Category Archives: FPDs and TFTs

June 7, 2012 — Chinese suppliers of large-size liquid crystal display (LCD) panels are the fastest growing segment of the industry, although major South Korean brands continue to dominate, according to a new IHS iSuppli LCD Market Tracker report.

Table. Global large-size LCD panel market share (shipment volumes). SOURCE: IHS iSuppli Research, May 2012.

Rank Company HQ Q1 2012 shipments (thousands of units) Q1 2012 market share (%) Q4 2011 shipments (thousands of units) Q4 2011 market share (%) Q/Q growth (%)
1 LG Display South Korea 44535.6 28.1 44287.4 27.0 0.6
2 Samsung South Korea 36168.0 22.8 39149.1 23.9 -7.6
3 Chimei Innolux Taiwan 27360.6 17.3 29912.5 18.2 -8.5
4 AUO Taiwan 27328.0 17.2 16857.0 16.4 1.8
5 BOE China 7135.0 4.5 6018.0 3.7 18.6
6 Sharp Japan 4450.6 2.8 5325.5 3.2 -16.4
7 IVO China 4175.0 2.6 3529.0 2.2 18.3
8 Panasonic LCD Japan 2165.0 1.4 3200.0 2.0 -32.3
9 CPT Taiwan 1523.0 1.0 2145.0 1.3 -29.0
10 HannStar Taiwan 1095.0 0.7 1001.0 0.6 9.4
  Others   2635.2 2.0 2509.2 2.0 5.0
  Total   158571.0 100 163933.9 100 -3.3

Chinese panel suppliers capitalized on rising production and strong domestic demand for 32” TVs. #5 Beijing Optoelectronics Technology Co. Ltd. (BOE) of China achieved first-quarter shipment growth of 18.6%, the best performance among the Top 10 suppliers. #7 player Infovision Optoelectronics Co. Ltd. (IVO), also of China, increased its own shipments by a slightly smaller 18.3%, the second-best results for the Top 10.

However, it was two newer Chinese entrants that were not ranked among the Top 10 that saw the most explosive growth in the first quarter. CEC achieved a 63.5% expansion, while China Star Optoelectronics Technology more than doubled its shipments with a 103.3% increase, by far the largest growth in the market.

“The Chinese players are cashing in on the country’s fast-growing demand for 32-inch panels used in televisions,” said Sweta Dash, senior director for liquid crystal displays at IHS. “Meanwhile, the Chinese suppliers are ramping up production, allowing them to expand shipments at a fast pace. Both BOE and China Star have new 8.5-generation fabs, which will allow them to compete with other suppliers that possess similar next-generation fabrication facilities, especially in the television market. The Chinese manufacturers also are benefiting from new tariffs levied by their government, which are creating challenges for their overseas competitors.”

The table below shows the latest Top 10 rankings in the global large-sized LCD space, with market share listings based on unit shipments in the first quarter of 2012 compared to the fourth quarter of 2011. Large-sized LCD panels are defined as those with a diagonal dimension larger than 10 inches.

China’s tariffs in April increased to 5% for imports of LCD panels sized 32” and larger, up from 3% before. The higher tariff has the potential to erode the market share of Taiwanese suppliers, because they now have such a large market share in China.

With overall opportunities tightening in the mature large-sized LCD panel market, partly because of the rising tariffs and increased competition from China, established suppliers based outside China are in the process of figuring out their strategies to outmaneuver the competition. Some are focusing on value-added or more differentiated products, such as high-resolution or 3D panels, while others are moving into new TV panel sizes like 39” or 50”. While the Chinese players focus on the 32” panel market, Taiwanese suppliers prefer to supply the most efficient panels that could be made in older Gen 7.5 fabs to avoid direct competition with their mainland rivals.

