Synthetic materials have been popular in electronics in the past thanks to their insulating properties; today they are popular thanks to their outstanding conductive properties.
Productronica 2007 in Munich from 13 to 16 November 2007 is highlighting the topic of 'organic electronics' as one of the key technologies for the 21st century and is providing a comprehensive overview of the manufacturing processes for electronics based on polymers and monomers.
Organic electronics are not designed to replace silicon-based electronics. Instead, they expand the range of applications with their specific properties and attractive, low production costs. Polymer electronics are thinner, lighter and more flexible, very robust, and can be used in many ways in transparent form. As a result, unusual applications are possible, for example, disposable diagnostic devices, solar cells that can be rolled up, interactive playing cards or packaging with advertising displays.
Polymer electronics have been revolutionised with the further development of conventional printing technologies. For example, OLEDs already come out of inkjet printers today, in that luminescent polymers are added to a solvent and this is applied to a carrier film via tiny jets, completely without elaborate and expensive clean room technology. RFIDs can also be produced in a similar way in large numbers at low unit prices.
But electronics based on synthetic materials also provide additional advantages. Integrated circuits are embedded directly into the substrate using the chip-in-polymer (CiP) process of the Fraunhofer Institute for Reliability and Microintegration. That makes not only the circuit board superfluous, but also bonding wire and soldered connections containing lead. As a result, the chips made of synthetic material are shielded to the outside and are especially suited to mobile telephony and automotive applications.
Polymer electronics are also in the forefront in matters of miniaturisation eg, with nanowire transistors. Chips, storage unit, logic and sensor technology can be combined on one single component 10 nanometres wide in compressed form. In this way, for example, exhaust fume sensors can be produced, which can detect individual molecules and monitor fuel consumption of a car precisely.
Organic electronics cover a complete product range, including semiconductors based on synthetic materials, organic displays, organic data storage units, sensors and photovoltaics. Their growing acceptance and product spread is having positive effects on suppliers of electronic components, basic materials, production equipment and tools as well as research institutes, system integrators and terminal equipment manufacturers.
For more information visit www.productronica.com
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