Category Archives: Displays

March 23, 2012 — SEMI is seeking papers for technical sessions and presentations at the upcoming SEMICON Europa 2012, October 9-11 in Dresden, Germany. Technical presentation abstracts are due April 30.

SEMICON Europa serves the global microelectronics industry in Europe, with new products and technologies from across the microelectronics supply chain: electronic design automation, device fabrication (wafer processing), and final manufacturing (assembly, packaging, and test). SEMICON Europa also features emerging markets and technologies, including micro electro mechanical systems (MEMS), flexible electronics and displays, nano-electronics, solid state lighting (LEDs), and related technologies.

SEMICON Europa 2012 plans to host more than 100 hours of technical sessions and presentations on the design and manufacturing of semiconductors, MEMS, printed and flexible electronics, and related technologies:

• International MEMS/MST Industry Forum, 8-9 October; theme: “New Dynamics in the MEMS Industry”

• Advanced Packaging Conference (APC), 9-10 October; theme “Packaging Solutions for the New Technologies”

• 14th  European Manufacturing Test Conference (EMTC), 10-11 October; theme: “Overcoming New Test Challenges through Cooperation and Innovation”
 
Submit a 200-400 word abstract of original, non-commercial and non-published material to [email protected], indicating in the subject line of the e-mail: “TEST Call for Papers,”  “MEMS Call for Papers” or “Advances Packaging Call for Papers.” The deadline for submitting abstracts is April 30, 2012. Abstracts must clearly detail the nature, scope, content, organization, key points and significance of the proposed presentation.  The abstract should also contain the main author contact details like job title, company, address, telephone and e-mail, with a short biography.

For more information about the conference or submitting abstracts, including guidelines and requirements, visit http://www.semiconeuropa.org/ProgramsandEvents/CallforPapers, or contact Carlos Lee, SEMI Europe, Tel. +32 2 6095334. SEMI is a global industry association serving the nano- and microelectronic manufacturing supply chains.

March 23, 2012 — H.C. Starck exhibited at the FPD China show this week, noting that the majority of flat panel display (FPD) production occurs in Japan, Korea, Taiwan and China. The rapid growth of organic light-emitting diode (OLED) screens in the FPD industry punctuates the increased need for high-tech materials, the company asserts.

”We are excited about the recent industry developments in FPD,” says Dmitry Shashkov, president and CEO of H.C. Starck’s Fabricated Products business segment. “New technologies such as ultra-high resolution displays and OLED demand different performance levels from all display materials and components."

H.C. Starck provides molybdenum planar and rotary sputtering targets for thin film sputtering applications in Asia. At FPD China, the company promoted its Gen 4.5 and larger molybdenum sputtering targets with high deposition efficiency, >99.5% density, and >99.95% purity. The planar targets are as large as 14 x 1580 x 1950; rotary targets reach 2700mm long.

H.C. Starck manufactures custom rotary and planar sputter targets from molybdenum (Mo), tantalum (Ta), niobium (Nb), tungsten (W), and their alloys. The company supplies refractory metals and technical ceramics to the electronics, chemicals, automotive, medical technology, aerospace, energy technology, and environmental technology industries, as well as mechanical engineering and tool manufacturers. Learn more at www.hcstarck.com.

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March 22, 2012 — Japan’s limited presence in the display manufacturing industry, as well as higher-than-usual inventory levels at panel makers, made the March 2011 8.9-magnitude earthquake in Japan a minor event for the liquid crystal display (LCD) panel and components industries, shows the IHS iSuppli Display Materials & Systems. Japan accounts for less than 10% of the world’s LCD TV production as well.

Only 5% of large-sized LCD panel manufacturing capacity and 18% of small- and medium-sized LCD manufacturing capacity was located in Japan in Q3 2011 (see figure). The disruptions to Japan’s manufacturing and shipments had only a minor impact on the global LCD market, said Sweta Dash, director of LCD research at IHS.

Sales, large displays   Sales, small-
and medium-
size displays
China 10%   China 4%
Japan 5%   Japan 18%
Korea 45%   Korea 23%
Taiwan 40%   Taiwan 55%
      Singapore 0%
Figure. Percentage of global large-sized and small- and medium-sized LCD panel manufacturing by region.

