Recently, BOE Huacan, Tianma Microelectronics, Leyard, and Lehman Optoelectronics revealed the latest progress of their micro-LED businesses during institutional surveys.
BOE Huacan: Micro LED micro-pitch devices to be officially launched early next year <br /> BOE Huacan stated that the company mainly focuses on the technological development of products such as micro LED COW (ChiponWafer), COC (ChiponCarrier), Micro LED pixel devices, AR micro-displays, and ADB automotive lights.
COW/COC products are mainly used in TFT backplanes with mass transfer. We continue to work with leading domestic and international customers to develop products that can be applied to large-size TVs and smart wearables. Our products are at the forefront of the industry in terms of size, efficiency and yield, and have entered a stable shipment stage.
Meanwhile, BOE Huacan has developed a dedicated Micro LED pixel device product for indoor micro-pitch displays. This product has a smaller light-emitting area, higher reliability and yield, can achieve higher screen contrast, and is compatible with most driver ICs on the market. It achieves better display effects and cost control for micro-pitch displays. The product has completed product certification and will be officially launched to the market in early 2025.
The company continues its efforts in microdisplays for AR glasses, recently achieving the illumination of a 0.12-inch microscreen with a pixel pitch of 3.75 micrometers. It is also collaborating with some end-user customers on research and development. For its ADB products used in smart automotive lighting, the company has achieved the illumination of devices with tens of thousands of pixels and is continuously optimizing its processes and reliability.
In terms of Micro LED production, BOE's HC SemiTek 6-inch Micro LED mass production line officially went into operation in Zhuhai on November 6th this year. This is the industry's first Micro LED chip manufacturing plant to achieve production line automation. Once fully operational, it will have an annual production capacity of 24,000 sets of Micro LED wafers (6-inch wafers) and 45,000 million Micro LED pixel devices.
Image source: Huacan Optoelectronics
Leyard: Expanding its All-in-One PC and Cinema Screen Applications with Micro LED <br /> Leyard's main technological path in Micro LED is MIP packaging technology. Leyard stated that with smaller chips, MIP offers a cost advantage while maintaining superior display quality. Its deployment will significantly boost demand in the sub-1mm high-definition display market. The company is also continuously investing in R&D and updates for other new application scenarios, such as all-in-one PCs and cinema screens, all with broad market prospects.
Just recently, Leyard's first-phase self-developed next-generation high-end MIP production line officially started mass production. The first-phase high-end MIP production line has a capacity of 1200KK/month, and the capacity of the second-phase production line will be expanded to 2400KK/month in the future. This will further accelerate the cost reduction and efficiency improvement process of Micro LED display products and significantly drive the demand for ultra-small pitch high-definition displays below P1.0.
Image source: Leyard
Shenzhen Tianma: Micro LED Specialized Production Line to Begin Small-Batch Production by the End of 2025 <br /> Shenzhen Tianma recently told investors that the company began its Micro LED technology development in 2017. In 2022, the company jointly invested in and built a Micro LED specialized production line, which includes the entire process from mass production to display modules. The production line achieved product lighting on June 26 this year and is expected to have small-batch production capacity by the end of 2025.
In terms of application layout of Micro LED, Shenzhen Tianma's Micro LED business focuses on automotive display and splicing display applications, while simultaneously exploring large-size screen, consumer display, wearable display and professional display applications. It has successively released Micro LED display products such as high transparency, seamless splicing, transparent and adjustable, ultra-low reflectivity and ultra-high PPI.
At the 2024 Tianma Innovation Conference on November 7, Shenzhen Tianma and Hisense jointly released the Boundless Crystal Connect Micro LED display technology product, with a P0.4 pitch that effectively reduces and eliminates the seams between screens.
Image source: Tianma
Lehman Optoelectronics: Glass-based Micro LEDs Have Achieved Small-Batch Trial Production; Actively Promoting Pilot Plant Construction <br /> Lehman Optoelectronics stated that the company has achieved small-batch trial production of PM-driven glass-based Micro LED display panels. Currently, the company is actively exploring and upgrading glass-based technology, building patent protection barriers around this technology, and simultaneously actively promoting the construction of pilot plant construction. The company is continuously exploring new application scenarios and technology upgrade paths, striving to maintain its technological leadership while comprehensively meeting the multi-scenario, low-cost, and low-energy consumption application needs of future specialized displays, commercial displays, and home displays.
Regarding the future development of Micro LED, Leyard Optoelectronic stated that Micro LED display products possess characteristics such as high resolution, high refresh rate, high brightness, wide color gamut, high contrast, low power consumption, and long lifespan. They have already been maturely applied in mid-to-high-end specialized and commercial display fields such as security, military, transportation, power, energy, film and television, conferences, education, and exhibitions, and are continuously expanding their application scope to multiple consumer market sectors such as televisions/home theaters, VR/AR, and smart wearable devices. The industrial application of Micro LED is becoming increasingly mature, and its application scenarios are quite extensive, indicating substantial future demand.
Many domestic companies are investing heavily in the Micro LED field, especially in mainstream packaging technologies such as COB. The increasingly fierce market competition in the Micro LED industry chain has objectively promoted rapid technological progress and the industry's rapid development.
