{"id":1337,"date":"2020-02-13T10:03:20","date_gmt":"2020-02-13T18:03:20","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/?p=1337"},"modified":"2021-07-16T07:36:16","modified_gmt":"2021-07-16T14:36:16","slug":"diy-transparent-display","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/diy-transparent-display\/","title":{"rendered":"Transparent Display: How to Hack Together Your Own Transparent Display"},"content":{"rendered":"\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">DIY Transparent Display<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<p> The transparent display we offer for sale (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/product\/cfal12856a00151b-128x56-transparent-oled-screen\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\">CFAL12856A0-0151<\/a>) is an <a href=\"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/glossary\/oled\/\" target=\"_self\" title=\"OLED stands for Organic Light Emitting Diode. OLEDs are used to make OLED Displays, which can either be PMOLED (Passive Matrix OLED) or AMOLED (Active Matrix OLED). Crystalfontz carries a full line of OLED modules. Detailed Definition What makes OLEDs useful for display construction is that they can be fabricated in bulk. For instance, to&hellip;\" class=\"encyclopedia\">OLED<\/a> (Organic Light Emitting Diode) display. OLED displays produce images by emitting light in the corresponding color. To produce black in a normal OLED, the pixels are simply turned off. With the transparent display, if the pixels are turned off, the display is transparent rather than black.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"wp-block-image is-style-default\"><figure class=\"alignright size-large is-resized\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" src=\"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_20200207_155652-700x525.jpg\" alt=\"Comparison of hacked transparent display to transparent OLED\" class=\"wp-image-1346\" width=\"386\" height=\"290\"><\/figure><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p><br> We&rsquo;ve heard from a few customers requests for transparent displays with black graphics as well as requests for larger transparent displays. This guide will walk you through creating a transparent display out of a graphic <a href=\"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/glossary\/lcd\/\" target=\"_self\" title=\"LCD stands for Liquid Crystal Display. An LCD is composed of two pieces of glass with a thin layer of liquid crystals between the glass layers. When a voltage is applied to the glass, the orientation of the crystals can be changed. This change in the crystal's orientation (called polarization) will make either a dark&hellip;\" class=\"encyclopedia\">LCD<\/a>. <\/p>\n\n\n\n<p><\/p>\n\n\n\n<p> A few caveats before we get much farther. First, doing this will definitely void your warranty on the display. Second, the display we&rsquo;ll create is significantly less transparent than a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/product\/cfal12856a00151b-128x56-transparent-oled-screen\">transparent OLED display<\/a><a href=\"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/product\/cfal12856a00151b-128x56-transparent-oled-screen\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\"  (opens in a new tab)\"> <\/a>as you can see in the above image with the hacked transparent display on the left and the transparent OLED on the right.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p>If these aren&rsquo;t deal breakers for you, here&rsquo;s how to make a DIY transparent display.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\"><strong>Supplies<\/strong>:<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<ul class=\"wp-block-list\"><li> A display to make transparent (we used the <a aria-label=\"Graphic LCD CFAG12864U3-NFH (opens in a new tab)\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" href=\"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/product\/cfag12864t3nfh-sunlight-readable-low-power-lcd?utm_source=Tutorial&amp;utm_medium=post&amp;utm_campaign=transparent\" target=\"_blank\">Graphic LCD CFAG12864U3-NFH<\/a>)<\/li><li>Polarizer significantly larger than your display<\/li><li>x-acto knife<\/li><li>Whatever you need to bring up your display:<ul><li>Breakout board<\/li><\/ul><ul><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/product\/wrjmpy40-pcb-jumper-wires\">Wires<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/product\/cfapn01855-36-pin-header-for-arduino\">Header<\/a><\/li><li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/product\/cfapn15062-seeeduino-arduino-clone-microprocessor\">Seeeduino<\/a><\/li><li>Code  (de<a href=\"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/products\/document\/4121\/CFAG12864T3U3_Arduino_Bringup.zip\">mo available on the display&rsquo;s product page<\/a>)<\/li><\/ul><\/li><\/ul>\n\n\n\n<h2 class=\"wp-block-heading\">How to:<\/h2>\n\n\n\n<div class=\"schema-how-to wp-block-yoast-how-to-block\"><p class=\"schema-how-to-description\"><br><\/p> <ol class=\"schema-how-to-steps\"><li class=\"schema-how-to-step\" id=\"how-to-step-1581611784986\"><strong class=\"schema-how-to-step-name\"> Remove