3D Nanowires

Aledia and AUO Corporation announced a strategic partnership to co-develop microLED display technologies. The two companies will develop microLED displays based on Aledia's 3D-Nanowire microLEDs and AUO's display backplanes.

Aledia and AUO has launched a project that received funds the France-Taiwan cooperation funding program. Beyond displays, this technology may also be used to optical I/O solutions and microLED microdisplays for AR devices. The partnership was formally announced last month in Paris.

3D Nanowire microLED developer Aledia announced that it has successfully demonstrated a fully functional monolithic RGB epitaxial wafer. This breakthrough validates the company’s end-to-end monolithic RGB process, enabling the emission of red, green, and blue light from a single epi wafer processed in one run.

Aledia’s proprietary nanowire-based approach enables the simultaneous growth of nanowires with diameters
ranging from 100 nm to 400 nm, depending on the color, all within a single process step.

Researchers from the University of Michigan, led by Prof. Zetian Mi, have developed a new 3D Nanowire red microLED emitter that achieves a very narrow emission spectrum - an FWHM of 5nm at 617 nm, about one order of magnitude narrower than previously reported values. A narrow emission spectrum helps to realize wide color gamuts.

To achieve this high performance, the researchers realized a nanowire photonic crystal (PhC) structure that reforms the radiation behavior of red-emitting InGaN micro-LEDs.

3D Nanowire microLED developer Aledia announced that it has validated its 9V microLEDs on a 200 mm silicon wafer. Specifically, it demonstrated 15x30 um blue microLEDs on the 9V 200 mm platform.

The company says that utilizing the higher 9V voltage, compared to their previous platform voltage, directly enables lower current and improved system efficiency for ultra small microLEDs. Aledia says that its blue 3D Nanowire LEDs offer high efficiency on any chip size.

We're happy to interview Pierre Tchoulfian, CTO of Aledia, as part of our series of interviews with MicroLED Industry Association members. France based Aledia, leading the next-generation displays with its 3D silicon nanowire–based microLED technology, designed to dramatically lower production costs. Backed by over €360 million in funding, Aledia is expanding production with its FlexiNOVA epiwafer platform and a planned €140 million fab. With more than 250 patent families, the company is advancing both large-display and next-generation AR microLED platforms.

Pierre is a recognized MicroLED innovator with 14+ years advancing technology and product development, shaping next-generation display solutions with over 10 patents and numerous publications.

Can you introduce your company and technology?

Aledia is a deep-tech company at the forefront of display innovation, focused on redefining what’s possible with microLED technology. We were founded in 2011 out of CEA-Leti research labs and are headquartered in Grenoble, in the heart of Europe’s “Display Valley.”

The MicroLED Industry Association published a new white paper that provides a discussion on microLED full color architectures. The white paper is openly available to download here.

One of the key challenges still facing the microLED industry is the development of full color displays. As blue, green and red LEDs are based on different material structures, producing full-color displays is not straightforward. MicroLED display developers are looking at several full color architectures, including a native GaN red microLED, color-tunable LEDs, color conversion using phosphors/QDs, and alternative material platforms (such as 3D Nanowires) and processes.

The MicroLED Association Full Color Architectures white paper addresses the challenges associated with producing full color microLED displays, and details the different architectures and technologies being developed today. You can download the full white paper here!

MicroLED-Connect 2025 is set to be the industry’s premier event for 2025, with a world-class agenda, exhibition and networking opportunities. In this article we will introduce some of our speakers and themes in the event. You can explore the full agenda and event details here.

Mass transfer – lasers, fluids and chip-first processing

The first theme we will discuss is mass transfer. In most MicroLED production platforms, there is at least one transfer process – from epiwafer to final display, and usually at least two such processes are involved: from epiwafer to an interposer substrate (temporary holder)  and then from interposer to final display. Performing this transfer in a cost-efficient and reliable manner is still one of the major challenges the industry is facing.

The MicroLED Industry Association will host an online meeting on June 16, 2025, with a focus on red microLED emission, one of the key challenges towards mass microLED adoption.

This first-of-its-kind panel meeting will take a deep look into red microLED emission. The several potential paths towards a commercial red microLED will be discussed: native GaN red, color conversion, color-tunable LEDs and 3D GaN Nanowires.

3D Nanowire MicroLED developer Aledia launched its new FlexiNOVA product-ready epiwafer platform, saying that first samples will be available for customers in the second half of 2025, in both 6V and 9V variants.

FlexiNOVA microLED wafers will be offered to display makers to be integrated into full displays, targeting applications such as wearables, automotive displays, TVs and monitors. The FlexiNOVA platform offers high flexibility in chip size, shape, and power usage. 

France-based microLED developer and MicroLED Association member Aledia announced that it has finished the construction of its $200 million microLED production line in Grenoble, and the company is now starting to produce AR microLED microdisplays based on its 3D Nanowire platform.

The new microLED microdisplays are full color displays, based on monolithically grown native red, green and blue devices. The company says that is 3D GaN Nanowire material platform is more efficient and bright than regular (2D) LEDs. The company grows the LED on 8-inch and 12-inch silicon wafers, and can currently ramp up to almost 20,000 monthly wafers.