About Organic Light Emitting Diode (OLED)
- OLED is a flat light emitting technology, made by placing a series of organic thin films between two conductors.It consists of an organic layer sandwiched between two conducting sheets (an Anode and a cathode) with a glass plate the top and bottom.OLED is a newer display technology for mobiles and monitors.
- When electrical current is applied, a bright light is emitted.
- OLED displays offer improved image quality– better contrast, higher brightness, fuller viewing angle, a wider colour range and much faster refresh rates and lower power consumption over an LED display.
- The carbon-based organic material emits electro-luminescent light when electricity is applied across the two conducting sheets.
- OLEDs are superior in their exceptional colour reproduction, fast response times, higher brightness and extremely light weight designs.
Advantages of OLED
- Better picture quality: Provide greater contrast ratio and wider viewing angle because OLED pixels have the capability to emit lights directly.
- Lightweight and flexible: The plastic substrates have the advantage of being shatter resistance and like the glass displays that are used in LCD monitors.
- Faster response time: The response time can be up to 1000 times faster than LCD displays which can be under 10 μs.
- Lower cost: Roll-to-roll vapour deposition methods ensure that mass production can be done for minimal cost, but this technique has some challenges of accuracy.
- Environment friendly: The materials do not use Lead or such other material.
- Better power efficiency: OLED displays do not use backlight due to which the power consumption is less.These devices are thinner than their LCD counterparts.
Disadvantages of OLED
- Lifespan: have lower lifetime due to limited lifetime of organic materials. Historically blue OLED had the lowest lifetime of around 14000 hours to half brightness level.
- Power Consumption: Power consumption in OLED displays are uneven. These consume around 40% of the power of LCD for Black images, 60 to 80% for the majority of images.This can reduce battery life in mobile devices when white backgrounds are used.
- Water Damage: water can cause instant damage to the organic materials of the OLED displays. It can limit the longevity of more flexible displays.
- Outdoor Performance: OLED uses metallic cathode which acts as a mirror with reflectance approaching 80%. This leads to poor readability in the bright light outdoors.
The Differences between LED and OLED
OLED | LED |
Made of organic materials. | Made from inorganic compounds. |
The pixels are self illuminating. | The LEDs used to light an LED display |
Colours do not get washed out when viewers watch from extreme angles. | Colours do not get washed out when viewers watch from extreme angles. |
Wider viewing angle than do LED. | LED feature a limited viewing angle. |
Ability to develop lighter and thinner displays. | LED are heavier and thicker displays. |
Response Time faster | Response Time of LED is slower than that of OLED. |
More energy efficient | LED consume more energy efficient when compared to their OLED |