The technology of MOSAREL can be characterized as LCOS (Liquid Crystal On Silicon) light valve or microdisplay. Two demonstrators have been developed which use this light valve in projection and HUD (Head Up Display).
The technology developed allows the fast and affordable development and manufacture of high resolution LCOS displays (microdisplays), thanks to the use of already existing infrastructure (EDA tools and silicon process with 10 to 15V voltage handling capability, LC-assembly). This leads to higher performance, lower cost and higher flexibility (custom design) when compared to alternatives. Possible applications are in the area of consumer and professional displays. This is a world-wide market of tens of millions of units/year. It is well known that the convergence of the media is leading to an increased demand for information displays: higher performance, better portability, lower cost. However, current technology is not capable of fulfilling all these requirements:
- CRT (Cathod Ray Tube) is bulky, heavy but low-cost.
- AM-LCD (Active Matrix Liquid Crystal Displays) remains expensive.
The LCOS technology can address a number of applications where other technologies cannot be applied.
Project URL: http://www.elis.rug.ac.be/ELISgroups/tfcg/mosarel/index.html