Panasonic, Hitachi and NEC were the only three panel suppliers with fabs impacted by proximity to the earthquake’s epicenter. Sharp’s Gen8 and Gen10 fabs were not impacted at all.

For facilities that suffered minor impairment from the quake, production resumed by the end of March and April; other facilities that suffered more substantial damage resumed production by the May or June time frame. Some facilities also were impacted by power shortages or rolling blackouts due to the shortages, but by summer these were significantly reduced.

On the LCD component side, the biggest worry was anisotropic conductive film (ACF) and indium tin oxide (ITO) material supplies, due to Japanese dominance in the supply chain. Although LCD component supply was affected, panel vendors already had 4-8 weeks of inventory in stock, which helped to ride out shortages in supply. Hitachi and Sony Chemical control 80% of ACF material supply. They were able to restart production by the end of March. JX Nippon, Mitsui and Tosoh together accounted for 80% of ITO materials. JX Nippon’s facilities were impacted by the earthquake, but some production had resumed by April and full production was restored by June. Suppliers with 4-8 weeks of component inventories to use felt very little impact from the disruption. For many components, other suppliers also increased their production.

Other component shortages — such as in bismaleimide-triazine-resin (BT resin), hard drives and batteries — also upset panel demand by impacting the production of notebooks, tablets or other consumer electronic products. For BT resin, Mitsubishi Gas Chemical Co. Inc. held a 50% share, while Hitachi Chemical had a 40% share of supply. By April, one month after the tragedy, Mitsubishi Gas had recovered 25%. Hitachi Chemical had resumed production on March 17, 2011, but power outage issues continued for some time, and a full recovery didn’t come until the second half of 2011. Meanwhile, other companies in Taiwan, South Korea and China geared up to develop BT resin materials, reducing the impact of the shortage.
 
Before the quake there already had been an inventory buildup of panels and television sets in the channel, which also reduced any potential negative consequence due to supply disruptions. Among those companies with TV production facilities in Japan — Panasonic, Sony, Sharp and Toshiba — only Panasonic sources the majority of its LCD TV products from Japan. Sony produces only a very small percentage of its TVs in the country. Even before the disaster, most Japanese-branded manufacturers already had established production facilities outside the country in places like China, Malaysia, Brazil, Poland and Mexico. Many Japanese TV manufacturers also have decided to increase their outsourcing of TV production to ODMs since then.

Other microelectronics sectors:

MEMS supply chain stronger 1 year after Japanese earthquake

How Toshiba’s NAND biz survived Japan’s Great East Earthquake 1 year ago

Automotive MEMS grew 16% in 2011

Japan’s aging semiconductor industry revealed by 2011 earthquake
 
IHS (NYSE: IHS) provides information, insight and analytics in critical areas that shape today’s business landscape. Learn more at www.ihs.com.

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March 22, 2012 – BUSINESS WIRE — The Dow Chemical Company (NYSE: DOW) inaugurated its Dow Seoul Technology Center, a global research & development (R&D) center with focus on technological advances in display technologies and semiconductor-related applications.

The Dow Seoul Technology Center is located in Hwaseong, Gyeonggi-do, strategically near to semiconductor and display customers. The 23,700sq.m., 5-story site will employ approximately 300 people at capacity.

With the addition of the new R&D Center, Dow has invested more than USD$400 million in Korea over the last decade to establish advanced manufacturing sites for semiconductor, display and light-emitting diode (LED) technologies, and to further new business development in the area of electronic materials.

Also read: DOW CMP slurry boasts lower defects and better removal rates

Major areas of research and development at the Dow Seoul Technology Center include lithography, organic light-emitting diodes (OLED), display materials, and advanced chip packaging to support growth.

The site will be the global hub for Dow’s OLED research, and Dow has also equipped the site with a Nikon 193nm immersion scanner and 300mm tool cluster. Dow also has a 193nm dry scanner at its Cheonan, Korea facility.

Dow Electronic Materials is a global supplier of materials and technologies to the semiconductor, interconnect, finishing, photovoltaic, display, LED and optics markets. Dow (NYSE:DOW) is a science and technology company. More information about Dow can be found at www.dow.com.

