High-quality OLED displays now enabling integrated thin and multichannel audio

Summary

A research team led by Professor Su Seok Choi of the Department of Electrical Engineering at POSTECH (Pohang University of Science and Technology) and PhD candidate Inpyo Hong of the Graduate Program in Semiconductor Materials and Devices has developed the world's first Pixel-Based Local Sound OLED technology. This breakthrough enables each pixel of an OLED display to simultaneously emit different sounds, essentially allowing the display to function as a multichannel speaker array. The team successfully demonstrated the technology on a 13-inch OLED panel, equivalent to those used in laptops and tablets. The research has been published online in the journal Advanced Science. Visuals Meet Audio: Toward a Multisensory Display Era While display technologies have evolved with significant advances in resolution, high dynamic range, and color accuracy -- particularly with OLEDs and QD-enhanced displays -- the industry now faces the need for breakthroughs that enhance not only image quality but also the realism and immersion of user experience. As visual technologies approach maturity, integrating multisensory inputs -- such as seeing, hearing, and touch -- into displays has become a new frontier. Therefore, now displays are no longer passive panels that simply show images; they are evolving into immersive interfaces that engage multiple human senses. Among these, sound plays a critical role: research indicates that audiovisual synchronization accounts for nearly 90% of perceived immersion. However, most current displays still require external soundbars or multi-channel speakers, which add bulk and create design challenges -- especially in compact environments like vehicle interiors, where integrating multiple speakers is difficult. OLEDs with Built-in Pixel-Based Sound: A Game Changer To address this, researchers have focused on integrating advanced sound capabilities directly into OLED panels, known for their slim, flexible form factors. While companies have explored atta...