David Savastano, Editor06.01.22
Quantum dot (QD) televisions have increasingly grown market share in recent years, and the technology continues to improve. As a leading QD manufacturers, Nanosys has developed new systems for Samsung and other TV and display manufacturers.
Nanosys’ most recent development is its xQDEF Diffuser Plate. The first TVs with the xQDEF Diffuser Plate inside began shipping in mid-2021, and to date, there are more than a million TVs with the technology in the market.
In honor of its latest achievement, Nanosys received the 2022 Display Industry Awards Display Component of the Year award from the Society for Information Display (SID).
“Receiving a Component of the Year Award from the SID is such an honor for us,” said Russell Kempt, Nanosys VP of worldwide sales and marketing. “The SID awards committee is loaded with brilliant people who helped to innovate and create the technologies behind most of the incredible displays we all use every day. So, for them to single out a technology that we developed as award-worthy, is especially meaningful to us.”
Kempt said that the road to the xQDEF Diffuser Plate took some time, but a collaboration with Nangtong Changed New Material Co., Ltd. (CYD), a leader in LCD diffuser plate manufacturing, proved to be the key .
“In late December 2019, just weeks before the global COVID shutdown, our team flew to Shenzhen, China for an introductory meeting with a company called CYD,” said Kempt. “CYD may not be well known here in the US, but they are an important player in the display supply chain as really the leader in LCD diffuser plate manufacturing.
“CYD was developing an innovative co-extrusion process that would enable them to incorporate quantum dots directly into their diffuser plate components,” added Kempt. “The process seemed to work in early trials, but the performance, with standard quantum dots, was not very good.”
At the same time, Nanosys was developing a new, air-stable quantum dot material.
“The air-stable material showed tremendous promise, maintaining high brightness and perfect color even after being processed into a component without a barrier layer to protect it from the environment,” Kempt noted. “The potential for the combination with CYD was massive. If our new materials worked with CYD’s process, an entirely new market segment could be served by quantum dot technology.
“The initial meeting with CYD in 2019 was a success and both sides were pretty excited about the potential. So, as much of the world came to a stop in early 2020, our two teams returned to their respective labs, on their respective continents, to begin rapidly perfecting the new product. Despite the distance and travel restrictions, progress was rapid and we went into mass production around 18 months later,” Kempt concluded
Key Benefits of xQDEF Diffuser Plate Technology
Viewers want to see the sharpest color and brightness when they watch TV. Kempt said that the xQDEF Diffuser Plate brings together the color and brightness performance of QDEF quantum dot technology with the precise light diffusion necessary for perfect contrast levels in miniLED and full-array local dimming LCDs.
“A direct replacement for diffuser plate components in direct-lit LCDs, the xQDEF Diffuser Plate simplifies the display assembly process, allowing display makers to design and build the most cost-effective displays with the widest color gamut possible,” Kempt observed. “There are no films or barrier layers required. Compared with other wide color gamut solutions, the xQDEF Diffuser Plate implementation results in close to $0 additional bill of materials costs for display makers.”
Another key benefit is cost.
“If there is one true axiom of the consumer electronics industry – and it’s one that every consumer is familiar with – it’s that TVs always get cheaper,” Kempt said. “Today, in the US, roughly three out of every four TVs sold cost less than $400 and the ‘premium’ TV market now begins at around $700.”
Nanosys first invented and successfully introduced QDEF quantum dot film technology to the market in 2013. Since then, the company focused on rapid innovation. Constantly increasing performance and reducing costs enabled QDEF to capture a significant share of premium LCDs.
“In fact, by 2020, the cost of the quantum dots in QDEF was significantly less than the packaging costs for the barrier films used to protect those quantum dots in the QDEF component,” Kempt reported. “To continue that pace of innovation and break into the mainstream market in TV sets costing less than $400 at retail, a revolutionary new quantum dot component design was needed.
“That’s where xQDEF Diffuser Plate comes in. We are jumping from adding a separate component to the LCD film stack, which is what we have been doing with QDEF, to really combining functionality with an important, existing part in the diffuser plate. We are eliminating some of the packaging costs in the barrier layers and film layers as well. What you get is a simpler display with fewer components inside and the same great quantum dot performance that consumers recognize. xQDEF Diffuser Plate has been enthusiastically embraced by the display industry. “
“On the LCD side of the market, our QDEF technology continues to gain traction with more than 60 million units shipped since 2013,” Kempt reported. “The xQDEF Diffuser Plate component is the first in a series of innovative new display components based on Nanosys’ proprietary air-stable quantum dot technology. Over the next year, we’ll be launching more components based on the air-stable quantum dot materials that we think will really accelerate the adoption of quantum dots in the important entry-level TV segment where most of the volume is.
“Moving beyond LCDs, it’s exciting to see the first quantum dot- OLED hybrid displays coming to market this year with products from Samsung, Sony, Dell, and MSI launching products with inkjet-printed quantum dot color conversion on top of blue OLEDs,” Kempt added. “This technology is a big step towards the future of low-cost, printed, emissive displays that we’re all driving towards.”
