According to recent reports from South Korean media, Samsung Electronics is expected to achieve a record-high operating profit of $11.6 billion in the second quarter of this year. This impressive figure could potentially push Samsung past Apple to claim the top spot globally. What's even more striking is that Samsung's Q2 operating profit is anticipated to exceed the combined operating profits of major tech giants like Facebook, Amazon, Netflix, and Google. In the first quarter of this year, the total operating profit of these four companies amounted to just $11.15 billion.
For those interested in learning more about the intricate details of OLED technology, we’ve prepared a comprehensive article. Today, let’s delve into one specific aspect of OLED manufacturing: evaporation. This process is crucial in creating the precise layers needed for OLED screens. Leading manufacturers like Panasonic have been exploring ways to optimize this process to cut costs, while Sony has made notable advancements in improving evaporation techniques.
Did you know that every pixel "bulb" on an OLED screen is essentially "steamed up"? This process begins with placing the ITO glass substrate inside a vacuum chamber on a heated rotating platform. Then, the luminescent materials—red, green, and blue—are evaporated onto the substrate, forming the pixels. It’s a highly sophisticated process that requires precision and advanced technology.
Evaporation, in simple terms, is the method of heating materials in a vacuum to transform them into atoms or molecules that move linearly and condense on the substrate to form a thin film. This technique is fundamental to OLED manufacturing, not only for the luminescent materials but also for the metal electrodes. While the basic concept might sound straightforward, the actual execution is complex, involving careful control over factors like pixel alignment, film thickness, vacuum levels, and more. These are challenges that few can fully grasp.
In fact, evaporation is one of the key reasons why OLED screens are expensive. Companies like LG struggle to afford enough evaporation machinery, which explains why they couldn’t secure orders for Apple’s iPhone 8 OLED screens. Even Canon Tokki, known for its advanced evaporation technology, finds it challenging to handle Samsung’s massive orders.
Besides the traditional evaporation method, there’s another approach: printing. This method, often referred to as the atmospheric-grade technique, is primarily used for RGB OLED screens. Many of Samsung’s OLED TVs are manufactured using this evaporation method, resulting in vibrant colors but at a high cost. The technique relies on a Fine Metal Mask (FMM), which covers the pixels during the evaporation process. Aligning the mask and selecting the right materials present significant technical hurdles.
To reduce costs, some manufacturers have adopted alternative approaches. One method involves using a blue light source paired with a color conversion layer. This method only requires the evaporation of blue OLED components, which are then converted into RGB colors via the layer. However, due to limitations in converter development, this hasn’t been widely adopted yet.
Another approach uses white light with color filters, similar to LCD screens. LG has employed this method in its OLED TVs, but it results in lower light purity, affecting brightness, contrast, and energy efficiency compared to RGB OLEDs. LG’s WRGB OLED (with four sub-pixels) is a variation of this approach, but we won’t go into detail here.
Panasonic believes that the last method compromises image quality and doesn’t offer significant cost savings. Instead, they focused on developing a printing process. At CES 2013, they showcased a self-developed printing process that resulted in the world’s largest 4K OLED TV (56 inches). Unlike evaporation, the printing process doesn’t require a high-temperature vacuum environment, making it less complex and more cost-effective.
Japanese companies like Mitsubishi Chemical are also investing in this technology. They’re developing new materials for printing OLED panels, aiming to reduce material costs by up to 1/10 compared to evaporation. Their innovation involves creating a material that can be thinly and accurately applied to small areas.
Sony, however, took a hybrid approach by combining evaporation and printing. They addressed the issue of blue luminescent materials’ lifespan and efficiency by first coating a common blue layer and then printing red and green before vapor-depositing them. This method ensures the durability and luminous efficiency of the blue material. At CES 2013, Sony unveiled the world’s largest OLED TV using this hybrid process, which reportedly offered superior color accuracy and performance compared to rival Korean manufacturers.
With ongoing advancements in materials, printing equipment, and process control, printing technology holds immense potential to lower OLED production costs. Despite the current high prices of OLED TVs, other aspects like packaging also play a critical role in manufacturing.
In the future, OLED products will likely evolve to include flexible, paper-thin screens, showcasing the incredible potential of this technology. Innovations like Panasonic’s transparent cathode and “top emission†technology have already enhanced luminous efficiency, while Sony’s “super top lighting structure†improves color purity through microcavity structures and color filters.
While OLED is widely seen as the next-generation display technology, it still faces challenges in terms of technological maturity compared to LCDs. The high cost of OLED TVs is understandable given these complexities. As research progresses, we can look forward to more breakthroughs in OLED technology.
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