INTERFEROMETRIC DISPLAYS

SEMINAR REPORT Submitted by

ARJUN HARIHARAN

in partial fulfillment for the award of the degree of

Bachelor of Technology in ELECTRONICS AND COMMUNICATION ENGINEERING of

COCHIN UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

DEPARTMENT OF ELECTRONICS ENGINEERING GOVT. MODEL ENGINEERING COLLEGE COCHIN 682 021 NOVEMBER 2013

GOVT. MODEL ENGINEERING COLLEGE THRIKKAKARA, KOCHI-21 DEPARTMENT OF ELECTRONICS ENGINEERING

COCHIN UNIVERSITY OF SCIENCE AND TECHNOLOGY

BONAFIDE CERTIFICATE This is to certify that the seminar report entitled .................................................. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . .. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . Submitted by .................................................... ......................................................... is a bonafide account of the work done by him under our supervision

Dr. Jayasree V K Head of Department

Mr. Rashid M E Seminar Coordinator

Mr. Anoop T R Seminar Guide

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT
I wish to express my sincere gratitude to Prof. (Dr.) V P Devassia, Principal of our college, and to Dr. Jayasree V K, HOD, Department of Electronics Engineering. I sincerely thank my Seminar Coordinator, Mr. Rashid M E, for his guidance and support. I acknowledge the college management for their help and support, in the preparation of this seminar. I also wholeheartedly thank Mr. Anoop T R, my Seminar Guide for his help, guidance and scholarly tips towards the successful completion of this seminar. I also take this opportunity to thank all the staff of our college for rendering valuable help and support in preparing seminar. I also thank my parents and my classmates for their encouragement and support. Above all I thank Almighty for aiding me through the course of completion of this seminar.

ABSTRACT
Wireless communications are an essential and continuously expanding part of modern life. Smart phones present a number of challenging requirements on the display module, such as low power consumption, video quality speed, and view-ability in a broad range of lighting conditions. IMOD displays, typically based on Biomimetrics, and are one such display which would help overcome the above mentioned challenges regarding displays. The Interferometric Modulator (IMOD) is an electrically switched light modulator comprising a micro-machined cavity that is switched on and off using driver ICs similar to those used to address LCDs. The only provider of IMOD reflective technology powered by MEMS is QUALCOMM. Called Mirasol technology, it is simply a MEMS display for mobile devices, which works by reflecting light so that different wavelengths interfere with each other to create color. Since it is reflective, it is viewable even in direct sunlight; the MEMS technology allows it to be bistable, thus low power. It is an emerging reflective technology particularly attractive for direct-view mobile display applications. Mirasol displays can be manufactured in a conventional large area glass LCD TFT fab balanced and modified for MEMS processing steps, which make it an attractive alternative to the existing display technologies, delivering performance like no other. This seminar discusses the current trends in display technologies focusing on the Reflective Technology Based on Biomimetic Models and Working of Mirasol Displays. These new displays will mean faster response times, better color reproduction, and higher resolutions - a revolution in display technology.

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

List of Figures List of Tables List of Abbreviations 1. Introduction 2. Competitive Display Technologies 2.1 Emissive/Transmissive Displays 2.2 Reflective Displays (Continuous Refresh Type) 2.3 Reflective Displays( Bistable Type) 2.4 Transflective Displays 3. Mirasol Display 3.1 Basic Structure 3.2 Principle of Operation 3.3 Bistable Nature 4. IMOD Technology v/s LCD 5. IMOD Technology v/s OLED 6. Key Attributes 6.1 Low Power Consumption 6.2 Response Time 6.3 Readability 6.4 Thinner and Lighter 6.5 Ease of Manufacture 6.6 Robustness 7. Conclusion 8. References

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LIST OF FIGURES

1) 1.1 Increasing Energy Gap 2) 1.2 Wireless Value Chain 3) 2.1 Primary Approach in Flat Panel Electronic Displays 4) 3.1.1 Basic Structure of IMOD Pixel 5) 3.2.1 Light Reflecting off Thin-Film Stack and Mirror 6) 3.3.1 Hysteresis Effect in IMOD Pixel 7) 4.1 Inner Structure of LCD Pixel 8) 5.1 Structure of an OLED Pixel 9) 6.3.1 Contrast v/s Ambient Light Levels

1 2 5 6 8 9 10 12 15

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LIST OF TABLES

1) 5.2 Comparison Between Mirasol Display and Competitors 2) 6.1.1 Comparative Residual Energy Metrics