While the Chinese were foremost in terms of growth, the South Korean suppliers — LG Display Co. and Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. — continued to lead overall market share in the large-sized LCD panel business. Together the two South Korean electronic titans dwarfed all other players in the first quarter, accounting for 50.9% — slightly more than half — of global shipments for large-sized LCD shipments. The remaining 49.1% of the market was held by 15 players — six from Japan, five from China and four from Taiwan. The Taiwanese, despite having fewer players, held larger shares individually and collectively than their Chinese and Japanese rivals.

LG Display Co. continued to speed ahead of archrival Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. as it widened its overall share in the large-sized liquid crystal display (LCD) panel market during the first quarter this year. This was due in part to LG profiting from the quarterly loss in shipments by other suppliers.

With shipments of 44.5 million large-sized LCD panels in the first quarter, LG accounted for a huge 28.1% of the market and was the undisputed leader in the space. LG’s performance handily beat out Samsung’s shipments during the same period of 36.2 million units, allowing Samsung to retain the runner-up position with a 22.8% market share.

For the first quarter, LG managed to actually expand shipments by 0.6% from a 27.0% share in the fourth quarter. In comparison, Samsung saw 7.6% of its shipments vanish from the fourth quarter, when it held 23.9% of the market.

The 8% decline in shipments at Samsung may have been caused by various factors, including a diminished customer base in China, the break-up of its LCD joint venture with Japan’s Sony Corp., and the decision by Samsung to focus more on high-end LCD segments in order to improve profitability. The decline in shipments during the period by the #3 player, Chimei Innolux Corp. of Taiwan, also helped LG to secure a bigger share.

Total large-sized LCD shipments worldwide amounted to 158.6 million units in the first quarter, down 3.3% from 169.3 million units in the fourth quarter but up 1% compared to the first quarter a year ago.

Part of the reason for the overwhelming dominance of the South Koreans was that both LG and Samsung supplied panels internally for their own divisions that make televisions, in addition to partnerships with other TV brands. Such vertical integration was missing in many other players, which could only supply panels to outside clients and had no captive internal markets of their own.

Among other large-sized LCD suppliers, both Chunghwa Picture Tubes Ltd. and HannStar Display Corp. from Taiwan are moving away from the mature large-panel market to the small- and medium-sized LCD space, or even into panels for the touch screen industry, where greater opportunities are springing up given the increasing proliferation of tablets and smartphones. HannStar was the only company to fall out of the Top 10 in the first quarter, allowing previous 11th-place holder Tianma of China to take its spot.

Read more in IHS’s Recovery Expected in Large LCD Market in 2012 After a Very Slow 2011

IHS iSuppli’s market intelligence helps technology companies achieve market leadership.

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June 5, 2012 — Nanosys Inc. will supply the Optical Systems Division of 3M Company with quantum-dot-based technologies to provide wide color gamut for consumer electronic displays, allowing liquid crystal displays (LCDs) to display 50% more color.

 3M and Nanosys will work together to commercialize Nanosys’ Quantum Dot Enhancement Film (QDEF) technology. QDEF is a drop-in film that LCD manufacturers can integrate with existing production processes. It utilizes the light-emitting properties of quantum dots to create an ideal backlight for LCDs. The QDEF product took a gold award in the Display Component of the Year category of Society for Information Display (SID)’s Display Industry Awards this week.

Current LCDs are limited to displaying 35% or less of the visible color spectrum. Wide color gamut displays will enable more immersive and truer-to-life displays.

Color performance “has been largely neglected for the last decade,” said Jason Hartlove, president and CEO of Nanosys, adding that the drop-in quantum dot technology offers competitive advantage to LCD manufacturer against new display technologies such as organic light-emitting diodes (OLEDs).

A quantum dot’s precise light-emission wavelength allows QDEF to create an ideal white backlight specifically for LCDs. The film packages trillions of quantum dots into a thin film inside an LCD backlight unit, without new equipment or process changes for the LCD manufacturer.

Nanosys, Inc. is an advanced material developer focused on inorganic materials for lighting, electronic displays, and energy storage. For more information, visit www.nanosysinc.com.

