Quantum Dots

A report from Korea suggests that Samsung Display has decided to resume its QD Nanorod Diode (QNED) technology development, that it has paused a few years ago, following a technology breakthrough related to the QD nanorod arrangement and placement technology.

Samsung's QNED technology is based on blue emitting nanorods (somewhat similar to microLEDs), coated with QDs for color conversion. Samsung's nanorod and QD deposition are both based on inkjet printing. The company originally hoped to achieve pilot production in 2021, but it faced several technical challenges, and eventually decided to abandon R&D - until this resumed last year.

South Korea's Semes has finished the development of a 8-Gen (2500x2200 mm) QD inkjet printing system, and has begun to mass produced systems, aiming to ship these to Samsung Display.

The 8.5-Gen Vincent QD inkjet printing system utilizes over 100 print heads, and achieves a resolution of over 220 PPI. Semes says that it has improved the PPI by 30% compare to its previous systems.

The OLED industry enters 2026 at an inflection point. While the most important and established AMOLED wearable smartphone markets face near-term headwinds driven by memory price pressures, the year promises to deliver critical technological and adoption milestones that will define the next decade of display innovation. From Apple's new device launches and the first 8.6-Gen lines entering production, to the first commercial products utilizing advanced emitter materials, 2026 may prove to be an exciting year.

This article is a summary of the main OLED industry and market trends, and what we feel is an expected 2026 industry forecast. But of course – things never go according to plan, and nobody could have foreseen a worldwide pandemic or wars that break out, and their effect on the display industry. They say prophecy has been given to fools only, so one thing for certain – we are likely in for surprises!

Topics covered in this article: Smartphone and Wearable Markets, China's next five-year plan, The Geopolitical situation, The AR/VR markets, Ultra-bright OLED microdisplays, MicroLED automotive displays, 8.6-Gen IT AMOLED lines, Blue PHOLEDs, Alternative emitters, Maskless OLED production processes, Apple's OLED expansion, Automotive OLED displays and lighting, Rollable OLEDs, Industry consolidation, OLED patent disputes, HKC's entry into AMOLED production, The smartphone brightness wards, AI and OLEDs, QD-EL technology progress, Inkjet printing, The PMOLED industry.

Inkjet printing of OLED displays has been in development for many years, driven by the potential of this deposition technology to reduce the cost of OLED display manufacturing.

Currently, the vast majority of AMOLED, WOLED, and QD-OLED production relies on evaporation methods to deposit OLED layers. In these processes, OLED molecules are evaporated and then deposited onto the required substrates. For AMOLED displays, precise subpixel patterning is necessary, which requires the use of a fine metal mask (FMM). While subpixel patterning is less complex for WOLED and QD-OLED production, these technologies still depend on material evaporation.

Evaporation-based OLED deposition has enabled the large-scale production of high-quality, affordable OLED displays found in wearables, smartphones, tablets, laptops, monitors, and TVs. This approach forms the foundation of today’s OLED industry, which exceeds $40 billion in value. This article will examine the alternative approach of OLED inkjet printing, review its history and current status, and consider its future prospects.

Table of contents for this article

• Introduction to OLED deposition processes
• Soluble OLED materials and processes
• OLED inkjet printing – history and technology progress
• Inkjet printing of OLED TFE and QD-OLEDs
• TCL CSoT – the last inkjet printing champion?

Samsung Display is showing several new displays and technologies at Displayweek 2025. First up we have Samsung's latest Sensor OLED display protype that allows for allows fingerprint recognition and cardiovascular health monitoring across the entire screen surface. 

To create this display, SDC integrated OPD directly during the OLED deposition process, embedding the sensors into the panel itself (what is sometimes referred to as a bi-directional OLED). Beyond fingerprints, it measures biometric data such as heart rate, blood pressure and stress levels. This technology is based on how OLED light reflects differently depending on the contraction and relaxation of blood vessels.

Samsung Display today announced a new, and somewhat curious brand identity for its QD-OLED technology, underscoring how QD-OLEDs provide a distinctive wide color gamut (which will 'vivify' your display), and also emphasizing the blue color that is the basis of the QD-OLED emission:

QD-OLED panels were first introduced by Samsung Display in 2021, and have been used in over 170 products, mostly TV and monitors, from brands that include Samsung Electronics, Sony, Dell, HP, and Asus.

Samsung Electronics has reportedly decided to accelerate the development of its QD-EL display technology. Working together with its affiliate companies, Samsung aims to commercialize QD-EL displays within the next few year. QD-EL displays are similar to OLEDs, but use quantum dots as the emitter itself. Samsung hopes that QD-EL displays will outperform its OLED displays, with a larger color gamut and higher efficiency.

Over the past years, we have seen many QD-EL prototypes, from Samsung Display. TCL CSoT, Sharp and  BOE.

We're happy to announce the 2025 edition of The Perovskite Handbook. This book is a comprehensive guide to perovskite materials, applications and industry. Perovskites are an exciting class of materials that feature a myriad of exciting properties and are considered the future of solar cells, displays, sensors, LEDs and more. The perovskite industry is at an inflection point, with dramatic investments and commitments, and perovskite could become important material to watch for all display developers. The handbook is now updated to January 2025 and lists recent developments and new companies, initiatives and research activities. 

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• Perovskite solar cells, their merits and challenges
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Reading this report, you'll learn all about:

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The report also provides a list of perovskite display companies, datasheets and brochures of pQD film solutions, an introduction to perovskite materials and processes, an introduction to emerging display technologies and more