VR / AR

Fuji Chimera Research Institute says that the global microdisplay market reached $161 million in 2018, led by LCoS panels (59.7%) and OLED panels (27.8%).

While some analysts expect Micro-LED to take over the AR microdisplay market, Fuji Chimera says that the technology is not mature enough and there are some technology challenges to overcome still - including those in epitaxial wafer process, mass transfer, defect detection and current drive.

n-tech Research says that the Micro-LED market will emerge in 2019, with sales reaching $2.7 billion. The market will grow very quickly to reach over $70 billion in 2027.

n-Tech says that the immediate markets for Micro-LED displays will be near-eye displays (AR/VR), automotive HUDs and projectors - as these will benefit mostly from the small size, low weight, high brightness and high resolution of Micro-LED displays. Wearables (smartwatches) is another lucrative market (n-Tech sees $1.6 billion in smartwatch Micro-LED display sales in 2022).

Digitimes reports that Taiwan's ITRI institute is developing new micro LED displays for both small-size and large-size application.

For small-size displays, ITRI is developing a 0.55-inch micro-LED microdisplays (on-silicon). This display is aimed for AR or VR devices. For this display ITRI uses 10-micron LEDs. For larger-sized application, ITRI is focused on displays over 130-inch in size. For such displays ITRI adopts 50-100 micron LEDs on PCB substrates.