Back Polarizer <\/strong> <p class=\"schema-how-to-step-text\"> Using the x-acto knife, get between the back polarizer and the display and pull the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/glossary\/transflective-lcd\/\" target=\"_self\" title=\"TRANSFLECTIVE is a portmanteau of TRANSmissive and reFLECTIVE. A transflective LCD combines the best features of a reflective LCDs and transmissive LCDs. &nbsp; A transflective LCD will reflect ambient light, allowing it to be visible in normal office light without using a backlight. In bright sunlight, a transflective LCD is still visible and does not&hellip;\" class=\"encyclopedia\">transflective<\/a> polarizer off of the display. Unlike our pictured engineer, you should wear some hand protection to keep your fingers safe. <br><br><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"399\" height=\"225\" src=\"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/1-pull-off-polarizer-700x394.png\" class=\"attachment-400x224.66666666667 size-400x224.66666666667\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/1-pull-off-polarizer-700x394.png 700w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/1-pull-off-polarizer-250x141.png 250w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/1-pull-off-polarizer-150x84.png 150w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/1-pull-off-polarizer-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/1-pull-off-polarizer-1536x864.png 1536w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/1-pull-off-polarizer-2048x1152.png 2048w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/1-pull-off-polarizer-120x67.png 120w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/1-pull-off-polarizer-e1595345116974.png 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 399px) 100vw, 399px\"><\/p> <\/li><li class=\"schema-how-to-step\" id=\"how-to-step-1581614028890\"><strong class=\"schema-how-to-step-name\">Clean Off the Display<\/strong> <p class=\"schema-how-to-step-text\">Remove any dust that you don&rsquo;t want to become part of your transparent display.<br><br><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"399\" height=\"225\" src=\"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2-no-polarizer-700x394.png\" class=\"attachment-400x224.66666666667 size-400x224.66666666667\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2-no-polarizer-700x394.png 700w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2-no-polarizer-250x141.png 250w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2-no-polarizer-150x84.png 150w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2-no-polarizer-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2-no-polarizer-1536x864.png 1536w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2-no-polarizer-2048x1152.png 2048w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2-no-polarizer-120x67.png 120w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2-no-polarizer-e1595345095730.png 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 399px) 100vw, 399px\"><\/p> <\/li><li class=\"schema-how-to-step\" id=\"how-to-step-1581614073272\"><strong class=\"schema-how-to-step-name\">Procure a Second Polarizer<\/strong> <p class=\"schema-how-to-step-text\">We recycled a polarizer off a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/glossary\/tft\/\" target=\"_self\" title='TFT stands for Thin Film Transistor. TFTs are also known as \"Active Matrix TFT LCD modules\" and have an array of these thin film transistors fabricated on the glass that makes the LCD. There is one of these transistors for each pixel on the LCD. For a typical small color TFT LCD with a resolution&hellip;' class=\"encyclopedia\">TFT<\/a> from our scrap bin. The benefit to this is the polarizer already has adhesive. Plus recycling is good.<br><br><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"399\" height=\"225\" src=\"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/3-harvest-scrap-polarizer-700x394.png\" class=\"attachment-400x224.66666666667 size-400x224.66666666667\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/3-harvest-scrap-polarizer-700x394.png 700w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/3-harvest-scrap-polarizer-250x141.png 250w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/3-harvest-scrap-polarizer-150x84.png 150w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/3-harvest-scrap-polarizer-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/3-harvest-scrap-polarizer-1536x864.png 1536w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/3-harvest-scrap-polarizer-2048x1151.png 2048w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/3-harvest-scrap-polarizer-120x67.png 120w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/3-harvest-scrap-polarizer-e1595345060230.png 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 399px) 100vw, 399px\"><\/p> <\/li><li class=\"schema-how-to-step\" id=\"how-to-step-1581614187894\"><strong class=\"schema-how-to-step-name\">Determine the Best Angle for the Polarizer<\/strong> <p class=\"schema-how-to-step-text\"> Rotate the display relative to the polarizer until you find the optimal transparency. This is why it&rsquo;s important to use a larger polarizer so the polarizer can accommodate the display at any angle.