On June 24, Smartkem, a UK-based developer of organic thin-film transistor (OTFT) materials, announced that it had been granted a patent for a new method for manufacturing Micro LED displays. The patent involves patterning an OTFT backplane on a Micro LED wafer and selectively removing the Micro LED.
Image source: Smartkem
Smartkem Chairman Ian Jenks stated that the company has built a strong intellectual property portfolio, encompassing 140 granted patents across 17 patent families. The newly acquired patent is an innovative Micro LED display manufacturing technology that not only improves manufacturing efficiency but also significantly reduces material waste and production costs.
The new patented technology offers a more efficient and sustainable alternative to traditional monolithic Micro LED display manufacturing. Its principle involves selectively transferring only the required Micro LEDs from the growth substrate to the display substrate, rather than manufacturing the entire display on a single substrate.
The specific process includes: first, preparing a Micro LED wafer and applying an adhesive layer to expose the selected Micro LEDs; then, depositing an OTFT backplane on the adhesive layer and precisely aligning it to connect the exposed Micro LEDs; finally, removing the entire assembly from the original wafer and transferring it to a new display substrate.
Unlike the traditional monolithic manufacturing method where Micro LEDs and transistors are grown on the same wafer, Smartkem's new patented technology uses a "selective removal" method for Micro LEDs, allowing the wafer to be reused multiple times. This results in a manufacturing cost that is far lower than the traditional method of using an entire wafer at once.
According to available information, Smartkem is a UK-based developer of organic thin-film transistor (OTFT) materials. In May 2024, Smartkem first showcased a Micro LED display sample based on its proprietary OTFT material. This sample was a 96x96 pixel Micro LED array using a sapphire substrate. The planarization was achieved using Smartkem materials, and the anode and cathode contacts of the Micro LEDs were created through photolithography, etching, sputtering, and metal layer patterning processes to generate the display effect.
In January of this year, Smartkem announced that it had completed its first sale of TRUFLEX® semiconductor materials to its partner, Shanghai Chip Foundation. The two companies will use these materials to jointly develop next-generation Micro LED backlight technology for liquid crystal displays. (Compiled)
