Liquid-crystal displays (LCD) are found in countless electronic devices. Most smartphones have an LCD, which is responsible for creating visual images. LCD is also the leading technology used in TVs. Being that that there are other display technologies available, though, you may be wondering why LCD is such a popular choice.
What Is an LCD?
An LCD is a display device that uses liquid material for its pixels. Like all display devices, LCDs contain many small dots, known as pixels. The pixels are illuminated by backlighting. When the backlighting is activated, it will project light at the pixels to create an image.
The liquid pixels are placed between two layers of polarizing glass. With both layers being polarized, the illumination produced by the backlighting can shine through the liquid pixels and out the LCD’s top layer.
While all LCDs use liquid pixels between layers of polarizing glass, there are several different types of LCDs, including the following:
- Twisted nematic
- In-plane switching
- Super in-plane switching
- Vertical alignment
- Advanced fringe field switching
Advantages of LCDs
LCD has become the world’s leading display technology. When compared to older display technologies, such as cathode-ray rube (CRT), it supports the use of smaller and thinner displays. CRT displays are large and bulky. LCDs, on the other hand, are typically small and thin. This is why so many smartphones use an LCD.
Devices that use an LCD typically consume less power than their counterparts with a different type of display. Statistics show that the average LCD consumes about 10% to 20% less power than CRT of the same size. With lower power consumption, businesses and consumers can save money by using an LCD.
LCDs don’t suffer from screen burn-in. Screen burn-in is a phenomenon in which a display’s image becomes static and permanent. Displays are designed to change their images. After all, that’s what gives images motion. In some displays, either some or all of an image may become permanent. Known as screen burn-in, it was particularly common among CRT displays.
Screen burn-in occurs when a display contains phosphor compounds. LCDs don’t have phosphor compounds, so this isn’t a concern for them. LCDs are fully protected from screen burn-in.
Another advantage of LCDs is their ability to support high resolution. Resolution refers to the number of pixels within a display. LCDs can be designed with a high resolution, and with more pixels, they produce clearer and better-detailed images.
