50 years ago, television screens used bulky cathode ray tubes (CRTs) with a size limited to about 70 cm in diagonal (28 in.), while flat panel displays belonged to the realm of science fiction. Although the performance of CRTs in terms of energy consumption, size, and color rendering slowly improved, there were numerous applications where flat panel displays would present a tremendous advantage, notably for confined spaces and in portable equipment. Starting from the 1970s, AC thin-film electroluminescence (ACTFEL) was investigated as a high performance alternative to the—also emerging—liquid crystal displays (LCDs) and plasma display panels (PDPs). For a number of years, ACTFEL developed from the phase of fundamental research to commercial products (for monochrome displays) and full color prototype displays. However, due to the fast development and strong cost reduction of LCDs, ACTFEL did not remain competitive and most of the research activities were ceased. The current overview sketches a brief history of the ACTFEL technology, its merits and limitations, and the reasons why such displays still have their use in some niche applications.
Skip Nav Destination
Article navigation
December 2024
Review Article|
October 29 2024
AC thin-film electroluminescence: A historical overview with a look ahead
Special Collection:
Celebrating the Achievements and Life of Paul H. Holloway
Dirk Poelman
Dirk Poelman
a)
(Conceptualization, Funding acquisition, Investigation, Methodology, Project administration, Resources, Supervision, Validation, Visualization, Writing – original draft)
Department of Solid State Sciences, Ghent University, LumiLab,
Krijgslaan 281-S1, B-9000 Gent, Belgium
Search for other works by this author on:
a)
Electronic mail: dirk.poelman@ugent.be
J. Vac. Sci. Technol. B 42, 060801 (2024)
Article history
Received:
September 17 2024
Accepted:
October 11 2024
Citation
Dirk Poelman; AC thin-film electroluminescence: A historical overview with a look ahead. J. Vac. Sci. Technol. B 1 December 2024; 42 (6): 060801. https://doi.org/10.1116/6.0004083
Download citation file:
Sign in
Don't already have an account? Register
Sign In
You could not be signed in. Please check your credentials and make sure you have an active account and try again.
Pay-Per-View Access
$40.00
12
Views
Citing articles via
Future of plasma etching for microelectronics: Challenges and opportunities
Gottlieb S. Oehrlein, Stephan M. Brandstadter, et al.
Novel low-temperature and high-flux hydrogen plasma source for extreme-ultraviolet lithography applications
A. S. Stodolna, T. W. Mechielsen, et al.
Large-area fabrication of nanometer-scale features on GaN using e-beam lithography
Firat Yasar, Richard E. Muller, et al.
Related Content
Effects of processing parameters on electroluminescence of rf magnetron sputter deposited Zn S : Er F 3
J. Vac. Sci. Technol. A (January 2007)
Sputter deposited electroluminescent zinc sulfide thin films doped with rare earths
J. Vac. Sci. Technol. A (April 2007)
Enhanced outcoupling of electroluminescence from ZnS : ErF 3 thin films by a photonic crystal
J. Vac. Sci. Technol. B (January 2011)
Addition of He to Ar during sputter deposition of electroluminescent ZnS:TbOF thin films
J. Vac. Sci. Technol. B (September 2003)