Powerful mini-LEDs for thin touchscreens
Friday, September 16, 2011 - 10:00
in Physics & Chemistry
Osram Opto Semiconductors has developed an infrared light-emitting diode (IRED) for use in very thin optical touchscreens. Called the SFH 4053, the small new lamps are housed in a frame surrounding a display. The lamps create a veritable web of light that overlays the display. If a user touches the screen, the motion interferes with the light grid at that particular location, enabling the system to recognize that it is being touched. The new system takes up only 0.45 millimeters of the frames height and can be easily incorporated into a tablet PC. Despite its small size, the diode is powerful enough to light up a laptop display, for example.