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LIST OF ABBREVIATIONS

PDA LCD MEMS IMOD FPD OLED EPD TFT LTPS GPS

Personal Digital Assistant Liquid Crystal Display Micro Electro Mechanical Systems Interferometric Modulation Flat Panel Display Organic Light Emitting Diodes Electrophoretic Display Thin Film Transistor Low Temperature Poly Silicon Global Positioning System

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Chapter 1 Introduction
Todays cell phones are a far cry from the devices of 20or even 5years ago. Gone are the days of carrying a separate camera, phone, music player and PDAtodays smart phones incorporate each of these functions into one multipurpose device. But as cell phones functionality increases and consumers use them for more than just making and receiving calls, consumers are demanding more from their mobile phonesincluding extended battery life and superior view ability in all environmental conditionsin short, a convergent cell phone. The key to such improvements is the display. Todays liquidcrystal displays (LCDs) consume significant power, suffer from poor view ability in direct sunlight and do not offer convergent capabilities, but a revolutionary new display technology makes all of this possible.

Fig 1.1: Increasing Energy Gap [7]

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The Mirasol displays by Qualcomm, based on micro-electro-mechanical system (MEMS) based Interferometric Modulation (IMOD) Technology, offer users a convergent display experience, with paper-like readability in almost any ambient condition, while consuming significantly less power than any other display available today. In addition, Mirasol displays offer features such as industry-standard interface compatibility,

manufacturability in existing Flat-Panel Display (FPD) fabs, fast response speed and wide operating range all in a mechanically rugged packagemaking Mirasol displays the best display solution for todays convergent wireless devices.

Fig 1.2: Wireless Value Chain [1]

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Chapter 2 Competitive Display Technologies

There are four primary approaches to flat-panel displays. Transmissive displays work by modulating a source of light, such as a backlight, using an optically active material such as a liquid-crystal mixture. Emissive displays such as OLEDs make use of organic materials to generate light when exposed to a current source. Reflective displays work by modulating ambient light entering the display and reflecting it off of a mirror-like surface. Until recently, this modulation has typically been accomplished using liquidcrystal mixtures or electrophoretic mixtures. Finally, transflective displays are a hybrid combination of a transmissive and reflective display. This technology was developed to provide sunlight view ability for transmissive displays. Being a compromise however, this type of display technology offers a compromised viewing experience.

2.1 Emissive/Transmissive Displays: A transmissive LCD consists of two transmissive substrates between which the liquid-crystal material resides. By placing a backlight underneath one of the substrates and by applying a voltage to the liquid-crystal material the light reaching the observer can be modulated so as to make the display pixel appear bright or dark. A display can also directly emit light, as in the case of an OLED display, whose active display material emits light. In the case of an LCD, a constant source of power is required to both modulate the liquid-crystal material and to power the backlight. An LCD requires constant refreshing-at least sixty times per second-in order to prevent the liquid-crystal material from transitioning to a different modulation state, resulting in image degradation or flicker. Such is also the case with OLED and EPD-constant power must be provided to the light-emitting materials in order to prevent screen flicker.

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2.2 Reflective Displays (Continuous Refresh Type): In a reflective display, one of the substrates found in a transmissive display is replaced with a reflective substrate. Reflective displays usually employ liquid-crystal material on top of the reflective substrate so as to modulate the ambient light reflecting off the reflective substrate. Since there is no backlight in reflective displays, they consume substantially less power than emissive displays. However, since the material providing modulation is liquid-crystal, the majority of these types of displays must constantly be refreshed or the displayed image will be lost.

2.3 Reflective Displays (Bistable Type): A bistable display is capable of maintaining one of two states (on or off) without any external influence such as an electric field. A bistable reflective display employing liquid-crystal material for light modulation is in many ways identical to the continuous-refresh reflective display. The key difference is the type of liquid-crystal material that is used. Through proper choice of chemistry, manufacturing and drive schemes, the liquid-crystal material can be locked into one of two states. Once the material has been locked into a certain configuration, it is not necessary for the display to be refreshed. In fact, power can be completely removed from the system and the display will maintain the last image shown. EPD and Mirasol displays are also bistable. Because Mirasol displays are bistable, they dont require a refresh until the image is changed. As a result, they consume very little power, providing extended battery life for the user.