3M creates diverse products based on materials science. For more information, visit www.3M.com

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June 5, 2012 – BUSINESS WIRE — Universal Display Corporation (NASDAQ: PANL), maker of UniversalPHOLED technology and materials, introduced new red, green, and yellow UniversalPHOLED products during the 2012 Society for Information Display (SID) Display Week in Boston. The new offerings include novel emission layer material systems with enhanced performance to provide OLEDs with additional advantages for smartphones, TVs, and solid-state lighting.

“Our ongoing innovations in new materials and technology have allowed us to expand our product line-up that include new high-performance emissive layer systems for red, green, and yellow,” said Steven V. Abramson, president and CEO, Universal Display. “These next-generation systems contain our proprietary, highly efficient UniversalPHOLED emitter materials as well as novel host systems. These host systems combine our proprietary, cost-effective host materials with host materials from partner companies.”

Universal Display’s phosphorescent OLED technology and materials have demonstrated a four-to-one power advantage over other OLED technologies, resulting in record energy-efficient OLEDs. The new red UniversalPHOLED system, with CIE color coordinates of (0.66, 0.34), offers a luminous efficiency of 29 candelas per ampere (cd/A) with an operating lifetime of 600,000 hours (to 50% of initial luminance). The new green UniversalPHOLED system with CIE coordinates of (0.31, 0.63) offers 85 cd/A and an operating lifetime of 400,000 hours. The yellow system with CIE coordinates of (0.44, 0.54) offers 81 cd/A and 1,450,000 hours of operating lifetime.

Since 2003, the company has offered UniversalPHOLED emitters for commercial applications, and today offers a line of red, green, yellow, and light blue emitters for use in OLED display and lighting products. Recently, the company introduced high-performance host materials to its product line. The company’s proprietary hosts can be used alone or, as recently developed, in combination with complementary hosts from its material company partners. Designed to optimize the performance of the company’s UniversalPHOLED emitter products, these host systems have also been developed to provide cost-effectiveness in display and lighting applications.

Universal Display is the recognized leader in high-performance, energy-efficient phosphorescent OLED technology and materials, as well as related OLED technologies that deliver manufacturing and device performance advantages. With a comprehensive patent portfolio and technical expertise that cover these and other OLED technologies worldwide, Universal Display licenses its state-of-the-art OLED technologies, sells its proprietary UniversalPHOLED materials, and provides customized technology development and transfer services for its OLED display and lighting customers.

Universal Display Corporation (Nasdaq: PANL) makes organic light emitting diode (OLED) technologies, materials and services for the display and lighting industries. To learn more about Universal Display, please visit www.universaldisplay.com.

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June 5, 2012 – PRNewswire — The Society for Information Display (SID), a global organization dedicated to the advancement of electronic display technology, announced the winners of its 17th annual Display Industry Awards. The honorees will be recognized during a special luncheon as part of Display Week 2012, SID’s annual International Symposium, Seminar and Exhibition, taking place this week in Boston.

According to DIA chair, Robert L. Melcher, "Over the past five decades since SID was founded, we have witnessed new technology developments that would have been unimaginable even 10 years ago. This year’s crop of DIA winners is no exception, representing an exciting array of products that continue to advance the ‘state of the art’ in the display industry, and the consumer electronics industry at large. On behalf of SID, I want to congratulate each of these companies in winning the display industry’s top honor.  It’s great to see the impact that these products are already having in the commercial marketplace."

To qualify for consideration for a 2012 Display Industry Award, a product had to be available for purchase during the 2011 calendar year. The six winners, two in each of three main categories, were chosen by a distinguished panel of experts who evaluated the nominees for their degree of technical innovation and commercial significance, in addition to their potential for positive social impact.  The winning products and a brief description of each are listed below. A more comprehensive description of the award winners is included in the Display Week 2012 Show Issue of Information Display magazine.

Display of the Year: Granted to a display with novel and outstanding features such as new physical or chemical effects, or a new addressing method.

