The first LED light was born in 1962, and it glowed bright red. It produced light without a bulb or heated wire. All the light came from a tiny crystal chip hiding inside the LED.

That crystal is where all the magic happens. It is the semiconductor itself. Inside, its atoms line up like the Rockettes dancing in perfect unison. When electricity flows through, electrons leap across the crystal. When they land, they give off tiny bursts of light.

Different materials make different colors.

• Red came first in 1962, made with gallium arsenide phosphide. It was the easy level.

• Green followed in 1972, made with gallium phosphide. It was a little harder.

• Blue was the real challenge. Blue light needs much more energy, and for years no material could handle it. Scientists finally cracked the puzzle in the 1990s with gallium nitride.

Once red, green, and blue teamed up, they created white light. That breakthrough changed the world. Today, those tiny crystal chips light flashlights, TVs, phones, traffic lights, and so much more.