<br><br> <img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"399\" height=\"225\" src=\"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/4-determine-polarizer-orientation-700x394.png\" class=\"attachment-400x224.66666666667 size-400x224.66666666667\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/4-determine-polarizer-orientation-700x394.png 700w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/4-determine-polarizer-orientation-250x141.png 250w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/4-determine-polarizer-orientation-150x84.png 150w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/4-determine-polarizer-orientation-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/4-determine-polarizer-orientation-1536x864.png 1536w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/4-determine-polarizer-orientation-2048x1152.png 2048w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/4-determine-polarizer-orientation-120x67.png 120w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/4-determine-polarizer-orientation-e1595345180896.png 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 399px) 100vw, 399px\"><\/p> <\/li><li class=\"schema-how-to-step\" id=\"how-to-step-1581614235434\"><strong class=\"schema-how-to-step-name\"> Press the Polarizer Onto the Display <\/strong> <p class=\"schema-how-to-step-text\"> If you harvested a polarizer from an existing display it already has adhesive on it and you can simply carefully adhere it to the display. Take care while applying the polarizer or bubbles will form between the display and the polarizer.<br><br><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"399\" height=\"225\" src=\"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/5-adhere-polarizer-to-back-of-display-700x394.png\" class=\"attachment-400x224.66666666667 size-400x224.66666666667\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/5-adhere-polarizer-to-back-of-display-700x394.png 700w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/5-adhere-polarizer-to-back-of-display-250x141.png 250w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/5-adhere-polarizer-to-back-of-display-150x84.png 150w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/5-adhere-polarizer-to-back-of-display-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/5-adhere-polarizer-to-back-of-display-1536x864.png 1536w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/5-adhere-polarizer-to-back-of-display-2048x1152.png 2048w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/5-adhere-polarizer-to-back-of-display-120x67.png 120w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/5-adhere-polarizer-to-back-of-display-e1595345161195.png 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 399px) 100vw, 399px\"><\/p> <\/li><li class=\"schema-how-to-step\" id=\"how-to-step-1581614268941\"><strong class=\"schema-how-to-step-name\"> Cut Away the Excess Polarizer<\/strong> <p class=\"schema-how-to-step-text\"> Using the x-acto knife cut along the edge of the display. Again, using some safety precautions during this step is recommended.<br>When cutting the polarizer near the tail, be aware that there are traces connecting the tail to the display and cutting these traces will ruin your display.<br><br><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"400\" height=\"225\" src=\"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/6-cut-polarizer-to-size-700x394.png\" class=\"attachment-400x225.33333333333 size-400x225.33333333333\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/6-cut-polarizer-to-size-700x394.png 700w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/6-cut-polarizer-to-size-250x141.png 250w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/6-cut-polarizer-to-size-150x84.png 150w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/6-cut-polarizer-to-size-768x432.png 768w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/6-cut-polarizer-to-size-1536x865.png 1536w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/6-cut-polarizer-to-size-2048x1153.png 2048w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/6-cut-polarizer-to-size-120x68.png 120w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/6-cut-polarizer-to-size-e1595345144907.png 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\"><\/p> <\/li><li class=\"schema-how-to-step\" id=\"how-to-step-1581614309112\"><strong class=\"schema-how-to-step-name\"> Wire Up Your Display<\/strong> <p class=\"schema-how-to-step-text\"> Connect your display <a href=\"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/products\/document\/4115\/CFAG12864U3-NFHDatasheet.pdf\">per its datasheet<\/a>. <br><br><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"400\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_20200212_130804-700x525.jpg\" class=\"attachment-400x300 size-400x300\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_20200212_130804-700x525.jpg 700w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_20200212_130804-250x188.jpg 250w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_20200212_130804-150x113.