Micro LED May Be Competitive With OLED In Large-Size Displays

While Micro LED technology is still under development and some experts think that the technology will be initially applied to small- to medium-size displays while others think the initial application will be large-size displays, large-size applications, especially TVs, will make Micro LED more likely to be competitive with OLED.

Sony took the initiative to unveil CLEDIS (crystal LED integrated structure) technology, marking the first step to commercializing Micro LED technology. However, Sony plans to offer 220-inch CLEDIS displays for sale at JPY120 million (US$1.07 million), which is irrelevant to consumer market. If Micro LED is intended to be a mainstream display technology, it should be applied to consumer devices.

According to chairman Lee Biing-jye for Taiwan-based LED epitaxial wafer and chip maker Epistar, Micro LED technology could be commercially applied in smart wearables, VR or AR in 1-2 years at the earliest, but large-size displays may come 3-5 years after. As shown by a survey by the Taiwan Electronic Equipment Industry Association, 57% of surveyed experts think that Micro LED technology will be initially used in smartwatches in three years.

Among international vendors, Apple is inclined to adopt Micro LED technology for small- to medium-size displays while Samsung Electronics plans to apply the technology to TVs.

AMOLED penetration in smartphones is rising and is expected to reach nearly 50% in 2020. In addition, there is increasing adoption of AMOLED panels for smart wearables, VR, and AR devices. In contrast, LG Electronics has dominated the OLED TV market, but OLED TVs will take up only 1% of global TV shipments in 2017.

Thus, Micro LED TVs are likely to face less competition from OLED and will drive greater demand for Micro LED panels than small- to medium-size applications.

However, there are technological problems to solve in applying Micro LED technology, mainly massive transfer of Micro LED chips, current control and compatibility with existing LCD production equipment.

As Taiwan-based LCD and LED makers have technology advantages, they stand a good chance of developing Micro LED technology commercially, according to chairman Paul Peng for AU Optronics.

Rebecca Kuo, Taipei; Adam Hwang, DIGITIMES