Nanosys’ most recent development is its xQDEF Diffuser Plate. The first TVs with the xQDEF Diffuser Plate inside began shipping in mid-2021, and to date, there are more than a million TVs with the technology in the market.
In honor of its latest achievement, Nanosys received the 2022 Display Industry Awards Display Component of the Year award from the Society for Information Display (SID).
“Receiving a Component of the Year Award from the SID is such an honor for us,” said Russell Kempt, Nanosys VP of worldwide sales and marketing. “The SID awards committee is loaded with brilliant people who helped to innovate and create the technologies behind most of the incredible displays we all use every day. So, for them to single out a technology that we developed as award-worthy, is especially meaningful to us.”
History Behind the xQDEF Diffuser Plate
History Behind the xQDEF Diffuser PlateKempt said that the road to the xQDEF Diffuser Plate took some time, but a collaboration with Nangtong Changed New Material Co., Ltd. (CYD), a leader in LCD diffuser plate manufacturing, proved to be the key .
“In late December 2019, just weeks before the global COVID shutdown, our team flew to Shenzhen, China for an introductory meeting with a company called CYD,” said Kempt. “CYD may not be well known here in the US, but they are an important player in the display supply chain as really the leader in LCD diffuser plate manufacturing.
“CYD was developing an innovative co-extrusion process that would enable them to incorporate quantum dots directly into their diffuser plate components,” added Kempt. “The process seemed to work in early trials, but the performance, with standard quantum dots, was not very good.”
At the same time, Nanosys was developing a new, air-stable quantum dot material.
“The air-stable material showed tremendous promise, maintaining high brightness and perfect color even after being processed into a component without a barrier layer to protect it from the environment,” Kempt noted. “The potential for the combination with CYD was massive. If our new materials worked with CYD’s process, an entirely new market segment could be served by quantum dot technology.
“The initial meeting with CYD in 2019 was a success and both sides were pretty excited about the potential. So, as much of the world came to a stop in early 2020, our two teams returned to their respective labs, on their respective continents, to begin rapidly perfecting the new product. Despite the distance and travel restrictions, progress was rapid and we went into mass production around 18 months later,” Kempt concluded
Key Benefits of xQDEF Diffuser Plate Technology
Viewers want to see the sharpest color and brightness when they watch TV. Kempt said that the xQDEF Diffuser Plate brings together the color and brightness performance of QDEF quantum dot technology with the precise light diffusion necessary for perfect contrast levels in miniLED and full-array local dimming LCDs.
“A direct replacement for diffuser plate components in direct-lit LCDs, the xQDEF Diffuser Plate simplifies the display assembly process, allowing display makers to design and build the most cost-effective displays with the widest color gamut possible,” Kempt observed. “There are no films or barrier layers required. Compared with other wide color gamut solutions, the xQDEF Diffuser Plate implementation results in close to $0 additional bill of materials costs for display makers.”
Another key benefit is cost.
“If there is one true axiom of the consumer electronics industry – and it’s one that every consumer is familiar with – it’s that TVs always get cheaper,” Kempt said. “Today, in the US, roughly three out of every four TVs sold cost less than $400 and the ‘premium’ TV market now begins at around $700.”
Nanosys first invented and successfully introduced QDEF quantum dot film technology to the market in 2013. Since then, the company focused on rapid innovation. Constantly increasing performance and reducing costs enabled QDEF to capture a significant share of premium LCDs.
“In fact, by 2020, the cost of the quantum dots in QDEF was significantly less than the packaging costs for the barrier films used to protect those quantum dots in the QDEF component,” Kempt reported. “To continue that pace of innovation and break into the mainstream market in TV sets costing less than $400 at retail, a revolutionary new quantum dot component design was needed.
“That’s where xQDEF Diffuser Plate comes in. We are jumping from adding a separate component to the LCD film stack, which is what we have been doing with QDEF, to really combining functionality with an important, existing part in the diffuser plate. We are eliminating some of the packaging costs in the barrier layers and film layers as well. What you get is a simpler display with fewer components inside and the same great quantum dot performance that consumers recognize. xQDEF Diffuser Plate has been enthusiastically embraced by the display industry. “
Inkjet Printed Quantum Dot TVs and Displays
The future for quantum dots looks bright.“On the LCD side of the market, our QDEF technology continues to gain traction with more than 60 million units shipped since 2013,” Kempt reported. “The xQDEF Diffuser Plate component is the first in a series of innovative new display components based on Nanosys’ proprietary air-stable quantum dot technology. Over the next year, we’ll be launching more components based on the air-stable quantum dot materials that we think will really accelerate the adoption of quantum dots in the important entry-level TV segment where most of the volume is.
“Moving beyond LCDs, it’s exciting to see the first quantum dot- OLED hybrid displays coming to market this year with products from Samsung, Sony, Dell, and MSI launching products with inkjet-printed quantum dot color conversion on top of blue OLEDs,” Kempt added. “This technology is a big step towards the future of low-cost, printed, emissive displays that we’re all driving towards.”
