Samsung develops new display system that can switch between 2D/3D images on mobile phones and tablets

On April 23, according to Sammyguru, Samsung’s display technology is developing towards a flexible viewing experience. The company has developed a switchable 2D/3D display system using metasurface lenticular lenses, which is expected to allow smartphones and tablets to freely switch between 2D images and naked-eye 3D content.

Samsung and Pohang University of Science and Technology launched a switchable 2D/3D display system in a research paper published in the journal Nature. The system is equipped with an ultra-thin ultra-lens made of nanoscale structures, which can flexibly switch between flat two-dimensional images and three-dimensional images. It aims to break through many limitations of traditional 3D displays, such as bulky optical components, narrow viewing angles, and loss of image quality.

To achieve this technical effect, researchers used the polarization characteristics of light, that is, the vibration direction of light waves, to develop a metasurface cylindrical lens that can dynamically adjust focusing parameters. In 2D display mode, this super lens is equivalent to a concave lens. Light can penetrate the lens in a straight line, presenting a clear regular plane picture.

When switching to 3D mode, the hyperlens switches to a convex lens working form, working in conjunction with the device's original lens to enhance the three-dimensionality of the picture and widen the viewing angle. As a result, the same display device can handle both high-definition 2D images and immersive 3D image output.

Samsung also emphasized the dual upgrades of this technology in body thickness and viewing angles. In the past, technicians had to rely on large, thick lenses to achieve both high-quality images and a wide field of view. This metasurface cylindrical lens adopts a high numerical aperture design and achieves a structural breakthrough.

It is understood that the new technical solution compresses the thickness of the device to an ultra-thin level of 1.2 mm, and at the same time increases the viewing angle to a maximum of 100 degrees, which is more than six times wider than the viewing range of traditional 3D screens of only 15 degrees. This means that multiple people can watch 3D content from different directions at the same time to obtain a complete viewing effect.

In addition, this study confirms that hyperlens technology can be applied to consumer terminal equipment on a large scale. The R&D team successfully prepared a large-size metalens with a size of 50×50 mm (effective area 25 square centimeters) and completed actual measurements on an OLED screen panel. Samsung said that this switchable 2D/3D display system is expected to be widely used in smartphones, tablets and various commercial display devices in the future.