Towards flexible and conformable electronics

The birth of microelectronics and subsequent miniaturization have revolutionized computing and communications. Yet, as revolutionary as the microelectronics technology has been, in its current form, it cannot address issues like realizing sensitive electronic systems on unconventional substrates such as plastics or paper that can be wrapped around curved surfaces such as the body of robots or artificial limbs. Early attempts to achieve conformable electronic systems primarily followed the flexible printed circuit boards (PCB) route, offering a limited degree of mechanical flexibility. Recent efforts to address these challenges include fabricating sensing and electronic components directly on the flexible substrates or on thin silicon wafers. A variety of solutions, ranging from TFTs to printed electronics have appeared using a wide variety of materials, including organic and inorganic semiconductors. Ultra-thin bendable chip is another interesting route complementing the recently explored micro-/nano-wires approach. The advent of fully flexible electronic systems will be a great leap in technology, as it will open the door to the next-generation electronic environment based on bendable and wearable devices. This lecture will present these developments with a focus on the high-performance bendable and conformable electronics.