Organic light-emitting diode displays (OLEDs)

Organic Light Emitting Diode (OLED) technologies promise to enable far brighter and crisper displays on TVs, computers and other electronic devices compared to existing flat-screen displays. An OLED device consists of a series of extremely thin films of organic molecules or polymers that are sandwiched between two conductors. When electrical current is applied to the conductors, the films emit a bright light in a process call electrophosphorescence.

OLED displays have multiple benefits over conventional flat screen technologies such as LED, liquid crystal displays or plasma. Because OLED devices create light with the application of electricity, OLED displays do not require backlight, like conventional LCD screens do. As a result OLED displays consume much less energy and are far thinner than current flat screen technologies. An OLED semiconductor is also about 200 times thinner than a human hair which makes it possible to create new, ultra-thin and even transparent and foldable displays. The technology also enables the creation of displays that are brighter, more vivid, have a much fuller viewing angle and represents fast-action video much better compared to conventional flat-screen displays. In addition OLED devices are capable of withstanding a higher range of temperatures than LCD and LED screens.

However OLED displays remain very expensive to manufacture. Currently the only devices featuring such displays are mobile phones, car audio systems, digital cameras and PDAs from companies such as Sony, LG, Microsoft, Samsung, Panasonic and others. TVs based on OLED displays are still a rarity and some analysts believe that it may take until 2012 before they become commercially competitive with current generation flat-screen TVs.

Sony was the first to come out with a OLED TV back in 2007. The 11-inch XEL-1 TV cost over $2,000 and was considered to be more of a prototype than a commercial release. Since then, several other companies including Samsung, LG and Toshiba have started work on developing larger OLED displays for TVs. Sony itself for instance has displayed 27-inch and 21-inch models as well as a bendable 11-inch OLED display since its first prototype release in 2007. Samsung meanwhile has demonstrated a 40-inch OLED panel featuring a full HD resolution of 1920x1080 pixels. Both Panasonic and LG have also exhibited similar displays at consumer trade shows over the past two years.

While such developments hold promise, most consumers will have to wait for another two years or so for prices to come down to a level where they are relatively comparable to existing display technologies. Until that happens, most OLED displays will continue to be supported only on smaller electronic devices.