GE Technology Enables More Vibrant Display in Tablets, Smartphones, and Televisions

Research breakthrough will vastly improve color and crispness of images on LED devices

Conventional LED Display vs. LED Display with PFS (Photo: Business Wire)

NISKAYUNA, N.Y.--()--GE announced today a research breakthrough that will vastly improve the color and crispness of images displayed on LED devices – everything from cell phones and tablets to televisions. Scientists at GE Lighting and GE Global Research developed a phosphor powder that, when packaged inside an LED, push the picture quality of LED electronics to new heights.

GE’s patented solution involves adding potassium fluorosilicate (PFS) doped with manganese as a red line emitter to an LED. The use of the PFS phosphor in LED systems generates a reddish color that’s sharper, cleaner, and truer than the state-of-the-art nitride phosphor – resulting in less color bleed and a richer picture.

To see a lab demonstration and learn more about the technology, please watch this short video: http://youtu.be/5KYDK-oFRVM

Anant Setlur, a materials scientist and leader on the phosphors effort at GE Global Research, said, “Backlit displays consist of an array of LEDs fed into a waveguide to filter out red, green, and blue. In most of the devices you see on the market today, the red component in the LED is low quality, causing greens to look yellowish; this negatively impacts the overall picture quality. What we’ve achieved here allows for more natural color in consumer electronics. The difference in picture quality is stunning.”

GE Ventures has licensed the technology patents to Sharp Corporation and Nichia Corporation, both of which are manufacturing and packaging LEDs containing PFS phosphor material for use as LED backlights in a wide range of LCD display products. In fact, several display companies have recently launched tablets and smartphones containing LED devices supplied by these licensees.

Mike Petracci, General Manager of Licensing, GE Ventures, said, “Sharp and Nichia are world-class leaders in the design and sale of LEDs and we are pleased to bring this breakthrough to market.”

About GE Global Research

GE Global Research is the hub of technology development for all of GE's businesses. Our scientists and engineers redefine what’s possible, drive growth for our businesses, and find answers to some of the world’s toughest problems.

We innovate 24 hours a day, with sites in Niskayuna, New York; San Ramon, California; Bangalore, India; Shanghai, China; Munich, Germany; and Rio de Janeiro, Brazil.

Visit GE Global Research on the web at www.geglobalresearch.com. Connect with our technologists at www.geglobalresearch.com/blog and twitter.com/geresearch.

About GE Ventures

At GE Ventures, we combine capital, technical and commercial license expertise, infrastructure, and the GE global network of businesses and partners to scale great ideas that drive growth for partners and GE. Our goal is to become the global partner of choice, to make the world work better, to build, power, move and cure.

About GE Lighting

GE Lighting invents with the vigor of its founder Thomas Edison to develop energy-efficient solutions that change the way people light their world in commercial, industrial, municipal and residential settings. The business employs about 13,000 people in more than 100 countries, and sells products under the Reveal® and Energy Smart® consumer brands, and Evolve™, GTx™, Immersion™, Infusion™, Lumination™, Albeo™ and Tetra® commercial brands, all trademarks of GE. GE works on things that matter to build a world that works better. For more information, visit www.gelighting.com.

Contacts

GE Media:
GE Global Research
Todd Alhart, 518-387-7914
todd.alhart@ge.com
or
GE Ventures
Angie Hansen, 518-431-6802
Angie.Hansen@ge.com
or
GE Lighting
Christopher Augustine, 216-266-3477
Christopher.Augustine@ge.com

Release Summary

Scientists at GE Lighting and GE Global Research have developed a phosphor powder that, when packaged inside an LED, push the picture quality of LED electronics to new heights.

Contacts

GE Media:
GE Global Research
Todd Alhart, 518-387-7914
todd.alhart@ge.com
or
GE Ventures
Angie Hansen, 518-431-6802
Angie.Hansen@ge.com
or
GE Lighting
Christopher Augustine, 216-266-3477
Christopher.Augustine@ge.com