Research Articles

Thursday 5 December 2024 - Electric Light Commercial Vehicles: The Present and Future of Cargo; An overview of the global LCV industry; The role of regulation in LCV electrification; Key sales trends and manufacturers across global markets; Total costs of ownership (TCO) for eLCVs; Hydrogen fuel cell and plug-in hybrid LCVs

As the world grapples with the environmental impact of traditional plastics, bioplastics derived from carbon dioxide (CO2) and waste materials present a promising solution. This emerging sustainable market seeks to address two critical global challenges: reducing greenhouse gas emissions and managing waste.

The Li-ion industry continues to innovate to reach higher energy densities, faster charge and higher rate capabilities, longer lifetimes, lower costs, and lower environmental impact from their production to better meet the demands of the markets and applications reliant on battery and energy storage technology.

Electric vehicles (EVs) have seen tremendous growth historically, but growth has slowed somewhat in 2024. The goal of automakers is to reduce the cost of making EVs, both to improve their profit margins on existing vehicles and to make lower-cost models more feasible.

Autonomous driving technologies have seemingly been on the horizon for the last decade, maybe more. Over the past four years, level 3 technologies have been certified for consumer use on public roads, hands-off/eyes-on driving has solidified as a market segment, and commercial driverless robotaxi services have become available to the public.

The scale of the challenges faced by electric aviation, with weight, range, ownership costs, and even carbon footprint, all need consideration. Despite this, IDTechEx believes that current technical trends combined with achievable business use cases will generate significant electric plane uptake in the future.

Tuesday 3 December 2024 - Introduction to the state of the wearable technology market in 2024; Global meta-trends and their impact on the wearable industry; Sensor innovations: including printed and quantum technologies; Flexible batteries for wearables?; Medical wearables: from sensors to actuators

How will thermal long-wave infrared (LWIR) cameras become a US$500m market for autonomous emergency braking (AEB)? Find out in this brief summary by IDTechEx Technology Analyst, John Li.

In this article, IDTechEx interrogates the state of the quantum technology market today, but then, crucially, how it is expected to evolve for growth across the next ten years.

Over the past couple of years, IDTechEx has reported on the emergence of commercial robotaxi services but has always needed to caveat this with the fact that they have been heavily restricted. Well, in 2024, the shackles are coming off, and the industry is getting ready for take-off.

Monday 2 December 2024 - Background on the hydrogen value chain, from production to end-use applications; Significant developments in low-carbon hydrogen production, storage, distribution, and industrial applications in late 2023 and 2024; Overview of various fuel cell technologies; Major trends for fuel cells in automotive and stationary power markets; Market outlook

Although graphene and carbon nanotubes have long been touted as "wonder materials" with the potential to address numerous global challenges, the initial excitement did not quickly lead to widespread commercial success. IDTechEx has closely monitored the nanocarbon market for over ten years, and this article will evaluate the application areas where graphene and CNTs are likely to achieve notable success in the next ten years.

Friday 22 November 2024 - Mobile Robotics: Emerging applications, challenges, innovative solutions, and the latest market developments; Service Robots: Different applications experience different growth rate; Collaborative Robots: Technologies and industrial news; Sensors for Robotics: An analysis of key sensors

Advanced semiconductor packaging is experiencing significant growth due to the interplay of technological, economic, and market forces. As silicon scaling approaches its limits, advanced packaging offers a viable alternative for boosting chip performance, particularly for high-performance computing (HPC) applications like AI and data centers, which demand increased computational power and bandwidth.

As Moore's Law slows down, the semiconductor industry is seeking innovative solutions to increase performance and functionality without merely increasing transistor density. Chiplets offer a promising path forward, providing flexibility, modularity, customizability, efficiency, and cost-effectiveness in chip design and manufacturing.

As we look towards 2035, the demand for sensors is expected to grow significantly across various sectors, including automotive, industrial, healthcare, consumer electronics, and environmental monitoring. This article explores the key trends and innovations in sensor technology.

Communication between passengers and the vehicle is clearer with HUDs, which can make for a safer journey. Customization is also a highly desirable feature for drivers when choosing how they interact with their vehicle.

Thursday 21 November 2024 - Despite a Challenging Year, Regulations and Technologies Are Set to Transform the Electric Vehicle Market in 2025; Deep dive into global and regional sales figures up to H1 2024, including PHEV and BEV sales, and key OEMs; Overview of the Li-ion battery market by cathode and capacity (kWh); Breakdown of the EU CO2 regulations and positioning of OEMs in advance of 2025 rule changes; Growth of the electric pickup market in the US, and EPA/CARB regulation breakdown; Technology trends, 800V architectures, and evolving motor choices; Market outlook until 2045

In this article, IDTechEx will summarize the main trends of thermal management in the data center and EV power electronics industries, as well as the recent developments of thermal interface materials used.

Concerns over incumbent strategies for PFAS waste management have created opportunities for novel PFAS destruction technologies to potentially disrupt the status quo. Universities and independent start-ups are developing numerous different destruction technologies.