Gold Award: AU Optronics 55-in. 4K x 2K 2D/3D Switchable Glasses-Free TV Display

This year’s gold display winner is not only the world’s first 4K x 2K (or "quad-HD") TV display, but is also the currently the largest commercially available glasses-free 4K x 2K 3-D TV display.  Its 3840 x 2160 resolution delivers vivid, lifelike 2D images, while a simple switch by the viewer converts the image instantly into 3D format.  Thanks to the display’s lenticular lens 3D technology, no 3D glasses are necessary to view outstanding 3D images. Viewers can simply choose their preferred viewing positions and enjoy a pleasant and comfortable experience, without requiring additional eyewear or having to compensate for viewing "dead zones."  In addition, its glasses-free technology facilitates design-in of the display by AUO partners into their current systems.

Silver Award: Qualcomm mirasol Display Technology

Qualcomm MEMS Technologies, Inc. designed mirasol displays to provide consumers with a display that delivers colorful and interactive content unfettered by lighting environments, including bright sunlight, while simultaneously significantly extending battery life. Already featured in e-readers currently in the market, mirasol display’ benefits can extend to other commercial applications. The MEMS-based technology mimics optical resonant cavities found in nature to create color via reflective interference and switching speed that makes mirasol displays video capable. Moreover, mirasol displays consume near- zero power when the display image is unchanged, making it highly energy efficient and especially well-suited for mobile devices.

Display Application of the Year: Granted for a novel and outstanding application of a display, where the display itself is not necessarily a new device.

Gold Award: Samsung Galaxy Note

A portable communication device designed with a 5.3-inch display using HD Super AMOLED technology, the Galaxy Note features a high-resolution (800 × 1280 pixel) screen that provides a dynamic, colorful, and comfortable viewing experience for content such as videos, photos, documents, and Web sites. Super AMOLED can depict more vibrant images since it has deeper blacks than LCDs and covers 95 percent of all natural colors. Also, depending on the screen’s white area, the AMOLED display adjusts its luminance for eye comfort.  With its large, dynamic screen and unique input technology, the Galaxy Note enables mobile communications in a more personal, creative way.

Silver Award: Perceptive Pixel 82-in. Projected-Capacitive True Multi-Touch and Stylus LCD

In August 2011, Perceptive Pixel introduced the first large-scale pro-cap interactive display that achieves the level of fidelity and performance necessary for real productivity. It is the world’s largest projective-capacitive multi-touch and stylus display, featuring true full-frame unlimited-finger touch and precision stylus sensing at 120 Hz across a proprietary sensor that is optically bonded to an 82-in. LCD panel. The display utilizes novel state-of-the-art projective-capacitive controller electronics with an unprecedented signal-to-noise ratio (SNR), specifically designed for application at these large dimensions and in optically bonded sensor stack-ups. The unit’s proprietary 82-in. transparent conductor sensor is constructed on a thin 2-mm Gorilla Glass substrate, which Perceptive Pixel then optically bonds onto the LCD cell. Optical bonding greatly enhances the ruggedness of the system, serving as a protective cover glass to the cell against the focused force of a stylus tip. Perceptive Pixel’s 82-in. display can be frequently seen on CNN as well as other networks being used to cover this year’s historic presidential primaries and election.

Display Component of the Year: Granted for a novel component (sold as a separate part and incorporated into a display) that has significantly enhanced the display’s performance. A component may also include display-enhancing materials and/or parts fabricated with new processes.

Gold Award: Nanosys Quantum-Dot Enhanced Film (QDEF)

Color is the next major differentiator in the display market. A quantum dot, which is about the size of a water molecule, can emit any color of light at precise wavelengths. QDEF from Nanosys combines red- and green-emitting quantum dots in a thin, optically clear sheet that emits white light when stimulated by a blue LED light source. The result is lifelike, high-color displays that enhance the consumer experience, allowing more realistic digital viewing of photos, movies, and video games. Manufacturers that have invested billions in equipment for LCD production can simply slip QDEF into their manufacturing process, change their "white" LEDs to blue, and start producing LCD panels with OLED-like color performance and better energy efficiency, at a significant cost savings.

