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Seoul Viosys says it has begun mass production of WICOP 3, a white-light emitter that uses no rare-earth materials and can be made at micro-LED sizes. Its first reported chip measures 25 by 10 micrometers and produces 0.015 lumens, with efficacy close to 100 lumens per watt. Production is planned to start in the fourth quarter of 2026; independent performance verification and customer details were not provided in the report.
Seoul Viosys says it has developed and begun mass production of WICOP 3, a white-light emitter that does not use rare-earth materials and can be made as a micro-LED smaller than 100 micrometers. The development could extend package-free LED technology to white light, though the company has not disclosed customer shipments or independent test results.
The first production example cited by the company is a chip measuring 25 by 10 micrometers, which it says emits 0.015 lumens of white light. Seoul Viosys reports that the chip’s chromaticity falls within the CIE standard white region and that its luminous efficacy is close to 100 lumens per watt. It is targeting 200 lumens per watt within two years; that figure is a company goal, not a current result.
WICOP 3 is the third generation of the firms’ Wafer Integrated Chip on PCB architecture, which removes the conventional LED package. The report says the new white emitter is made from gallium nitride and contains no rare-earth elements, synthetic silicone resins, plastics or lead frames. Seoul Viosys and parent company Seoul Semiconductor say they plan to begin mass production in the fourth quarter of 2026, initially supplying customers that have respected the companies’ intellectual property and used their products.
The report compares the microchip with a conventional LED chip measuring 1,000 by 1,000 micrometers, which it says produces 50 lumens. Those figures describe different chip sizes and are not a like-for-like performance comparison. The company also says WICOP 3 could cost about half as much to manufacture as a conventional white LED, but it did not publish cost data or explain the basis for that estimate.
White LEDs at Micro-LED Scale
The reported advance addresses a size constraint in white micro-LED development. Seoul Viosys says earlier WICOP generations could produce very small colored and infrared emitters, but white light still required a package containing rare-earth material. According to the company, that packaging requirement kept white chips from shrinking below about 1,000 micrometers. WICOP 3 is intended to make white emission below 100 micrometers possible without that package.
If the performance and manufacturing claims hold up at commercial scale, smaller white emitters could give display, lighting and optical-system designers more flexibility in how they place light sources. The firm describes possible uses including emitters embedded in wallpaper or window glass, avoiding visible fixtures. These are proposed applications, not products or deployments announced in the report.
The company also positions its small emitters for optical data links and augmented-reality displays. It says an array of about 1,000 chips, each roughly 10 micrometers, could fit within an area of one square millimeter or less and transmit data ten times faster while using one-tenth the power of copper links. These are company-reported comparisons; the report does not specify the test conditions or provide third-party measurements. The claims matter because high data rates and power use are relevant constraints for AI systems, but commercial adoption will depend on performance, integration and cost in real systems.
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From WICOP Colors to White
Seoul Viosys is an opto-semiconductor manufacturer, and Seoul Semiconductor is its parent company. The companies’ WICOP architecture integrates an LED chip without a separate package. The report says they have already developed and mass-produced WICOP ultraviolet, blue, green, red and infrared LEDs smaller than 100 micrometers. WICOP 3 extends that approach to white light.
White LEDs commonly combine a blue LED chip with a phosphor layer; the report identifies yttrium aluminium garnet, or YAG, as a rare-earth material used in that approach. Seoul Viosys says WICOP 3 instead generates white light using gallium nitride alone. The company presents the absence of rare earths and packaging materials as an environmental advantage, but the report provides no lifecycle assessment comparing materials, manufacturing, energy use or disposal.
The source describes white LEDs as roughly $10 billion of a $15 billion global packaged-LED market. That market estimate is background cited in the report, not a measure of WICOP 3 sales or expected market share. The report also cites forecasts that micro-LED technology and augmented reality could create a $60 billion market within five years, but does not identify the research firms’ assumptions or explain how much of that forecast would relate to this product.
“The chip can be as small as 10µm.”
— Seoul Viosys, as reported by Semiconductor Today
Performance and Orders Still Unclear
The report does not identify an independent laboratory, provide detailed test methods, or show how the reported output and efficacy change across operating conditions. It also gives no production-volume figures, manufacturing yield data, pricing, named customers or confirmed shipment schedule. Although the report says mass production has begun, it separately says the Seoul Group will start mass production in the fourth quarter of 2026; the distinction between current initial production and that broader production start is not explained.
Several broader claims remain unverified in the material provided. These include the projected manufacturing cost of about half that of a conventional white LED, the potential to create a market tens of times larger than today’s white-LED market, and the data-link speed and power comparisons. No independent environmental analysis is cited to quantify the benefits of removing rare-earth materials and packaging components. The scale of commercial demand, and whether the technology can meet the reliability and integration requirements of intended uses, also remain unknown.
Fourth-Quarter Production Plans
Seoul Viosys and Seoul Semiconductor say they plan to begin mass production of WICOP 3 in the fourth quarter of 2026 and to prioritize customers that have respected the companies’ intellectual property and relied on their products. The report does not name those customers or provide a delivery timetable. The companies are also seeking upstream and downstream partners for micro-LED supply chains in augmented-reality displays and AI data transmitters.
The next useful indicators will be confirmed production volumes, customer design wins and product shipments, alongside fuller technical data that allows buyers to assess output, efficacy, reliability and cost. Seoul Viosys says it aims to reach 200 lumens per watt within two years. Whether that target is met, and whether the reported micro-LED performance can be reproduced at commercial scale, remains to be seen.
Key Questions
What has Seoul Viosys announced?
Seoul Viosys says it has developed and begun mass production of WICOP 3, a white-light emitter that uses no rare-earth materials and can be made at micro-LED dimensions.
How small is the reported WICOP 3 chip?
The company says the emitter can be as small as 10 micrometers. The first production example described in the report measures 25 by 10 micrometers.
What performance has the company reported?
For the 25-by-10-micrometer chip, Seoul Viosys reports an output of 0.015 lumens and luminous efficacy close to 100 lumens per watt. The report does not give independent test results or detailed measurement conditions.
When is broader mass production expected?
Seoul Viosys and Seoul Semiconductor say they plan to start mass production in the fourth quarter of 2026. The report does not give volumes, named customers or a shipment schedule.
What applications are being considered?
The companies identify possible uses in micro-LED lighting, augmented-reality glasses and optical data communications. These are target applications; the report does not say that WICOP 3 has been deployed in commercial products for them.
Source: semiconductor-today.com
