Hi:
So do the typical, flexible, programmable (a la ws281x, et al) LED strips require any kind of heat sink? I understand that if you drive all of the LEDs at max brightness, then there could be some negative consequences.
Is there any way of mitigating these issues? Does the adhesive surface need to be attached to metal or some other heat-sinking surface?
So in such a scenario as you describe, is it easy/feasible/do-able to heat-sink the LEDs to remove heat? The strips I have seen are in a plastic strip form factor and perhaps not the most ideal for mounting heat sinks to. I hope I am wrong!
As I said, the strips with reasonable spacing between individual LEDs should not be a particular problem. The concern would be with close spacing such as in that array, where there are adjacent LEDs on each side.
64 NeoPixels in a 10 by 10 cm square means the heat is concentrated. 72 NeoPixels in a strip half a metre long - which is as I gather, the most dense packing for a strip, similar to the matrix array - is giving plenty of space for that dissipation (24 Watts at maximum) but may run warm. The more common 30 LED per metre strips should be no problem at all.
Do these strips lend themselves to being secured to heat sinks? I have never used these (ws281x-type LEDs) and being made of silicone/plastic, it is hard for me to imagine how to heat-sink them properly. I assume that securing them to metal channel stock/heat sinks would be best.
I envision using some ws2812 strips that have 144 LEDs per meter (the most densely-packed strips I have found) and I would like to experiment with them as a light source for growing plants indoors. As such they would be biased at full on for long periods of time - that is why I was interested in being able to heat-sink them.
Here is a link to one such strip I am considering: