Samsung introduces world's first QD-LED display: The tech that could replace OLED

Samsung unveils the first QD-LED display, a potential OLED successor, with advanced inkjet printing technology.

: Samsung introduced the world's first QD-LED display at Display Week 2024, showcasing a technology that could replace OLED due to its attributes like wide color gamut and high color accuracy. This new technology does not use organic material, making it less prone to damage compared to OLED, and it utilizes a manufacturing process that uses environmentally-friendly cadmium-free quantum dots. The 18-inch prototype displayed has modest specs but represents a significant step in the evolution of display technology with the potential for mass production by 2025 or 2026.

During Display Week 2024, Samsung Display revealed a pioneering technology with its 18-inch QD-LED (Quantum Dot LED) display, positioning it as a potential successor to OLED technology. Dubbed QD-LED or NanoLED, this new type of display eliminates the need for OLED by allowing quantum dots to emit light directly via electrical current, which enhances color accuracy and expands the color gamut. Unlike OLEDs, the QD-LED structure doesn't include any organic materials, which reduces the risk of long-term degradation and screen burn-in, issues that are frequently associated with OLED panels.

The production of QD-LED screens involves environmentally-friendly, cadmium-free quantum dots and utilizes inkjet printing technology, making the manufacturing process more efficient and less costly. TCL has already adopted a similar inkjet printing method for its OLED TVs, demonstrating the feasibility and benefits of this approach in real-world applications. This method not only simplifies the manufacturing process but also aligns with the increasing environmental standards in tech manufacturing, providing a greener alternative to current display technologies.

Looking ahead, the QD-LED technology developed by Samsung has the potential to be commercialized by 2025 or 2026, once key challenges such as the lifespan of blue quantum dots are overcome. Shoei Chemical, the owner of Nanosys which fabricates QD-LED, plans to hasten the development towards mass production. Despite the modest specifications of the prototype like its 250 nits brightness, industry experts expect future versions to boast improved specs and performance characteristics, making QD-LED a strong contender in the high-end display market currently dominated by OLEDs.

QD-LEDquantum dotsinkjet printing