Silver Award: LG Chemical Film Patterned Retarder Incorporating Merck KGaA’s Proprietary Reactive Mesogen (RM) Layer

First commercialized by LG Chemical in 2010, this technology is 10 times thinner and 20 times lighter than glass-based patterned retarders, can be easily mass-produced, and makes enjoyment of 3D content more convenient. A film patterned retarder (FPR) is an optical component attached to a 3D LCD TV’s front polarizer to convert left- and right-eye images to left- and right-circular-polarized light, allowing viewers to enjoy 3D images through passive-polarized glasses. The reactive mesogen film used for LG Chemical’s FPR is made using Merck KGaA’s licrivue materials, formulated for coating onto flexible plastic substrates by using a roll-to-roll coating process. The coated licrivue RM materials align and follow the pattern of the photoalignment layer. This alignment is preserved by UV polymerization of the RM film to form the patterned retarder, delivering dimensional stability and superior performance in 3D displays.

The 49th SID International Symposium, Seminar and Exhibition, dubbed Display Week 2012, will take place this week through June 8, at the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center. Display Week is the premier international gathering of scientists, engineers, manufacturers and users in the field of electronic-information displays. For more information on Display Week 2012, visit www.displayweek.org.

Celebrating its 50th anniversary, the Society for Information Display (SID) is the only professional organization focused on the display industry. In fact, by exclusively focusing on the advancement of electronic-display technology, SID provides a unique platform for industry collaboration, communication and training in all related technologies while showcasing the industry’s best new products. For more information, visit www.sid.org.

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June 4, 2012 — The ConFab’s sessions opened with “The Economic Outlook for the Semiconductor Industry,” featuring Jackie Sturm of Intel, Dan Hutcheson of VLSIresearch, and Jim Feldhan of Semico. The ConFab is an invitation-only meeting of the semiconductor industry, taking place this week in Las Vegas.

Jackie Sturm is VP of the Technology and Manufacturing Group and GM of Global Sourcing and Procurement at Intel Corporation. She focused on bright spots of growth in a mature semiconductor industry. She also urged attendees to consider factors outside of the semiconductor industry — gross domestic product (GDP) around the world, disposable income, etc. — when forecasting. Jim Feldhan, president of research and analysis firm Semico, shared Sturm’s view on macroeconomic factors, listing jobs growth, consumer spending as a percentage of GDP, and the inflation rate as factors impacting chip sales.

Intel’s Jackie Sturm presenting at The ConFab 2012 in Las Vegas.

Emerging markets like Brazil, India, China, etc. all present vastly different consumer habits and refresh cycles than mature markets like the US and Western Europe. They also have varying saturation of consumer goods like PCs and smartphones. Expect rapid adoption for these consumer electronics from Eastern Europe, Latin America, and China. Semico has lowered its 2012 world GDP growth forecast from 4.5% to 4.2%, considering drivers like emerging markets, US and European economies, and growth in China and India.

Exponential growth is expected in data server demand, Sturm noted, thanks to increased time spent, and available content, online. Photo and video up/downloads increase every year. New applications like tablets and music/video players are driving NAND Flash memory bit growth, pointed out Feldhan.

Semiconductor sales are on an upward trajectory for the remainder of 2012, Feldhan says, after a dip in late 2011/early 2012. Semiconductor revenues could be up by 9% this year.

Semico’s IPI shows semiconductor industry trajectory.

Growth applications include ultrabooks, tablets, and 4G phones. “Consumers still love electronics,” Feldhan said, and this means purchasing of HDTVs, set-top boxes, cameras, games etc. Unit sales are growing and aggregate IC ASPs are stabilizing. Feldhan said that the supply chain realized that inventories were too low, and this trend is reversing.

