What is Micro-LED? "As the next generation display technology, Micro-LED has performance advantages such as high brightness, long life, and free splicing. It has broad application prospects in command and dispatch centers, vehicle-mounted displays and other fields." said Dr. Qian Xianrui, the company's deputy general manager.
In 2020, after Chenxian Optoelectronics settled in Chengdu, it took only 10 months to build the first Micro-LED full-process pilot line in mainland China. In 2023, the construction of the first TFT-based Micro-LED display production line was officially launched.
Recently, reporters visited Chenxian Optoelectronics located in Chengdu High-tech West District and had a conversation with Dr. Qian Xianrui, the company's deputy general manager, to see how Chenxian Optoelectronics, as the main force in the new display industry, can overcome the bottleneck of Micro-LED display technology and demonstrate Chengdu's innovative power at the forefront of global science and technology.
Start the "Chengdu Speed" of Micro-LED industry development
"We will start mass production at the end of this year. This production line fills the gap in the domestic Micro-LED industry and will greatly promote the commercialization process." Recently, the reporter just met Dr. Qian Xianrui, deputy general manager of Chenxian Optoelectronics, and he shared the good news with us.
On the other side, on the pilot production line of Chenxian Optoelectronics, the manufacturing process of a Micro-LED display module has multiple processes. These standardized modules will be used to splice displays of different shapes and sizes, and ultimately become a Micro-LED display product.
Time goes back to 2020. After inspecting multiple cities, the entrepreneurial team of Chenxian Optoelectronics finally chose to settle in Chengdu, and then started "Chengdu Speed". In May of the following year, the Micro-LED display was lit in the factory. In 2021, Mainland China's first Micro-LED pilot production line covering LTPS drive backplane, mass transfer, repair and modules will be built. It is reported that this production line has created a global industry leader in production line construction.Top speed.
"This year we also launched the world's first 27-inch front-protection TFT-based Micro-LED splicing box with a pixel pitch of only 0.5mm. It has a golden ratio of 16:9. It can be seamlessly spliced like building blocks to create a large screen of any size." Dr. Qian Xianrui said that the glass backplane used in the screen improves display accuracy and picture flatness, achieving almost invisible splicing gaps, and the splicing gaps are less than 20 microns.
But when the industry wants to make a breakthrough from 0 to 1, it needs to overcome many difficulties. Dr. Qian Xianrui gave an example, how small is Micro-LED? To put it simply, it is smaller than a hair. "The size of the chip is only a fraction of the diameter of a hair."
At the same time, mass transfer technology is a key challenge. Millions of micron-level LED chips need to be accuratelytransfer to the substrate, which requires extremely high precision and efficiency. This time, the seamless splicing technology is also one of the difficulties. It is necessary to ensure that the seams of the spliced display are almost invisible, which requires extremely high craftsmanship.
"When we first developed it, the industry said that there was no equipment, no process, and no materials. All technologies were in a blank state in China. We need to find equipment manufacturers, material manufacturers, etc. to cooperate in development, and our own processes and designs also need to be iterated continuously." Dr. Qian Xianrui said.
The new display industry is complex and highly dependent on technology. This industry covers multiple links from basic materials to terminal applications, involving LED chips, driver ICs, backplane technology, display modules and other fields. Only with the support of high-tech talents and close cooperation with the entire industry chain can the innovation and development of the industry be truly promoted.
Dr. Qian Xianrui said that Chenxian Optoelectronics attaches great importance to the coordinated development of the upstream and downstream of the industrial chain. Currently, we are working closely with domestic equipment suppliers and scientific research institutions to build a complete domestic Micro-LED industry ecosystem. Through technology sharing and project collaboration with partners, relevantIt is related to the progress of the industry in equipment research and development, material supply, etc.
This year, "new productivity" was included in the government work report, and it was clearly stated that "vigorously promote the construction of a modern industrial system and accelerate the development of new productivity".
Looking to the future, Micro-LED has broad application prospects in commercial displays, command and dispatch centers, high-end home theaters, vehicle displays, wearable devices and other fields. For example, the commercial display field has high requirements for ultra-large screens, high-definition image quality, and long-term stable display. Micro-LED can meet these needs with its high brightness and seamless splicing characteristics.
"The Micro-LED industry will show a momentum of rapid growth in the next few years, and is currently in the early stages of an industry explosion. It is expected that by around 2030, there will be a market size of hundreds of billions." Dr. Qian Xianrui said that although display technology has been constantly innovating, Micro-LED display technology is very promising to reshape the entire display industry ecosystem.
ANNA