We have come a long way from the conventional CRT displays to the most recent OLEDs and AMOLED type screen displays. Apart from becoming flatter, the modern day screens are becoming advanced in their display quality as well.
Though, displays that used Cathode Ray Tubes are still popular today, the Light Emitting Diode and its allied products remain to be the first preference for manufacturers who wish to make extremely slim devices. Let’s look at one such display technology below:
The OLED:
As you know, the term OLED is the acronym for Organic Light Emitting Diode. It is a type of LED display which produces light when the emissive medium comes in contact with an electric current. The emissive layer is usually made up of organic elements like liquids, gases or certain chemical agents that contain carbon in them. This emissive layer is usually transparent and is located between two electrodes.
Unlike Liquid Crystal Displays and True Flat Displays, OLED doesn’t require any illuminating medium and can produce a thinner and lighter display. However, an OLED emits a comparatively lesser light per given area because of its low affinity to conduct heat. This optical-electrical phenomenon was first observed in the late 1950’s.
How it Works:
The common OLED display consists of two electrodes – the cathode and the anode. A stratum of organic elements is filled between the electrodes. These elements are often referred to as Organic Semiconductors because their conductivity levels range to different level and the emitted light per given area depends accordingly.
The application of current across the electrodes, forces the cathode to release a ray of electrons, which flows through the organic medium. As a result, a state of excitation is created which is higher, especially near the organic layer. When this excited state begins to weaken, the energy level of flowing electrons decreases which results in emission of rays or light.
Advantages of OLED:
Thinner:
This is perhaps one of the biggest advantages of OLEDs over LCDs and TFTs. These displays are only a few millimeters thick and relatively produce a sharper display quality.
A quick response time:
OLEDs have comparatively the lowest response time than its siblings. LCD displays show an input lag of 2 – 10 microseconds, whereas the OLEDs have 0.1 microsecond or even lesser response time.
Enhanced Brightness:
OLED displays can produce a display with greater contrast ratio and a larger viewing angle. Since, OLEDs have the ability to produce their own light; they can produce a viewing angle as big as 170 degree.
Durability:
One of the other notable points of OLED displays is that they show higher resistance towards breakages. They are more durable than LCDs, TFTs and other display types.
Cons of OLED display:
Shorter life span:
Though they are much resistive against breakages, they tend to have a lesser life time. This is one of the biggest disadvantages of OLED displays. While other displays like LCD and LEDs can last for over 20,000 hours, OLEDs trend to last only for about 14,000 hours.
Glaring effect:
OLED displays are harder to see on an open broad daylight. You have to take cover beneath a shadow or at least cover the sides of the display with your hands, if you want to view the screen.
Resistance against water:
OLED’s worst nightmare would probably be water. These displays are subjected to immediate damage when prone to even the slightest humidity.
Applications:
The practical applications of OLED displays include mobile phones, where the display is usually 2 to 7 inches long, cameras, laptops, desktop monitors, televisions and much more. The technology is evolving constantly, offering much beneficial use. With more practical applications, let’s expect a bright future from OLEDs.
