Samsung Display Develops High-Resolution OLEDoS Microdisplay for Next-Generation XR

Samsung Display researchers revealed it in a recent paper published in J. Soc. Info. Display, the official journal of the Society for Information Display (SID), that they have developed a next-generation OLED-on-Silicon (OLEDoS) microdisplay with 4032 PPI (pixels per inch). This technology is optimized for the next generation of XR devices, including virtual reality (VR), mixed reality (MR), and augmented reality (AR), with panels that dramatically reduce system power consumption and crosstalk while maintaining high resolution and image quality.

This 1.3-inch panel has an ultra-high resolution of 4032PPI, delivering images so precise that pixels are indistinguishable to the naked eye. This minimizes the screen door effect in VR and AR glasses, enabling an immersive content experience. The display of the Apple Vision Pro, released in 2024, features a high-resolution display with a size of 1.42 inches and 3,391 PPI.

In this paper, a pixel compensation circuit structure with 7T1C (7 transistors and 1 capacitor) structure was introduced for high-resolution implementation, which complemented the shortcomings of the previous generation, 6T2C structure, and realized a design that was strong against voltage deviation.

Existing 6T2C pixel structures have caused problems with threshold voltage (Vth) deviations and image distortion between small transistors when implemented in high resolution. Accordingly, Samsung Display’s newly devised 7T1C structure provides the following major advantages.

• Improved Vth compensation accuracy: Suppresses luminance imbalance caused by threshold voltage deviation to ±2.75% (previously ±10.6%)
• Reduced horizontal crosstalk: 1.3% (previously 2.0%)
• Area efficiency optimized with a single capacitor
• Improved SRU (short range uniformity): 97.3% (previously 90.4%)

In addition, improvements have been made in the way data is driven. The existing 6T2C circuit consumes a lot of power because it has to charge and discharge a data line every frame, but the 7T1C greatly reduced power consumption by a single charging method. For example, in the same full gray pattern, the power consumption of the source IC decreased from 120 mW to 0.1 mW.

In addition, while lowering the operating voltage through the 8V CMOS-based design, it secured more than 50% of the power efficiency compared to the previous one.

Samsung Display officially announced its dual-track strategy to develop RGB OLEDoS and white-based OLEDoS simultaneously last year, and this 4032PPI panel is considered the result of that technological achievement. Although the mass production date for this newly developed product has not been announced, this technology is expected to serve as an important step in accelerating the development of the next-generation XR device market.

 

About the paper: J Soc Inf Display, 1–9(2025). 

                               SID 2025 Digest 1424 (P-8)

Changho Noh, Analyst at UBI Research  (chnoh@ubiresearch.com)

UBI Research’s Micro Display Report