Flexible consumer electronic devices are now a reality, and as forecasted by IDTechEx in the launch of the first ever market research report on the topic of barrier films for electronics almost ten years ago, innovation in encapsulation was one of the critical requirements that needed to be met in order to realize commercially viable consumer products.

The 21st-century commercialisation of the aerogel industry has been extensively discussed, but despite the excitement and huge potential, it is still a long way from plain sailing for the manufacturers.

In this article we highlight one stretchable electronics technologies with potential to become near-term success stories: interconnects.

Augmented and virtual reality headsets are by now a reality (pun intended), and they bring about a paradigm shift in form factor for portable electronics.

Strong positive feedback and growth at Europe's most important event on emerging technologies

The new IDTechEx report, Electrically Active Smart Glass and Windows 2018-2028 observes that electrically active see-through glass is an idea whose time has come.

On May 10-11 an estimated 3,000 people from over 40 countries will meet at the Estrel Convention Centre in Berlin to discuss the commercialization of a diverse range of emerging technologies.

Stretchable Electronics is a term that conceals great diversity. Indeed, it is an umbrella term that refers to a whole host of emerging electronic materials, components and devices that exhibit some degree of mechanical stretchability.

I have just recently returned from the Graphene 2017 conference in Barcelona where I gave an invited talk. There is tremendous scientific progress, both on CVD and platelet type graphene, and across many graphene applications. Interestingly, the participants however repeatedly suggested that the industry has now passed the peak of hype and is well into the disillusionment period.

The IDTechEx Show! in Berlin, Germany on 10-11 May is Europe's most important event for those involved in technology scouting and product innovation, bringing together emerging technologies with global brands.

In Mold Electronics is making a commercial comeback. The behind-the-scenes interest in IME remains robust. The first wave of products are close to market launch, the value networks are being enhanced, volume manufacturers are more engaged than ever, and the material set is transitioning beyond conductive inks to include transparent conductive films, sensors, actuators, and so on. Overall, we expect 2017/18 to the years when IME applications finally grow after years of on and off starts.

Haptics are key technologies found as an essential feature enhancing the user experience in many very familiar products today. Whether as notification provision in a vibrating smartphone, tension building in a video game controller, or input confirmation in an industrial scanner, haptics technologies have now reached billions of electronics devices.

Trends and progress with printing techniques for Printed Electronics.

People with diabetes have traditionally self-monitored their glucose levels using disposable biosensors and invasive sampling techniques. While this industry has been one of the success stories of the printed electronics industry, worth around $6 billion today, profitability is falling as government reimbursement models are changing and strain is put on both consumers and manufacturers.

China has already once completely transformed the photovoltaic (PV) industry and maybe about to do so again.

The electronic industry is in the midst of a major paradigm shift: novel form factors are emerging, ranging from the introduction of limited stretchability, through to ultra-elastic and conformable electronics. This transfiguration has been in the making for more than a decade now, but it is only now that it is beginning to make a substantial commercial impact.

Over the past 20 years, e-textiles have progressed from an academic curiosity to an important technology platform generating revenue for companies globally. In particular, the industry saw strong growth for several years up to 2015, with successful launches of many new products from a series of players.

The transparent conductive film (TCF) industry will leave behind its years of sluggish growth to achieve rapid growth.

IDTechEx recently attended the Mobile World Congress and visited the graphene flagship booth, which consisted of a number of graphene companies highlighting their latest work. Here are some of the highlights.

In this article IDTechEx lists some of the hottest sectors in printed electronics.