The future of the automotive industry is heading towards the acceptance of automation and the enforcement of electrification. Despite the crossover of these two phenomena becoming increasingly present within the automotive industry, automation and electrification individually offer unique environmental and safety benefits to vehicles and their passengers.

Tuesday 19 November 2024 - Electric car sales and market growth analysis; Key charging trends, including cable-based conduction and other technologies; Charging beyond private cars, including MW charging for trucks and fleet charging, and DC fast charging; Market overview of the charging infrastructure industry, including key player performance; Off-grid charging solutions for rural, industrial, and grid constrained situations

SAF has emerged as a crucial decarbonization tool offering up to 80% emissions reduction while being drop-in compatible with existing aircraft engines and infrastructure. This article discusses the key SAF production technologies and market drivers.

The growing awareness of the negative effects of chemicals and materials we've built our modern society on has led governments, companies, academics, and consumers alike to search for alternatives. This will no doubt be a monumental task. In many places, there are no suitable replacements. Still, significant activity is taking place worldwide, which IDTechEx has followed in our research, to push different sectors to identify chemicals and materials for a less contaminated, more circular world.

Driver monitoring systems and occupant monitoring systems operating within a vehicle are designed to enhance passenger welfare and increase the safety of vehicles. IDTechEx outlines technologies from infrared cameras and time-of-flight cameras, to potential ECG monitoring within the steering wheel.

On Tuesday, November 5th, millions of Americans went to the polls to vote for the 47th President of the United States. The results were emphatic: a second Trump administration and a Republican-controlled Senate. While this election will impact many aspects of the global economy, what do these results entail for one of the world's biggest automotive markets?

Monday 18 November 2024 - Emerging Display Technologies: Revolutionizing Visual Experiences Across Industries; MicroLED Displays: Revolutionizing visual clarity and efficiency; Quantum Dots in Displays: Enhancing color accuracy and energy efficiency; Automotive Displays: Integrating advanced features for improved safety and user interaction; Head-Up Displays: Augmenting reality for enhanced driving experiences

The Society of Automotive Engineers defines 6 levels (0 to 5) of autonomy available to vehicles, ranging from level 0 (no automation) to level 5 (full automation). To achieve level 4+, automotive OEMs and tier-one suppliers are required to expand their sensor suites beyond conventional cameras and radar, accompanied by reliable software to perceive the vehicle's surroundings.

Mobile robots in logistics can be seen to work throughout an entire supply chain from manufacturing processes, to reaching consumers and shops. Material handling, including material transportation and mobile picking, are some of the key jobs for mobile robots at the very beginning of the supply chain. Material transportation alone was seen to hold around 90% of market revenue share as of 2024, according to IDTechEx, signifying the large uptake and importance of mobile robots in redesigning intralogistics and transporting applications.

Hydrogen and its derivatives (e.g. ammonia, methanol) will be crucial in decarbonizing diverse sectors and serving as energy carriers for global renewable energy transport. As a result, the market is seeing increased commercial interest from technology providers, engineering services, and project developers eager to capitalize on this expanding opportunity.

As electric vehicles (EVs) continue to reshape the automotive landscape, the integration of Vehicle-to-Grid (V2G) technology offers transformative potential for both the energy grid and vehicle owners.

Decarbonizing aviation could be the next big step for the sustainable transportation industry, and with the popularity of both national and international travel, there is opportunity emerging for both electric and hydrogen-powered planes.

Wednesday 20 November 2024 - Reflections on 2024: Carbon Capture, Utilization, and Storage (CCUS) and Carbon Dioxide Removal (CDR); Commercial, technological, and infrastructural factors set to grow CCUS deployment; Trends in both compliance and voluntary carbon markets; Discussion of upcoming CCUS projects expected to reach key milestones such as Northern Lights/Longship and Occidental's Stratos; Analysis of emerging technologies in carbon dioxide removal (including direct air capture and direct ocean capture) and carbon dioxide utilization (i.e. CO2-derived e-fuels)

The evolution of telecommunications continues with each decade, and as 5G becomes widespread, attention is shifting to the next generation: 6G. Promising next-level capabilities compared to next generation, 6G will offer data rates reaching terabits per second (Tbps), microsecond-level latency, and ultra-high level of network reliability.

As semiconductor packaging technologies evolve, advanced methods like 2.5D and 3D Cu-to-Cu hybrid bonding are essential for achieving higher performance and power efficiency. However, manufacturing these technologies to meet high performance and yield standards while fulfilling client requirements is complex.

Friday 15 November 2024 - Background and context of quantum research and the transition to commercialization; Overview of the market landscape today, including key funding trends and the answers to 'why now'; The impact of meta-trends in cyber-security, energy security, and future mobility on the quantum market today, and a summary of motivations for commercial partnerships; Summary of key players in the exo-systems for quantum computing, quantum sensing, and quantum communications; Coverage of what is needed for market growth, alongside top-level market forecasts and CAGR predictions.