Seoul Biosys Launches Mass Production of Innovative Rare Earth-Free White Micro LEDs

Seoul Biosys has officially initiated the mass production of groundbreaking micro LEDs capable of producing white light completely free of rare earth materials. The company revealed this development on October 28, introducing a third-generation optical semiconductor built on its proprietary WICOP framework, which entirely eliminates the need for traditional packaging.

Conventional white LEDs typically depend on blue chips paired with rare earth-based phosphors, such as yttrium aluminum garnet (YAG), to generate white illumination. In contrast, the newly introduced technology successfully delivers white light in ultra-compact chips measuring under 100 micrometers without incorporating any extra rare earth components or standard packaging supplies.

The initial commercial product resulting from this initiative is a 25 by 10-micrometer micro LED. This tiny component yields 0.015 lumens within the white segment of the international CIE coordinate system. Currently, the light efficiency stands at roughly 100 lumens per watt, though the enterprise has set a target to double this figure to 200 lumens per watt over the next two years.

By avoiding rare earth elements and conventional packaging elements like silicone resin, plastic, and lead frames, Seoul Biosys anticipates a significant decrease in both manufacturing expenses and environmental footprints. According to the firm, overall production expenditures could drop to half of current market rates.

The WICOP method relies on mounting LED chips directly onto substrates, bypassing the requirement for separate wires or packaging. Having previously developed ultraviolet, blue, green, red, and infrared micro LEDs utilizing this approach, the company has now successfully incorporated white light capability. Looking ahead, Seoul Biosys intends to extend the reach of this innovation into augmented reality displays and optical communications designed for artificial intelligence data transmission. Furthermore, the organization is working on a technique for data transmission that utilizes tightly packed micro LEDs around 10 micrometers in scale.

Beginning in the fourth quarter, both Seoul Semiconductor and Seoul Biosys will focus initial shipments of these third-generation WICOP items on current major customers while simultaneously pursuing new application sectors. Lee Jeong-hoon, the founder of Seoul Semiconductor, noted that the project originated from questioning the actual necessity of rare earth elements for generating white light. He added that leveraging this breakthrough will allow the business to penetrate novel optical semiconductor arenas including augmented reality and artificial intelligence data communication.

Meanwhile, industry forecasting from market research firm Omdia estimates that the global micro LED display market will experience substantial growth, climbing from $10.54 million in the current year to roughly $6.8 billion by the arrival of 2032, driven heavily by adoption in smart glasses and miniature displays.

Sources: Hacker News

Aggregated summary. Original: Hacker News