This week has already seen several new deal announcements and other developments in energy-efficient lighting:

• Element Labs, a provider of LED-based products for entertainment, architecture and signage applications, has raised a $12.75mm Series B (note: link opens pdf), led by Expansion Capital Partners, who contributed $10mm of the round. Existing investor Sierra Ventures and lender Gold Hill also participated in the round.

• Meanwhile, Ceelite, another developer of LED solutions for signage and other "highlight" lighting applications, announced a $4mm round of financing, with half coming from the Musser Group and the other half from undisclosed investors.

• Orion Energy Systems, a manufacturer of energy-efficient lighting solutions for "high-bay" (ie: high-ceilinged) environments, had a very successful IPO today (although it's been drifting back down this afternoon), demonstrating the exit potential for energy efficient lighting (and overall energy efficiency) investments. (self-promotion alert: yours truly was involved in Expansion Capital's initial investment in Orion)

• Pretty busy week over at Expansion Capital -- they also announced this week that they and Advantage Capital Partners had co-led SensorTran's new $8mm round of financing (VWire reported that the first tranche of the Series B round was $5mm), with other existing investors WHEB Ventures and Stonehenge Capital also participating (self-promotion alert: yours truly served briefly as an observer on the SensorTran board during my time at Expansion Capital)

• The other cleantech deal announced this week was a $25mm Series C announced by Purfresh, the ozone-production device manufacturer formerly known as Novazone. Lots more details in this GTM article; the round included Chilton Investment Co., Foundation Capital, Grauer Capital, Chrysalix and one "strategic investor to be named."

Other news and notes: Here's an interesting attempt to track cleantech-related patent issuances... The new energy law is in the books, but not everyone's pleased... Nick Parker's Eight for 2008... Here's a well-done article linking climate change and water shortages... Finally, here's a sign of the times, regarding the polysilicon shortage.

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First-year MBA student readers -- here's the final notice of @Ventures' Summer Associate opportunity