Printed, Flexible and Organic Electronics

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.

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.