Printed, Flexible and Organic Electronics

Efficient adsorbents for industrial wastewater treatment are important to minimize potential environmental damage. In particular, organic dyes, as a significant group of industrial pollutants, are usually highly water soluble, non-degradable and many are toxic to carcinogenic. Researchers now present a new approach to design an innovative composite material, consisting of a nanoporous, ultrathin covalent organic framework anchored on graphene, that is highly efficient at filtering organic pollutants from water.

Researchers have designed smart, colour-controllable white light devices from quantum dots - tiny semiconductors just a few billionths of a metre in size - which are more efficient and have better colour saturation than standard LEDs, and can dynamically reproduce daylight conditions in a single light.

IDTechEx attended the FLEX 2022 conference in San Francisco, USA. This premium article summarizes the main themes, along with the most interesting and/or commercially relevant presentations. Topics covered include emerging applications, materials, manufacturing methods, and wearable technology.

Researchers have figured out how to engineer a biofilm that harvests the energy in evaporation and converts it to electricity. This biofilm has the potential to revolutionize the world of wearable electronics, powering everything from personal medical sensors to personal electronics.

InnovationLab has achieved a breakthrough in additive manufacturing of printed circuit boards, helping meet higher environmental standards for electronics production while also reducing costs.

This premium article gives an introduction to tandem photovoltaics and looks into the associated development and challenges of all-perovskite tandem photovoltaics.

In recent times, we have all experienced the value of diagnostics used in the comfort and ease of our own homes. Imagine if we could look for other infectious diseases just as easily, with less invasive, self-administered, highly accurate, and reliable tests. With the convergence of advances in telehealth and biotechnology, this is the direction that the diagnostics industry is heading towards.

A pioneering project, which aims to develop advanced sensors for use in robotic systems, could transform prosthetics and robotic limbs. The research project aims to develop sensors which provide enhanced capabilities to robots, helping improve their dexterity and motor skills, through the use of accurate pressure sensors which provide haptic feedback and distributed touch.

Wearable electronics, from health and fitness trackers to virtual reality headsets, are part of our everyday lives. But finding ways to continuously power these devices is a challenge. Researchers have developed an innovative solution: the first-of-its kind flexible, wearable thermoelectric device that converts body heat to electricity. This device is soft and stretchable, yet sturdy and efficient — properties that can be challenging to combine.