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_20200212_130804-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_20200212_130804-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_20200212_130804-2048x1536.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_20200212_130804-120x90.jpg 120w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_20200212_130804-scaled-e1595345680681.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\"><\/p> <\/li><li class=\"schema-how-to-step\" id=\"how-to-step-1581616526572\"><strong class=\"schema-how-to-step-name\">Marvel at Your Newly Transparent Display&rsquo;s Translucency<br><\/strong> <p class=\"schema-how-to-step-text\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" width=\"400\" height=\"300\" src=\"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_20200212_130256-700x525.jpg\" class=\"attachment-400x300 size-400x300\" alt=\"\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_20200212_130256-700x525.jpg 700w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_20200212_130256-250x187.jpg 250w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_20200212_130256-150x112.jpg 150w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_20200212_130256-768x576.jpg 768w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_20200212_130256-1536x1152.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_20200212_130256-2048x1536.jpg 2048w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_20200212_130256-120x90.jpg 120w, https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/IMG_20200212_130256-scaled-e1595345698374.jpg 600w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\"><\/p> <\/li><\/ol><\/div>\n\n\n\n<p>If you&rsquo;d prefer to watch a video tutorial, check it out below:<\/p>\n\n\n\n<figure class=\"wp-block-embed is-type-video is-provider-youtube wp-block-embed-youtube wp-embed-aspect-16-9 wp-has-aspect-ratio\"><div class=\"wp-block-embed__wrapper\">\n<div class=\"container-lazyload preview-lazyload container-youtube js-lazyload--not-loaded\"><a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=qieYhhLOKts\" class=\"lazy-load-youtube preview-lazyload preview-youtube\" data-video-title=\"Do-It-Yourself Transparent LCD\" title='Play video \"Do-It-Yourself Transparent LCD\"'>https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=qieYhhLOKts<\/a><noscript>Video can&rsquo;t be loaded because JavaScript is disabled: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=qieYhhLOKts\" title=\"Do-It-Yourself Transparent LCD\">Do-It-Yourself Transparent LCD (https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/watch?v=qieYhhLOKts)<\/a><\/noscript><\/div>\n<\/div><\/figure>\n\n\n\n<h3 class=\"wp-block-heading\">Contact Us<\/h3>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-black-color has-text-color\">If you have any questions, we can be reached at support@crystalfontz.com, we also provide <a href=\"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/contact.php\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\" aria-label=\" (opens in a new tab)\">chat and telephone support<\/a> Monday through Friday during our open hours.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<p class=\"has-black-color has-text-color\">We love to hear about your projects! Find us around the web (<a href=\"https:\/\/www.youtube.com\/user\/CrystalfontzAmerica\/?mc_cid=364fa8437c&amp;mc_eid=%5BUNIQID%5D\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">YouTube<\/a>,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/CrystalfontzAmericaInc\/?mc_cid=364fa8437c&amp;mc_eid=%5BUNIQID%5D\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Facebook<\/a>,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.instagram.com\/crystalfontz\/?mc_cid=364fa8437c&amp;mc_eid=%5BUNIQID%5D\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Instagram<\/a>,&nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.linkedin.com\/company\/crystalfontz-america-inc\/?mc_cid=364fa8437c&amp;mc_eid=%5BUNIQID%5D\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">LinkedIn<\/a>, &nbsp;<a href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/Crystalfontz?mc_cid=364fa8437c&amp;mc_eid=%5BUNIQID%5D\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Twitter<\/a>, <a href=\"https:\/\/forum.crystalfontz.com\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noreferrer noopener\">Forum<\/a>) and let us know what you&rsquo;re working on.<\/p>\n\n\n\n<!-- Begin Mailchimp Signup Form -->\n<link href=\"\/\/cdn-images.mailchimp.com\/embedcode\/horizontal-slim-10_7.css\" rel=\"stylesheet\" type=\"text\/css\">\n<style type=\"text\/css\">\n\t#mc_embed_signup{background:#fff; clear:left; font:14px Helvetica,Arial,sans-serif; width:100%;}\n<\/style>\n<div id=\"mc_embed_signup\">\n<form action=\"https:\/\/crystalfontz.us17.list-manage.com\/subscribe\/post?u=8a880dec17face7992ae6ef10&amp;id=7268847031\" method=\"post\" id=\"mc-embedded-subscribe-form\" name=\"mc-embedded-subscribe-form\" class=\"validate\" target=\"_blank\" novalidate=\"\">\n    <div id=\"mc_embed_signup_scroll\">\n\t<label for=\"mce-EMAIL\">Subscribe to our Newsletter<\/label>\n\t<input type=\"email\" value=\"\" name=\"EMAIL\" class=\"email\" id=\"mce-EMAIL\" placeholder=\"email address\" required=\"\">\n    <!