GE Global Research has reached a milestone in next-generation lighting, demonstrating the world’s first roll-to-roll manufactured organic light emitting diodes.(OLED) GE is aiming to introduce OLED lighting products to market by the year 2010. In the 2010 timescale, they’re looking at niche, high-end applications, like in architectural designs. The demo rolled out about 20 feet of OLEDs.
GE OLEDs produced roll to roll
The Holy Grail of the flexible display industry is to be able to manufacture the entire display, on a flexible substrate, at fast speeds, with minimal handling and at low cost. R2R manufacturing, traditionally a low-tech method for making disposable items such as packaging and newspapers, is seen as the solution to this challenge.
The US Display Consortium (USDC) has awarded funds to two projects to help boost R2R manufacturing technology for display components and other electronic devices. The USDC recently awarded $10 million (e7.8 million) to Binghamton University in New York State to develop an R&D centre that will evaluate the potential R2R technology for the microelectronics industry
Printing presses can get up to speeds of 2500-3000 feet per minute.
If some production and devices compatible with R2R production could achieve the quality and performance of CMOS lithography devices then the multi-billion semiconductor wafer plants that make 50,000 wafers per month with 100-300 chips on each wafer could be replaced with production of 2000 wafers per minute. 1500 times faster production at the 2500 feet per minute speed range.
Brian Wang is a Futurist Thought Leader and a popular Science blogger with 1 million readers per month. His blog Nextbigfuture.com is ranked #1 Science News Blog. It covers many disruptive technology and trends including Space, Robotics, Artificial Intelligence, Medicine, Anti-aging Biotechnology, and Nanotechnology.
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