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March 22, 2012 — The touchscreen display market will reach $14 billion in 2012, driven by the two largest applications, mobile phones and tablet PCs, IDTechEx reports. While projected capacitive touch sensors are the main technology, several others exist for various touch display applications.

Projected capacitive touch is the current market-leading touch display technology. A dozen other touch screen sensor architectures are available, though not all suit the performance, clarity, volume, and cost requirements of consumer applications.
 
Projected capacitive touch screens are most often deployed in mobile and smart phones, as well as fast-growing tablets.

Analog resistive technology is widely used in small size (>10") healthcare and hospitality displays, as well as high-volume retail environments.

Embedded touch technology leads the emerging touch technology sector; on-cell technology in particular has the biggest potential for small- and medium-size consumer electronics.

Infrared (IR) and surface acoustic wave (SAW) touch technologies are mainly relevant for specialized touch devices, such as ATMs and banking and financial applications, as well as eBooks and mobile phones to some extent.
 
Over the next decade, projected capacitive touch technology will continue to lead the market as panel costs decline. Due to extremely low cost, resistive touch technology will continue to lead the market in price-sensitive applications that need precise touch. The rise of embedded touch technology will be conditioned by more and more LCD manufacturers entering the field.

Figure 1. Touch market forecast by technology in 2012. Source: IDTechEx, Touch Screen Modules, Technologies, Markets, Forecasts 2012-2022.

 
The display industry’s next big opportunity lies in replacing indium tin oxide (ITO), especially in mainstream projected capacitive and resistive touch technologies. Half the costs of projected capacitive touch screen modules come from the ITO sensor. Along with cost reduction, ITO alternatives offer flexible properties for bendable, rollable and stretchable electronics with touch functionality.
 
Touchscreens are a mature technology for specialized applications, such as automatic teller machines (ATMs), point-of-sales terminals, Kiosks, etc. Mass consumer market use of touch screens was triggered when Apple introduced projected capacitive touch screen technology for the iPhone in 2007. Mobile phones are the largest volume market for touchscreen panels; over 40% of mobile phones will use touchscreens in 2012, with nearly complete market share within 10 years.

Shipment of tablets with touchscreen technology is expected to reach 100 million units in 2012.
 

Figure 2. Market size for touch technologies by device size in 2012. Source: IDTechEx, Touch Screen Modules, Technologies, Markets, Forecasts 2012-2022.

The touchscreen market is expected to triple in the next decade.

The next big markets for touchscreens are eBooks, (mobile) game consoles, car displays and navigation devices, as well as digital cameras for small to medium size displays. Bigger touch screens over 10" can be increasingly found in laptops and PC monitors, TVs, and other screens.

All of these trends, including detailed ten year forecasts by touch screen technology and by application as well as primary user markets, applicability of the different technologies and application trends, are covered in the new IDTechEx report "Touch Screen Technologies, Applications and Trends 2012-2022." Access it at www.IDTechEx.com/touch.

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March 21, 2012 – Reuters — Taiwan raised investment ceilings for Chinese investors in liquid crystal displays (LCDs), semiconductors, IC assembly and test, microelectronics production equipment, and metal tool manufacturing.

Mainland China companies still cannot hold controlling stakes in these companies in Taiwan, or appointing managers, the government said. But they can hold more than 10% stakes in local companies. All investments must be approved by Taiwan regulators.

This revision also covers makers of light-emitting diodes (LEDs) and solar cells, opened to Chinese investment for the first time. Also read: 2011 results for Taiwan’s LED makers and packagers

Read the full report on Taiwan’s investment regulation changes from Argin Chang, Faith Hung, Chris Lewis at Reuters at http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/03/20/taiwan-china-investment-idUSL3E8EK0RM20120320

In 2011, Taiwan took over as the world leader for installed capacity of semiconductor manufacturing, with 21% of total capacity.

Taiwan also recently re-elected its leader Ma Ying-jeou of the Kuomintang (KMT) for a second term. Ma is not expected to make any major economic and regulatory reforms, according to the US-Taiwan Business Council.