-- real people should not fill this in and expect good things - do not remove this or risk form bot signups-->\n    <div style=\"position: absolute; left: -5000px;\" aria-hidden=\"true\"><input type=\"text\" name=\"b_8a880dec17face7992ae6ef10_7268847031\" tabindex=\"-1\" value=\"\"><\/div>\n    <div class=\"clear\"><input type=\"submit\" value=\"Subscribe\" name=\"subscribe\" id=\"mc-embedded-subscribe\" class=\"button\"><\/div>\n    <\/div>\n<\/form>\n<\/div>\n\n<!--End mc_embed_signup-->\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>DIY Transparent Display The transparent display we offer for sale (CFAL12856A0-0151) is an OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode) display. OLED displays produce images by emitting light in the corresponding color. To produce black in a normal OLED, the pixels are simply turned off. With the transparent display, if the pixels are turned off, the display [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":7,"featured_media":1346,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"site-sidebar-layout":"default","site-content-layout":"","ast-site-content-layout":"default","site-content-style":"default","site-sidebar-style":"default","ast-global-header-display":"","ast-banner-title-visibility":"","ast-main-header-display":"","ast-hfb-above-header-display":"","ast-hfb-below-header-display":"","ast-hfb-mobile-header-display":"","site-post-title":"","ast-breadcrumbs-content":"","ast-featured-img":"","footer-sml-layout":"","ast-disable-related-posts":"","theme-transparent-header-meta":"","adv-header-id-meta":"","stick-header-meta":"","header-above-stick-meta":"","header-main-stick-meta":"","header-below-stick-meta":"","astra-migrate-meta-layouts":"default","ast-page-background-enabled":"default","ast-page-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-4)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"ast-content-background-meta":{"desktop":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"tablet":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""},"mobile":{"background-color":"var(--ast-global-color-5)","background-image":"","background-repeat":"repeat","background-position":"center center","background-size":"auto","background-attachment":"scroll","background-type":"","background-media":"","overlay-type":"","overlay-color":"","overlay-opacity":"","overlay-gradient":""}},"footnotes":""},"categories":[6,4,31,9],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1337","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arduino","category-frequently-asked-questions","category-oled","category-tutorial"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Transparent Display: How to Hack Together Your Own Transparent Display<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Transparent Display: How to Hack Together Your Own Transparent Display : DIY Transparent Display The transparent display we offer for sale (CFAL12856A0-0151) is an OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode) display. OLED displays\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/diy-transparent-display\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Transparent Display: How to Hack Together Your Own Transparent Display\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Transparent Display: How to Hack Together Your Own Transparent Display : DIY Transparent Display The transparent display we offer for sale (CFAL12856A0-0151) is an OLED (Organic Light Emitting Diode) display. 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She graduated from Gonzaga University with a BS in Electrical Engineering. Kelsey's roles at Crystalfontz include product design, custom parts, customer support, documentation, and product demonstrations. What our customers say about Kelsey: \\\"As a new user to the world of LCD electronics, Kelsey has been a Godsend in providing the hand-holding I needed to get my project up and running despite my own efforts at fouling things up! :-)\\\" - Owen M \\\"Kelsey got me through changing code for a new LCD in only two short emails.\\\" - Phillip V \\\"The agent that I talked with (Kelsey), is technically sound and she knows what she is doing. The support is what made my job easier to get started with the different display technologies. Thank you!\\\" - Vatsal S\"},{\"@type\":\"HowTo\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.crystalfontz.com\\\/blog\\\/diy-transparent-display\\\/#howto-1\",\"name\":\"Transparent Display: How to Hack Together Your Own Transparent Display\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.crystalfontz.com\\\/blog\\\/diy-transparent-display\\\/#article\"},\"description\":\"<br\\\/>\",\"step\":[{\"@type\":\"HowToStep\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/www.crystalfontz.com\\\/blog\\\/diy-transparent-display\\\/#how-to-step-1581611784986\",\"name\":\"Remove Back Polarizer\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"HowToDirection\",\"text\":\"Using the x-acto knife, get between the back polarizer and the display and pull the transflective polarizer off of the display. 