January 2025

Researchers from the Korea 's SNU, KAIST and KIMM developed a new lift-off process for flexible OLED displays, based on graphene. The researchers term the new method GLLO, or Graphene Laser Lift Off.

The researchers placed a single-layer CVD graphene film between the polyimide film and the glass carrier. The graphene, with its ability to absorb ultra-violet light and distribute heat laterally, enables a clean lift-off without any wrinkles or residues. Using the GLLO method, the researchers successfully separated 2.9 μm thick ultrathin PI substrates without any mechanical damage or carbon residue left behind. In contrast, traditional methods left the substrates wrinkled and the glass carriers unusable due to stubborn residues. This breakthrough has far-reaching implications for stretchable electronics and wearable devices.

Cambridge Isotope Laboratories (CIL) has successfully developed and implemented a game-changing benzene-d6 recovery program, addressing major pain points for manufacturers of OLED displays. This innovative service reduces costs, minimizes environmental impact, and conserves scarce deuterium supplies.

OLED display producers rely heavily on deuterated benzene (benzene-d6) as a critical starting material in their synthesis processes. However, this results in significant quantities of depleted benzene-d6, which is no longer usable but still retains considerable deuterium value. The disposal of such depleted material poses environmental challenges and substantial expenses.

CIL's benzene-recovery program offers a transformative solution. Customers can now return their depleted benzene-d6 to CIL, where it undergoes a proprietary re-enrichment process to restore it to virgin material quality. This service is available at a significant cost savings compared to new benzene-d6, providing significant economic benefits.

At CES 2025, Tianma unveiled a new display prototype that it has developed in collaboration with Corning. This is an automotive OLED display that is made from two 13-inch AMOLED panels. The company says the new display offers "unparalleled visual clarity in automotive applications". 

The new OLED display features a unique multi-curvature design, with a left curvature radius of R800mm for optimal driver focus, a middle curvature radius of R1140mm, and a right curvature radius of R2160mm to accommodate the passenger. The system seamlessly bonds two color-matched 13" OLED displays to the multi-curve cover glass made possible with Corning ColdForm technology.

Counterpoint (DSCC) says that OLED panel revenues increased 28% in Q3 2024, and the company expects revenues in all of 2024 to grow 16% from 2023, mainly driven by growth in smartphones, TVs and IT applications.

In terms of unit shipments, Q3 2024 saw a 34% increase from Q3 2023. Shipments of OLED smartphone panels increased 43% from 2023 (and 24% in revenues). OLED TV shipments grew 48% in the quarter (36% increase in revenue). The largest increase came from laptop OLED panels that more than doubled (108%) in shipments in Q3.

Samsung Display unveiled a 18.1" rollable OLED laptop display at CES 2025, one that can roll down to 13.1" when closed. The company today announced that it aims to begin mass producing rollable OLED displays in April 2025. This will mark the first ever mass produced rollable display (apart for the limited volume production of LG's 65" rollable TV screens, that are discontinued).

During CES, Lenovo demonstrated the first laptop to use such a rollable OLED, the ThinkBook Plus G6 Rollable laptop. Lenovo plans to launch it globally in June 2025. The ThinkBook Plus G6 Rollable will have a 14" 5:4 display when rolled in, and a 16.7" 8:9 display when opened. That's an increase of almost 50% in screen size. The price of Lenovo rollable laptop will start at $3,499 - this is a ultra premium device.

DSCC (now part of Counterpoint) says that OLED evaporation material sales will grow 22% in 2024, and will continue to grow at a 6.4% CAGR from 2024 to 2028. Most of the growth will come from IT display panels, for laptops, monitors and tablets.

Interestingly, DSCC estimates that Chinese material developers enjoyed a 58% increase in sales in 2024 to $252 million. The primary reasons for this sharp increase in demand is increased utilization at Chinese AMOLED fabs, increased orders from local companies in China over sourcing these materials from the rest of the world, and new range of materials introduced by materials makers (as Chinese material developers move from intermediates production to emitters and dopants).

Samsung Electronics announced its 2025 OLED TV range, with three different series. The TVs use a combination of SDC's QD-OLED panels (latest generation that reaches 4,000 nits) and LGD's OLEDs.

The top of the range is the S95F, Samsung's flagship 2025 TV, that will be available in 55", 65", 77" and 83" sizes. The S95F offers 4K 165hzQD-OLED panels (except the 83-inch model which uses LG's WOLEDs, apparently). The S95F TVs use Samsung's new NQ4 AI Gen3 video processor.

LG Electronics officially launched its 2025 OLED TV range, with 4 different series. The higher-end G5 and M5 models adopt a new WOLED panel design that increases the number of stacks to 4 (previous models used 3 stacks) which increases brightness and efficiency. Interestingly, none of these TVs use a microLens array (MLA).

So LG's OLED M5 is the company's flagship wireless 4K 144Hz OLED for 2025. The M5 will be offered in 65", 77", 83" and 97" sizes. The OLED G5 is the second top-of-the-line TV, with 4K 165Hz panels (144Hz on the 48-inch and 97-inch models), offered in a wide range of sizes (48", 55", 65", 77", 83" and 97").

In late 2024 we reported several times that demand for Apple's iPad Pro devices is lower than expected, and the company reduced its OLED panel orders from both Samsung and LG.

According to a new report from Korea, LG may decide to start using its IT AMOLED production line to produce smartphone displays. The company looks to supply 70 million iPhone AMOLED displays to Apple in 2025, up from around 65 million in 2024 (and 52 million in 2023). Converting the IT AMOLED line to smartphone panel production will enable LGD to increase capacity without a large investment in new equipment.

Samsung Display is set to show new OLED technologies at CES 2025, including new foldable display, rollable ones, automotive displays, next-gen QD-OLED panels and more.

So first up, Samsung will be showing a 18.1 foldable OLED display (which it says is the world's largest). This panel is suitable for IT devices - to enable devices that combine tablet, laptop and monitor devices into one. When folded, this display is 13.1" in size.