Skip to main content

World’s ‘greenest green’ could make ultra high-definition displays even sharper

Not all greens are created equal. There’s lime green, mint green, British racing green. And now there’s practically pure green, thanks to chemical engineers at ETH Zurich, who have created the world’s greenest green. They say it will improve color quality in the ultra high-definition displays of the future.

“To date, no one has succeeded in producing green light as pure as we have,” Chih-Jen Shih, a chemical engineering professor who co-created the light-emitting diode in his lab, said in a statement.

Recommended Videos

The screens of today’s ultra high-def (UHD) TVs, computers, and smartphones are a sight to behold, and yet there’s still room for improvement. But, in order to make that progress, researchers first have to develop pure red, blue, and green light, which will be able to display images in unparalleled detail and with more nuanced color ranges. Pure red and blue have been achieved, according to the researchers, but green remained elusive until now.

Please enable Javascript to view this content

This is because the human eye is able to pick up more green hues than we can with red and blue.

“This makes the technical production of ultra-pure green very complex, which creates challenges for us when it comes to developing technology and materials,” said Sudhir Kumar, who helped Shih create the light in his lab.

The purity of Shih and Kumar’s green can be grasped by comparing it to the technical standards, known as Rec. 2020. The purest TV displays currently available don’t exceed 80 percent, and average between 73.11 and 77.72. The ETH Zurich green falls within the 97 and 99 range.

But Shih and his team’s efforts didn’t stop there. They also created an ultra-thin, bendable light-emitting diode that can emit this pure green light at room temperature, whereas previous LED technology required high temperatures to generate the pure light.

“Because we were able to realize the entire process at room temperature, we’ve opened up opportunities for the simple, low-cost industrial production of ultra-green light-emitting diodes in the future,” said co-creator Jakub Jagielski.

As with most breakthroughs, there’s a bit of a catch — the LED converts electricity to light at just three percent efficiency, compared to commercial TV screen, which work at five to ten percent. That means he and his team will have to focus on making their technology more efficient before it’s ready for commercial application.

A paper detailing the research was published in the journal Nano Letters.

Dyllan Furness
Former Digital Trends Contributor
Dyllan Furness is a freelance writer from Florida. He covers strange science and emerging tech for Digital Trends, focusing…
Hyundai Ioniq 5 sets world record for greatest altitude change
hyundai ioniq 5 world record altitude change mk02 detail kv

When the Guinness World Records (GWR) book was launched in 1955, the idea was to compile facts and figures that could finally settle often endless arguments in the U.K.’s many pubs.

It quickly evolved into a yearly compilation of world records, big and small, including last year's largest grilled cheese sandwich in the world.

Read more
Global EV sales expected to rise 30% in 2025, S&P Global says
ev sales up 30 percent 2025 byd sealion 7 1stbanner l

While trade wars, tariffs, and wavering subsidies are very much in the cards for the auto industry in 2025, global sales of electric vehicles (EVs) are still expected to rise substantially next year, according to S&P Global Mobility.

"2025 is shaping up to be ultra-challenging for the auto industry, as key regional demand factors limit demand potential and the new U.S. administration adds fresh uncertainty from day one," says Colin Couchman, executive director of global light vehicle forecasting for S&P Global Mobility.

Read more
Faraday Future could unveil lowest-priced EV yet at CES 2025
Faraday Future FF 91

Given existing tariffs and what’s in store from the Trump administration, you’d be forgiven for thinking the global race toward lower electric vehicle (EV) prices will not reach U.S. shores in 2025.

After all, Chinese manufacturers, who sell the least expensive EVs globally, have shelved plans to enter the U.S. market after 100% tariffs were imposed on China-made EVs in September.

Read more