Apple continues to make materials news, this time for the display technology used in its new iPad Air tablet. Analysts say the display uses backplane electronics based on indium gallium zinc oxide (IGZO), an alternative to amorphous silicon chips that offers higher resolution with significantly lower power consumption. According to an article in MIT Technology Review, IGZO is one of two materials technologies competing to replace amorphous silicon for semiconductor applications. The problem facing designers of displays and other components for mobile devices, such as tablets and smart phones, is one of simple physics: New chip designs are bumping into the upper limits of amorphous silicon's ability to transport electrons. IGZO and other material, low-temperature polycrystalline silicon, have much higher electron mobility than amorphous silicon, according to an article in Extreme Tech. Thus, both technologies offer the promise of higher-resolution displays and reduced power consumption versus amorphous silicon.
