The OLED TV is one of the best and the most high technology televisions of the 21st Century. This high definition TV produces the best quality of picture and sound through a complex process.
Today, we’re going to explain this process in depth, the working process of the TV and its key features. Let’s get right into it.
What is OLED?
OLED is short for Organic Light Emitting Diodes. This basically means that each and every LED light behind the screen operates on its own, independent of the other. Each of them can turn on or off whenever needed.
This allows the OLED TV to produce more accurate colors, precise levels of black and clear contrast.
Key Features of OLED TVs
Some of the best features of OLED TVs are discussed as below:
Perfect Black Levels
OLED TVs achieve near-perfect black levels by using self-illuminating pixels that can be individually turned off.
While this technology significantly reduces light leakage compared to traditional LCD TVs, some light may still escape, resulting in slightly imperfect blacks.
Wide Viewing Angles
A wide viewing angle is the angle at which the image on the screen can still be seen clearly.
OLED TVs have excellent viewing angles due to their self-illuminating pixels. This reduces light dispersion and ensures consistent color and brightness from various angles.
Even at extreme angles, OLED TVs typically offer superior image quality compared to LCD TVs.
Fast Response Time
Response time is the speed at which the displayed images on the screen change from one image to another. This speed is usually measured in milliseconds (ms).
The OLED TV has a very low input lag. Once put a move on the controller to change the image, the pixels quickly change from one color to another. Coupled with the perfect black level feature, every move you put on the controller is instantly displayed on the screen.
The speed at which OLED TV processes change from one image to another ranges from 0.03 to 1 millisecond. This is super-fast. During the shift, no after-images remain in the quick-moving graphics.
Energy Efficiency
When it comes to this device, a lot of power is consumed especially when displaying bright content. Ideally, each pixel emits own light and the power consumption will greatly depend on the color of the images. The device will consume less energy when displaying darker scenes.
It is ideal to note that OLED is more energy efficient when compared to other devices.
How OLED TV Works
OLEDs work exactly like the normal diodes and light-emitting diodes, except instead of the layers of an n-type and p-type semiconductor to generate their electrons and holes, they utilize organic molecules.
Let’s break it down.
Structure of a Simple OLED
(Image source: Part a shows the single-layer OLED circuit, and part b shows its multifunctional layer.)
Starting with the basic OLED, there are six layers above. These consist of a layer of protective glass or plastic at the top and one at the bottom. The top layer is called the seal, while the bottom layer is called the substrate.
Sandwiched between those layers is one negative terminal, otherwise known as a cathode, and one positive terminal, otherwise known as an anode. Between the anode and the cathode, there are two layers made from organic molecules.
The layers are referred to as an emissive layer and a conductive layer.
The emissive layer, where light is actually produced, is normally right next to the cathode. This usually precedes the conductive layer, next to the anode. All of these layers, work together to produce light that in turn translates into the images on your screen.
How?
In order to make an OLED light up, you have to attach a voltage which is the potential difference across the anode and the cathode. As the power starts to flow after switching it on, the cathode receives electrons from your power source and the anode loses them.
You could also say that it receives holes.
Charge Dynamics in OLEDs
Here, the added electrons cause the emissive layer to be negatively charged, which is a similar situation to the n-type layer in a junction diode.
Meanwhile, the conductive layer becomes positively charged, which is similar to the p-type layer.
Energy Circulation and Light Emission
As the flow of energy keeps taking place, the positive holes turn out to be more mobile as compared to the negative electrons. They, therefore, shift across the boundary from the conductive layer over to the next layer: emissive.
Now, when a hole (which means there’s no electron) meets an electron, they combine and create a short burst of energy. This burst appears as a tiny particle of light called a photon.
This process is referred to as recombination. Since this process is happening so many times per second, the OLED produces light continuously for as long as the current keeps flowing through it.
Creating Color with OLEDs
You can make an OLED TV produce colored light by adding a colored filter into your plastic sandwich just below the glass or plastic top or bottom layer.
If you put thousands of red, green, and blue OLEDs adjacent to each other and switch them on and off independently, they work similarly to the pixels in a conventional LCD screen, so you can produce complex, high-colored pictures.
This is the technology used by OLED TVs to produce such colorful and bright image display.
Comparison with OLED TVs and LED Screen
Here are some of the differences between OLED TVS and LED screens.
Materials Used
OLED TVs typically use a plastic casing or aluminum metal to wrap the entire screen. On the market, for similar products but with different numbers, the highest priced product will use an aluminum alloy casing, while the lower priced product will use a plastic casing.
Since LED screens are not differentiated by number, LED screens always use aluminum alloy as the wrapping material.
Size and Flexibility
OLED TVs are shaped at the factory and do not support customization, so LED screens are more flexible than OLED TVs. This is because you can customize it by choosing any shape, size, and other parameters.
Color and Contrast
This is a piece where the two are indistinguishable. If you look into the fineness of the two, OLED TVs do have a slight edge.
Response Time
Both have extremely fast response times, except that OLED TVs work better with many joystick games due to their smaller size. Whereas LED displays can only be used with additional customized systems from the manufacturer. Therefore, it will be more common for gamers to use OLED TVs.
Conclusion
With impressive black levels, fast response times, and a wide color gamut, OLED TVs can create an immersive viewing experience.
Now that we’ve explained how an OLED TV works and highlighted some of the main differences between OLED and LED, which screen would you choose?