Last month, Taiwan’s Ministry of the Interior (MOI) relaxed its conditions for granting multiple-entry visas to mainland Chinese, to make it more convenient for mainland Chinese business people to visit Taiwan and promote business opportunities. Once the new measures are implemented, the number of mainland Chinese business people obtaining multiple-entry visas is expected to double from the current 4,191 to more than 8,000 a year.

March 20, 2012 — Applied Materials Inc. (NASDAQ:AMAT) debuted a plasma-enhanced chemical vapor deposition (PECVD) film technology for display manufacturers targeting the high resolution needs of tablet devices and TVs.

The insulating silicon oxide (SiO2) films build metal oxide-based transistors for smaller, faster-switching pixels. The films provide a dielectric-layer interface for metal-oxide transistors that minimizes hydrogen impurities to improve transistor stability and optimize display performance.

They are tailored for deposition by AMAT’s AKT-PECVD systems, which boast high uniformity on glass panels up to 9m2. Uniformity and stability challenges have hampered metal-oxide transistor displays in the past, noted Tom Edman, group vice president and general manager of Applied’s AKT Display Business Group.

Major display manufacturers are requesting the products for upgrades and new system installations, Edman added.

Applied Materials is also developing indium gallium zinc oxide (IGZO) deposition and other advanced physical vapor deposition (PVD) processes for metal oxide manufacturing.  AMAT’s rotary cathode array technology has been used to make highly uniform, homogeneous, low-defect active layers with higher thoughput and lower material consumption costs, Applied reports.

The metal-oxide, thin-film transistor (TFT) display manufacturing portfolio will be showcased at Applied Materials’ booth at FPD China 2012, March 20-22 in Shanghai.

Applied Materials Inc. (Nasdaq:AMAT) provides equipment, services and software to enable the manufacture of advanced semiconductor, flat panel display and solar photovoltaic products. Learn more at www.appliedmaterials.com.

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March 19, 2012 — The media tablet computer market took off when Apple launched the first iPad in April 2010. Apple uses a 9.7" display; Amazon’s Kindle Fire uses a 7" screen: Samsung offers Galaxy Tabs with 7", 8.9" and 10.1" displays. NPD In-Stat analyzed the tablet market by display size.

Also read: Does Apple’s new iPad display technology go far enough?

In a competitive sector, dominated by the Apple iPad, screen size is a "key differentiator," said Stephanie Ethier, Senior Analyst, NPD In-Stat. Display size is also the leading indicator of different tablet usages, Ethier said.

NPD In-Stat analyzed top tablet usage scenarios based on device screen size:
The iPad’s continued success will ensure that tablets in the 9.7

March 16, 2012 — The new Apple iPad, generation 3, uses a 2048 × 1536, 264 ppi retina display, quadrupling the pixels of the previous generation. However, Apple may be losing its cutting-edge status when it comes to gesture recognition beyond touchscreens. IHS iSuppli, NPD DisplaySearch, and IMS Research examine the new iPad display.

The display technology
Apple’s higher-resolution iPad display relies on super high aperture (SHA) pixel designs — a method of increasing aperture ratio by applying approximately a 3µm thick photo-definable acrylic resin layer to planarize the device and increase the vertical gap between the indium tin oxide (ITO) pixel electrodes and signal lines. This reduces unwanted capacitive coupling and enables the electrode to be extended over the gate and data lines without causing cross talk or affecting image quality, explains NPD DisplaySearch. More than 25% of LCDs adopt SHA technology and that is likely to continue to grow in the future.

Figure. Conventional to SHA Pixel Design Comparison. Source: DisplaySearch TFT LCD Process Roadmap Report. Note: Image refers to VA type SHA pixel.

Suppliers
The iSuppli Displays Materials & Systems Service believes Apple likely has qualified three sources for the display in the new iPad: Samsung, LG Display (LGD), and Sharp, with volume shipments likely only from Samsung in the near term. Although they are currently shipping displays in small quantities, LGD and Sharp are expected to ramp up volume production of new iPad displays in April. SHA technology was pioneered by Sharp and JSR many years ago, NPD DisplaySearch notes. IHS predicts that Apple is likely to begin shipping new iPads with displays from these suppliers in Q2 2012.

