Moves by UK firm
Plastic
Logic to produce
flexible
electronic paper display modules will pave the way for a new generation of
computing devices including low-power signage and wearable electronics,
Gartner
predicted today.
The upbeat assessment came after the news that Cambridge-based Plastic Logic
had raised $100m in venture capital to set up the first factory to manufacture
plastic electronics.
The site, based in Dresden in Germany, is expected to begin production of
flexible e-paper in 2008.
Gartner noted that the potential benefits of polymer electronics similar to
those touted by Plastic Logic have been recognised for some time.
However, the technology has been plagued by problems including bad transistor
gain, susceptibility to contamination (particularly moisture) and low circuit
densities.
According to a Gartner advisory written by analysts Jim Tully and Martin
Reynolds, Plastic Logic claims to have solved most of these issues, and can
manufacture viable components using inexpensive material.
As a result the report predicts that Plastic Logic's e-paper initiative is
likely to succeed.
"Unlike other display technologies, polymer e-paper displays can be bendable
and flexible," Gartner's report stated.
"They can also be fabricated on curved (but rigid) surfaces such as car
dashboards, and require almost no power to maintain an image. Signage is already
an attractive market for this technology.
"As polymer electronics advance, devices could be embedded in clothing, soft
toys and other products, where they could be used for radio frequency
identification tags.
"Flexible circuits used as price tags and security devices could be invisibly
woven into clothing, providing benefits for retailers. The circuits could also
store washing instructions that would be sensed by washing machines."
Polymer electronics could also be used to display moving images on T-shirts,
allowing consumers to use images from digital cameras.
"Plastic electronics can be produced in large sheets but are relatively slow
in operation. They will not replace silicon chips, which have a lower cost per
transistor and offer dense, sophisticated and fast logic capabilities," Gartner
stated.
"Plastic circuits will thus be used in new and emerging applications like
those mentioned above. We believe that plastic transistors will initially
succeed where their large-area capability is combined with the dense fast logic
of silicon."
Other companies working on polymer technology include
IBM,
Philips,
Xerox,
Hitachi,
Samsung
and AU
Optronics.
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