FAQs (Frequently Asked Questions)

Q:What is a Liquid Crystal Display?

A:A Liquid Crystal Display (LCD) is an optical device that is commonly used to display ASCII characters and images on digital items such as watches, calculators, portable game consoles, etc. LCD is the technology used for displays in notebooks and other small computers. Like light-emitting diode and gas-plasma technologies, LCD allows displays to be much thinner than cathode ray tube (CRT) technology. LCD consumes much less power than LED and gas-displays because it works on the principle of blocking light rather than emitting it.

Q:What differentiates passive matrix LCDs from active matrix LCDs?

A:An LCD is made with either a passive matrix or an active matrix display grid. An active matrix has a transistor located at each pixel intersection, requiring less current to control the luminance of a pixel. For this reason, the current in an active matrix display can be switched on and off more frequently, improving the screen refresh time (your mouse pointer will appear to move more smoothly across the screen, for example). The passive matrix LCD has a grid of conductors with pixels located at each intersection in the grid.

Q:What are the advantages of TFT LCD compared with CRT?

A:In a CRT monitor, a gun shoots electrons and general light by colliding polarized electrons on fluorescent glass. Therefore, CRT monitors basically operate with an analog RGB signal. A TFT LCD monitor is a device that displays an input image by operating a liquid crystal panel. The TFT has a fundamentally different structure than a CRT: Each cell has an active matrix structure and independent active elements. A TFT LCD has two glass panels and the space between them is filled with liquid crystal. When each cell is connected with electrodes and impressed with voltage, the molecular structure of the liquid crystal is altered and controls the amount of inlet lighting to display images. A TFT LCD has several advantages over a CRT, since it can be very thin and no flickering occurs because it does not use the scanning method.

Q:Why is vertical frequency of 60Hz optimal for an LCD monitor?

A:Unlike a CDT monitor, the TFT LCD panel has a fixed resolution. For example, an

file:///D/songaiyu/PHILIPS/231E1/PHILIPS-231E1%20%20090423/lcd/manual/ENGLISH/PRODUCT/safety/saf_faq.htm (6 of 9)2009/4/23 上午 09:19:26

Page 10
Image 10
Philips 2.31E+03 user manual What is a Liquid Crystal Display?, What are the advantages of TFT LCD compared with CRT?