An LED has a light-generating semiconductor region formed on a baseplate via an electroconductive reflector layer. The light-generating semiconductor region has an active layer sandwiched between a pair of claddings of opposite conductivity types for generating light. For good ohmic contact with the light-generating semiconductor region without any substantive diminution of reflectivity compared to that of unalloyed silver, the reflector layer is made from a silver-base alloy containing a major proportion of silver and at least either one of copper, gold, palladium, neodymium, silicon, iridium, nickel, tungsten, zinc, gallium, titanium, magnesium, yttrium, indium, and tin.