Celebrating 25 Years of Display Innovation
Twenty-five years ago, Corning engineers delivered the manufacturing breakthrough that made it practical to create LCD glass substrates with the fusion process. Today, in 2009, Corning celebrates a long history of contributing to the advancement of display technology.
“We are celebrating this year our steadfast commitment to innovation,” said Jim Clappin, president, Corning Display Technologies. “Together with our customers, who are among the world’s most innovative consumer electronics companies, we have helped advance the liquid crystal display industry to heights few of us imagined back in 1984. When we stop to consider the progress that’s been made, from the early days of the notebook computer to today’s most advanced LCD TVs, the sense of accomplishment is overwhelming.”
Yet the creation of glass substrates for active matrix LCD was anything but smooth. Though Corning’s proprietary fusion process was invented in 1959, it took two decades to identify the perfect application for fusion. With the market so slow to develop, the future of the LCD business at times seemed doubtful, and by 1984, the project to achieve flat glass was in jeopardy. On the weekend of July 14, just hours before the project termination date, a team of Corning engineers in Harrodsburg, Kentucky made a final attempt to yield a substrate of sufficient quality. By making dramatic and counter-intuitive changes to the setup of the fusion machine, they reached their goal, creating Corning’s first commercial AMLCD glass substrates. In fact, Corning marks the year 1984 as the anniversary milestone because of what happened on that weekend.
“It was that moment of inspiration which helped Corning drive the pace of technology innovation and sustain industry leadership in the years to come,” said Dr. Peter Bocko, chief technology officer, East Asia.
As AMLCD products began to enter the commercial market and the demand for LCD substrates grew, Corning responded to customers’ needs, using research to develop new technologies ahead of trends.
“We are fueled by innovation and driven to help our customers create advanced display devices,” said Bocko. “Our technology investments are motivated by a shared vision of our customer’s future. Indeed, many of our breakthroughs are the result of collaborative relationships with device and panel manufacturers.”
This approach led Corning to create award-winning glass compositions such as EAGLE2000®, EAGLE XG™ glass substrates and Jade™ glass for advanced display. When the requirements for LCD glass substrates became increasingly stringent, Corning rose to the challenge, delivering glass that was lighter, thinner, flatter, more stable and mechanically reliable, while maintaining pristine surface quality over an ever-larger area.
Today, this kind of customer collaboration continues, as the benefits and efficiencies of Corning’s substrates have translated to cost savings for panel makers and better end products for the retail market.
“The LCD market will continue to grow and evolve into new technologies,” said Bocko. “With Corning’s high-value glass substrates, the evolution toward more vivid, information-rich displays and futuristic form factors is an achievable reality.”
Learn more about Corning’s history in AMLCD.