Abstract
This report:
- Analyzes the global market for all types of printed electronics (PE)
- Emphasizes applications that will be commercialized in the next five
years, the types of PE technologies used, and the resulting market for PE
materials and third-party/contract fabrication services
- Examines the projections of PE commercial production, which is currently
valued in the tens of millions of dollars and is projected by some analysts to
increase to tens of billions in the next 10 years
- Offers insights on where the most valuable opportunities exist in the PE
value chain, i.e, in applications, basic PE devices, manufacturing, or
materials.
INTRODUCTION
Printed electronics (PE) are a relatively new technology for fabricating
electronic devices on materials such as paper, plastic, and textiles using
electrically functional inks in combination with standard printing processes
such as screen printing, offset lithography and inkjet printing. Printed
electronics have the potential to bring about a revolution in electronic
applications.
Proponents initially emphasized printed electronics' ability to make many
electronic devices more cheaply and quickly than conventional silicon-based
electronics technologies. Printed electronics' simpler R&D and manufacturing
process can reduce the capital cost of a fabrication plant by 100 times and
expedite the time to market new products from several months to a couple of
weeks.
Later, proponents emphasized the advantages of printed electronics in terms of
light weight and portability. They talked of a hypothetical mobile phone the
size and shape of a fountain pen, with both display and keyboard printed on a
snap-back roller. The same snap back roller would generate and store
electricity from light and heat.
However, the potentially revolutionary character of printed electronics lies
not in their low cost, ease of manufacturing or small size and light weight.
Rather, it lies in printed electronics' ability to facilitate applications
that are not feasible or at least uneconomical with conventional silicon-based
electronics, such as flexible displays, smart labels, animated posters, and
active clothing. In such applications, printed electronics do not cannibalize
the market for silicon semiconductors, but open new market opportunities.
Study Background
Commercial production of PE, which is currently valued at several billion
dollars, is projected by some analysts to increase to tens of billions in the
next ten years. The proposed report will take a hard look at these projections
in order to determine the realistic market outlook for PE. In the process, it
will offer insights as to where the most valuable opportunities exist in the
PE value chain, i.e., in applications, basic PE devices, manufacturing, or
materials.
GOALS AND OBJECTIVES
The goal of this report is to provide investors and others with realistic
information on the commercial potential of various printed electronics
technologies and applications to assist them in making key business decisions.
Specific objectives include identifying segments of the printed electronics
market with the greatest commercial potential in the near to mid-term (2008 to
2013), projecting future demand in these segments, and evaluating the
challenges that must be overcome for each segment to realize its potential.
INTENDED AUDIENCE
This report is intended especially for executives, entrepreneurs, investors,
venture capitalists and other readers with a need to know where the market for
printed electronics is headed in the next 5 years. The report is written
primarily for lay readers rather than technologists, but it should also be
useful to readers in the research and development community who seek to
anticipate future flows in R&D funding. Officials of related government
agencies such as the U.S. Department of Energy should also find the report
interesting for what it says about the future of such applications as organic
printed photovoltaics.
SCOPE AND FORMAT
The scope of report covers the global market (except military applications)
for all types of printed electronics between 2007 and 2013, including:
- Organic light-emitting diode (OLED)
- Electroluminescent (EL)
- Electrophoretic (EP)
- Electrochromic (EC)
- Organic photovoltaic (OPV)
- Other types of printed electronics
Military markets for printed electronics are not covered in the report,
because security constraints make it difficult to obtain reliable data.
Otherwise, the study format includes the following major elements:
- Executive summary
- Types of printed electronics, their respective properties, advantages and
disadvantages
- Printed electronics applications
- Size, segmentation, and projected growth trends of the printed electronics
market
- Industry structure
- Appendices (Vendor profiles, key patents)
METHODOLOGY AND INFORMATION SOURCES
The report' s findings and conclusions are based on information gathered from a
wide range of sources, including materials and equipment vendors, users,
engineering and consulting firms. Interview data was combined with information
gathered through an extensive review of secondary sources such as trade
publications, trade associations, company literature, and on-line databases to
produce the projections contained in this report.
The base-year for analysis and projection is 2007. With 2007 as a baseline,
market projections were developed for 2008 to 2013. These projections are
based on a combination of a consensus among the primary contacts combined with
our understanding of the key market drivers and their impact from a historical
and analytical perspective.
The methodologies and assumptions used to develop the market projections in
this report are discussed at length under the various segments addressed. The
report carefully documents data sources and assumptions. This way, readers can
see how the market estimates were developed and, if they so desire, test the
impact on the final numbers of changing assumptions such as price.
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