The future of cadmium free QD display technology (QD TV ™)
Display technology moved on from the bulky cathode ray tube units (CRTs) to plasma screens and liquid crystal displays (LCDs) and now organic light emitting diodes (OLEDs) offer an attractive alternative to all these earlier technologies. Quantum dots (QDs) are both photo active (photoluminescent) and electro active (electroluminescent) and because of their unique physical characteristics they can be readily incorporated into OLED displays.
The significant benefits OLEDs offer include:
• Thinner displays: having a very thin form factor, OLED displays offer mobile device developers more opportunities to develop slimmer devices.
• Decreased power consumption: OLED displays offer ‘light on demand’, that is, a pixel emits light only when needed.
• Improved contrast & readability: An OLED display is normally black, which provides for increased contrast over LCDs in mobile devices such as cell phones, digital still cameras and MP3 players. This improves the daylight readability of the display and an improved user experience.
• Decreased manufacturing costs: OLED displays can be fabricated using advanced printing techniques. This means increased throughput and decreased costs for manufacturers when compared to existing display technologies.
• Advanced displays: OLED technologies are suitable for the use in new types of displays such as flexible displays.
Quantum dots(QDs) are a new alternative form of light emitting technology and incorporating them into OLED displays brings many added benefits to those described above, including:
• Better colour purity : the colour produced by QDs is a considerable improvement over competing OLED technologies, which provides for an improved viewing experience for the end user.
• Added flexibility : QDs are soluble in both aqueous and non-aqueous solvents, which provides for printable and flexible displays of all sizes, including large area TVs (QD TV™)
• Improved lifetime : QDs are inorganic; as such they offer the potential for improved lifetimes when compared to alternative OLED technologies.
Quantum dots (QDs) are nano-scale crystals comprising various elements. The properties and performance of these unique crystals is determined by the size and composition of the QD. Nanoco Technologies has developed the ability to ‘engineer’ these properties in a unique manner, allowing adjustments to the performance and properties of the QD in a rapid and cost effective manner.
This is a significant advantage over competing OLED technologies.
Nanoco are producing a full colour range of displays using our proprietary quantum dots including cadmium free dots. Cadmium free QDs enable manufacturers to comply with RoHS legislation (RoHS 2002/95/EC)