Microvision Inc., a supplier of ultraminiature projection display technology, has successfully integrated "direct green" laser samples from two leading manufacturers into pico projector benchtop prototypes. This achievement represents an important first step toward the commercialization of PicoP(R) display engines using direct green lasers — technology that is expected to offer significant commercial advantages in price, size, power, and performance.

"We are very pleased with the performance of these early direct green laser prototypes," said Sid Madhavan, Microvision’s vice president, R&D and Applications. "These encouraging results give us confidence that direct green laser diodes will be capable of meeting the performance requirements for integration into our PicoP display platform."

Microvision's current pico projection engine uses red and blue laser diodes and a frequency-doubled "synthetic" green laser to create a full color image. Synthetic green lasers are infrared lasers that are manipulated to reduce their wavelength to produce a green light. This conversion process creates a complex system of multiple components held to tight tolerances making manufacturing more challenging.

Direct green lasers are capable of producing green light natively, greatly simplifying laser design and manufacturing processes. Direct green lasers are expected to be manufactured in a manner similar to red and blue lasers available today, facilitating lower cost and rapid scalability to commercial quantities. The combination of smaller size, lower power, and lower cost make direct green lasers an attractive alternative to synthetic green lasers for Microvision's mobile display solutions.

Historically, availability of synthetic green lasers has been constrained due to their complexity and the existence of only two manufacturers. Today, there are at least five companies worldwide that have announced they are developing direct green lasers for late 2011 to mid 2012 commercial introduction. Industry researcher Yole Developpement forecasts that the direct green laser market size will reach about $500 million by 2016 and should represent more than 45 million devices.

Microvision provides the PicoP(R) display technology platform designed to enable next-generation display and imaging products for pico projectors, vehicle displays and wearable displays that interface with mobile devices. The company's projection display engine uses highly efficient laser light sources which can create vivid images with high contrast and brightness.

For more information, visit: www.microvision.com