Samsung to Unveil the World's First Curved Display Phone in October

Upcoming Samsung Phones 2013: Korean Manufacturer May Finally Release The World's First Curved Display Phone

Samsung exec Brian Berkeley holds a demo device with a flexible Youm display.

Microsoft's Eric Rudder demos a prototype of how a Windows Phone would look using a Youm display.

Top-emitting OLED<br/><br/>Top-emitting OLEDs have a substrate that is either opaque or reflective. They are best suited to active-matrix design. Manufacturers may use top-emitting OLED displays in smart cards.

Transparent OLED<br/><br/>Transparent OLEDs have only transparent components (substrate, cathode and anode) and, when turned off, are up to 85 percent as transparent as their substrate. When a transparent OLED display is turned on, it allows light to pass in both directions. A transparent OLED display can be either active- or passive-matrix. This technology can be used for heads-up displays.

Active-matrix OLED (AMOLED)<br/><br/>AMOLEDs have full layers of cathode, organic molecules and anode, but the anode layer overlays a thin film transistor (TFT) array that forms a matrix. The TFT array itself is the circuitry that determines which pixels get turned on to form an image.<br/><br/>AMOLEDs consume less power than PMOLEDs because the TFT array requires less power than external circuitry, so they are efficient for large displays. AMOLEDs also have faster refresh rates suitable for video. The best uses for AMOLEDs are computer monitors, large-screen TVs and electronic signs or billboards.

Passive-matrix OLED (PMOLED)<br/><br/>PMOLEDs have strips of cathode, organic layers and strips of anode. The anode strips are arranged perpendicular to the cathode strips. The intersections of the cathode and anode make up the pixels where light is emitted. External circuitry applies current to selected strips of anode and cathode, determining which pixels get turned on and which pixels remain off. Again, the brightness of each pixel is proportional to the amount of applied current.<br/><br/>PMOLEDs are easy to make, but they consume more power than other types of OLED, mainly due to the power needed for the external circuitry. PMOLEDs are most efficient for text and icons and are best suited for small screens (2- to 3-inch diagonal) such as those you find in cell phones, PDAs and MP3 players. Even with the external circuitry, passive-matrix OLEDs consume less battery power than the LCDs that currently power these devices.

OLED light is created through a process called electrophosphorescence. Learn about electrophosphorescence and find out how OLED light is created.<br/><br/>

OLED components include organic layers that are made of organic molecules or polymers. Learn about some of the different OLED components.