Electronic process aims at cheaper and flexible parts

Electronic process aims at cheaper and flexible parts

Flexible display screens and low-cost solar cells can become a reality

A team of researchers from Umeå University (Umeå, Sweden) have developed a new method for developing inexpensive electronic components. The researchers hope that with this simple method display screens will become flexible and solar cells cheap.

A new method to produce electronic components can lead to low-cost and flexible electronics.

As shown in the figure, first, a thin film of an organic electronic material, called fullerene, is painted on a selected surface. Then the parts of the film are directly exposed to laser light. The third step is to develop the whole film by rinsing it with a solution. And finally, a well-defined pattern emerges where the laser light hits the surface.

The benefit of this method of patterning is that it is both simple and scalable, which may enable the production of low-cost and flexible electronics on an assembly line. Until now, it has proven problematic to carry out this patterning in a simple way because it destroys the electronic properties of the organic material.

The research is presented in the Journal of the American Chemical Society (2009, 131, 4006-4011). For more information, call Ludvig Edman, Senior Lecturer of Physics, at 011-46-(0)90-786-57-32 or e-mail ludvig.edman@physics.umu.se.

Christina Nickolas