Applied Materials

SolidEnergy

SolidEnergy is a battery start up from MIT, which is presenting a solid state battery based on a very thin anode that results in very high energy density. The founders of the company are Dr. Quichao Hu and Professor Donald Sadoway.

Flexible barrier technologies: material and deposition options

Back in 2013, we witnessed the launch by Samsung and LG of the first AMOLED displays deposited on plastic substrates, and the first efforts to encapsulate plastic and flexible displays that IDTechEx is forecasting will become more than a $16bn dollar market in the next 5 years.

3D printing with custom molecules creates low-cost mechanical sensor

Imagine printing out molecules that can respond to their surroundings.

Hands on: crafting ultrathin color coatings

A technique that coats a metallic object with an extremely thin layer of semiconductor, just a few nanometers thick. Although the semiconductor is a steely gray color, the object ends up shining in vibrant hues.

Electronic 'tongue' to ensure food quality

An electronic "tongue" could one day sample food and drinks as a quality check before they hit store shelves.

Paper electronics could make health care more accessible

Flexible electronic sensors based on paper — an inexpensive material — have the potential to cut the price of a wide range of medical tools, from helpful robots to diagnostic tests

Encapsulation of flexible electronics: alternatives to multilayers

IDTechEx has been following closely the space for flexible encapsulation and current trends show case that films or in-line deposition based on multi layers (alternating layers of organic and inorganic materials, also known as dyads) is the preferred technology. Alternatives have also been in development too though, so we will briefly analyze some of the main candidates that could potentially displace multilayer approaches: flexible glass, single layer approaches and atomic layer deposition are the technologies examined in this article.

Kateeva

Founded in 2008, Kateeva is headquartered in Menlo Park (Silicon Valley), backed by equipment companies (Applied Materials & Veeco) and venture investors (Sigma Partners, Spark Capital & Madrone Capital). In Nov 2013, Kateeva unveiled the YIELDjet, their first inkjet printing equipment designed for OLED display production, showing pictures of a system that can handle Gen 8 substrate glass. Kateeva's printer can be used for the deposition of OLED materials but also thin film encapsulation.

Metal ink could ease way toward flexible electronic books, displays

Scientists are reporting the development of a novel metal ink made of small sheets of copper that can be used to write a functioning, flexible electric circuit on regular printer paper.

The tipping point

2014 has only just begun and already discussions abound on how a "tipping point" has been reached in the field of printed and flexible electronics, a statement mostly backed by the significant interest and accompanying investment by LG and Samsung into the commercialisation of flexible displays.

Impressions: 2014Flex, Flexible & Printed Electronics Event

This article covers the main impressions of the 2014 Flex conference, organized by the Flextech Alliance in Phoenix, Arizona. Approximately 600 attendees visited the conference and exhibition, and the consensus was that a "tipping point" has been reached in the field of printed and flexible electronics. IDTechEx will discuss this and its latest learning about barriers, printed sensors, and wearable electronics.

Opportunities for organic solar cells and dye-sensitized solar cells

The Printed Electronics and Energy Harvesting & Storage USA 2013 events bring together leading players who are developing and commercializing the third-generation of photovoltaic technologies, including organic photovoltaics and dye-sensitised solar cells.

ITRI and Komori announce new fine-line printing technology

ITRI and Komori International recently announced a completely new fine-line printing technology that replaces the need of seven different pieces of equipment with a single direct-printing station.

Manufacturing large, ultra-high definition LCD and OLED displays

New technology systems for manufacturing large size and ultra-high definition (UHD) LCD and OLED displays that meet consumer demand for greater screen performance, clarity, color and brightness.