Folding screens at University of Toronto and EPD (electronic paper display) with LG

University of Toronto researchers recently announced a breakthrough with regard to organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) and flexible screens. From the March 29, 2012 news item by Allyson Rowley on physorg.com,

Michael Helander and Zhibin Wang, PhD candidates in the Faculty of Applied Science and Engineering, are members of a research team that has developed the world’s most efficient organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs) on flexible plastic. Good news for manufacturers and consumers alike, the discovery means a less costly, more efficient and environmentally friendly way to build brighter flat-panel displays on a thinner, more durable and flexible surface.

The students had been cleaning sheets of indium tin oxide – a material used in all flat-panel displays – when they noticed that devices built using their cleaned sheets had become much more efficient than expected, using less energy to achieve much higher brightness. After some investigation, they determined that this greater efficiency was the result of molecules of chlorine picked up from their cleaning solvent. With this surprising discovery, the two students engineered a prototype for a new kind of OLED device, which is both simpler in construction and more efficient.

According to Rowley’s University of Toronto March 26, 2012 news release,

Over time, though, OLED devices became more complex – the original two layers of molecules became many layers, which raised manufacturing costs and failure rates.

“Basically, we went back to the original idea – and started again,” said Wang. The team’s findings were published, and in December, Helander and Wang, together with Lu [ Professor Zheng-Hong Lu.who supervises both Helander and Wang] and another U of T grad student, launched OTI Lumionics, a startup that will take the next steps toward commercializing the technology.

While OTI Lumionics is taking its next steps, the company, LG Display based in Korea has announced production of a plastic electronic paper display (EPD). From the March 30, 2012 news item by Nancy Owano on physorg.com,

LG Display has set the production clock ticking for a plastic EPD (electronic paper display) product which in turn is expected to set e-book marketability fast-forward. In an announcement Thursday, Korea-based LG Display, which manufactures thin film transistor liquid crystal display, said it has already started up mass production of EPD for e-books.

Amar Toor’s March 29, 2012 item for engadget features the company’s news release, as well as, this detail,

The plan going forward is to supply the display to ODMs [original design manufacturer] in China, in the hopes of bringing final products to Europe by “the beginning of next month.” [May 2012?]

Apparently, the screen resolution is 1024 x 768 and it has a range of 40 degrees when bent from the centre.

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  1. Pingback: Pebble’s e-paper watch wins over $3M in funding through crowdfunding « FrogHeart

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