Flexible electronics for the future
CSIRO is developing the plastic electronics of the future.
Imagine portable electronic devices where the plastic casing incorporates a solar cell – flat batteries will be a thing of the past.
Imagine a rollout or foldout screen from your mobile phone that allows you to watch full colour television, a movie, read the newspaper or your favourite novel on an easy-to-read, flexible A4 sized format.
Flexible electronics is a key focus of CSIRO's Future Manufacturing Flagship. The Flagship aims to add value to existing high value-adding segments of the manufacturing industry and create a new wave of niche industries based on nanotechnology.
The Future Manufacturing Flagship's Flexible Electronics Theme is turning these ideas in to reality via emerging technology that incorporates:
- nanotechnology
- conducting polymers
- methods for controlling polymer structure at a molecular level.
CSIRO is researching consumer electronics, infrastructure and niche areas of distributing energy in order to create world-leading Australian businesses in the field of polymer electronics.
The Flexible Electronics Theme conducts research in two major streams:
- organic photovoltaics
- integrated plastic electronics.
Through these research areas we are developing technologies for products such as:
- photovoltaic cells
- printable polymer electronics.
