Philips and DuPont Display Need for Alien Technology

By
iApplianceWeb
(05/25/01, 08:03:10 AM EDT)

DuPont Displays and Philips Components will work with Alien Technology, a start-up company based in Morgan Hill, CA, to bring Active Matrix Polymer OLED on plastic technology to the market.

The companies will explore using Alien's NanoBlock IC technology to design next generation Polymer OLED displays on glass substrates. The research will lead to smarter, passively driven full-color Polymer OLED displays, as well as direct-drive displays for higher information driven applications. Unlike the active matrix approach, direct-drive technology eliminates display refresh overhead through the use of local control, memory, and drive circuits to service individual pixels.

Under the agreement, Philips Components will combine its display technology in the areas of module design, system design, and glass processing with Alien's Fluidic Self-Assembly (FSA) technology and NanoBlock IC design. The companies will also design and develop “smart” backplanes for Polymer OLED applications. The technology uses silicon integrated circuits for the direct driving of pixels rather than using the amorphous silicon thin film transistors on glass, typically used with LCD technology, making it more suitable for Polymer displays. This leads to higher quality images, and the ability to add intelligence within the display itself, rather than through supporting electronics.

DuPont Displays, together with its wholly owned subsidiary UNIAX, will provide know-how in the area of Polymer OLED display design and processing. In addition, DuPont Displays and Alien will establish a new program leveraging the same technology into a plastic substrate, flexible format. DuPont Displays will provide the plastic substrate building block technology and Polymer OLED on plastic processing expertise, while Alien will develop an appropriate FSA process compatible with DuPont plastic substrate materials. The fundamental technology innovation in this development is the ability to embed precision current-source drivers and control electronics in plastic substrates utilizing a low-cost, low-temperature process.

"With characteristics comparable to the Central Processing Unit (CPU) in our personal computers," said Chet Pribonic, CEO, DuPont Displays, "NanoBlock IC technology enables the design of smarter Polymer OLED display modules for next generation handheld devices. This improved functionality is achieved in a compact, cost effective, and light weight plastic package that is more robust and reliable than glass-based solutions."