AMOLED (active-matrix organic light-emitting diode) is a display technology for use in mobile devices and televisions.

OLED describes a specific type of thin-film display technology in whichorganic compounds form the electroluminescent material, and active matrix refers to the technology behind the addressing of pixels. As of 2012, AMOLED technology is used in mobile phones, media players and digital cameras, and continues to [2][3][4] make progress toward low-power, low-cost and large-size (for example, 40-inch) applications.
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Design

Schematic of an active matrix OLED display

An AMOLED display consists of an active matrix of OLED pixels that generate light upon electrical activation that have been deposited or integrated onto a thin film transistor (TFT) array, which functions as a series of switches to [5] control the current flowing to each individual pixel. Typically, this continuous current flow is controlled by at least two TFTs at each pixel, one to start and stop the charging of a storage capacitor and the second to provide a voltage source at the level needed to create a constant [6] current to the pixel and eliminating the need for the very high currents required for passive matrix OLED operation. TFT backplane technology is crucial in the fabrication of AMOLED displays. Two primary TFT backplane technologies, namely polycrystalline silicon (poly-Si) and amorphous silicon (a-Si), are used today in AMOLEDs. These technologies offer the potential for fabricating the active matrix backplanes at low temperatures (below 150C) directly onto flexible plastic substrates for producing flexible AMOLED displays

Future development
Manufacturers have developed in-cell touch panels, integrating the production of capacitive sensor arrays in the AMOLED module fabrication process. In-cell sensor AMOLED fabricators include AU Optronics and Samsung. Samsung has marketed their version of this technology asSuper AMOLED. Clear Black Display or CBD is an AMOLED display with a polarized filter on top. Researchers at DuPont used computational fluid dynamics (CFD) software to optimize coating processes for a new solution-coated AMOLED display technology that is cost and performance competitive with existing Chemical Vapor Deposition (CVD) technology. Using custom modeling and analytical approaches, they developed short- and long-range film-thickness control and uniformity that is commercially viable at large glass sizes.

Comparison to other technologies

AMOLED displays provide higher refresh rates than their passive-matrix OLED counterparts

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improving response time often to under a millisecond, and they consume significantly less power. This advantage makes active-matrix OLEDs well suited for portable electronics, where power consumption is critical to battery life. The amount of power the display consumes varies significantly depending on the color and brightness shown. As an example, one commercial QVGA OLED display consumes 3 watts while showing black text on a white background, [10] but only 0.7 watts showing white text on a black background. Because the black pixels actually turn off, AMOLED also has contrast ratios that are significantly better than LCD. AMOLED mobile phone users can save battery power by avoiding white backgrounds and many methods exist to achieve this, such as using Black Google Mobile to search with a black background. AMOLED displays may be difficult to view in direct sunlight compared to LCDs because of their reduced maximum [11] brightness. Samsung'sSuper AMOLED technology addresses this issue by reducing the size of gaps between [12][13] layers of the screen. . Additionally, PenTiletechnology is sometimes used, rearranging the subpixels for each color and in the case of PenTile RGBW, adding a white subpixel, which lets through more light, thereby increasing brightness, albeit while introducing graininess. The organic materials used in AMOLED displays are prone to degradation over a period of time. However, [14][15] technology has been developed to compensate for material degradation. Current demand for AMOLED screens is high and, due to supply shortages of the Samsung-produced displays, certain models of HTCsmartphones have been changed to use next-generation LCD displays from the Samsung [16] and Sony joint-venture SLCD in the future. Construction of new production facilities in 2011 will increase the [17] production of AMOLED screens to cope with demand.