In order to improve the light transmittance and output efficiency of the InGaN/GaN multi-quantum well (MQW) light emitting diodes (LEDs), we proposed a novel Ni/Au mesh p-contact. As compared with the traditional Ni/Au film p-contact, the proposed Ni/Au mesh p-contact has the less light blocking nature yet still keeps well ohmic contact. Our lab result shows that for 470 nm wavelength the Ni/Au mesh p-contact has 95% light transmittance and 11.3 mW output power at a 20 mA injection current. In contrast, at the same 470 nm wavelength, the traditional Ni/Au film p-contact has 72% light transmittance and 8.12 mW output power at a 20 mA injection current. (C) 2005 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.