What is FED?

Motorla FED

• The high-voltage FED technology being developed by Candescent and Sony can be used to create full color displays in which each pixel on the screen produces light separately by a corresponding electrical discharge array (micro-electron gun).
• Each electrical discharge array employs semiconductor technology to individually activate a single pixel by focusing a beam of electrons from each of the cathode emitters on the individual phosphor elements.
• Because this is the same light generating principle used in the CRT, it’s possible to achieve a similar level of brightness, viewing angle, and speed of response.
• Because there is no need for an electron gun mechanism or deflection plate, FED displays can be made using a thin, lightweight design that is similar to that used for LCD displays.
• High-voltage FED displays employ an anode with a potential difference of about 5kV, allowing the pixels of the screen to be made from similar phosphor materials used for CRT screens, making it possible to achieve high levels of brightness.

Why is FED The Technology of The Future?

• FED technology is lightweight and packs a mighty punch.
• FED has overcome the inherent limitations of both LCD and CRT technologies.
• FEDs provide a powerful combination of bright and crisp images, very fast response times, low power requirements, wide viewing angles, thin format and rugged durability in outdoor uses and climate extremes.

FED by Motorola

The Technology

Motorla FED

• Motorola’s Field Emission Display (FED) technology combines the best performance features of cathode ray tube (CRT) technology with the lightweight and thinness of liquid crystal display (LCD) technology.
• FEDs are composed of two sheets of glass separated by a vacuum. The back glass, or cathode, is made up of millions of tiny tips, which form the source of electrons that accelerate across the vacuum.
• The addressable x-y emitter layout eliminates the non-linearity and pincushion effects associated with standard CRT images.
• The front glass, or anode, hosts standard CRT phosphors.
• Sharp pictures, brilliant color, excellent durability and high efficiency can all be found in FED technology.

What Makes Motorola’s FEDs so thin?

Motorla FED

• A CRT uses a "gun" that shoots a single beam of electrons across a vacuum that scans a phosphor-coated anode. By necessity that gun must sit far from the anode, a distance similar to the width of the display areas. Thus, a 17-inch CRT monitor requires roughly 17 inches of space.
• A FED, on the other hand, operates from an arrayed cathode made up of hundreds of electron sources per pixel, completely negating the need for a scanned electron beam. Images are created simply by turning the individual electron-emitting microtips on or off in sequence behind each phosphor pixel.

[Find out more about Motorla's FED]