We welcome everyone to join us for a free virtual conference that will focus on display and printed electronics innovations. The event will take place on December 11, 2024. Please click here to register for this exciting event. Like all MicroLED-Connect event, it is organized by TechBlick and the MicroLED Industry Association.

This event is perfect for engineers, researchers, entrepreneurs, managers, inventors, and end users from around the world, who wish to learn more about the latest display innovations, with a focus on microLEDs and AR/VR technologies. 

The vent will include lectures from dozens of companies, including Coherent, Konica Minolta, SCIL, Polar Light Technologies, VueReal, Finetech, XTPL, 3D Micromac, DELO, CEA/Leti, Yole Intelligence, Instrument Systems, Hamamatsu, and many more. You can click on the image above the full agenda.

Researchers from Korea's Kookmin University have developed a new GaN-based fin-LED chip material and pixel process technology, saying that this innovation may be the key to overcome the limitations of current microLED technologies.

The researchers developed a viable pixel manufacturing process that vertically assembles sub-micron-sized fin-LEDs using a face-selective dielectrophoresis (DEP) assembly method. The GaN-based sub-micron-sized fin-LEDs are designed to maximize performance while minimizing costs related to the chips and pixelation process. This technology significantly enhances extraction light efficiency by vertically aligning the fin-LEDs, and it enables the implementation of chip materials and pixel manufacturing processes that significantly reduce production costs.

Aixtron announced its financial results for Q3 2024, with solid orders and revenue, despite a slight miss on guidance due to a project delay. This project was a large order for a microLED customer, with tools shipments pushed to December instead of October.

Aixtron says that "despite the news from Apple and ams OSRAM" the microLED industry is continuing to work on the technology, and the company received orders from several customers building R&D and pilot production lines. Aixtron expects its microLED revenues in FY2024 to be at high double-digit million euros.

LG Business Solutions, the “Official Display Partner of the Dallas Cowboys”, announced that it has completed the installation of seven MAGNIT microLED displays at the Dallas Cowboy's AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas. 

The microLED displays have been installed in the newly renovated Bank of America Founders Club. There's a single 4.88 x 2.44 meters display, two 1.22 x 1.22 meters displays (these are LG's 1.2 mm LSAB012 displays), and two 1.83 x 1.83 meters displays (these are LG's 0.9 mm LSAB009 displays). The premium suites at the stadium also installed LG's OLED TVs. 

During the company's recent conference call, AUO said that the company is "making significant progress" in MicroLED technology, transitioning to a 4.5-Gen line. AUO's current microLED production line is referred to as a 1-Gen line, used to produce commercial wearable displays (although we understand yields are very low and production costs are still extremely high). The company hopes its new larger line will improve production efficiency and cost structure.

AUO said that the new production line will enable it to start producing automotive displays, which are expected to launch by 2026 or 2027.

The MicroLED Industry Association published its first soft-standard document, that focuses on microLED microdisplays. Most analysts and developers agree that the AR market is one of the targets for microLED displays. MicroLED microdisplays offer many advantages for AR developers – mainly very high brightness and high efficiency.

In this soft-stsandard document, the MicroLED Industry Association provide guidelines for microdisplay developers and device makers, identifying the different properties of microLED microdisplays and suggesting how to disclose display metrics and performance.

On February 17^th 2025, the MicroLED Industry Association will host a private webinar focused on submicron LED technology. During this webinar, association members will look into sub-micron LED technology, understand the latest status and research innovation and discuss how submicron LEDs should take part in the future microLED industry.

The webinar will feature two speakers, and will follow with an open Q&A session.

Researchers from the KAIST institute in Korea have developed a microLED-based face mask, that aims to slow down skin aging. The researchers say that the mask's flexibility enables uniform light penetration and so can slow down skin aging. The team conducted trials in collaboration with a university hospital, and found out that skin elasticity in the dermal layer improved by 340% compared to conventional LED masks.

Each light mask has 3,770 microLED devices, and a light diffusion layer that disperses the light evenly. The researchers did not detail the size or properties of the microLEDs. The researchers have licensed the technology to FRONICS that plans to commercialize it. 

In August 2023, China-based BOE HC Semitek started building its $700 million microLED epiwafer production line in Jinwan District, Zhuhai, China.

The company now held a ceremony marking the beginning of sample wafer production at the new line. This is the first phase of this project, and total investment to date is $275 million. It is likely that ramping up will take some time and full scale production of the first phase will take place later in 2025. When the fab is complete, with all three phases, it will have a yearly capacity of 58,000 6-inch microLED wafers. 

Researchers from Korea's Kookmin University in Seoul, led by Prof. Young Rag Do, have developed a novel top-down process to fabricate and isolate sub-micron GaN microLEDs. The process combines electrochemical etching and sonochemical separation of the etched porous layer to isolate the microLEDs.

The researchers have used the process to produce Au-coated GaN blue LEDs that offer an EQE of 6.21% (at 4.0 V) and a luminous efficacy of 1,070 cd/m2 (at 10.0 V). The LEDs themselves had a diameter of 750 nm, these are true sub-micon LEDs.