What does it take to capitalize on these areas of semiconductor demand? Sturm advises that companies drive price points by the consumer, remain agile to meet new needs, collaborate where possible, and invest in your company’s future. Be aware of the varying refresh rates for different consumer goods, as well as how these vary in different parts of the world. Collaborations with academia and government, as well as intra-industry collaborations with suppliers and customers, enable rapid work on device structures, designs, and processes.

Sturm’s advice: Work with customers to understand market needs. Work with suppliers to ensure the tools and materials are in place for you to meet those needs. And work with universities on R&D for future technology generations. Investing in research and new process and product development requires significant revenue. Sturm estimates $9-12 billion in annual semiconductor revenue is needed to support just 1 leading-edge fab. With this factor, it’s no surprise that the semiconductor arena is experiencing consolidation.

As an example of how electronics suppliers need to adapt to consumer behavior, Feldhan discussed the jolt of energy that PCs will get from the emerging ultrabook category, which will cannibalize other notebooks. Ultrabooks will be 15% of total notebook market in 2012, some ODMs think 20% Components from the battery to the CPU and GPU to the display will change as ultrabooks take market share. Right now, touchscreens are a limiting factor in ultrabook production, as is user confidence in the OS. Many ultrabook barriers will be worked out by 2013, and by 2015, ultrabooks will be outshipping notebooks.

Other end-use products? Tablets, despite phenomenal consumer adoption, do not threaten to eradicate the PC market, Feldhan noted.  Smartphones saw higher-than-expected (29%) growth in 2011; expect 34% growth in 2012. New features and functions will be the key to success for smartphone designs.

This, in turn, benefits micro electro mechanical system (MEMS) makers, and companies that supply power management ICs.

MEMS are behind many new components that enable better sound quality, new device capabilities, and more. Keep an eye out for micro opto-electro mechanical systems (MOEMS), used to improve images and lower costs in new displays. MOEMS suppliers are a mix of industry heavyweights and newcomers — TI, Microvision , bTendo, Maradin, Mirrorcle, Qualcomm, and Unipixel. 2012 is the opening year of breakneck growth for MOEMS, 79.1% compound annual growth rate (CAGR) through 2016, fueled primarily by communications and computing applications.

2012 is also a jumping off year for MEMS oscillators, which are challenging the entrenched crystal quartz technology for timing ICs. Smartphones use as many as 7 timing devices per unit.

Video interview: Jim Feldhan speaks to Solid State Technology editor-in-chief Pete Singer

 

Read on for a discussion of silicon cycles and capex with input from session speakers Dan Hutcheson and Jim Feldhan in How to prevail over silicon cycles.

Learn more about The ConFab 2012 at http://www.theconfab.com/index.html.

The ConFab sessions cover economic outlooks, technology trends, the foundry-fabless relationship, 3D packaging, and tool investments/obsolescence. Click on any of the keywords for a session preview. Also read chief editor Pete Singer’s blogs from the conference.

Today’s keynote address presented the "virtual IDM" concept, from John Chen of Nvidia. The next keynote address will take place Tuesday morning, with Ali Sebt, CEO of Renesas Electronics America, presenting “Smart Society, the Sensing Era and Signal Chain.”

June 3, 2012 — Glasses-free 3D display developer Dimenco released Dimenco Clear View (DCV) technology, with a “unique lens design and manufacturing process” to enable deeper black levels, no brightness loss, wider viewing angle, and lower cross-talk.

Dimenco optimized 3D performance through attention to lens design, panel and manufacturing processes, said Bas Böggemann COO of Dimenco. Conventional 3D auto-stereoscopic displays are made with a lenticular lens coupled to the liquid crystal display (LCD) panel, reducing brightness and contrast, and limiting the viewing angle in which 3D is perceived on the display.

Dimenco Clear View’s optical stack was optimized to limit internal reflections and is not affected by any form of diffusion. Combining the DCV technology and Dimenco image processing enables smooth cone transitions for better 3D display.

Dimenco Clear View technology will be demonstrated on several Dimenco displays at SID Display Week, June 5-7 in Boston, booth 848.

The technology is ready for licensing and 3D display products can be acquired via Dimenco.

