Sharp Begins Production of World’s First^*1 LCD Panels Incorporating IGZO^*2 Oxide Semiconductors

In March 2012 at Kameyama Plant No. 2, Sharp began producing the world’s first high-performance LCD panels incorporating IGZO oxide semiconductors. Sharp is expanding production scale through April to meet market demand.

Kameyama Plant No. 2 first started operations in August 2006, manufacturing highly advanced LCD panels for TVs. Production systems have subsequently been reorganized to focus on producing small- and medium-sized LCD panels for the world’s rapidly growing smartphone and tablet terminal markets.

Employing advanced IGZO oxide semiconductors enables Sharp to produce LCDs with smaller thin-film transistors and increased pixel transparency, thus allowing for lower energy consumption. In addition, proprietary UV²A^*3 photo-alignment technology employed in Sharp’s AQUOS LCD TVs enables these displays to achieve high image quality.

Sharp will encourage the application of its new high-resolution LCD panels to high-definition notebook PCs and LCD monitors—which are both expected to grow in demand—as well as to mobile devices. Sharp will also contribute to creating markets for attractive new products.

• *1 As of April 13, 2012 (based on Sharp research).
• *2 IGZO (InGaZnO) is an oxide comprising indium (In), gallium (Ga), and zinc (Zn). A thin-film transistor using this material has been developed by Sharp in collaboration with Semiconductor Energy Laboratory Co., Ltd. (a company based in Kanagawa, Japan, and led by President Shunpei Yamazaki).
• *3 Ultraviolet-induced multi-domain Vertical Alignment (UV2A) is a photo-alignment technology that precisely controls the alignment of LCD molecules in a simple LCD panel structure.