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Comparison of display technology
List article

This is a comparison of various properties of different display technologies.

General characteristics

Display technologyScreen shapeLargest known diagonalTypical useUsable in bright room
(in)(cm)
Eidophor front projectionFlat(limited only by brightness)TVNo
Shadow mask CRTSpherical curve or flat421107TV, computer monitorYes
Aperture grille CRTCylindrical curve or flat432109TV, computer monitorYes
Monochrome CRTSpherical curve or flat30376TV, computer monitor, radar display, oscilloscopeYes
Direct view Charactron CRTSpherical curve2461Computer monitor, radar displayNo
CRT self-contained rear-projectionFlat lenticular804203TVYes
CRT front projectionFlat(limited only by brightness)TV or presentationNo
Plasma displayFlat1525386TV, computer monitor (In some early "portable" computers. They required too much power for battery-powered laptops)6789Partial
LCDFlat11510292TV, computer monitorYes
LCD self-contained rear-projectionFlat lenticular7011178TVYes
LCD front-projectionFlat(limited only by brightness)TV or presentationYes
DLP self-contained rear-projectionFlat lenticular12012305TVYes
DLP front-projectionFlat(limited only by brightness)TV or presentationYes
LCoS self-contained rear-projectionFlat11013279TVYes
LCoS front-projectionFlat(limited only by brightness)TV or presentationYes
Laser self-contained rear projectionFlat lenticular7514191TVYes
LEDFlat279.9215711Billboards, TVYes
SEDFlat5516140Computer monitor, TVYes
FEDFlat??Computer monitor, TVYes
EPD (e-paper)Flat (flexible)??Electronic paperYes
OLEDAny, but most commonly flat rectangular with or without rounded edges, notch(es) and holes, circular, or curved (flexible)178818223.52Computer monitor, TV, Mobile phoneYes
Telescopic pixel display
Ferroelectric LCD
'mLED' LEDCurved or flat????Mobile phones, wearable electronics, VR displays, smartwatches, optical instruments, AR displaysYes
QDLED19202122Yes
IMODFlat1.2233Mobile phone24Yes
Laser Phosphor Display (LPD)Flat / Box196497.8PresentationYes
Virtual retinal displayAny shapeExperimental, possibly virtual realityDepends on system

Major technologies are CRT, LCD and its derivatives (Quantum dot display, LED backlit LCD, WLCD, OLCD), Plasma, and OLED and its derivatives (Transparent OLED, PMOLED, AMOLED). An emerging technology is Micro LED. Cancelled and now obsolete technologies are SED and FED.

Temporal characteristics

Different display technologies have vastly different temporal characteristics, leading to perceptual differences of motion, flicker, etc.

The figure shows a sketch of how different technologies present a single white/grey frame. Time and intensity is not to scale. Notice that some have a fixed intensity, while the illuminated period is variable. This is a kind of pulse-width modulation. Others can vary the actual intensity in response to the input signal.

  • Single-chip DLPs use a kind of "chromatic multiplexing" in which each color is presented serially. The intensity is varied by modulating the "on" time of each pixel within the time-span of one color. Multi-chip DLPs are not represented in this sketch, but would have a curve identical to the plasma display.
  • LCDs have a constant (backlit) image, where the intensity is varied by blocking the light shining through the panel.
  • CRTs use an electron beam, scanning the display, flashing a lit image. If interlacing is used, a single full-resolution image results in two "flashes". The physical properties of the phosphor are responsible for the rise and decay curves.
  • Plasma displays modulate the "on" time of each sub-pixel, similar to DLP.
  • Movie theaters use a mechanical shutter to illuminate the same frame 2 or 3 times, increasing the flicker frequency to make it less perceptible to the human eye.

Research

Researchers announced a display that uses silicon metasurface pixels that do not require polarized light and require half the energy. It employs a transparent conductive oxide as a heater that can quickly change the pixels. The pixels are 100 times thinner than liquid crystal. Response times are under 1 millisecond. They claim that the metasurface array could replace the liquid crystal layer in today's displays, eliminating the need for production technology.25

See also

References

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