Study: Thin-film electronics to reach $15.5B by 2011

MANHASSET, N.Y. — Emerging thin-film electronics applications will generate $15.5 billion in revenue by 2011, according to a report from industry consulting firm NanoMarkets.

NanoMarkets (Glen Allen, Va.) expects thin-film display applications (excluding LCD displays) will reach $7.3 billion by 2011. But the firm also expects significant revenue to come from a ramp-up in the use of thin-film electronics for photovoltaics, batteries, sensors, information storage and lighting.

Firms such as Sanyo, Sharp and Seagate, as well as start-ups such as Konarka and Innovalight are investing in thin-film technology, said NanoMarkets. Keying the growth of thin-film electronics is a generation of new materials such as conductive polymers, high-k and low-k materials, silicon inks and carbon nanotube pastes. New production modalities such as printed electronics and atomic layer deposition are also contributing to creating the new thin-film electronics.

For instance, NanoMarkets noted some display manufacturers expect to see thin-film transistors printed with nanoparticulate silver inks to replace traditional ITO backplanes. Thin-film batteries and photovoltaic cells also promise new ways of powering mobile electronics and smart packaging, the firm reports.

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