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2.4 Transflective Displays: Transflective displays are a hybrid of emissive and reflective display technologies. Transflective displays were engineered to overcome the shortcomings of emissive displays, namely the backlights high power consumption, and the shortcomings of reflective displays, such as poor image quality at low ambient light levels. Transflective displays employ a partially transmissive mirror as the secondary substrate, as well as a traditional backlight. In low light situations, the device operates as a transmissive display, employing the backlight. In high ambient light conditions, the backlight turns off and the display functions as a reflective display. A transflective display is a compromise and its image quality is generally subpar. In sunlight they are not as bright as purely reflective displays, while indoors they are not as bright as emissive displays.

Fig 2.1: Primary Approaches to Flat Panel Electronic Displays [7]

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Chapter 3 Mirasol Display

Mirasol displays are based on the principle of interference, which is used to determine the color of the reflected light. IMOD pixels are capable of switching speeds on the order of 10 microseconds. Additionally, Mirasol displays fabricated to use IMOD technology have shown reflectivity of greater than 60 percent, contrast ratios greater than 15:1 and drive voltages of as low as 5 volts. Though simple in structure, IMOD elements provide the functions of modulation, color selection and memory while eliminating active matrices, color filters and polarizers. The result is a high-performance display capable of active-matrix type functionality at passive-matrix cost. A Mirasol display produces iridescent color. 3.1 Basic Structure: Figure 3.1.1 illustrates the basic structure of an IMOD pixel. Each pixel within a Mirasol display is composed of micro-electro-mechanical-system (MEMS) elements. The display is built on a glass substrate, and each MEMS element functions as a resonant optical cavity that strongly reflects a specific portion of the visible spectrum. The pixel consists of a glass substrate which is coated with thin films. Beneath the glass is a reflective conductive membrane which is separated from the glass by a thin air gap.

Fig 3.1.1: Basic Structure of IMOD Pixel [6]

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When a voltage is applied to the membrane and the thin films on the glass, the membrane experiences electrostatic attraction and is drawn towards the glass. This state is called the collapsed state and the pixel appears black as the light entering is shifted to the UV spectrum. The application of a lower voltage level returns the membrane to the original position, called the open state. In this state the pixel appears bright and colored. This color is generated by interference of light, a process which is much more efficient than using color filters. The related visual color that is created is directly proportional to the cavitys depth. The IMOD element of a Mirasol display provides functionalities that would require three separate elements in a LCD, each of which require multiple processing steps. First, the modulation is accomplished via the movable membrane rather than the liquid-crystal. Second, the color is generated using the air gap rather than color filters. Finally, the hysteresis provides the memory unit that a TFT provides in a LCD.

3.2 Principle of Operation: At the most basic level, a Mirasol display is an optically resonant cavity similar to a Fabry-Perot etalon. The display constructed of IMOD pixels will be bichrome-that is, it can display any two colors. The device consists of a self-supporting deformable reflective membrane and a thin-film stack (each of which acts as one mirror of an optically resonant cavity), both residing on a transparent substrate. When ambient light hits the structure, it is reflected both off the top of the thin-film stack and off the reflective membrane. Depending on the height of the optical cavity, light of certain wavelengths reflecting off the membrane will be slightly out of phase with the light reflecting off the thin-film structure. Based on the phase difference, some wavelengths will constructively interfere, while others will destructively interfere.

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As illustrated, the red wavelengths have a phase difference which leads to constructive interference, while the green and blue wavelengths have a phase difference which leads to destructive interference. As a result, the human eye will perceive a red color, as certain wavelengths will be amplified with respect to others. Color generation via interference is much more efficient in its use of light compared to traditional color filters and polarizers, which work on the principle of absorption and waste much of the light entering the display.

Fig 3.2.1: Light Reflecting off the Thin-film Stack and Mirror [2]

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3.3 Bistable Nature: One of the key advantages of the Mirasol displays design is its bistable nature, which allows for near-zero power usage in situations where the display image is unchanged. This means that Mirasol displays benefit from considerable power savings, especially compared to displays that continually refresh, such as LCDs. The bistability of Mirasol displays comes from the inherent hysteresis derived from the technologys electro-mechanical properties. More specifically, it derives from an inherent imbalance between the linear restorative forces of the mechanical membrane and the non-linear forces of the applied electric field. The resulting electro-opto-mechanical behavior is hysteretic in nature and provides a built-in memory effect similar to the thin-film transistor (TFT) element in an active-matrix display.

