And cooking is a key hurdle for flexible displays. OLEDs are made at a higher temperature than the melting point of the plastic screen they're affixed to, forcing manufacturers to cook them up on glass first, then transfer them to the plastic. That leads not only to high production costs, but also a large number of defective displays. That's where LG Philips' patent comes in.

By creating pixels out of tiny capsules of oil and water, instead of OLEDs, the costly cooking problem is averted. And while making images out of oil and water in tiny capsules might seems like science fiction, it's similar to the idea behind what makes another emerging display technology work: electronic ink displays, like the one in Sony's electronic book Reader.

Essentially, LG Philips' patent involves making pixels out of tiny plastic capsules with a colored lower surface. Opaque oil in the capsule obscures the color, until a current passes through, moving forcing oil out of the way, thereby changing the color of the pixel. The company claims this type of display can be made in a few steps, and without the high temperatures needed for OLED manufacturing. The similarities between this tech and electronic ink aren't surprising, considering Philips is a major investor in E Ink, one of the two main players in the development of electronic ink (the other is Xerox).

As New Scientist points out, if these displays have a fast enough refresh rate, and don't severely sap batteries, we may one day soon see phones or other mobile devices with large, roll-out screens that tuck neatly away to fit in our small pockets.

[Image Via Engadget]

Post by Matt Safford