January 2012

A couple of days ago MicroOLED announced their next-generation 0.61" OLED microdisplay which features 5.4 million pixels. Today we have some more information and the product's data sheet. The most interesting info is that samples of the new products are already available - with volume production expected in 10 weeks.

It turns out that MicroOLED will offer two versions. The MDP02APFC offers full-color (using 4 sub white OLED subpixels and RGBW filters) and 1,300x1,044 resolution (just a little over SXGA which is 1,280x960). The sub-pixel pitch is 4.7x4.7 micrometre, the maximum brightness is 250Cd/m2 (typical brightness: 120 Cd/m2), the maximum contrast is 100,000:1 (typical contrast: 10,000:1) and the power consumption is 200 mW (minimum) in video mode.

There are reports that LG Display decided to built a pilot 3.5-Gen (730 × 460 mm) flexible OLED production line. They have ordered the equipment, which will arrive by 3Q 2012, and the line will become active by the end of 2012. An official from LGD is quoted saying that it will take 1-2 years to develop and verify the process and produce prototypes. The company hasn't decided on a production schedule yet.

LG Display's flexible OLEDs will use the same technology as Samsung's flexible prototypes - a polyimide coated substrate and direct-emission RGB sub-pixels (as opposed to LG's OLED TV which use WOLED with color filters).

Swedish research firm Visual Guidance Systems Scandinavia AB (VGS) developed a new road lighting system concept based around OLED luminaires. The basic idea is that the lamps come in different shapes (enabled by OLED area-lighting panel designs) that signals information processes to support drivers - so a lamp above a crossroad or a pedestrian crossing will signal the object beneath it:

VGS sent us an article showcasing this new concept - with lot's of examples and discussions how this compares with current road luminaries and advantages in safety and traffic management. You can download the article in the link below.

When LG Display announced their 55" OLED TVs, they said they will first gauge market reaction - before deciding whether to expand capacity (beyond their 8.5-Gen pilot line capable of 48,000 monthly units scheduled for July 2012). After the great reception at CES, it seems that LG Display already made the decision to invest in expansion, and are now considering whether to build a new line or to convert an existing LCD line to OLED.

The company says that building a new 8.5-Gen OLED fab will cost about 2.5 times the cost of a similar capacity LCD plant. Converting an existing LCD line to OLED will be cheaper, although they wouldn't say by how much. It will take LG around 18 months to fully convert an LCD line to OLED. So even if they decide on that route soon, we cannot expect increased capacity before the end of 2013.

Update: we got new details, a shipping date and the product datasheet

MicroOLED announced their next-generation 0.61" OLED microdisplay which features 5.4 million pixels (color SXGA 1,280x960 or monochrome 2,560x2,048). The sub-pixel pitch size is 4.7x4.7 micrometres - which makes this the highest pixel density OLED microdisplay on the market according to MicroOLED. Other features include 100,000:1 contrast ration and high uniformity (96%). Power consumption can be as low as 0.2W (depends on how it is driven).

The company says this new microdisplay is intended for applications that demand high picture quality such as professional cameras and camcorders, night vision systems and head-mounted displays used in surgery. It's not clear whether they are already producing the microdisplay yet.

LG Display says that they will begin production in their 8.5-Gen plant in July, making 8,000 monthly substrates - or about 48,000 55" OLED TV panels. It's possible that this assumes 100% yield - and in any case this is more panels then planned. LG plans to invest 4 trillion Won (around $3.5 billion) in OLED production this year, and plans for 2013 will only be made during in the third quarter - LG wants to see the market reaction.

LG's 55EM9600 is a 55" Full-HD OLED TV featuring 100,000,000:1 contrast ratio and fast response time (1,000 times faster than LCD according to LG). The panel is only 4mm thick, and the whole TV weighs just 7.5Kg. The TV is based on LG Display's Oxide-TFT white-OLED with color filters (RGBW) OLED panel.

Verizon is now offering the Galaxy Nexus for only $99 $300 with a 2 year plan. The Galaxy Nexus is the first Android v4 (Ice Cream Sandwich) smartphone - made by Samsung. It features a 4.65" HD Super AMOLED display (1280x720, using PenTile technology) with a curved glass, a dual-core 1.2Ghz CPU, Full-HD video encoding, 5nmp camera, NFC, 1GB of RAM and 16/32GB of internal memory.

Tanaka Kikinzoku Kogyo announced that their conductive silver ink is now available commercially, and they say they are the first company to offer such a prOduct. The silver ink is hardened using UV light - there's no need for thermal hardening, and can be used in a broad range of products - including OLED panels.

The ink needs to be exposed to UV light for around 0.3 seconds, and it then hardens instantaneously even at room temperature to form a current-carrying circuit. For a 5 µm film thickness, wiring was formed with an electric resistivity of 10^-3 ohm cm. The ink can be used on both a glass base and a flexible base (PVC or PET films).

Update: It turns out that DuPoint's facility will only produce materials, not any kind of display panels...

DuPont announced that it is building a $30 million OLED TV pilot production line at its Stine-Haskell Research Center off Elkton Road in Newark. DuPont will allocate 26 engineers and 9 professional works for the project. Delaware announced it will allocate $920,000 grant from the Delaware Strategic Fun to help fund this project. It isn't likely that DuPont actually considers establishing a full-scale OLED TV production facility in the US, the aim is probably to develop manufacturing technology.

DuPont's new pilot line will use their nozzle-printing (or "spray-printing") technology which uses a continuous stream of ink (unlike the droplets used in regular inkjet printing) to deposit OLED materials. This is a very fast process - DuPont says it can print a 50" TV in under 2 minutes, but the display isn't optimized in the sub-pixel level and is so less efficient than in other patterning technologies. But the faster throughput can lead to cheaper displays - in fact DuPont claims that this technology may make an OLED TV cheaper than an LCD TV.

DuPont posted their financial results for 4Q 2011 (small decline in 4Q earnings and record annual earnings) - and the company recorded $20 million income from OLED technology licensing. Back in November 2011 DuPont announced that it has signed a licensing agreement with a leading Asian AMOLED maker - for the OLED nozzle printing technology, which will be used to make OLED TVs. The $20 million (or at least parts of it) may be fees for that license.

DuPont 4.3-inch printed OLED prototype

DuPont's nozzle-printing (or "spray-printing") technology uses a continuous stream of ink (unlike the droplets used in regular inkjet printing) to deposit OLED materials. This is a very fast process - DuPont says it can print a 50" TV in under 2 minutes, but the display isn't optimized in the sub-pixel level and is so less efficient than in other patterning technologies. But the faster throughput can lead to cheaper displays - in fact DuPont claims that this technology may make an OLED TV cheaper than an LCD TV.