with and ionize luminescent centers. Light is emitted when these electrons recombine with the ionized atoms.1
• Charge Injection: In semiconductors, such as those found in light-emitting diodes (LEDs), electrons are injected into a p–n junction. As these electrons drop into "holes" in the valence band, they release energy corresponding to the material's energy gap. While some of this energy is typically dissipated as heat, specific materials like gallium arsenide and gallium phosphide allow a significant fraction of this energy to be released directly as light.13