VR / AR - Page 4

We're happy to interview Dr. Uwe Vogel, the Deputy Director of the Fraunhofer FEP and the Division Director of the Fraunhofer's Microdisplays and Sensors division, as part of our series of interviews with MicroLED Industry Association members. The Fraunhofer Institute for Organic Electronics, Electron Beam and Plasma Technology (Fraunhofer FEP) is located in Dresden, Germany, and focuses on developing innovative solutions, technologies and processes for surface modification and organic electronics.

Hello Dr. Vogel. Can you introduce your company and technology?

The Fraunhofer Institute for Organic Electronics, Electron Beam and Plasma Technology FEP is one out of 76 institutes and research units of the Fraunhofer-Gesellschaft e. V., the largest European institution for applied research. The core competences of Fraunhofer FEP are electron beam technologies, vacuum thin film deposition techniques and technologies for organic electronics, microdisplay technology and sensors. Main activities target development and adaption of the thin film deposition technologies to a wide range of industrial applications. Fraunhofer FEP runs multiple pilot-scale vacuum coating systems.

India's Reliance announced the JioGlass, a VR HMD that is reportedly based on dual full-color FHD microLED microdisplays. This is an interesting product as it is the first one we are aware of that uses such commercial microLED microdisplays. It may be that these are actually OLED microdisplays, and the reports are inaccurate as is sometimes the case.

The JioGlass create a 100-inch virtual screen in front of the view, and the two microidsplays enable a 40 degrees FOV. The HMD connects via USB to any iOs or Android smartphone, or to a laptop. The HMD is designed by Tesseract, an India-based startup that was acquired by Reliance.

TCL's RayNeo announced a new smart glasses product, the RayNeo X2 Lite, based on full-color 1500-nits microLED microdisplays. The company did not provide more details on the microLED displays, beyond saying that they will offer 3D images and a 30-degrees FOV.

The X2 Lite, powered by Qualcomm's Snapdragon AR1 Gen 1 Platform offer innovative AI-backed live translation, smart assistant, 3D navigation, and HD camera features. TCL expects to ship the product in Q3 2024.

France-based Hummink develops high percussion capillary printing technology, that enables a highly controlled and prices (sub-micron scale) deposition of materials. The company's VP Business Development, Dr. Frederic Raynal, will give a lecture at the upcoming MicroLED-Connect virtual webinar on November 2023, and was kind enough to answer a few questions we had.

Hello Dr. Raynal. Can you give us a short intro to your company and microLED product/service?

Hummink is the leading developer and supplier of High Precision Capillary Printing (HPCAP), a revolutionary technology in many applications including the display and semiconductor industry. Spun-off from world-renowned research institutes, the company is based in Paris, with representatives in key regions (Korea, US, Taiwan, Japan, Europe). HPCAP involves the controlled deposition of materials, achieving high pixel densities with accurate alignment at extremely small sizes (sub-micronic scale), which is mandatory for the manufacturing of current and future generations of MicroLED. Hummink is a technology provider, enabling customers to have access to both equipments and inks through a single partnership.

Singapore-based nsc innovation is an integrated circuit design company, that develops microLED microdisplays based on a monolithically integrated silicon CMOS with GaN LEDs platform, produced at full wafer scale. Kenneth Lee, nsc's co-founder, will give a lecture at the upcoming MicroLED-Connect virtual webinar on November 2023, and was kind enough to answer a few questions we had.

Hello Kenneth, can you give us a short introduction to nsc and your microLED technology?

nsc is an integrated circuit design company based out of Singapore. nsc aims to enhance the human experience through future technology by creating ground-breaking integrated circuits that will underpin future technological waves. 

Our chips are the first to effectively integrate silicon CMOS with GaN LEDs monolithically and at full wafer scale, while maintaining compatibility with traditional CMOS manufacturing. By doing so, nsc offers the functionality and manufacturability needed to enable widespread adoption of microdisplays.

Innovation Semiconductor is a US-based early stage company that develops technologies for color-tunable vertically-integrated microLED displays. The company's CTO and co-founder Matthew Hartensveld will give a lecture at the upcoming MicroLED-Connect virtual webinar on November 2023, and was kind enough to answer a few questions we had.

Hello Matthew, can you give us a short intro to your company and microLED product/service?

Innovation Semiconductor is a pioneering microLED startup offering comprehensive monolithic display solutions. We're advancing unique technologies like GaN-based MOSFETs and microLEDs on one wafer. Additionally, we're crafting color-adjustable microLEDs all while using standard semiconductor equipment.

What will you talk about during the microLED Connect's event?

During the microLED Connect's event, I will discuss our innovative approach to color-tunable microLEDs. We utilize strain engineering to produce regions with varying Indium content, enabling red to blue emission from a singular InGaN material system. We've also fabricated prototype arrays to demonstrate the capabilities of this technology.

Samsung Display announced that it has developed a 0.25" 1920x1080 (FHD) microLED microdisplay, targeting AR applications. The company did not disclose more information about this new display.

We reported that SDC has started to develop microLED microdisplay technologies in August 2022. According to our information, Samsung targets AR devices with its microLED microdisplay technology, while it targets VR devices with its OLED microdisplays.

The MicroLED Industry Association published today a new white paper, that is focused on monolithic microLED integration.

A major challenge in producing MicroLED displays is the transfer stage, also known as Pick and Place. This production step is responsible for transferring individual LEDs from the original wafer to the final display. In some cases, it is possible to (more or less) skip this stage and transfer the LEDs directly to the final display through a process called monolithic microLED integration.

This document will focus on such a process, discuss various options for its execution and examine the types of displays and applications it is suitable for. The white paper is published on the MicroLED Association's website, and is open to the public.

US-based Saphlux has developed a 0.39" full-color microLED Microdisplay, based on the company's NPQD color conversion technology. You can see a sample of Saphlux's T1-0.39 RGB display in the video below. 

Saphlux's first microdisplay offers a maximum white brightness of 250,000 nits, and a wide color gamut. The company is using high-EQE blue microLEDs (it has a partner that supplies the LEDs) and its NPQD technology achieves 67% photon conversion efficiency. The company's technology enables a pixel pitch of sub-2 microns. 

Market Research firm Trendforce predicts that microLED chip sales will reach $27 million in 2023, a growth of almost 100 compared to 2022 ($14 million). Trendforce says that the market is expected to actually accelerate its growth, and grow at a CAGR of 136% from 2022 to 2027, reaching $580 million in 2027. 

Of course not just the LED chip market will grow - the entire ecosystem, including production equipment, backplanes, and more.