Self-Healing Screen ShieldGlass 2 Released: Fully Repairs Cracks at Room Temperature in 2 Hours

Japans AGC Corporation today launched ShieldGlass 2 in Tokyo, a next-generation self-healing screen technology. Compared to the first generation that needed 24 hours for minor scratch repair, the second generation achieves a qualitative leap: at room temperature, it can automatically repair through-cracks up to 3 centimeters long within 2 hours.

Technical Principle

ShieldGlass 2s core innovation lies in its three-layer composite structure. The outermost layer is traditional Corning Gorilla Glass for daily hardness protection. The middle layer is AGCs proprietary dynamic polymer network containing millions of microcapsules, each encapsulating photosensitive repair monomers. When a crack forms, it punctures the microcapsules along its path, releasing monomers that automatically trigger polymerization upon contact with ambient moisture, forming new transparent polymer bridges.

The innermost layer is a flexible OLED substrate. AGC Display Technology Division head Misaki Tanaka explained that the entire repair process requires no external energy input. The technology is already partnered with Samsung and Xiaomi. Samsung plans to adopt ShieldGlass 2 in its second-half 2030 Galaxy S series, while Xiaomi will use it in flagship foldable phones. ShieldGlass 2 costs approximately 30% more than traditional flagship screens, but is economically justified when considering average screen replacement costs.

Limitations

AGC was transparent about the technologys constraints: it only repairs through-cracks, cannot fix surface dents or complete shattering, and the same location can only be repaired up to 3 times before microcapsule reserves are depleted. An industrial-grade version capable of repairing 10cm cracks is currently in testing for 2031 commercialization.