Samsung Display and LG Display is opting to use larger substrates for the production OLED panels aimed at IT devices besides smartphones, TheElec has learned.
They are developing the substrate to be Gen 8.7 (2290x2620mm) slightly larger than Gen 8.5 (2200x2500mm) substrates commonly adopted as Gen 8 by manufacturers, sources said.
The South Korean companies expect the larger size to increase production efficiency by around 9%and their Chinese rival BOE is also expected to go the size.
The around 10cm increase vertically and horizontally but it has implications for equipment use.
The adoption of Gen 8.7 means that Samsung Display and LG Display won’t be able to use the production equipment they had used for their Gen 8.5 liquid crystal display (LCD) production lines.
The pair had considered Gen 8.5 for OLED to reuse this equipment but ultimately the productivity increase was worth it, the sources said.
A larger substrate means more panels can be cut out of it per unit, saving time and money and throwing away less of the glasses.
BOE also has a Gen 8.7 LCD line that it acquired from CEC Panda in 2020.
The Chinese company can use the line as well as its equipment for a planned Gen 8.7 OLED line if need be.
