Technical / Research - Page 81

GE and Konica Minolta announced that they have achieved a "major breakthrough" in their white OLEDs: an efficient 56Lm/w flexible white OLED that is made using solution-coatable materials in a roll-to-roll printing process. The materials have "commercially viable lifetime" (we do not know exactly what they mean by that).

GE and Konica Minolta flexible desk lamp prototype

GE and Konica Minolta plan to introduce their flexible OLED lighting products next year (2011), and have already displayed some early prototype lamps (one of which is shown above). They are working together since 2007. KM hopes to see $1 billion in OLED Lighting sales by 2018. KM has licensed OLED IP from UDC.

Last week we reported that Novaled is set to become an OLED Lighting manufacturer, moving away from the display business (the original post came from OLEDNet). Today Novaled tells us that in fact this is not true. Novaled's core business remains their technology licensing and material sales (the materials are made by BASF). They are also acting very successfully in the display field and have very good relationships with Korean manufacturers.

So this sets things straight...

The Fraunhofer-IPMS has released some new brochures about their various OLED projects. Check out these brochure (attached below this post) for technical details about the various OLED panels, future application ideas and more.

The first project is the HYPOLED project (High-Performance OLED-Microdisplays for Mobile Multimedia HMD and Projection Applications) - working towards VGA color OLED microdisplays for HMD (Head-Mounted-Displays) and pico-projectors. The HYPOLED project also developed a "MediaBox" for HMDs.

Germany's Sterrix Technologies has filed a family of patents for a new OLED based 3D auto stereoscopic (no glasses) display. The resolution of this display will be 100 times higher than HD images, which can be used to create more than 100 perspective at the same time - allowing for smooth 3D images from any viewing angle and any distance. The display has over 1000 cores (inline processors), needed to create those perspectives.

This display uses a new pixel structure which on one hand consists of colored pixels, and on the other hand consists of pixels, which are adapted to the anatomy of the human eye by presenting additional image information. Through those pixels it’s easier for the human brain to internally generate the spatial image, which makes it more relaxing viewing 3D images and videos on the display.

Update: According to Novaled, this report is not true. They are set to remain in the IP & Material business, in both OLED displays and lighting.

According to OLEDNet, Novaled is set to become a manufacturer of OLED Lighting panels (instead of being a supplier of OLED materials and technology/IP). They are moving away from displays because they lost the "competitive edge" to Korean companies.

Novaled is focusing on flexible OLEDs based on stainless steel substrate. They will introduce a 150x150mm, 25lm/W, 10,000 hours white-OLED panel in 2010. In 2011 they will add a 200x200mm, 40lm/W, 25,000 hours panel. In 2012 they will improve this to 50lm/W, 50,000 hours. By 2012, their OLEDs will be flexible, too (using roll-to-roll manufacturing process).

Samsung is aiming to improve their AMOLEDs in the near future. They claim they will double the efficiency (from 20cd/A to 40cd/A), the lifetime (from 50,000 to 100,000 hours) and the power consumption (from 62W to less than 30W). Samsung will use advanced color pattern methods to overcome the current FMM method large-size limitation. They will also move from glass encapsulation to thin-film, and apply Oxide substrate. They will also use only triplet OLED emitters instead of using both singlets and triplets.

Samsung has recently began to construct their new 5.5-Gen AMOLED plant, which will start production in July 2011. Samsung plans to invest $2.2 billion on that plant that will have 3 production lines (1300X1500mm). Having a larger wafer size results in better efficiencies for both small and large panels (such as 30" or 40" OLED TV panels). Samsung did not say whether the new methods will apply in the new plant only, or also in the current one.

Russian physicists has found a new way to make a long-living OLED. They are using nano-crystals of cadmium chalcogenides instead of the organic Chromophores in the OLEDs. Those Nanocrystals are long-lasting and when their size change, luminescence wavelength also changes, so it is easy to get required emission wavelength. They physicists say that the manufacturing process of the new devices is very similar to regular OLEDs, there's only one change in the process, when colloid solution of semiconductor nano-crystals is mixed with organic semiconductor.

Update: Microsoft removed the video that shows the transparent OLED...

Transparent OLEDs are exciting (and Samsung wants to tap that market) - but a lot of people wonder what is it really good for? Microsoft is showing a nice concept: using a camera beneath a transparent OLED to create gesture-based UI. The camera "sees-through" the OLED:

Microsoft are using a Samsung-made transparent AMOLED panel.

Universal Display announced that they have been awarded another Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I $99,900 program from the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE). Under
this program (titled Novel Optical
Enhancement for Thin
Phosphorescent OLED Lighting Panels) Universal Display intends to demonstrate a white
phosphorescent OLED lighting panel that meets Energy Star criteria
using
an optical enhancement technique which improves outcoupling
efficiency
while preserving the thin, elegant form factor of the white OLED
lighting panel.

Universal Display will
employ a
novel outcoupling technique that performs as well as thicker
treatments,
such as macro-extractors or outcoupling blocks, but is
significantly
thinner. Outcoupling enhancements are commonly used to increase
the
amount of light that is emitted as useful light. In addition to
maintaining its thin and light weight form factor, the resulting
white
PHOLED lighting panel, which UDC intends to deliver to the DOE,
may
improve the company’s previously reported lighting panel efficacy
results by over 25% and demonstrate a desirable path to meet the
Energy
Star Category B criteria for solid state lighting.

E2M Technology is introducing two OLED lighting kits based on OLED panels made by Philips and OSRAM. The first kit is called White Amethyst, and includes a 4cmx4cm Philips' Lumiblade white square panel (like the one we reviewed a while back). The kit includes one OLED panel, a driver and PC software (which can alter the lights luminosity level and program lighting sequences for up to four OLEDs via USB port). The kit also includes an on-board light sensor. It costs £459. Here's a sample art-piece that E2M is showing, using the White Amethyst kit:

The second kit is called White Sapphire, and this one is based around OSRAM's ORBEOS panel (here's our review of the ORBEOS). The ORBEOS is larger (a circle, 79mm diameter) than the Philips' square panel. The kit is otherwise pretty much the same, with the same driver and software. It costs £609.