In recent years, the global small-pitch LED display market has shown booming trend. The development space has expanded year by year. From the perspective of industry development, major manufacturers have focused their attention on ultra-small pitch  LED displays of ≤P1.0. Among them, Mini/Micro LED display have become the key bargaining chip for major brands to compete in the high-end market.

With the demand for display technology in fields such as AI intelligence, smart cities, naked-eye 3D, cinema screens, and virtual studios, Mini/Micro LED displays have a broader stage. It can be foreseen that Mini/Micro LED display technology will become the mainstream trend of future development of the industry.

However, in the wave of Micro LED, in addition to the traditional technical route, MiP technology has emerged in 2023 and has become a hot technology that has attracted much attention. Many links in the industrial chain have increased their investment. So, what exactly is MiP technology? What are its advanced features? Can it help Micro LED accelerate its commercialization? SightLED will introduce the details to you.

MiP technology in Micro LED packaging

Background of the birth of technology

In recent years, the LED display industry has been constantly exploring the development of Micro LED technology. However, in the journey of Micro LED mass production, cost and yield have always been two mountains that stand in front of them. Among them, the yield and efficiency issues of mass transfer, as well as the cost issues brought by the post-stage testing and sorting are particularly prominent. Against this background, MiP technology came into being and attracted widespread attention in the industry.

Technical definition and process flow

MiP packaging technology is a new packaging technology based on Micro LED. Its core is to separate and package a large area of ​​the entire LED display panel, so as to achieve an organic combination of Micro LED and discrete devices.

The specific process flow is as follows:

• The Micro LED chip is transferred to the substrate through mass transfer technology;
• Then the packaging process is carried out;
• Then the packaged product is cut into single or multi-in-one small chips;
• Then these small chips are subjected to light splitting and light mixing operations;
• The chip mounting process and screen surface coating are carried out to complete the production of the LED display screen.

To some extent, MiP technology effectively reduces the difficulty of point measurement and sorting. It provides a practical path for promoting the commercialization of Micro LED.

Unique advantages of MiP technology

Comparative advantages with COB packaging technology

Compared with COB packaging technology, which is also a mainstream technology, MiP packaging technology was born later, but it has shown a strong momentum of latecomers and higher market acceptance. By comparison, it can be found that MiP packaging technology not only inherits the advantages of COB technology, but also has unique advantages such as light splitting, high yield, and complete industrial chain supporting facilities, which can basically meet the rapidly growing market demand for micro-pitch LED displays.

High compatibility

MiP technology adopts an integrated packaging method, which simultaneously transfers and packages multiple pixels in the process, and then divides multiple pixels into single pixels in the subsequent process. This unique packaging method gives MiP technology higher compatibility.

On the one hand, in terms of process compatibility, MiP does not need to go through the high-cost rework process. It can directly conduct testing and sorting, greatly reduces the difficulty of point testing and sorting. On the other hand, in terms of application scenario compatibility, MiP’s single product does not need customized development. they can flexibly match the application requirements of different dot pitches, providing convenience for the wide application of products.

Greater cost reduction space

The MiP process does not need to be reworked, and only needs to be strictly sorted before shipment to ensure the yield of each pixel point during terminal transfer, thereby effectively reducing the rework cost.

In addition, combined with fan-out packaging technology, MiP can reduce the difficulty of testing from chip level to packaging level, which not only improves testing efficiency but also reduces testing costs. At the same time, fan-out packaging can also create greater space for the price reduction of PCB boards.

Taking the SightLED as an example, our MIP LED screen adopts fan-out packaging technology. By rewiring the Micro LED chip substrate, fanning out the pins, and leading out the original electrodes that were difficult to point test through the line, the pin distance is increased, thereby reducing the difficulty of testing and mounting, and further realizing cost optimization.

The close relationship between MiP technology and the development of the Micro LED market

The potential of the Micro LED large LED screen market

The main application direction of MiP technology focuses on the Micro LED large screen. In this market, with its cost potential and flexible form, Micro LED is expected to open up a variety of new application scenarios. For example, in the commercial display, large Micro LED screens can present clearer, more gorgeous and realistic picture effects, attract consumers’ attention, and enhance brand image and product attractiveness;

In the conferences and exhibitions, its high resolution and high contrast characteristics can meet the strict requirements of large-scale conferences and exhibitions for display effects. They provide a better platform for the transmission and display of information.

Opportunities brought by the metaverse and XR virtual shooting

The resurgence of the concept of the metaverse has brought rapid growth opportunities for XR virtual shooting, making it a hot product this year.

At present, there are many scene segments for XR virtual shooting. LED display screen pitch ranges from P1.2 to P3. Many XR studios have adopted Micro LED screens. With the continuous increase in the volume of XR virtual shooting and the further segmentation of scenes, Micro LED may usher in greater development opportunities.

Driven by the Metaverse, LED display screens, as the output end of virtual scenes, are expected to open up more and newer application scenarios. For example, in the  virtual reality games, online education, telemedicine, etc., the high definition, high refresh rate and low latency of Micro LED display screens will bring users a more immersive experience and promote innovation and development in these fields.