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She graduated from Gonzaga University with a BS in Electrical Engineering. Kelsey's roles at Crystalfontz include product design, custom parts, customer support, documentation, and product demonstrations. What our customers say about Kelsey: \"As a new user to the world of LCD electronics, Kelsey has been a Godsend in providing the hand-holding I needed to get my project up and running despite my own efforts at fouling things up! :-)\" - Owen M \"Kelsey got me through changing code for a new LCD in only two short emails.\" - Phillip V \"The agent that I talked with (Kelsey), is technically sound and she knows what she is doing. The support is what made my job easier to get started with the different display technologies. Thank you!\" - Vatsal S"},{"@type":"HowTo","@id":"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/diy-transparent-display\/#howto-1","name":"Transparent Display: How to Hack Together Your Own Transparent Display","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/diy-transparent-display\/#article"},"description":"<br\/>","step":[{"@type":"HowToStep","url":"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/diy-transparent-display\/#how-to-step-1581611784986","name":"Remove Back Polarizer","itemListElement":[{"@type":"HowToDirection","text":"Using the x-acto knife, get between the back polarizer and the display and pull the transflective polarizer off of the display. Unlike our pictured engineer, you should wear some hand protection to keep your fingers safe."}],"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/diy-transparent-display\/#schema-image-e43354337717cb01b67e50d3fc169c6a","url":"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/1-pull-off-polarizer-e1595345116974.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/1-pull-off-polarizer-e1595345116974.png","width":600,"height":337}},{"@type":"HowToStep","url":"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/diy-transparent-display\/#how-to-step-1581614028890","name":"Clean Off the Display","itemListElement":[{"@type":"HowToDirection","text":"Remove any dust that you don't want to become part of your transparent display."}],"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/diy-transparent-display\/#schema-image-0143866b63d00e2f388fd3ae165d08ed","url":"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2-no-polarizer-e1595345095730.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/2-no-polarizer-e1595345095730.png","width":600,"height":337}},{"@type":"HowToStep","url":"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/diy-transparent-display\/#how-to-step-1581614073272","name":"Procure a Second Polarizer","itemListElement":[{"@type":"HowToDirection","text":"We recycled a polarizer off a TFT from our scrap bin. The benefit to this is the polarizer already has adhesive. Plus recycling is good."}],"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/diy-transparent-display\/#schema-image-93f832ac0d3d75fba09fdd93d1d2fee1","url":"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/3-harvest-scrap-polarizer-e1595345060230.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/3-harvest-scrap-polarizer-e1595345060230.png","width":600,"height":337}},{"@type":"HowToStep","url":"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/diy-transparent-display\/#how-to-step-1581614187894","name":"Determine the Best Angle for the Polarizer","itemListElement":[{"@type":"HowToDirection","text":"Rotate the display relative to the polarizer until you find the optimal transparency. This is why it's important to use a larger polarizer so the polarizer can accommodate the display at any angle."}],"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/diy-transparent-display\/#schema-image-f64642ed97315f6c035c63f50b95c17e","url":"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/4-determine-polarizer-orientation-e1595345180896.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/4-determine-polarizer-orientation-e1595345180896.png","width":600,"height":337}},{"@type":"HowToStep","url":"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/diy-transparent-display\/#how-to-step-1581614235434","name":"Press the Polarizer Onto the Display","itemListElement":[{"@type":"HowToDirection","text":"If you harvested a polarizer from an existing display it already has adhesive on it and you can simply carefully adhere it to the display. Take care while applying the polarizer or bubbles will form between the display and the polarizer."}],"image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/diy-transparent-display\/#schema-image-2d11cdd0e94b580022dcd444180f2999","url":"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/5-adhere-polarizer-to-back-of-display-e1595345161195.png","contentUrl":"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/wp-content\/uploads\/5-adhere-polarizer-to-back-of-display-e1595345161195.png","width":600,"height":337}},{"@type":"HowToStep","url":"https:\/\/www.crystalfontz.com\/blog\/diy-transparent-display\/#how-to-step-1581614268941","name":"Cut Away the Excess Polarizer","itemListElement":[{"@type":"HowToDirection","text":"Using the x-acto knife cut along the edge of the display. 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