Quantum Materials Corp. (fka QTMM)

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Quantum dot displays to launch in 2015

Dan Rogers - 20 Aug 2014



Quantum dots (QD) have been identified as a potentially disruptive innovation in the consumer electronics industry (among other application areas) for some years now. These semiconductor nanocrystal materials promise controllable conductive and emission properties, making them exciting options for applications in consumer electronics, lighting, solar and more.

Green Tetrapod QD from Quantum Materials – Source: Quantum MaterialsCoupled with their low price point compared to technologies such as OLEDs, their progress to market has been followed closely by display makers and other potential integrators.

Recently, QD have started securing long-awaited market traction. The Amazon Kindle Fire HDX 7 tablet, launched in October 2013, uses Nanosys QD to offer a high-performance display. A Reuters article in August 2014 noted that QD suppliers are now struggling to keep up with the demand for these materials, as the market puts them to use in various consumer electronics.

US firm Quantum Materials is the latest to make significant commercial inroads with its QD technology. The company is working with a number of Asia-based display makers that are evaluating its high-brightness QD. The company expects these efforts to translate into commercial products based on its QD in 2015.

The television market, a more lucrative segment for high-volume displays businesses, represents the likely entry point for QD. David Doderer, Quantum Materials vice president of R&D, comments: 'Large-area will happen first because there is a slight price premium there, so some of the additional cost can be absorbed.'

Large-area displays
For those following the efforts of OLED display businesses as they try to crack the television market, this will be a familiar topic. The displays industry appears to have an appetite for new technologies that can add to the premium category and encourage consumers to upgrade their televisions - hence the emergence of ultrahigh-definition and 4K televisions, as well as the (less successful) forays into 3D devices.

The price points for OLED displays have been a limiting factor, however. LG recently announced a 55-inch television that will retail for $3,500 (€2,615). Though this model, the 55EC9300, is less than a quarter of the cost of its first model introduced in 2013, it remains a stubbornly high price point, even for a premium product.

Scaled production
Where Reuters noted that QD suppliers were currently struggling to meet the dramatically increased level of demand for its technology, Quantum Materials has plans in place to ramp up its own production facilities. The company currently has capacity for 250kg of QD annually, a figure that will quadruple by January 2015.

Doderer notes: 'Our 250kg capacity couldn't serve industry-wide adoption, but would be perfect for a niche like large-area televisions.'

Besides its already planned scale-up, Quantum Materials also has plans in place for further, rapid growth in production capability if needed. The company would be able to ramp up its existing setup on short lead times, for instance.

Stephen Squires, CEO at Quantum Materials, also notes some opportunities for cooperation to drive increased capacity, should demand be sufficient.

He explains: 'We have a couple of opportunities for joint development with certain firms. In those situations we could set up a dedicated plant close to where the display manufacturer is based.'

Quantum dot LEDs
Beyond displays, Quantum Materials expects its technology to break into commercial lighting markets in 2015. Here its high-efficiency, light-emitting QD can provide a competitive advantage for LED makers seeking to improve their technologies. The solid-state lighting industry is currently challenged by the high temperatures created by LEDs, which are both an inefficiency of the devices (emissions translating to heat, not light) and a challenge for device design.

The company expects QD-based lighting applications to come to market before the end of 2015.

Squires adds: 'Where dealing with LED manufacturers, looking at the potential for QD on chip as more of a long-term solution for the lighting industry. On-chip solves a lot of problems for lighting - it's by far the most elegant solution. The challenges of putting QD on a chip are greater though - as you get closer, temperature increases are significant.'

Thick-shell dots
Left: thin shell QD is ‘photobleaching’ (decaying with time); Right: non-blinking ‘giant’ or thick shell QD with continuous output. Time scale is seconds – Source: (With permission) Los Alamos National LaboratoryCentral to the company's ability to deliver high-brightness QD in future is the ongoing development of 'thick-shell' or 'giant' QD. These involve cycling the production of multiple shells for the QD. The resulting QD is able to perform with stability over a longer period of time and even when exposed to higher temperatures, presenting highly reliable solutions for displays and viable technology for long-lifetime lighting products.

The giant QD technology, developed in partnership with the US's Los Alamos National Laboratory (LANL), is being moved by into commercial production by Quantum Materials. The technology was made available via the LANL's Express Licensing Program.

Further opportunities now exist for Quantum Materials in providing heavy-metal-free (HMF) QD too. The company acquired various patents from Bayer Technology Services, as first reported in August by +Plastic Electronics, which included advances relating to HMF QD technology. As Reuters reported in its coverage on QD, the presence of cadmium in many QD technologies may also concern some potential integrators, conscious of restrictions on the use of the material in consumer electronics.

With commercial applications coming online in 2015, and a pipeline of technology developments to meet further market requirements, Quantum Materials will be looking to ride the current wave of adoption for QD.

A follow-up article on the potential for heavy metal-free quantum dots will be published soon for +Plastic Electronics subscribers.


By Dan Rogers, follow Dan on Google+
http://www.plusplasticelectronics.com/Lighting/quantum-dot-displays-to-launch-in-2015-118744.aspx