In line with the commercial development process

From the perspective of various packaging technologies, the development of MiP technology is highly consistent with the commercial development process of Micro LED. It has the significant characteristics of fast product iteration and large cost reduction space. They can adapt to the rapid changes and ever-increasing needs of the market. However, the development of MiP technology still needs to be tested by the market, and it needs to work closely with market development to continuously optimize and improve the technology to achieve wider application and commercial success.

MiP technology players and new progress of China manufacturers

Technology player ecology

At present, there are many China supplier covering terminal brands, chips, packaging, module factories and other fields. For example, terminal brands include Unilumin and SightLED; chip, packaging, and module factories include Seoul Viosys, Sanan, Zhongqi, Jingtai, and Nationstar. These suppliers have different specific technical processes and jointly promote the development and application of MiP technology.

Layout and achievements of terminal brands

From the perspective of terminal brands, Unilumin and SIightLED have excellent performance in MIP technology-based LED displays. The color uniformity, ink consistency, contrast and other picture quality effects of their displays are not inferior to COB displays. Among them, SigtLED P1.0 uses MIP 0404 LED, and its display effect is impressive, setting a new benchmark for the industry.

The first layout of chip factories

Among chip factories, Sanan Optoelectronics is the first China manufacturer to deploy MIP technology. As early as 2021, Sanan Optoelectronics demonstrated a P0.83 Micro LED display based on MIP 0404 packaged lamp beads. The LED display screen uses Sanan Optoelectronics’ self-developed mass transfer technology, which can provide 180° viewing angle and ultra-high contrast, demonstrating its deep technical strength and innovation capabilities.

Technological innovation of China packaging plants

Among China packaging plants, Nationstar and Kinglight all adopt fan-out packaging technology. Nationstar Optoelectronics has the advantages of low cost, high brightness, low power consumption, strong compatibility, and mixed Bin  technology advantages. They improve display consistency by enlarging the pin electrodes to match the current machine equipment, which helps downstream customers to significantly improve SMT yield and efficiency, and save costs such as correction and rework.

Recently, Nationstar Optoelectronics has launched a transparent substrate MiP device developed based on fan-out packaging technology. The device selectively arranges the target chip array through mass transfer technology, uses the rewiring process to achieve chip electrode pin enlargement, and finally cuts out a single-pixel discrete device.

Relying on semiconductor packaging process technology, transparent substrate MIP devices have more significant characteristics in high consistency, high contrast, high brightness, etc., which can meet the application scenario requirements of indoor ultra-high-definition display under P0.6-P0.9 dot pitch.

Kingligt’s MiP technology belongs to the packaging-level MiP technology, and this packaged MiP can be packaged as MCOB. In 2023, Kingligt demonstrated its MiP packaging series products, including MC1010, MC0606, and MC0404, which can cover the dot pitch from P0.5 to P1.25.

Kinglight’s MiP products use needle puncture + laser welding technology, semiconductor carrier-level substrate, high chip transfer accuracy, more uniform product display. They can be arbitrarily arranged and combined into modules. After potting as MCOB, it is potted with optical glue, which has good anti-collision, moisture-proof and dust-proof effects.

Active follow-up by other China LED screen manufacturers

Other China LED screen manufacturers are also unwilling to lag behind and have laid out MiP technology. In 2023, Leyard focused on MiP technology, demonstrated breakthroughs in MiP display technology. They launched a series of new Micro LED products based on MiP technology. In addition, Leyard also announced the Lijing MiP technology and product planning: MiP0404-MiP0203-MiP0202, which will eventually be made into a Micro LED display with a pitch of 0.4-1.8mm. Among them, MiP0404 has been mass-produced and shipped in the form of tape and reel. Each MiP can be tested for spectral analysis, eliminating the high cost of post-calibration and achieving display consistency.

As a representative of leading enterprises, Unilumin Technology has adopted a “two-handed” technology route strategy. Although its strategic investment in 2023 is more inclined to the COB technology route, it also promotes MIP technology simultaneously. 2023.

 Unilumin Technology mentioned the MIP layout at its Mini/Micro full-scene product launch conference, covering MIP1111, MIP1212, and MIP2020. The products include MIP full flip-chip RGB 0.7/1.2/1.5 display products, integrating EBL+, somatosensory cold screen, DCI-P3 movie-level color gamut, picture quality engine and other technologies. They are 50% thinner and 40% more energy-efficient than conventional SMD, with brightness uniformity > 98%, fully supporting indoor and semi-outdoor application scenarios such as sports, commerce, cultural tourism, and exhibitions.

In addition to some of the representative companies mentioned above, there are many suppliers who are vigorously deploying MiP technology: such as SightLED. They are all trying to seize the market opportunities in the Micro LED era. Nowadays, more leading companies have also joined the competition, making the originally competitive Micro LED track even more unpredictable.

Conclusion

MiP technology is an emerging force in the  Micro LED packaging. It is gradually becoming a key factor in promoting the commercialization of Micro LED. Although MiP technology still faces some challenges, with the continuous advancement of technology and the gradual recognition of the market. We believed that it will play a more important role in the future display. If you need MIP LED display, you can contact us at will.