Based on years of groundbreaking work on polymer electronics, Philips is capable of producing prototypes of ultra-thin, large-area, rollable displays on a routine basis and intends to rapidly move towards an industrially feasible production process. The displays combine active-matrix polymer driving electronics with a reflective 'electronic ink' front plane on an extremely thin sheet of plastic. Philips publishes the current status of its technology in the 1 February issue of the scientific magazine Nature Materials.

Lightweight, large-area displays that are unbreakable and can be rolled up into a small-sized housing when not actively used, are particularly attractive for mobile applications. Ultimately, large-area displays could become feasible, which are so flexible that they can be integrated into everyday objects like a pen. The availability of such displays would greatly stimulate the advance of electronic books, newspapers and magazines, and also new services offered by (third generation) mobile network operators. These applications currently depend on fragile, heavy and bulky laptops or small, low-resolution displays of mobile phones, which both have clear drawbacks.

Philips not only wants to prove the feasibility of such displays, but also has the ambition to rapidly move towards the development of an industrially feasible process for volume production. Within the Philips Technology Incubator an internal venture has been formed with this aim. The venture is called Polymer Vision...