LOPEC 2021: Printed electronics for insiders and newcomers
Also as an online format, LOPEC is the world’s most important meeting point for the entire value chain of printed electronics. The LOPEC Conference with approximately 180 live presentations will be hosted on an online platform of Messe München from 23 to 25 March.
From rollable displays to ultra-thin solar cells and smart shirts: Printed electronics is considered an innovation driver in a wide range of industries. “Electronic components are becoming lighter, thinner and more flexible. The LOPEC Conference will demonstrate the resulting opportunities by showcasing numerous new products and current research results,” says Wolfgang Mildner, CEO of the consulting and technology company MSWtech and General Chair of LOPEC.
This year, due to the Corona pandemic, the leading industry event will be held digitally. The popular mix of plenary lectures and sessions in the three modules Business, Technical and Scientific Conference, however, will remain unchanged, emphasises Mildner: “With the proven Conference format, we offer both insiders and newcomers orientation in the growing market for printed electronics.” Furthermore, the Short Courses and Poster Sessions will, once again, provide in-depth and compact information on the multi-faceted topics of printed electronics, on new products and ideas. All presentations will take place live and will be broadcast in three parallel streams. Conference participants can access all presentations on the platform of Messe München for a period of six weeks following the end of the event.
Flexible displays will be one of the focus areas of the Plenary Sessions. Chinese manufacturer TCL, for example, has developed an inkjet-printed rollable OLED TV screen to be presented by Dr Xiaolin Yan, CTO and senior vice president of TCL, on 24 March. But how durable are flexible displays? This question will be explored by Google engineer Dr Kiarash Vakshouri on 25 March. He will join the Conference from the U.S. to present methods for stability assessment of foldable screens.
In addition to the major industry players, startups and research institutes continue to play a crucial role in the success of printed electronics. This year, as well, they are instrumental in shaping the LOPEC Conference. For example, Professor John Rogers of Northwestern University in the U.S. and Esmeralda Megally, founder of the Swiss startup Xsensio, will address printed electronics in health monitoring. The presentations on sensor chips, monitoring patches and more will be held on 25 March.
The trend topic of ‘wearable electronics’ will be a recurring theme in the Conference programme. In the session “Smart Textiles” on March 25, for example, Dutch fashion technologist Marina Toeters, founder of by-wire.net, will present garments with integrated sensors and actuators that sense and respond to environmental stimuli. Even Austrian jewellery manufacturer Swarovski adds functionality to their crystals through printed electronics. On 23 March, the Conference participants will learn from Rafael Michalczuk, senior technology & funding manager at Swarovski, what this means in concrete terms.
“Moving forward in uncertain times: innovation is more important than ever”: Stan Farnsworth, chief marketing officer of U.S.-based NovaCentrix, will provide an outlook for the industry in his presentation that will kick-off the second day of the Conference on 24 March. This year, this presentation will be held as an Open Plenary Session, which will thus also be accessible free of charge to participants of the online exhibition as a special offer.
This year's Conference will once again provide plenty of inspiration for new products. In addition to further application examples, including examples from the automotive and energy sectors, technical innovations such as biocompatible materials, 3D printing processes and other manufacturing processes will be on the agenda of the LOPEC Conference 2021.
Caption: The LOPEC Conference aims to provide a wealth of inspiration, highlighting applications and technical innovations (photo: Messe München)