Fig 3.3.1: Hysteresis Effect in an IMOD Pixel [7]

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Chapter 4 IMOD Technology vs. LCD

Figure 4.1 shows the complexity of an LCD. Note the extensive use of optical films such as polarizers and color filters, as well as the thin film transistor element which itself requires several process steps to fabricate. Since LCDs work with polarized light, the necessity of using a polarizer limits the amount of light that is reflected or transmitted from the display-at least 50% of light is discarded by the polarizer. The additional layers, such as the color filter, reduce light even further-a typical LCD will only transmit six percent of the light it has the potential to use. Consequently, todays LCDs require brighter backlights in order to be readable, whether in total darkness or in the bright sunlight. These brighter backlights lead to greater power consumption. Since a Mirasol display operates as a reflective display, powered illumination is only needed when incident light falls below a level that would make reading a newspaper difficult. Backlighting for LCDs is the single biggest power draw in portable displays. This is especially true in bright environments where the backlight has to be switched to the brightest mode. The fact that Mirasol displays do not require extra illumination in these environments gives them a big power-consumption advantage. If supplemental lighting is required, in a dark room for example, Mirasol displays would still require only one-half to one-third the power needed by an LCD display.

Fig 4.1: Inner Structure of an LCD Pixel [5]

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Mirasol displays are considerably less complex than LCDs. As described in the previous chapter, the IMOD element in a Mirasol display is bistable and the display can therefore maintain a given image without the need for continuous power. Bistability also leads to a significant amount of power savings when compared to an LCD, which has to be continuously driven as many as 60 times a second in order to prevent the display from losing the image. In addition to the power savings, the Mirasol display provides a better viewing experience when compared to the LCD. A humans visual perception is strongly related to two elements: luminance and contrast. Luminance is simply the amount of light reaching the eye. This could include light being emitted or reflected by the display. Contrast is the ratio of the luminance of the bright pixel in a display to the dark pixel. If no light is being emitted from a display, one will not see an image and the contrast ratio will be one. Similarly, if the display is reflecting a lot of light in both the bright and dark state, the contrast ratio will again be poor and the image will again be unreadable. An additional benefit of the Mirasol display is switching speed. If the displayed image is rapidly changing, it is important that the display pixel changes its state from black to white or vice versa on the order of a few milliseconds or faster. If the pixel takes any longer, the human eye will perceive the switch as an effect typically referred to as motion blur. An IMOD pixel in a Mirasol display is able to change its state in roughly 10 microseconds, as compared to a STN display pixel which takes roughly 10 milliseconds. The IMOD pixel is approximately 1000 times faster. Portable devices are subject to environmental extremes that can affect LCDs, which usually operate in the 10- to 30degree Celsius range and which are limited by changes in viscosity of the liquid-crystal material. Here again, a Mirasol displays simplicity gives it an advantage, because it can operate in extremes from minus 30 to plus 70 degrees Celsius. Another advantage Mirasol displays have over LCDs is that Mirasol displays are impervious to UV exposure.

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Chapter 5 IMOD Technology vs. OLED

The basic OLED cell structure is comprised of a stack of thin organic layers that are sandwiched between a transparent anode and a metallic cathode. When a current passes between the cathode and anode, the organic compounds emit light (see Figure 5.1). The obvious advantage is that OLEDs are like tiny light bulbs, so they dont need a backlight or any other external light source. Theyre less than one-third the bulk of a typical color LCD and about half the thickness of most black-and-white LCDs. The viewing angle is also wider, about 160 degrees. OLEDs also switch faster than LCD elements, producing a smoother animation.

Fig 5.1: Structure of an OLED Pixel [5]

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Despite these advantages, OLEDs have experienced slow acceptance in the industry for a variety of reasons. First, they have a relatively short lifespan and as power/brightness is increased the life is reduced dramatically. This is especially true for the blues, which lose their color balance over time. Low manufacturing yields have also been a problem, keeping the cost of production relatively high. As OLEDs are susceptible to water and oxygen contamination, during manufacturing they need to be encapsulated and sealed against the elements adding significant cost and complexity. In addition, only low resolution OLED displays can use passive matrix backplanes and higher resolutions require active matrices, which need to be highly conductive since OLEDs are current driven. Typically, low temperature poly silicon (LTPS) backplanes are used which adds cost and complexity. These conductors are also highly reflective requiring the OLED designers to add a circular polarizer on the front of the display reducing the efficiency of the display and increasing the cost. Finally, as is the case with all emissive displays, OLED displays have poor readability in environments such as the bright outdoors.

