Currently, the most interesting and fastest-growing application areas of printed electronics are in the sectors of wearables, automotive and in the Internet of Things. Smart labels, smart watches, intelligent clothing and dashboards are just a few examples of end-use products which printed electronics can be integrated into.
NIST research has found that the flexible plastic membrane on which wearables would be built might work better if the membrane had microscopic holes in it (photo: NIST)
In science, sometimes the best discoveries come when you’re exploring something else entirely. That’s the case with recent findings from the US National Institute of Standards and Technology (NIST), where a research team has come up with a way to build safe, nontoxic gold wires onto flexible, thin plastic film. Their demonstration potentially clears the path for a host of wearable electronic devices that monitor our health.
The new IR Topled D5140 from German-based Osram Opto Semiconductors is reported to require considerably less pc board space than before. It enables more compact sensors to be produced for monitoring fitness levels, for example in fitness armbands. The spectral sensitivity of the D5140 has been optimised for visible light and allows precise heart rate measurements using red or green light. The component is also ideal as an ambient light sensor.
