SBIR Phase I: Transparent and Elastic Organic Light Emitting Diode Displays

小型企业创新研究(SBIR)第一阶段项目的更广泛影响/商业潜力将是人们与电子设备交互方式的根本性变化。无论是手机还是可穿戴式健身跟踪器，目前的电子设备的形式最终都受到矩形和刚性显示的限制。该项目将开发高度透明和弹性的显示器，与最先进的柔性显示器相比，在机械弹性方面实现了数量级的改进。灵活性的增加将带来一种变革性的技术，使一系列新型的共形和可穿戴电子产品成为可能。与商用可穿戴电子产品市场直接相关的应用包括服装或皮肤式健身跟踪器和健康监测器。与军事相关的应用包括自适应伪装和可穿戴式平视显示器。该项目将为现有的刚性显示技术开发一种弹性插入式替代技术，直接为各种当前的电子设备提供灵活的外形。该项目将把一种创新的显示器推向市场，这将永久性地改变人们与电子设备的交互方式。这个小型企业创新研究(SBIR)第一阶段项目将开发和制造高度弹性和透明的显示器。由于所使用的硬脆材料，特别是氧化铟锡(ITO)，目前的显示器在灵活性方面受到限制。该项目将用可拉伸的纳米材料取代所有刚性材料，特别是石墨烯和碳纳米管，从而产生高度透明和弹性的有机发光二极管显示器。石墨烯和碳纳米管提供了高光学透明度和导电性的技术优势。最重要的是，这些纳米材料提供了卓越的弹性性能，应变极限超过20%。所采用的先进纳米材料的技术优势将使视频显示器的开发具有电视的功能，但像纸一样薄，像玻璃一样透明，像橡胶一样可拉伸。

The broader impact/commercial potential of this Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project will be a fundamental change in how people interact with electronic devices. Whether a cell phone or wearable fitness tracker, the form of current electronic devices is ultimately limited by the rectangular and rigid display. This project will develop highly transparent and elastic displays, achieving an order of magnitude improvement in mechanical elasticity when compared to state-of-the-art flexible displays. The increased flexibility will result in a transformative technology, enabling a wide range of novel conformal and wearable electronics. Applications immediately pertinent to the commercial wearable electronics market include clothing- or skin-mounted fitness trackers and health monitors. Applications pertinent to the military include adaptive camouflage and wearable heads-up displays. This project will enable the development of an elastic drop-in replacement for existing rigid display technologies, directly enabling a flexible form factor for a wide range of current electronic devices. This project will bring an innovative display to market that will permanently change how people interface with electronics.This Small Business Innovation Research (SBIR) Phase I project will develop and fabricate highly elastic and transparent displays. Current displays are limited in flexibility due to the rigid, brittle materials employed, specifically indium tin oxide (ITO). This project will replace all rigid materials with stretchable nanomaterials, specifically graphene and carbon nanotubes, resulting in a highly transparent and elastic organic light emitting diode display. Graphene and carbon nanotubes offer the technical advantages of high optical transparency and electrical conductivity. Most importantly, these nanomaterials provide superior elastic properties with demonstrated strain limits greater than 20%. The technical advantages of the advanced nanomaterials employed will enable the development of a video display with the functionality of a TV, yet as thin as paper, as transparent as glass, and as stretchable as rubber.