Sharp is working with a new indium gallium zinc oxide (IGZO) technology that enables higher resolutions. The company now is working to ramp up the production of IGZO thin-film transistor (TFT) panels at its Gen 8 fab in Kameyama, Japan, but manufacturing problems could affect both the availability of displays for a full rollout of the new iPad, as well as the cost of the iPad displays. LGD has been pioneering the use of advanced in-plane switching (IPS) display technology, particularly in media tablet displays.

Where Apple falls behind in display technology
IMS Research believes Apple will need to embrace embedded vision-based technologies in its next product releases, not incremental technology upgrades as seen in the gen-3 iPad.

Apple is largely credited with bringing touchscreen interaction to the masses thanks to the iPhone. Now, other user interface technologies — particularly gesture recognition, voice commands — are complementing touch interfaces. Competitors such as Samsung and Microsoft have steadily begun integrating these technologies. Yearly worldwide shipments of devices with next-generation user interface technologies will grow to nearly 3.8 billion units in 2015, says IMS Research.

Apple’s competitors are more aggressively deploying camera-based gesture recognition applications, as well as voice control (Apple’s Siri did not get a spot on the new iPad). Microsoft uses gesture control with the Xbox 360 and upcoming Windows 8 laptops and tablets, along with gesture-friendly common interfaces across devices. Microsoft deploys standard or enhanced front-facing cameras for the new gesture-control applications. Android-based smartphones and tablets incorporating gesture control will debut in volume in late 2012.

With aggressive upgrades in processor power in each product generation, Apple seems well-positioned for gesture-based display interfaces. "Vision algorithms require powerful processors. By boosting CPU and GPU performance in the new iPad, Apple is enabling developers to potentially deploy exciting new embedded vision capabilities, such as gesture recognition, augmented reality," and other applications, said Jeff Bier, founder of the Embedded Vision Alliance (www.Embedded-Vision.com).

The "competitive pressure" is now on Apple, with no voice control, embedded vision, particularly gesture recognition, in this iteration of the iPad, said Paul Erickson, senior analyst at IMS Research. "2012 will see a number of advancements from Apple’s competitors" in these areas. Erickson looks to the iPhone 5 launch to bring iOS devices into competitive parity on this front.

Analysts:
IHS iSuppli’s market intelligence helps technology companies achieve market leadership. Access the IHS iSuppli Display Materials & Systems report at http://www.isuppli.com/Display-Materials-and-Systems/Pages/Products.aspx

Learn more in the DisplaySearch TFT LCD Process Roadmap Report at http://www.displaysearch.com/cps/rde/xchg/displaysearch/hs.xsl/tft_lcd_process_roadmap_report.asp

The study “Next Gen User Interfaces: Touch, Gesture, Motion, and Voice – 2012 Edition” offers a current analysis of the technologies transforming the human-machine-computer interface. IMS Research is a leading independent supplier of market research and consultancy to the global electronics industry. Internet: http://imsresearch.com.

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March 15, 2012 – BUSINESS WIRE — Smartphone owners in the US and UK would like larger displays than they currently have, shows the Strategy Analytics Wireless Device Lab report, “Smartphone Owners Want Thin Devices with Larger Displays.” Smartphone users responded to a survey, stating a desire for 4"-4.5" displays, if the device remained thin.

Women are more likely to use a smaller-display smartphone than men. Android owners are more likely to seek larger devices than users currently on an Apple iPhone. But nearly 90% of the surveyed users gravitated to prototype smartphones with a display larger than their current device, said Paul Brown, a Director in the Strategy Analytics User Experience Practice. Reasons for larger-display smartphone appeal include increased mobile web browsing and engaging video and gaming experiences.

The larger displays are only attractive if they do not add too much weight or bulk to the handset, added Kevin Nolan, VP for the User Experience Practice at Strategy Analytics.

Strategy Analytics, Inc. provides market intelligence focused on Automotive Electronics and Entertainment, Broadband Connected Home, Mobile & Wireless Intelligent Systems and Virtual Worlds. For more information, please visit http://www.strategyanalytics.com/

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