SBIR Phase I: Microdisplays Based on III-Nitride Wide Band Gap Semiconductors

Iii-N Technology, Inc, Lubbock TX

Investigators

Abstract

This Small Business Innovation Research Phase I project's goal is to optimize III-nitride wide bandgap semiconductor materials, layer structures, device design for micro-displays, and to develop concepts for III-nitride full color micro-displays for wearable and head-up display applications. Semiconductor micro-displays, which require the integration of a dense array of micro-size light emitting diodes (LEDs) on a single semiconductor chip, have yet to be developed. Also, color conversion for full color displays cannot be achieved in conventional III-V or Si semiconductors, which makes semiconductor micro-displays based on conventional semiconductors unviable. However, due to the unique properties of III-nitrides, III-nitride micro-displays can potentially provide performance superior to those based on liquid crystal and organic LED displays including: self-luminescent, high brightness/resolution/contrast, high temperature/high power operation, high shock resistance, wide field-of-view, full color spectrum capability, long life, high speed, and low power consumption. By inserting them into any existing visual system, III-nitride micro-displays would provide weight reduction, space and power saving and allow viewing from any angle without color shift and degradation in contrast and resolution. The research here is built on the recent successful fabrication of III-nitride micro-size blue LED arrays and micro-displays. Micro-displays are small displays that are of such high resolution that they are only practically viewed or projected with lenses or mirrors. Micro-displays are typically magnified by optics to enlarge the image viewed by the user. When viewed through a lens, a high-resolution 1-inch diagonal micro-display could provide images comparable to viewing a 21-inch diagonal TV/computer screen. Micro-displays can be used in a variety of devices such as head-wearing displays, camcorders, viewfinders, etc and have many military and commercial applications. Micro-size LED arrays developed here are not only useful as wearable and head-up displays, but also useful as full color mini-displays, emitters for remote free space functions, short distance optical communication, optical interconnects and chip-scale biomedical sensors for early diagnosis of disease. III-nitride blue micro-size LED arrays are very attractive for inexpensive high resolution and high-speed optical links.