On 18 August 2014, Asia Economy reported that Ons, based in Ansan, Gyeonggi Province, had developed an alignment layer and a reactive liquid crystal (LC-MN) for the plastic film substrates used in 3D television that can be viewed without glasses. The report cited the Gyeonggi Regional Research Center Association (GRRC).
According to the article, the alignment layer causes no chemical trouble on plastic substrates as well as on glass, which opens it to a wider range of electronic products — including flexible, wearable displays. The stereoscopic effect is obtained by passing light through the alignment layer as two refracted beams and then using the reactive liquid crystal to introduce a controlled difference in refractive index; the two materials are coated thinly onto a plastic substrate and cured under UV light, which gives the film its polarising function.
The article also noted that Ons came to this work from its background in liquid dyes for paper, lens colourants and UV coating materials, and quoted CEO Cha Mikyung as saying that participation from 2011 in the Dankook University GRRC Light Energy Materials Research Center, supported by Gyeonggi Province, had helped the company complete the technology. Dr. Cha holds a master's degree in chemistry from Seoul National University and a doctorate from the University of Washington.
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Reported by Lee Young-gyu, Asia Economy, 18 August 2014.
