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原文標題：Apple partners with TSMC to develop ultra-advanced displays
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原文連結：https://s.nikkei.com/3a5BgSb
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發布時間：2/10
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原文內容：
TAOYUAN, Taiwan -- Apple has partnered with Taiwan Semiconductor
Manufacturing Co. to develop ultra-advanced display technology at a secretive
facility in Taiwan, Nikkei Asia learned.

蘋果與台積電合作，在台灣的一個秘密研究設施中開發超先進顯示技術

The California tech giant plans to develop micro OLED displays -- a radically
different type of display built directly onto chip wafers -- with the
ultimate goal of using the new technology in its upcoming augmented reality
devices, sources briefed on the matter said.

蘋果計畫開發的 micro OLED 顯示器，與傳統顯示器非常不同的是它直接 build onto
晶片(晶圓)之上，目的為了未來AR裝置相關應用

Apple is collaborating with its longtime chip supplier TSMC because micro
OLED displays are not built on glass substrates like the conventional LCD
screens in smartphones and TVs, or OLED displays used in high-end
smartphones. Instead, these new displays are built directly onto wafers --
the substrates that semiconductors are fabricated on -- allowing for displays
that are far thinner and smaller and use less power, making them more
suitable for use in wearable AR devices, according to sources familiar with
the projects.

micro OLED並非像是LCD或OLED一樣build在玻璃基質上，而是build在晶圓之上
所以顯示器可以非常細小而且低能耗，並且適用於穿戴式AR裝置

The project represents a further deepening of Apple's relationship with TSMC,
the sole supplier of iPhone processors, even as the U.S. tech giant works to
reduce its reliance on other major suppliers. The Taiwanese chipmaking giant
is also helping Apple build its in-house designed central processors for Mac
computers.

The micro OLED project is now at the trial production stage, sources said,
and it will take several years to achieve mass production. The displays under
development are less than 1 inch in size.

目前 micro OLED 在試產階段，並且將花費數年以達成大規模生產。
正在開發中的顯示器尺寸小於 1 英吋。

"Panel players are good at making screens bigger and bigger, but when it
comes to thin and light devices like AR glasses, you need a very small
screen," said a source who has direct information on the micro OLED R&D
project. "Apple is partnering with TSMC to develop the technology because the
chipmaker's expertise is making things ultra-small and good, while Apple is
also leveraging panel experts' know-how on display technologies."

Some parts of the planned microdisplay manufacturing will use TSMC's existing
chip-production equipment and processes, sources said.

The project is one of two being conducted at Apple's secretive labs in
Longtan District in the northern Taiwanese city of Taoyuan. In addition to
micro OLED displays, the company is also working on micro LED technology, and
has trial production lines in place for both types, Nikkei has learned.

Apple's complex in Longtan Science Park consists of several unmarked white
buildings -- there is no company logo or address on the outside, and only a
very faint apple symbol could be seen in the lobby, Nikkei reporters saw on a
recent visit. Apple registered a company at the park in 2014, and expanded it
in 2020. The complex is within walking distance of TSMC's advanced
chip-packaging and testing plant, which is located in the same science park.


Optoelectronics to work on the micro OLED project, one of the sources
familiar with the situation said, as well as display experts from Japan and
elsewhere. Anyone who signs up to work on the program must sign a strict
non-disclosure agreement that forbids them from even meeting with friends or
acquaintances working in the tech industry, the source added.



The U.S. tech giant on Monday posted on a Taiwanese job platform seeking
applicants to work in Longtan who have expertise in operating OLED vacuum
evaporation equipment, packaging and testing equipment, and measurement
equipment. It is the first time for Apple to hire manufacturing-related
employees in Taiwan via public platforms.

蘋果已於本週一在台灣的徵才平台發布龍潭的工作訊息，要求有OLED相關經驗
這是蘋果首次於台灣的公開徵才平台發布徵才廣告。

Apple is not the only company pursuing this new line of display technology.
Sony Semiconductor Solutions, a longtime Apple supplier, says it has
developed micro OLED display technology that can be used in AR and VR
glasses, as well as for other industrial and consumer products.

China's display national champion BOE Technology Group has teamed up with
Yunnan North OLiGHTEK Opto-Electronic Technology and U.S.-based Kopin, an
ultra-small display technology provider, on a joint-venture to develop micro
OLED displays for wearable and AR devices.

Apple's other display project at the Longtan campus focuses on micro LED
technology, which the company hopes to eventually use in the Apple Watch,
iPads and MacBooks. Apple has partnered with Taiwanese LED company Epistar to
co-develop the technology.

Like micro OLEDs, the micro LED project also involves some chip manufacturing
technology. The components are 100 times smaller than those used in LED
lighting products and they do not need backlight modules like traditional
LEDs and LCDs, meaning the display can be much thinner. Micro LEDs also
provide high color contrast and can be used to make curved or foldable
screens, similar to OLED screens.

Samsung, Apple, BOE Technology and China's largest LED maker San'an
Optoelectronics are all working to make the technology commercially viable,
but finding a way to mass-transfer millions of tiny components to a substrate
accurately and affordably remains a major hurdle.

Apple's push to develop these new display technologies is part of its efforts
to reduce its dependence on Samsung Electronics, the global leader in OLEDs
-- and the U.S. company's biggest rival in the smartphone arena. The South
Korean company is Apple's main supplier of the cutting edge displays, which
are now seen as a must-have feature for high-end smartphones. OLED screens
are the second-most costly component in the iPhone 12 range, after the
Qualcomm 5G modem.

"Not every technology that Apple develops will be introduced or actually used
in its products, but the company could strategically apply patents for its
own patent portfolio and technology advancements to gain more control in the
next generation technologies," one of the people said.

TSMC declined to comment for this story. Apple did not respond to repeated
requests for comment.

Eric Chiou, a veteran display analyst at research agency TrendForce, told
Nikkei that Micro OLED could be the most ideal display technology for
next-generation AR displays as it can make a display ultra-small, reducing
the overall weight of the device, but also comes with high-resolution. "The
technology is a mix of semiconductor and display manufacturing know-how,"
Chiou said.

"However, it is currently in its early stage of development. It is not likely
Apple could immediately introduce its self-developed technology into its
first AR products in one to two years," the analyst added.



日經獨家消息，和GG共同開發直接build在晶片上的micro OLED顯示器，未來
用於AR/VR等應用，2330年底上看____?

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