DISCOVERY: IMAGINE A PHONE THAT CAN BOUNCE INSTEAD OF BREAK WHEN THROWN ON THE FLOOR

Flexible gadgets are one step closer.
Transparent bendable electronics could soon be a reality thanks to a
new method developed by researchers in Australia. In the image: A
transparent fully flexible device bent over a pen.
Image: Philipp Gutruf
Imagine dropping your phone and seeing it bounce rather than break.
Research at RMIT University is bringing that day closer.

The research is advancing transparent bendable electronics for use in
science fiction-like gadgets - unbreakable rubber-like phones,
rollable tablets and even functional clothing.
Researchers from RMIT's Functional Materials and Microsystems research
group have developed a new method to transfer electronics with
versatile functionality, which are usually made on rigid silicon, onto
a flexible surface.
The result of their work was recently published in Nature Publishing
Group'sAsia Materials,the leading materials science journal for the
Asia-Pacific.
The ability of micro and nano-electronic devices to sense, insulate or
generate energy is controlled by thin, transparent nanolayers of oxide
materials, often much thinner than 1/100th of a human hair.
These oxide materials are brittle and their high processing
temperatures - often in excess of 300 degrees celsius - have until now
prevented their incorporation in flexible electronic devices.
Lead author, PhD researcher Philipp Gutruf, said the new process
developed at RMIT could unleash the potential of fully functional
flexible electronics, while providing a new way for the materials to
mesh together.
"We have discovered a micro-tectonic effect, where microscale plates
of oxide materials slide over each other, like geological plates, to
relieve stress and retain electrical conductivity," he said.
"The novel method we have developed overcomes the challenges of
incorporating oxide materials in bendable electronic devices, paving
the way for bendable consumer electronics and other exciting
applications."
Supervisor and co-leader of the research group, Dr Madhu Bhaskaran,
said the new approach used two popular materials - transparent
conductive indium tin oxide and rubber-like silicone, which is also
biocompatible.
"The ability to combine any functional oxide with this biocompatible
material creates the potential for biomedical devices to monitor or
stimulate nerve cells and organs," she said.
"This is in addition to the immediate potential for consumer
electronics applications in flexible displays, solar cells, and energy
harvesters."
Mr Gutruf is supported by an Australian Government Endeavour
International Postgraduate Research Scholarship.
The research was supported by Australian Post-Doctoral Fellowships
from the Australian Research Council to Dr Bhaskaran and Dr Sharath
Sriram, co-leader of the research group.