title: Noise in flat-panel displays with subpixel structure.
abstract: Subpixel structures found in medical monochrome active-matrix liquid crystal displays (AMLCDs) affect noise estimates measured with conventional methods. In this work, we discuss methods that identify sources of noise and permit the comparison of luminance noise estimates across technologies independent of pixel design and device technology. We used a three-million pixel AMLCD with a pixel structure consisting of three color stripes, each in a two-domain, in-plane switching mode. Images of uniform fields displayed on the AMLCD were acquired using a low-noise, high-resolution CCD camera. The camera noise and flat-field response were characterized using a uniform light source constructed for this purpose. We show results in terms of spatial luminance noise and noise power spectrum for high-resolution images and for the same images processed with a pixel-aligned aperture. We find that the pixel-aligned aperture eliminates almost all the noise found in the high-resolution images, suggesting that most of the luminance noise in AMLCDs comes from the subpixel structure and less-than-100% aperture ratio, rather than from interpixel variations.
authors.affiliation: Center for Devices and Radiological Health, Food and Drug Administration, 12720 Twinbrook Parkway, Rockville, Maryland 20857, USA. agb@cdrh.fda.gov
authors.forename: Aldo
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Badano
authors.forename: Robert M
authors.initials: RM
authors.lastname: Gagne
authors.forename: Robert J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Jennings
authors.forename: Sarah E
authors.initials: SE
authors.lastname: Drilling
authors.forename: Benjamin R
authors.initials: BR
authors.lastname: Imhoff
authors.forename: Edward
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Muka
mesh_terms: D016288:Computer Terminals; D003626:Data Display; D003952:Diagnostic Imaging / Q000295:instrumentation*; D019544:Equipment Failure Analysis; D007090:Image Interpretation, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods*; D015203:Reproducibility of Results; D012680:Sensitivity and Specificity; D012815:Signal Processing, Computer-Assisted / Q000295:instrumentation*; D013269:Stochastic Processes