Samsung is showing a new 4.5" Flexible AMOLED panel. This is not the first Flexible panel we've seen from Samsung, but this time they have managed to make it larger and with a better resolution: WVGA (800x480).
The display has a radius of 1cm and can show movies with minimum ghosting.
Plextronics announced today that its Plexcore OC NQ ink is now available - for limited sampling. During 2011 Plextronics will accelerate production. The new non-aqueous-based Hole Injection Layer (HIL) ink is geared specifically for solution processible phosphorescent OLED emitters, and Plextronics expects to introduce ink-jet printable inks for limited sampling early in 2011.
Plextronics also say that UDC was using their OC NQ ink in their new P2OLED solution-processed phosphorescent OLED technology (reported on October 13). Plextronics was the HIL provider, and its OC NQ ink helped UDC to achieve a lower operating voltage and a boost in lifetime over previously disclosed results.
Philips and the Fraunhofer Institute for Laser Technology (ILT) will co-develop a new process for OLED production - which aims to make OLEDs bigger and cheaper. The idea is to use a mask with micrometer slits on the surface of the ITO electrode, and then deposit a thin-film of aluminum (or copper or sliver) metal. A laser is finally used to melt the metal - unto the slits in the mask. The result - very fine and thin conductor paths (up to 40 micrometers).
Thin conductor on glass
The Fraunhofer say that this has already been achieved in the lab, and the next stage is to commercialize this together with Philips. The process might be ready within two or three years.
Universal Display and Acuity Brands has won a $2 million U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase III Xlerator grant to develop an energy-efficient and color-tunable phosphorescent OLED lighting system. The objective is to accelerate market introduction of OLED lighting (for high-end commercial and institutional applications).
Acuity Brands Lighting will design and fabricate general-purpose lighting system prototypes, targeted for high-end commercial spaces, including office, retail and health-care buildings. The light system will take advantage of the OLED panel thin form factor and quality of light.
Last week, the Fraunhofer IPMS Institute unveiled new OLED lighting panels called TABOLA made at COMEDD. Those panels will come as either bottom-emitting or transparent, and today we got official word that these panels, including the transparent ones will indeed be available in Q1 2011.
Taiwas's ITRI (Industrial Technology Research Institute) has developed a new 6" flexible color AMOLED, using their FlexUPD technology. The display is just 0.01cm thick, and can continue to show images even when folded. The folding radius can reach 5cm or less, and the screen can be scrolled up to 15,000 times.
ITRI says that their FlexUPD technology is the simplest and cheapest technology for mass production paper-like displays. FlexUPD will be commercialized soon, and AUO plans to use it for flexible e-reader products "very soon".
Ortus Technology is developing a 6.5" OLED display, driven by a-Si TFT. The panel features 960x540 resolution (QHD) at 169ppi. The panel uses Ortus' own HAST (Hyper Amorphous Silicon TFT) technology, which offers ultra-high resolution, low-resistance fine wiring, narrow pitch COG bonding and high quality optic design.
Ortus Technology was established in April 2010 in Japan by Casio and Toppan Printing to work on small and medium displays. The company is focusing on LCDs, but also has an active OLED program.
Liquidware announced a new open-source development kit for Android. The "Android Modular Gadget Platform" is a modular kit based on open source software and hardware reference designs. The idea is that you can use it for rapid prototyping of Android-based systems. There are 5 main modules: an OLED (4.3" 480x272) display, an ARM processor board, a battery, USB hub and a Wi-Fi board.
The OLED display, by the way, is the same one as used in Liquidware's Linux development kit released in June. The kit is available now for $547.
We know that AUO is back into AMOLED production, with plans for a Gen 3.5 factory (which will go in line in 2011). AUO has a daughter company called Wellypower Optronics. Wellypower is Taiwan's number one CCFL maker (mostly used for AUO's LCD backlights) and is also a LED maker.
In a recent PR about a new fluorescent lamp, Wellypower says that they are also producing OLED lighting panels. I'm not sure if that's true, but perhaps the company does have an active OLED program.
Update: we've got a nice video of the TABOLA panels, and also official word that the transparent ones will be available in Q1 2011 as well.
The Fraunhofer IPMS Institute unveiled new OLED lighting panels called TABOLA (the full name is TABOLA OLED Light Tablets), set to be released in Q1 2011. These will be available in three sizes (35 x 75mm², 75 x 75mm² and 150 x 75 mm²), and can be made bottom emitting or transparent. The standard color will be white, but they can also make them in other colors. The tablets can also optionally come with a 'grid' - shaped like a Liana (a vine).
These will be sample panels: the idea is that customers can perform tests and sample designs. This is the same as we've seen from Philips, Osram and Lumiotec: these aren't real commercial panels. The TABOLA will be made at COMEDD, Fraunhofer's Organic Electronics production center in Dresden, Germany (on a Gen-2 production line, structured by screen printing).
