A new 2.8-inch LCD panel with the ability to scan fingerprints was exhibited by AU Optronics Corporation of Taiwan recently. The panel can scan a finger in a matter of seconds through the use of a detection circuit and optical sensors mounted onto it. Using this new panel, mobile devices could employ the screen itself as a fingerprint security sensor.

A similar technology was employed on another 2.8-inch screen that, rather than scan fingerprints, measures strength of ultraviolet light (see picture after cut). The screen responds only to UV light and results are expressed numerically from 0 to 11. As you might have expected, the technology targets women who refuse to go out and be exposed under sunlight in fear of skin damage although I can foresee a better use for it for people with skin diseases. AUO was also the company responsible for the frameless LCD panel exhibited at FPD International 2008.