Quote: Researchers at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign looking for a way to make low-cost lamps have done so by treating aluminum foil bought at the grocery store with an acidic bath.

"We wanted to make this technology as inexpensive as we possibly could," said physicist Gary Eden. "Expensive technology can be interesting, but the opportunity for using it is limited."

The new light source, which is lighter, brighter, and more efficient than incandescent light, is described in the June issue of the Journal of Physics D: Applied Physics.

The alternative light source developed by Eden and colleagues is constructed of foil submersed in acid so that its surface is full of tiny holes. The acid also changes the foil into an aluminum oxide known as sapphire, which creates a strong structure that allows volts to travel across the thin layer of aluminum without breaking it down. The tens of thousands of cavities are filled with gas and wired together, and the whole device is sealed between two pieces of glass or something similar.

The device is less than 1 millimeter thick when assembled, and most of that girth comes from the glass. The light can be flexible and hang on curved surfaces. Because aluminum is lightweight, the light is also.

The flexible lamps not only have potential to light up homes and businesses, they may also help treat diseases.

Doctors at Massachusetts General Hospital have shown interest in using the light source as a treatment for psoriasis, a skin disease afflicting 5 percent of the world's population. There is no cure for the condition, but ultraviolet light of certain wavelengths can force it into remission. Currently, treatments are costly, and can require a few visits to the doctor every week.

"What we are envisioning is a phototherapeutic bandage sold over the counter," Eden told LiveScience. "Someone with the disease could go to the pharmacy, purchase the flexible lamps in a sanitary wrapper. They'd attach it around the affected area of their body with Velcro, plug it in, watch a movie, tear off the light, and throw it away. In another four or five weeks, they'd buy a new one."