Dimenco offers end-to-end 3D auto-stereoscopic solutions that include auto-stereoscopic 3D displays, components, software, content conversion and consultancy services. For more information about Dimenco, please visit www.dimenco.eu

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June 1, 2012 — Display manufacturers LG Display and Samsung Display dominated the tablet display panel market in 2011, but several more display makers grabbed small pieces of the tablet pie than had in 2010, according to an IHS iSuppli Small and Medium Displays Market Tracker. That trend will continue in 2012.

High-profile design wins at Apple Inc., Amazon, Barnes & Noble, and Research in Motion (RIM) kept LG Display and Samsung Display with the lion’s share of tablet display manufacturing, 46% and 35% respectively (see the table), said Vinita Jakhanwal, director for small & medium Displays at IHS.

Year-over-year, both LG Display and Samsung lost share, which was picked up by six suppliers: Chimei Innolux Corp, Chunghwa Picture Tubes Ltd., E-Ink Holdings Inc., Tianma Microelectronics Co., Beijing Orient Electronics Group Co. Ltd., and Hitachi Displays Ltd. All 8 suppliers are based in Asia, from South Korea, Taiwan, China, and Japan.

Table. Global share of media tablet display panel manufacturing (unit shipment volume). SOURCE: IHS iSuppli Research, May 2012.
Rank Company HQ 2011 market share (%) 2010 market share (%)
1 LG Display South Korea 46 67
2 Samsung South Korea 35 31
3 Chimei Innolux Taiwan 7 0
4 Chunghwa Picture Tubes Taiwan 4 0
5 Hitachi Displays Japan 3 0
6 Beijing Orient Electronics China 3 0
7 E-ink Taiwan 1 2
8 Tianma Microelectronics China 1 0
  Total:   100 100

While LG and Samsung are expected to maintain their dominance in 2012, new players such as Sharp Corp. and Japan Display, as well as AU Optronics (AUO), take their own portions of market share. Tablet display suppliers will need to satisfy a range of price points in 2012, which could increase diversification. Higher levels of competition will help to drive down panel costs to OEMs, fueling higher demand and growth, IHS believes.

In 2011, 81.3 million tablet display panels shipped, up 408% from 2010’s 16 million units. Tablet panel shipments will increase 78% to 144.5 million units in 2012, driving growth for <10” displays (small/medium displays). Also read: @ imec’s ITF: Entering the booming market of mobile displays

The 9” segment represented 68% of the tablet display sector in 2011, as it includes Apple’s iPad. In 2012, look for 7” designs to gain share, as much as 36% of total market, especially if Apple enters the sector with an “iPad Mini.”

Read more in Fourth Quarter SMD Shipments Add To Panel Inventories or access IHS iSuppli’s Small and Medium Displays Market Tracker report.

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June 1, 2012 – BUSINESS WIRE — Electronics gas supplier Linde LienHwa (LLH), The Linde Group’s joint venture with LienHwa MiTAC Group of Taiwan, signed a long-term deal with Samsung Electronics to supply gases for its latest Gen-8.5 thin-film transistor liquid crystal display (TFT-LCD) manufacturing plant in Suzhou, China.

Linde LienHwa will provide Samsung Electronics with a turnkey installation of the TFT-LCD plant’s bulk gases supply systems, with gas on line date at the end of 2012. Linde LienHwa will construct an on-site SPECTRA-N 30,000-series nitrogen generator with underground supply pipe. The contract is worth approximately RMB500 million (EUR50 million, USD62 million).

Linde is expanding its customer base in Asia, with Linde LienHwa positioned for growth in eastern China. The Samsung Electronics contract doubles Linde LienHwa’s capacity in Suzhou Industrial Park (SIP). Linde is a contracted gas supplier with the top 3 flat panel display (FPD) manufacturers in China, the company reports. It is also a sustaining member of the LCD TV Association.

