Samsung unveils largest flexible LCD display

Samsung today claimed that it has developed the world's largest transmissive TFT LCD (thin-film transistor, liquid crystal display) with sufficiently high resolution to display digital television content.

The seven-inch, 640x480 (VGA-standard) flexible display uses a transparent plastic substrate that is thinner, lighter and more durable than the conventional LCD glass panels used today. Moreover, the full-colour transmissive LCD panel maintains a constant thickness even when it is bent.

The technology involves the use of pliable plastic instead of rigid glass substrates in TFT-LCD production. According to the Korean electronics giant it will not break when flexed, allowing greater freedom in commercial designs requiring flexible full-colour, high-resolution display components. The seven-inch flexible TFT-LCD is designed for mobility applications, including mobile phones and notebooks. The technology may also be used for applications such as wearable electronic displays.

The display is double the size of Samsung's five-inch flexible LCD display prototype announced in January 2005.

Samsung said building the screen meant it had "overcome daunting problems" involving the plastic substrate's heat sensitivity, including issues with how to maintain the display's substrate thickness when subjected to typical commercial thermal conditions.

The latest flexible LCD panel was developed under a three-year programme funded by Samsung Electronics' display development group under the auspices of the Korean Ministry of Commerce, Industry and Energy, supported by Samsung's Corporate Research Fund.

Further reading

• Components

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• 28 Oct 2005

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