We report on the 650 nm resonant-cavity light-emitting diodes (RCLEDs) with/without SiO2/Si3N4 dielectric distributed Bragg reflectors (DDBRs) theoretically and experimentally. The DDBRs upon the emitting window take the advantages of the high external quantum efficiency and a concentrated emission wavelength. These advantages can increase the light output power and optical gain. RCLEDs with DDBRs show the better performances than the RCLEDs without DDBRs, including a light output power of 2.9 mW under 50 mA bias current, an external quantum efficiency of 6.2%, a full width at half maximum of 8.96 nm for emission spectrum over the 10-50 mA bias current range, a turn-on voltage of 1.64 V, a forward resistance of 2.9 Omega, a rise time of 3.1 ns and a 3 dB bandwidth of 132 MHz under 20 mA bias current, respectively. The long term test for RCLEDs with DDBRs indicates that the constant light output power can be sustained at least 1008 h and in room temperature. (c) 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.