TFT-LCD manufacturing requires large volumes of ultra-high-purity gases to create the thin-film transistors (TFT) that control the display’s pixels. Display makers are transitioning to larger-panel-size fabs, like Gen-8.5, for the improved cost/production equation. Samsung’s new 8.5 panel facility is constructed by Suzhou Samsung LCD (SSL), a joint venture between Samsung, SIP and TCL Corporation. SIP is expected to become China’s largest advanced LCD production cluster.

Samsung’s share of the US LCD TV market hit a record high in Q4 2011 (IHS), but globally, the LCD panel industry is tempering production in reaction to weak markets (NPD Displaysearch). In the near term, panel makers need to reduce their shipment plans to better react to soft demand and avoid inventory problems, said NPD Displaysearch. This industry-wide adjustment helps stabilize supply and demand.

Linde LienHwa (LLH) is a joint venture in mainland China between The Linde Group and LienHwa MiTAC Group of Taiwan. It supplies ultra-high-purity gases and related projects and services to the semiconductor, TFT-LCD, photovoltaic and LED industries. For more information, visit our website at www.linde.com or www.linde-gas.com/electronics

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May 31, 2012 — Gamma Scientific will release a new Display Reflectance Spectrophotometer System at the Society for Information Display’s Display Week 2012 in Boston, June 5-7, at booth 637. 

The Display Reflectance Spectrophotometer tests thin-film optical coatings on displays at production line speeds, combining Gamma Scientific’s high-speed RadOMA spectroradiometers with optically stable and durable fixed-angle gonioreflectometer heads. The Display Reflectance Spectrophotometer captures precise, repeatable measurements of the antireflective (AR) optical coating on displays. It has the option to exclude other reflective layers behind the first surface. The system is designed for minimal maintenance.

Gamma Scientific’s display spectroradiometers rapidly capture spectral measurements, with sensitivity to color accuracy, linearity, and amplitude accuracy.

Goniospectroradiometers combine a 6-axis robotic arm and spectroradiometer to capture measurements from any user-specified angle, while the display remains stationary.

Gamma Scientific provides precision display and component test solutions for production and R&D environments. Gamma Scientific also operates a NVLAP accredited laboratory (NVLAP Lab Code 200823-0) that performs ENERGY STAR certification and LM-79 testing. http://www.gamma-sci.com.

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May 31, 2012 — Organic light-emitting diode (OLED) company Novaled debuted a class of n-doped electron transport layer (ETL) materials for OLED TV and mobile displays.

Novaled’s new generation of materials includes NET-164 and NET-142 hosts, and NDN-77 and NDN-87 ETL dopants. The air-stable dopants can be paired with either of the host molecules to tailor the OLEDs’ efficiency, voltage and lifetime for a specific display application.

Combinations can address short product lifetimes induced by low driving voltage and higher charge carrier density in the emission zone. Novaled claims that the materials system can double expected lifetime over the previous OLED stack, with air-stable production. The system eliminates complications from air-sensitive N-side dopant materials in mass production and handling.

Novaled uses evaporation processable outcoupling layers — thin NET-61 layers in n-doped ETLs — for maximum efficiency in white PIN OLEDs. Crystallizing outcoupling enhancement layers leads to corrugation of the reflective cathode, reducing plasmon absorption losses.

Novaled will highlight recent advances in OLED display and lighting at the Society for Information Display’s (SID) 49th International Symposium & Exhibition, Booth #3313, June 3-8 in Boston. Dr. Jan Birnstock, VP Technology & Products at Novaled, will present a paper on June 6 about Novaled’s new class of OLED materials for OLED TV and OLED mobile display applications.  Dr. Sven Murano, Product Senior Manager at Novaled, will present a paper on June 7 about Novaled’s outcoupling materials for high-efficiency white OLEDs.

Novaled AG researches, develops, and commercializes technologies and materials that enhance the performance of OLEDs and other organic electronics. Commercially active since 2003, Novaled was founded in 2001 as a spin-off of the Technical University and the Fraunhofer Institute of Dresden. For more information, please visit www.novaled.com.

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