Active matrix is a type of addressing scheme used in flat panel displays. It is a method of switching individual elements of a flat panel display, known as pixels. Each pixel is attached to a transistor and capacitor that actively maintain the pixel state while other pixels are being addressed, in contrast with the older passive matrix technology in which each pixel must maintain its state passively, without being driven by circuitry.
Active matrix technology was invented by Bernard J. Lechner at RCA, using MOSFETs (metal–oxide–semiconductor field-effect transistors). Active matrix technology was first demonstrated as a feasible device using thin-film transistors (TFTs) by T. Peter Brody, Fang Chen Luo and their team at the Thin-Film Devices department of Westinghouse Electric Corporation in 1974, and the term was introduced into the literature in 1975.