Skip to 3M.com Primary Navigation Skip to Site Navigation Skip to Main Content

Next Step:

So now you know how DLP rear-projection TVs work, look at its pros and cons as you Compare TV Technologies.

How DLP Rear-Projection TVs Work

Generating Images

DLP, as well as LCD and LCOS rear-projection TVs, are also referred to as microdisplays because they are much lighter and about 25 percent thinner than CRT rear-projection units. DLP (Digital Light Processing) technology is unique in that images are generated by a very bright arc lamp shining on a chip containing more than a million microscopic mirrors.

Creating Pictures

Each microscopic mirror on the chip corresponds to one pixel in the projected image. The chip itself is approximately the size of a postage stamp. Each mirror is hinge-mounted on the chip and tilts either toward or away from the light of the lamp, and in doing so, the chip reflects a digital image onto the TV screen.

Creating Color

Unlike LCD and LCOS technologies, DLP does not separate the arc lamp's light into red, green and blue components with special mirrors. Instead, the lamp light passes through a spinning color wheel. The wheel then filters the light into red, green and blue, and then the reflective process creates the color images.