LCD Screen Repair Tool: Fix Image Retention with RGB Cycle

LCD image retention, also known as ghosting or image persistence, is a common issue that occurs when static images are displayed on your screen for extended periods.¹ This phenomenon can lead to ghostly remnants of images lingering on your display, which can be quite frustrating.

Fortunately, unlike permanent burn-in, image retention is temporary and can be resolved! Many people confuse these two issues, but the key difference is that image retention will eventually fade, whilst burn-in is irreversible damage to the screen.

What Causes LCD Image Retention?

Image retention occurs due to an accumulation of ionic impurities within the liquid crystal materials.²

In normal operation, LCD screens work by applying electric fields to twist or untwist the liquid crystal molecules between two polarisers, controlling whether light passes through. However, when static images are displayed for long periods of time, these charged impurities migrate towards the electrodes, creating a reversed voltage field.

When the display image changes, this reversed voltage causes some LCD molecules to become partially stuck in their previous position, resulting in a ghostly remnant or ‘ghost image’ of the previous content. The longer a static image is displayed, the more impurities accumulate and the more severe the image retention becomes.

How to Address LCD Image Retention with RGB Cycle

There are a few ways to expedite the natural recovery process of image retention:

1. RGB Cycle: displaying red, green and blue colours in sequence - The changing colours force pixels to activate differently than when displaying the static image that caused the retention exercising the pixels with cycling graphics¹ and heavy-duty pixel-shifting.³
2. Black Pattern: displaying a black screen (LCD backlight on).²

Please feel free to use the handy buttons below to start the recovery process of your choice.

Warning: The RGB cycle will display flashing colours. If you have photosensitive epilepsy or are sensitive to flashing lights, please do not use this feature.

For best results:

• Set screen brightness to maximum.
• Place display in a warm environment (35 to 50°C).²
• Allow the test to run for 4-6 hours.²

Check your screen regularly whilst running the recovery process to see if the ghost image has diminished. Most mild cases of image retention will show improvement within a few hours, though more severe cases may never fully recover.

References

1. Newhavendisplay.com (2022). Screen Burn-In. ↩︎ ↩︎²

2. Cheung, B. (2021). Image Sticking — Cause, Test and Solutions. Tech Briefs. ↩︎ ↩︎² ↩︎³ ↩︎⁴

3. Riverdi. LCD Burn: What Causes it and How to Prevent it. ↩︎