- The Chinese semiconductor startup says its chip is the world’s first mass-production 8-inch red MicroLED solution
- The technology is designed to address the red-light efficiency bottleneck that has held back full-color MicroLED displays for AR glasses
Chinese semiconductor startup Qiushui Semiconductor (秋水半导体) has unveiled what it calls the world’s first mass-production 8-inch red MicroLED chip, marking a potential breakthrough in one of the biggest technical hurdles facing full-color AR glasses.
Unveiled on September 7, the chip is designed for near-eye displays and delivers 640-by-480 resolution in a package measuring just 0.15 cubic centimeters, according to the company.
Red has been a persistent problem for MicroLED displays. Conventional physical etching can damage the AlInGaP material used for red emitters, causing more than 97% of light efficiency to be lost and leaving industry red-light efficiency at around 1%, Qiushui said.
The Ningbo-based company has instead developed an architecture that combines electrical isolation with hybrid bonding and vertical stacking, allowing pixels to be separated without physically damaging the light-emitting material.
Qiushui says the process raises pixel yield above 99.9999%, while red electro-optical conversion efficiency is expected to exceed 20%.
Alongside the chip, Qiushui launched its 013 red-light optical engine, which it said gives AR-glasses makers worldwide their first mass-production-ready red MicroLED near-eye display solution, potentially paving the way for full-color AI glasses to reach the market.
The company plans to put its 8-inch hybrid-bonding production line into operation in October, with annual capacity expected to reach tens of millions of chips.
Moving beyond green-only displays
The advance comes as global AR-glasses makers seek to move beyond green-only or limited-color displays into full-color gadgets.
Companies including Meta, Snap and Rokid are developing next-generation AR products, but efficient red MicroLED remain a key challenge for achieving compact, full-color near-eye displays.
Qiushui was founded by Jiang Zhenyu (蒋振宇), who holds a doctorate from Pennsylvania State University.
Its team includes engineers from Huawei’s chip unit HiSilicon, memory producer Yangtze Memory and Intel. The company has raised nearly 200 million yuan ($30 million) this year, according to previous reporting by The Yangtzeer.