Fig 5.2: Comparison between Mirasol Display and its Competitors [7]

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Chapter 6 Key Attributes

6.1 Low power consumption: Mirasol displays use just a fraction of the power needed by conventional technologies. Mirasol displays need little or no power-draining illumination in most viewing environments. And because the Mirasol display does not demand continuous refreshing, once an image has been written to the display, very little power is required to sustain it.

Fig 6.1.1: Comparative Residual Energy Metrics [1]

6.2 Response time: The fast response time of Mirasol displays reduces blurring when viewing fastmoving video and gaming animation applications. Mirasol displays response time is 10 to 1000 times faster than competitive LCD technologies. Since visible light wavelengths operate on the nanometer scale (380nm to 780nm), the deformable IMOD membrane only has to move a short distance-a few hundred nanometers-in order to switch between two colors. This switching happens extremely fast, on the order of tens of microseconds.

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6.3 Readability: Mirasol displays have approximately the same contrast ratio and reflectivity as a newspaper, making it easy to read in almost all lighting situations. Comparing the readability of reflective displays to that of emissive displays, it is clear that emissive displays work well at low ambient light levels. The problem with these displays, however, is when ambient light levels increase from room lighting to levels found outdoors on a sunny day, making it difficult for the user to discern spatial detail

Fig 6.3.1: Brightness/Contrast vs. Ambient Light Levels [1]

6.4 Thinner and lighter: The lack of a backlight has the potential to significantly reduce the module size and weight, making it especially useful for mobile applications such as cameras, mobile phones, games, PDAs and GPS units. Once Mirasol displays are perfected for smaller screens, they will be scalable to larger applications such as TVs and outdoor digital signs.

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6.5 Ease of Manufacture: The MEMS elements that constitute a Mirasol display have been designed for ease of manufacture. Qualcomms Mirasol displays are produced using a process known as surface micro-machining, which is derived from the wafer scale roots of MEMS fabrication. The overarching manufacturing benefit of Mirasol display production is that the process was engineered to utilize infrastructure already in place in FPD fabs. All of the materials used for Mirasol display fabrication currently exist within the FPD palette and, in most cases, substitute materials may be utilized. The end result is a flexible and robust process that enables conversion, with minimal modification, of many FPD fabs into Mirasol display foundries, minimizing the time needed to bring IMOD technology to market.

6.6 Robustness: The biggest problem with LCD lifetime is the use of organic materials. Both the liquid-crystal material and the alignment material are organic and, as a result, break down over time when exposed to high temperature and light (both artificial and sunlight). By relying on inorganic materials, Mirasol displays are capable of performing over an extended temperature range and at the same time are impervious to high-intensity visible and UV radiation. Additionally, even when exposed to extreme temperatures, a Mirasol displays response times are unaffected, and the impact on drive voltages and image content is minimal. Mechanically, the IMOD element is extremely robust. Mirasol displays have demonstrated reliability over 12 billion cycles.

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Chapter 7 Conclusion

This seminar has illustrated the simple and elegant construction and operation of the Mirasol display. The Mirasol display is energy efficient, provides greatly extended battery life in handset usage models, and dramatically increases the features available to users, the design space available to developers, and the revenue streams available to operators. Bright, reflective iridescent colors are provided without the use of liquids, polarizers, organics, or semiconductor materials. The lack of these optical enhancers combines with the reflective nature of the display to offer consistent viewing quality across all environments, including bright sunlight. Additionally, the consistent viewing quality facilitated by the inherent Mirasol display design provides a significant advantage to consumers who desire to use their cellular phones anywhere, anytime, and under any viewing conditions. Indeed, the capability of reflective Mirasol displays is such that current display metrics cannot adequately convey the value of the viewing experience, and the display industry and technical community are working to introduce to the marketplace new measurement metrics that will enable consumers to easily and appropriately evaluate display view ability.

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Chapter 8 References

[1]. Jay Harman, Bugged By Design, Discover Magazine, 2013. [2]. Nruthya Madappa, Bio Mimetic Cell Phone Displays, Stanford University (2012). [3]. Han, W, Interferometric modulators using mechanically coupled mirror actuators for color reproduction, Solid-State Sensors, Actuators and Microsystems Conference (TRANSDUCERS), IEEE Conference 2011. [4]. Dr. Yoseph Bar-Cohen, Biomimetics: Nature-based Innovation, (2011). [5]. Jason Heikenfeld, Lite, Brite Displays, IEEE Spectrum 2010. [6]. C.-D. Liao, "The Evolution of MEMS Displays" IEEE Trans. Industrial Electronics 56, 1057 (2009). [7]. Qualcomm White Paper, Mirasol Displays.

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