Technology · laboratory voice
What PrismPixel physically is.
A formulated optical coating. Applied to a substrate — glass, film, a curved form — it turns that surface into a canvas for projected light. This page explains the mechanism, the material system, how it is tested, and what it does not do.
01
Introduction
PrismPixel™ is a physical optical coating, not a display and not a rendering. It is manufactured as a formulation, applied to a surface, and viewed with an ordinary projector. It is available today as PrismPixel Glass™ (transparent) and PrismPixel Glow™ (opaque, high-luminance), supplied on cut-to-size static-cling film, and it is the subject of an ongoing research programme documented in the Inverse Archive.
02
How it works
Light leaves the projector, crosses the substrate, is scattered by the coating and arrives at the viewer. Ambient light arrives at the same surface from the other side. Every quality of the image is a consequence of those two arrivals.
01
Projector
Any conventional digital projector supplies the image. Its lumen output and throw distance are inputs to every test, not properties of the material.
02
Substrate
The physical surface: glass, polymer film, or a curved form. PrismPixel is applied to it as a coating; it is not a panel.
03
Coating
A formulated layer that scatters transmitted light. Incident projected light enters from the projector side; the coating redirects it toward the viewer.
04
Incident light
Two kinds arrive at the surface: projected light (the image) and ambient light (daylight, room light). The ratio between them governs contrast.
05
Scattered light
Forward-scattered light forms the visible image across a wide cone. Back-scatter is loss. Ambient light scattered inside the coating is haze, which raises the black level.
06
Viewer
Sees the image on the surface itself. Viewing angle, distance and ambient conditions are recorded for every published observation.
03
Material system
Only categories with a demonstration behind them are marked Proven. The research status system is used everywhere on this site.
- Proven
- Physically demonstrated, tested, installed or otherwise substantiated.
- Validation
- Under engineering testing or prototyping. Behaviour observed; tolerances not yet characterised.
- Frontier
- A research question. Unexplored territory — not an established capability.
Transparent · PrismPixel Glass™
ProvenDemonstrated on video (LT-002). Sold as cut-to-size film.
Opaque · PrismPixel Glow™
ProvenDemonstrated on transparent Mylar film at extreme off-axis angles (LT-003). Sold as cut-to-size film.
Planar surfaces
ProvenWindows, panels and film sheets. The cut-to-size product targets planar glazing.
Curved surfaces
ProvenProjection onto compound curvature demonstrated (LT-001). Curvature tolerances not published.
Complex geometry · unconventional surfaces
FrontierResearch direction. Not an established capability; see the Inverse Archive.
04
Why it is different
A comparison of mechanisms, not a scoreboard. Each approach has uses PrismPixel does not replace. Where we have not measured a difference, none is claimed.
| Approach | Light source | Transparency | Surface form | Where PrismPixel differs — as demonstrated |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Conventional projection screen | Projector | Opaque panel | Flat, fixed frame | PrismPixel is a coating rather than a panel; the transparent formulation keeps the surface see-through. |
| Projection film | Projector | Transparent or diffusing film | Flat film on glazing | Same category of use. PrismPixel is supplied as a formulated coating on film or applied to other substrates; comparative optical performance is not published. |
| Projection paint | Projector | Opaque, front projection | Flat walls | PrismPixel works in rear projection on transparent substrates; paint does not. |
| LED display | Self-emissive | Opaque | Rigid, pixel pitch | No pixels and no power at the surface; brightness depends on the projector, not the surface. |
| Transparent LED | Self-emissive | Partially transparent mesh | Rigid, planar | PrismPixel has no pixel grid; transparency is a property of the coating. It cannot emit light on its own. |
| Holographic-style display products | Projector or LED | Film, foil or Pepper's-ghost optics | Flat film or angled glass | Also a surface, not a volumetric image. PrismPixel does not claim to produce holograms. |
05
Testing
Every observation is logged against the same record before it may be quoted. A result without its conditions is not a result.
- Test ID
- recorded
- Date
- recorded
- Material
- recorded
- Formulation
- recorded
- Substrate
- recorded
- Projector
- recorded
- Projector output
- recorded
- Throw distance
- recorded
- Ambient lighting
- recorded
- Viewing position
- recorded
- Test objective
- recorded
- Observed result
- recorded
- Status
- recorded
- Media
- recorded
- Notes
- recorded
Current log
- LT-001Projection onto compound curvatureProven
- LT-002Laboratory validation — transparent substrateProven
- LT-003Glow™ on transparent Mylar — off-axis rear projectionProven
- LT-004First successful formulation — LiquidPixel™Proven
Specification sheet
Publication pending- Coating thickness[µm]
- Not published
- Luminous transmittance (Glass™)[%]
- Not published
- Viewing angle[°]
- Not published
- Projector compatibility[lm · throw ratio]
- Not published
- Supported substrates[list]
- Not published
- Ambient illumination test conditions[lux]
- Not published
Target specification · theoretical
TheoreticalAll specifications derived from optical physics principles, formulation theory, and laboratory methodology. Values represent target performance at commercial production scale. These are targets, not the measured values of the sheet above.
| Specification | Value | Unit | Status |
|---|---|---|---|
| Coating thickness | 15 ± 3 | µm | Theoretical |
| Luminous transmittance | 92 | % | Theoretical |
| Viewing angle | ±50° (H) / ±35° (V) | ° | Theoretical |
| Hotspot extinction | 99.0 | % | Theoretical |
| Screen gain | 1.7 | × | Theoretical |
| MTF @ 10 lp/mm | 0.82 | — | Theoretical |
| Colour fidelity (ΔE*ab) | <0.12 | — | Theoretical |
| Forward-to-backward ratio | 5.8 | :1 | Theoretical |
| Projector compatibility | 500–3000 | lm | Theoretical |
| Throw ratio range | 1.2–3.5 | — | Theoretical |
| Supported substrates | Glass, Acrylic, Polycarbonate, Film | list | Theoretical |
| Ambient illumination test condition | 100 | lux | Theoretical |
| Operating temperature | −20 to +60 | °C | Theoretical |
| UV resistance (ISO 11341) | 500 hours | hrs | Theoretical |
| Humidity resistance (ASTM D2247) | 1000 hours @ 85°C/85% RH | hrs | Theoretical |
| Adhesion (ASTM D3359) | 5B (Perfect) | — | Theoretical |
Projector compatibility is a range, not a model. Which projector? Open the engine advisor →
06
What PrismPixel does not do
Credibility is built here. These are limits of the physics, stated plainly.
- 01It does not emit light. Without a projector there is no image.
- 02It does not defeat the sun. Image brightness is bounded by projector output and ambient light; direct sunlight on the surface reduces contrast. Our solar studio models exactly this.
- 03It does not float an image in space. The picture lies on the coated surface — it is not a hologram or volumetric display.
- 04It does not switch. Glass™ is transparent and Glow™ is opaque; a surface does not change state on demand.
- 05It does not yet publish performance numbers. Until verified values appear on the specification sheet, specify from sample testing, not from this page.