Professor Jong Min Kim of the University of Cambridge, who also serves as a Chair Professor at SAINT, 

has led a breakthrough in ultra-high-resolution quantum dot display technology. The research was published in Nature Electronics on July 17, 2026.

The research team developed Cracking-Assisted Transfer Printing (CATP), an innovative technique that turns microscopic cracking

—traditionally considered a limitation in quantum dot patterning—into a precisely controlled mechanism for transferring and patterning quantum dot pixels.

Using CATP, the team successfully fabricated electroluminescent quantum dot pixels as small as 600 nanometers and achieved nanoscale patterns 

with a resolution of up to 16,933 pixels per inch (PPI). 

The technology also enabled uniform pixelization over areas of up to four inches and the fabrication of a cadmium-free, full-colour active-matrix quantum dot display.

In addition to achieving ultra-high resolution, CATP improved electroluminescence performance through precise control of nanoscale interfaces 

and high quantum dot packing density, resulting in higher luminance and longer operational lifetime compared with conventional quantum dot patterning approaches.

The breakthrough could provide a new pathway toward next-generation displays requiring extremely high pixel densities and wide colour gamuts, 

particularly for augmented reality (AR) and virtual reality (VR) applications.

Professor Kim conceived and designed the research and supervised the project, bringing together researchers from the University of Cambridge and collaborating institutions.

The study, “A cracking-assisted transfer printing technology for high-resolution quantum dot light-emitting diode displays,” was published in Nature Electronics.

Read the full paper:

Nature Electronics — DOI: 10.1038/s41928-026-01670-9