Masterclasses

Held at Flexible Display Center
             at Arizona State University with Tours

Arizona State University Research Park
7700 South River Parkway, Tempe, Arizona 85284
Tel 480.727.8752

The four optional expert-led masterclasses are interactive consultancy sessions. At each masterclass you will have the chance to handle many samples, and take away printed copies of presentations. They will ensure you get the most from the conference and leave understanding the issues with answers to your questions.

Previous Masterclass delegates have reported:

"It's great to actually get real information on where RFID is going INDEPENDENTLY without someone trying to sell their particular product" Jim Chatz, Labelmakers Australia

"Excellent" James Zhang, GE Global Research Center

Monday December 4 09:00 - 12:30

Led by

IDTechEx, UK Dr Peter Harrop, Chairman

Speakers include

Printable Electronics Consulting, USA Dr Bruce Kahn, Consultant

Introduction

Printed electronics and electrics are merging as many new products combine both functions. This market will exceed that for silicon chips. It will subsume many large components and it creates displays, batteries, laminar fuel cells and lighting. Silicon chips cannot do that.

In this Masterclass we discuss electronic, electric and combined options under the banner of printed electronics. We explore the vast number of replacement and newly created markets from vastly improved human interfaces for high volume products to RFID replacing ten trillion barcodes yearly. If these things are not done with printed electronics then they will not be done at all. We explain why.

We show how money is being made today and we size the market sectors through to hundreds of billions of dollars yearly in twenty years. We give role models of success and lessons of failure and list the companies to watch.

The contents of this masterclass includes

• Applications of printed electronics - now and near future
• Lessons to be learnt from early successes and failures
• The need for printed electronics
• The market for displays, sensors, photovoltaics, conductors, thin film transistor circuits and more
• The exploding market for smart medicine, food condition monitoring, brand enhancements, novelties
• The benefits and payback of RFID, examples of RFID being used, how many have been sold and into which markets
• Chip and chipless RFID tag technology evaluations and their applications
• The place for printed electronics in RFID
• RFID forecasts and trends 2005-2020
• Mechanical, chemical, electrical and electronic smarts in packaging
• Non-electronic & electronic laminates for brand enhancement & diagnostics
• Organic and printed electronics - technologies and their impact
• Opportunities for packaging - combining electronics with packaging

Monday December 4 13:10 - 16:00

Led by

IDTechEx, USA Dan Lawrence, VP Business Development

Speakers include

The Technology Partnership, UK Dr. Peter J. Brown, Physicist, Project Manager

• Printed electronics is not just about flexible, full colour active matrix displays or <1¢ RFID tags
• Many applications for printed electronics are feasible today and not just in the future
• A viable model and roadmap for exploiting these opportunities is presented

Introduction

Organic electronics involves many technologies and the results include everything from Thin Film Transistor Circuits TFTC to electrochromic and other displays. However, inorganic and mixed organic/ inorganic structures are also receiving much attention. Thus, although over 40 companies are developing organic TFTCs, Xerox, Hewlett Packard and Merck are independently developing inorganic versions based on new compounds.

On the other hand, is it worth progressing thin film silicon for logic and power or has it run out of road? Inorganic displays such as thermochromic and electroluminescent ones have a great future. We explain this big picture and what may result.

We examine the challenges of physics, material science and production – such as codeposition of many components to save cost and improve reliability - and how they are being tackled. We consider whether it is sensible that we have more organizations developing Organic Light Emitting Diodes OLEDs than all other options put together.

We assess whether and when this could produce radically improved electronic displays and low cost low power lighting and electronic billboards. With flexo, litho, screen, gravure and ink jet used for printed electronics will one win or not? We look at the technical hurdles and alternatives, including neglected opportunities.

The contents of this masterclass includes

• The value chain of printed/thin film electronics
• Market forecasts
• Key markets that need printed electronics - reasons why and their technology requirements
• Creating new markets versus competing with conventional electronics in existing ones
• Assessment of technologies, companies, strategies and progress so far, including
• Thin film transistor circuits (organic, inorganic semiconductors, thin film silicon)
• Displays (OLEDs, electrophoretic, electroluminescene, electrochromic and others)
• Sensors and conductive inks
• Batteries and actuators
• A discussion of printing techniques, their relevancy and challenges
• Challenges and the roadmap to the full printed electronics toolkit

Thursday December 7 09:00 - 12:30

Led by

IDTechEx, USA Dan Lawrence, VP Business Development

Speakers include

Arizona State University, USA Ghassan Jabbour, Professor

A New Paradigm for Disruptive Technology Development and Transition

• General Introduction to Flexible Substrates
• Current developments
• Challenges for Commercialisation

Agency Microsystems Technology, USA Mr Bob Reuss, Defense Advanced Research Projects

Macroelectronics: Enabling the Big Picture

• While electrical performance requirements may be modest, requirements for weight, flexibility, and cost are daunting
• Large area electronics could be invaluable for many distributed sensor and control functions, especially for space constrained applications
• Displays are not the only electronics systems where large is desirable

Institute of Materials Research an Engineering, Singapore Mark Auch Research Scientist

Commercializing Flexible Substrates for Displays and Lighting - Challenges and Opportunities

Introduction

Displays will be one of the largest market segments in printed/organic electronics. For example, Samsung has invested over $500 million in developing next generation OLED displays. Already 70% of the MP3 flash memory music devices use an OLED display. However, OLEDs are just the tip of the iceberg with electroluminescent, electrophoretic and electrochromic displays with unique benefits being commercially used now. Within ten years we will also see another major development - conventional lighting being replaced with lighting that is laminar and flexible.

This masterclass, led by experts in the field, will guide you through the full range of technologies, market opportunities and challenges and issues to be resolved. The IP situation will also be covered as will companies in the value chain, along with their positioning and strengths.

Thursday December 7 13:10 - 16:00

Led by

IDTechEx, UK Dr Peter Harrop, Chairman

Introduction

RFID is rapidly taking off for a wide range of applications, with 1.3 billion tags being shipped in 2006 rising to over 500 billion tags in 2016. The endgame is the item level tagging of all items but this calls for an ultra low cost tag, costing little more than a barcode does today.

Printed RFID is one of the most promising technologies to achieve this. Today, we already have fully printed sub one cent RFID tags, some meeting EPC data specifications. These do not use thin film transistor circuits though and have various performance compromises. Additionally, over 50 companies are developing printed thin film transistor circuits which can mimic the silicon chip and be used as a printed RFID tag. .

But how do these compete with the lowering cost of silicon chips? Is more value and functionality required? What are the enabling technologies, progress of the leaders and timelines? Which are the most suitable applications for printed RFID initially? This masterclass answers these questions; assesses the technologies, how they work and latest progress.