March 2020

UK-based GaN-On-Si MicroLED microdisplay developer Plessey Semiconductor announced a partnership with Facebook - in fact Plessey will dedicated all of its manufacturing operations to support Facebook with its own product development.

Plesssey says that its displays will be used to support Facebook's prototypes, and the company will develop new microLED technologies to future AR/VR applications.

High-precision 3D sensing developer CyberOptics Corporation announced that it has received a $1.2 million order for its SQ3000 Multi-Function systems for Automated Optical Inspection (AOI), Solder Paste Inspection (SPI) and Coordinate Measurements (CMM), to be used in the scale-up of micro-LED technologies.

CyberOptics says it expects more micro-LED equipment orders later in 2020. In August 2019 the company announced a $1.3 million order for a system SQ3000 system.

USA-based eLux was established in 2016 as a spin-off from Sharp Labs of America, to commercialize a unique MicroLED production technology. The company was in stealth mode for a few years, and is now finally discussing its technology and business. We talked to the company's president and CEO Jong-Jan Lee, who explains the company's technology, status and plans.

eLux's technology is based on a unique approach that moves microLEDs from wafer to the target substrate without the need of a pick-and-place process. The so-called fluidic process uses microLEDs dispersed in liquid and wells built onto the substrate. The microLED dispersion is spread over the substrate and the LEDs simply fall into place - a sort of self-assembly process, which can be seen in the video above.

In December 2019, China-based display maker Konka launched its tiled large micro-LED displays, under the APHAEA brand. The company demonstrated two such displays - a 118" 4K one that costs $240,000 and a 236" 8K one that costs $1.25 million.

Konka is gearing up to produce its own MicroLED and miniLED chips, and has ordered several Aixtron production systems, specifically the AIX G5+ C and AIX 2800G4-TM MOCVD systems. Konka will use these CVD reactors to produces GaN-based and AsP-based microLEDs and miniLEDs.

Digitimes reports that Samsung Electronics has partnered with Taiwan-based Epistar to supply the Korean display maker with micro-LED chips, as it aims to release its first microLED TVs in H2 2020.

According to Digitimes, Epistar will work together with PlayNitride to supply the microLEDs. Epistar is an investor in PlayNitride. Digitimes says that PlayNitride is currently producing over 1,000 6" microLED wafers per month, and is aiming to increase its production capacity to 10,000 monthly wafer this year.

Taiwan-based Unity Opto Technology announced plans to invest $1.9 billion NT (around $64 million USD) to setup six new production lines for mini-LEDs and micro-LEDs.

Unity Opto Technology, established in 1993, develops and markets a wide variety of LED products, including LED packages, LED back lighting for displays and automotive LED products.

China-based display producer China Star Optoelectronics Technology (CSOT, owned by TCL) announced a joint-venture with Xiamen Sanan Integrated Circuit (Sanan-IC, owned by San'an Optoelectronics) to develop micro LED materials and production processes and equipment.

The two companies will invest a total of 300 million Yuan (around $43 million USD) in the new venture, with CSoT holding 55%.

MicroLED microdisplay developer Plessey Semiconductor announced that it has developed new passive-matrix monochrome microLED microdisplays. Plessey says it can customize the resolution and color of its PM displays to the customer requirements.

Plessey demonstrated its first such PM microdisplays with the 48x36 blue panel you see above. The company says it plans to introduce 384x128 monochrome and 128x128 RGB passive matrix microdisplays by the end of 2020.