SK JNC to supply HTL
Samsung Display will be procuring OLED transport layer material from SK JNC, TheElec has learned.
SK JNC will be competing with existing OLED transport layer material suppliers DS Neolux and Solus Advanced Materials.
The new supplier has also been chosen as a material recycling partner by Samsung Display.
SK JNC is a joint venture formed in November between South Korea’s SK Materials and Japan’s JNC.
The venture was formed to combine SK Material’s sales power in South Korea and JNC’s technology.
JNC was formed in 1906 is manufactures resin, display materials and other chemicals.
OLED material layer is comprised of emission layers (EML) and transport layers.
SK JNC will be supplying materials for the hole transport layer (HTL), a kind of transport layer.
The material had been previously supplied by DS Neolux and Solus Advanced Materials, depending on the material set Samsung Display chooses for its OLED panels.
SK JNC will be developing and supplying the HTL material, model named 3336 by Samsung Display next year.
The new material, compared to the previous model 211, has better material efficiency and other improvements, sources said.
Though HTL materials is cheaper than EML materials, as 3336 is a new material, the unit price will be higher than their predecessors, they added.
SK JNC will also be recycling leftover materials from the deposition process.
Only about 30% to 40% of HTL materials, done with an open mask, are successfully deposited on the panel.
The other materials are recycled and resupplied, but only at a tenth of their original price.
The task is considered to contribute little in revenue but will allow SK JNC to maintain a healthy business relationship with Samsung Display.