Future iPhones, iPads could have under-the-display Touch ID

A newly granted patent (number 8,946,732) for a “touch panel having photo-sensors and read-out transistors and a fabricating methods thereof” hints under-the-screen Touch ID could come to iPhones and iPads.

It involves incorporating photo-sensors into the pixel array of a LCD device — such as, presumably, an iMac or external Apple display. Such a display could be used with Face ID or under-the-screen Touch ID.

Heres the summary of the invention: “A touch panel and fabricating method thereof are provided. The patterned transparent conductive layer, disposed on the substrate, includes first electrodes. The photo-sensing layers are disposed on the first electrodes. The first patterned conductive layer includes gate electrodes, scan lines and second electrodes. The gate electrodes and the scan lines are disposed on the substrate. The second electrodes are disposed on the photo-sensing layers. 

“The first electrodes, the photo-sensing layers and the second electrodes constitute photo-sensors. The second patterned conductive layer includes source electrodes and drain electrodes, wherein the gate electrodes, the channel layers, the source electrodes and the drain electrodes constitute read-out transistors and each of the read-out transistors is electrically connected to the corresponding photo-sensor respectively.”