Interferometric modulator display
Interferometric modulator display (IMOD, trademarked mirasol)
In one state, an IMOD subpixel absorbs
Mirasol screens were only able to produce 60 Hz video but it quickly drained the battery. Devices that used the screen have colors that look washed out, so the technology never saw mainstream support.
Working principle
The basic elements of an IMOD-based display are microscopic devices that act essentially as mirrors that can be switched on or off individually. Each of these elements reflects only one exact wavelength of light, such as a specific hue of red, green or blue, when turned on, and absorbs light (appears black) when off.[2] Elements are organised into a rectangular array in order to produce a display screen.
An array of elements that all reflect the same color when turned on produces a monochromatic display, for example black and red (in this example using IMOD elements that reflect red light when "on"). As each element reflects only a certain amount of light, grouping several elements of the same color together as subpixels allows different brightness levels for a pixel based on how many elements are reflective at a particular time.
Multiple color displays are created by using
Because elements only use power in order to switch between on and off states (no power is needed to reflect or absorb light hitting the display once the element is either reflecting or absorbing), IMOD-based displays potentially use much less power than displays that generate light and/or need constant power to keep pixels in a particular state. Being a reflective display, they require an external light source (such as daylight or a lamp) to be readable, just like paper or other electronic paper technologies.
Details
A
For a practical RGB color model (RGB) display, a single RGB pixel is built from several subpixels, because the brightness of a monochromatic pixel is not adjusted. A monochromatic array of subpixels represents different brightness levels for each color, and for each pixel, there are three such arrays: red, green and blue.[6]
Development
The IMOD technology was invented by Mark W. Miles,
Future IMOD panels manufacturers include Qualcomm in conjunction with
As of 2015, the IMOD Mirasol display laboratory in Longtan, Taiwan, formerly run by Qualcomm, is now apparently run by Apple.[8]
Uses
IMOD displays are now available in the commercial marketplace. QMT's displays, using IMOD technology, are found in the Acoustic Research ARWH1 Stereo
References
- ^ a b "Interferometric Modulator (IMOD) Technology Overview" (PDF). Qualcomm. May 2008. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-03-31. Retrieved 2008-08-07.
- ^ a b c d Watters, Ethan (June 12, 2007). "Product design, nature's way". CNNMoney. Cable News Network.
- ^ Gabryel (July 7, 2010). "Qualcomm mirasol launch its color e-Reader". GeeksHive blog.
- ^ Simonite, Tom (November 15, 2011). "E-Reader Display Shows Vibrant Color Video". Technology Review. Massachusetts Institute of Technology.
- ^ Miles, M.; Larson, E.; Chui, C.; Kothari, M.; Gally, B.; Batey, J. (2003), Digital Paper for Reflective Displays, SID International Symposium, Boston, Massachusetts, pp. 209–215
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: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link) - ^ Waldrop 2007
- ^ a b US patent 5835255, Miles, Mark W., "Visible spectrum modulator arrays", published 1998-11-10, assigned to Etalon, Inc.
- ^ a b Daniel Eran Dilger. "Apple has taken over Qualcomm's IMOD Mirasol display lab in Taiwan". 2015.
- ^ "Technology Briefing: Deals: Qualcomm To Acquire Iridigm". The New York Times. September 10, 2004.
- ^ "mirasol". Qualcomm. Feb 2009.
- ^ "Natural iridescence harnessed for reflective displays". EE Times. 26 July 2009. Retrieved 5 May 2011.
- ^ Ultra Low-power Handset to Begin Shipping in China in 2008 Archived 2016-05-15 at the Portuguese Web Archive PRNewswire, Barcelona, Spain, February 11
Bibliography
- Waldrop, M. Mitchell (November 2007). "Brilliant Displays". Scientific American (print). Scientific American, Inc. pp. 94–97.
(subtitle) A new technology that mimics the way nature gives bright color to butterfly wings can make cell phone displays clearly legible, even in the sun's glare.
- Graham-Rowe, Duncan (October 2007). "Epaper Displays Video". Technology Review(print). Technology Review, Inc.
(subtitle) A novel electronic-paper display developed by Qualcomm can deliver high-quality video images, making it more versatile than other e-paper technologies.