Sony's Triluminos displays use quantum dot technology

by Mark Tyson on 16 January 2013, 15:52

Tags: Sony (NYSE:SNE)

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We reported about the future commercial uses of Quantum Dots (QDs) in March last year here on HEXUS. Now we have news that Sony will be the first TV manufacturer to make screens using the new technology for precise backlighting tasks. QD displays can reproduce a much higher gamut of colours on a display, as much as 50 per cent more, reports The Verge. More colours will display images as more lifelike and appealing to the human eye, as current monitors and TVs show a relatively small range of colours (gamut) compared to what can be perceived. Check the diagram below.

Eye, camera, scanner, CRT, desktop printer, press

QD Vision of Massachusetts is the chosen supplier for Sony’s Triluminos branded screens says science journal Nature. The journal reports that the demand for these quantum dots could help boost the quantum dot companies’ fortunes and the UK quantum dot manufacturer Nanoco should also benefit if these displays take off.

Enhanced gamut of the Triluminos display

Let’s look again at the benefits of QD displays over OLED displays as I outlined in the last QD article.

  • Better colour purity: the colour produced by QDs is a considerable improvement over competing OLED technologies, which provides for an improved viewing experience for the end user.
  • Added flexibility: QDs are soluble in both aqueous and non-aqueous solvents, which provides for printable and flexible displays of all sizes, including large-area TVs (QD TV™)
  • Improved lifetime: QDs are inorganic; as such they offer the potential for improved lifetimes when compared to alternative OLED technologies.

The writer on Gizmodo thinks that the benefits may offer improvements “that the everyday viewer doesn't really appreciate” but hasn’t seen the Sony Triluminos TV in person. I’m sure this screen technology will at least be useful to print and photography professionals.

SmallHD OLED on-camera monitor; the “richest, most accurate” OLED display yet

A new enhanced OLED system made by SmallHD has been made using OLED technology. It’s interesting to see this new display coinciding with Sony’s news. The SmallHD website does a very good job of describing and illustrating the advantages of its enhanced gamut displays for professional photographers. The company advertises its new camera monitor as being able to “actually see the colours your HD camera is capturing”. Learn more about its offering here. I wonder if Sony’s new Triluminos displays trump the SmallHD OLED and by how much. Sadly the three charts on this page are from various sources and not directly comparible.

SmallHD but beautifully formed

HEXUS Forums :: 6 Comments

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Posted by krazy_olie - Wed 16 Jan 2013 17:04
Is this anything to do with “Crystal LED” that Sony had at CES 2012 but then vanished to never be seen again?
Posted by sykobee - Wed 16 Jan 2013 17:22
I need the biggest colourful triangle technology in my monitors!
Posted by Michael H - Wed 16 Jan 2013 19:42
krazy_olie
Is this anything to do with “Crystal LED” that Sony had at CES 2012 but then vanished to never be seen again?

No.

In a traditional LED backlit LCD, a white LED backlight is passively filtered to produce RGB sub-pixels. Which are then actively filtered by the LCD panel.

The old Triluminos was Sony's name for RGB LED backlighting - where you have Red, Green and Blue LEDs as the backlight - which provides a wider spectrum compared to a White LED - which when passively filtered to produce RGB sub-pixels gives each sub-pixel a more vibrant look. It's not new tech - My Dell XPS 16 laptop from 2009 has this technology. It's not mainstream though due to the costs.

This new iteration of the Triluminos tech has a blue LED backlight - which ‘activates’ Red and Green quantum dots - giving the RGB backlight - which again is not per pixel - it just provides a wider spectrum backlight. Which passes through the colour filters and LCD as previous - but should be cheaper to produce than RGB LED backlights.

The Crystal LED was individual RGB ‘Mircro’ LEDs for each sub-pixel - a true LED TV - no colour filter or LCD panel involved. Each individual sub-pixel can be activated individually. Very similar to OLED, but without OLED's degradation concerns. Likely years away due to the costs - it was a proof of concept exercise - but not something that can be commercialised at present.
Posted by Biscuit - Wed 16 Jan 2013 22:32
Michael H;2787673
No.

In a traditional LED backlit LCD, a white LED backlight is passively filtered to produce RGB sub-pixels. Which are then actively filtered by the LCD panel.

The old Triluminos was Sony's name for RGB LED backlighting - where you have Red, Green and Blue LEDs as the backlight - which provides a wider spectrum compared to a White LED - which when passively filtered to produce RGB sub-pixels gives each sub-pixel a more vibrant look. It's not new tech - My Dell XPS 16 laptop from 2009 has this technology. It's not mainstream though due to the costs.

This new iteration of the Triluminos tech has a blue LED backlight - which ‘activates’ Red and Green quantum dots - giving the RGB backlight - which again is not per pixel - it just provides a wider spectrum backlight. Which passes through the colour filters and LCD as previous - but should be cheaper to produce than RGB LED backlights.

The Crystal LED was individual RGB ‘Mircro’ LEDs for each sub-pixel - a true LED TV - no colour filter or LCD panel involved. Each individual sub-pixel can be activated individually. Very similar to OLED, but without OLED's degradation concerns. Likely years away due to the costs - it was a proof of concept exercise - but not something that can be commercialised at present.

Great post :thumbsup:

I remember NHK were putting an emerald sensor in the original UHD cameras, wonder if that's still the way they work?
Posted by Biscuit - Wed 16 Jan 2013 22:45
Michael H;2787673
No.

In a traditional LED backlit LCD, a white LED backlight is passively filtered to produce RGB sub-pixels. Which are then actively filtered by the LCD panel.

The old Triluminos was Sony's name for RGB LED backlighting - where you have Red, Green and Blue LEDs as the backlight - which provides a wider spectrum compared to a White LED - which when passively filtered to produce RGB sub-pixels gives each sub-pixel a more vibrant look. It's not new tech - My Dell XPS 16 laptop from 2009 has this technology. It's not mainstream though due to the costs.

This new iteration of the Triluminos tech has a blue LED backlight - which ‘activates’ Red and Green quantum dots - giving the RGB backlight - which again is not per pixel - it just provides a wider spectrum backlight. Which passes through the colour filters and LCD as previous - but should be cheaper to produce than RGB LED backlights.

The Crystal LED was individual RGB ‘Mircro’ LEDs for each sub-pixel - a true LED TV - no colour filter or LCD panel involved. Each individual sub-pixel can be activated individually. Very similar to OLED, but without OLED's degradation concerns. Likely years away due to the costs - it was a proof of concept exercise - but not something that can be commercialised at present.

Great post :thumbsup:

I remember NHK were putting an emerald sensor in the original UHD cameras, wonder if that's still the way they work?

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