Qualcomm claims greener displays with mirasol
Qualcomm has developed a new display technology called mirasol. Like E-ink, it is a reflective technology that uses no backlight and requires less energy to work than a normal LCD display. Unlike E-ink, mirasol is a color display that will allow handheld devices like mobile phones and ereaders to display color while keeping the energy requirements low.
Mirasol uses IMOD (Interferometric MODulation) technology with Micro-Electro-Mechanical Systems (MEMS) technology at its core. Essentially, two conductive plates are used to create the colors in the display. The bottom plate has a “thin film stack” on its glass while the other plate has a “highly reflective membrane.” Between the two plates is an air gap. Changing the size of the gap changes the color that you see.
The IMOD elements are tiny, “10 –100 microns to a side” or “400 to 1,000 dots per inch”. Voltage applied to the plates causes the air gaps in each tiny IMOD element to change, creating words, and color images that change fluidly from one instant to the next. The refresh rate of a mirasol display is faster than an E-ink display making it easier on the eyes.
Using a mirasol display rather than an LCD display means an energy savings of about 33.7 percent. That increases the battery life by 51 percent. This mean 58 fewer recharge cycles and would “increase the life of the battery by 1.25 years.” Overall, using a mirasol display would result in a 94 percent reduction in carbon dioxide.
The highly reflective nature of these displays means that they can easily be seen in bright sunlight and don’t require something like a book light in lower light environments. Back lit displays can be difficult to read in direct sunlight and can be hard on the eyes.
Mirasol creates a nice energy efficient display but other energy efficient display technologies like OLEDs (organic light emitting diodes) are poised for release within the next few years.
Competing technologies can only help to improve the energy efficiency of each technology while improving the cost for manufacturers and consumers. Mirasol vs.. OLEDs. Bring it on.
Related posts:
