Exponent has an experienced team of scientists and engineers who are contributing to the development of both organic and silicon-based solid-state devices for flexible electronics applications. The team has significant knowledge of the constituent chemistry and materials, processing, and growth of semiconductor devices. Together with Exponent’s Mechanical and Materials engineers, our staff is capable of providing an unsurpassed resource in the organic and silicon-based flexible electronics field. We provide services in the areas of:
- Thin-film characterization
- High-vacuum systems
- Plasma deposition
- Optical design
- Packaging and encapsulation
- Polymer substrates
- Metal foil substrates
- Active Matrix Organic Light-emitting Diodes (OLEDs)
- Photovoltaics
- Transparent conductive oxides
- Poly- and amorphous silicon
- Organic material development
- Illumination and signage
- Device operational reliability
- Thermal analysis
- Mechanical analysis
- Grant, paper, and proposal writing
- Intellectual property
Flexible Electronics include large-area devices such as displays, sensor arrays, and solar cells, as well as smaller devices such as radio-frequency identification tags. These products allow for many new energy conversion and biomedical applications, because the electronics are attached to substrates that are bendable, conformal, light-weight, unbreakable (shatter proof), and often cheaper to manufacture through roll-to-roll processing. Our consultants have been deeply involved in this field and have published many of the initial papers about integration of display arrays onto both polymer and metal foils. They can assist in research, development, and failure analysis, as well as intellectual property issues.
Illumination—Solid-state light sources are the future of lighting. White organic LEDs are being investigated to deliver exciting new illumination forms and functionalities. Our team is at the forefront of this technology and can assist in the research, development, intellectual property, and litigation support involving these devices.
Intellectual Property—Protecting and enforcing intellectual property is extremely important in any technical field, even more so in an emerging field such as flexible electronics. Our team has extensive experience in patent and trade secret litigation, and patent portfolio due diligence analysis. We have worked on high-profile, complex patent and trade secret litigation cases in the federal district court system and in the U.S. International Trade Commission. Services provided by Exponent engineers include prior art searches, electrical and software tests, technical document review, validity and infringement analysis, calculation of economic damages, and patent portfolio due diligence analysis.
Displays—Active Matrix Organic Light Emitting Device display systems are an emerging display technology with tremendous potential to capture a significant portion of the display market, because of their vivid colors, power efficiency, and fast microsecond on/off pixel switching rates. Our team has been deeply involved in the development of these types of displays and can offer significant insight into this technology.
Thin-Film Transistors are the basic building block for large-area electronics and hold enormous potential for applications such as active matrix displays, electronic paper, sensors, and Radio-frequency identification (RFID) tags. With our in-depth understanding of device physics, our technologists can assist in failure analysis, reliability, and performance optimization for these devices.
Related Publications
Garg P, Hong Y, Iqbal MM, Fonash SJ. The AMOSFET—A simple, high performance FET for thin films, nanowires, and nanoribbons. Electrochemical Society Transactions 2008; 16:159–164.
Iqbal MM, Hong Y, Garg P, Udrea F, Migliorato P, Fonash SJ. The nano-scale silicon accumulation mode MOSFET—A comprehensive numerical study. Special Issue of IEEE Transactions on Electron Devices on Nanowire Electronics 2008; 55:2946–2959.
Hekmatshoar B, Cherenack K, Kattamis AZ, Long K, Wagner S, Sturm JC. Highly stable amorphous-silicon thin-film transistors on clear plastic. Appl Phys Lett 2008; 93:032103–1–3.
Hekmatshoar B, Cherenack K, Long K, Kattamis AZ, Wagner S, Sturm JC. AMOLED reliability with a-Si TFT’s in normal vs. inverted TFT/OLED integration scheme. 66th Dev Res Conf 2008; 243–244.
Kattamis AZ, Cherenack KH, Cheng I-C, Long K, Sturm JC, Wagner S. Fracture mechanisms of SiNx thin-films on compliant substrates. Mat Res Soc Symp Proc 2008; 1078-M14-02.
Hekmatshoar B, Kattamis AZ, Cherenack K, Wagner S, Sturm JC. A novel TFT-OLED integration for OLED-independent pixel programming in amorphous-Si AMOLED pixels. J Soc Info Disp 2008; 16.
Hekmatshoar B., Kattamis AZ, Cherenack KH, Long K, Chen J-Z, Wagner S, Sturm JC, Rajan K, Hack M. Reliability of active-matrix organic light-emitting-diode arrays with amorphous silicon thin-film transistor backplanes on clear plastic. IEEE Elec Dev Lett 2008; 29.
Yan F, Hong Y. Measurement of ultralow injection current to polymethyl-methacrylate film. Appl Phys Lett 2008; 92:243301–243303.
Cherenack KH, Kattamis AZ, Hekmatshoar B, Sturm JC, Wagner S. Amorphous-silicon thin-film transistors fabricated at 300C on a free-standing foil substrate of clear plastic. IEEE Elec Dev Lett 2007; 28:1004–1006.
Carcia PF, McLean RS, Reilly MH, Crawford MK, Blanchard EN, Kattamis AZ, Wagner S. A comparison of zinc oxide thin-film transistors on silicon oxide and silicon nitride gate dielectrics. J Appl Phys 2007; 102:074512–074519.
Feng Yan, Hong Y, Migliorato P. Temperature dependent transfer characteristics of all polymer F8T2 thin film transistors. J Appl Phys 2007; 101: 064501–064504.
Hong Y, Yan F, Migliorato P, Han SH, Jang J. Injection-limited contact in bottom-contact pentacene organic thin-film transistors. Thin Solid Films 2007; 515:4032–4035.
Kattamis AZ, Cherenack KH, Hekmatshoar B, Cheng I-C, Gleskova H, Sturm JC, Wagner S. Effect of SiNx gate dielectric deposition power and temperature on a-Si:H TFT stability. IEEE Elec Dev Lett 2007; 28:606–608.
Long K, Kattamis AK, Cheng I-C, Gleskova H, Wagner S, Sutrm JC. Amorphous-silicon thin-film transistors made at 280°C on clear-plastic substrates by interfacial stress engineering. J Soc Info Disp 2007; 15:167–176.
Hong Y, Yan F, Migliorato P, Han SH, Jang J. Charge-injection into bottom-contact pentacene organic thin-film transistors. Proceedings, Materials Research Society Symposium, San Francisco, CA, 2006 937:M07–29–35.
Giebink NC, D’Andrade BW, Weaver MS, Mackenzie PB, Brown JJ, Thompson ME, Forrest SR. Intrinsic luminance loss in phosphorescent small-molecule organic light emitting devices due to bimolecular annihilation reactions. J Appl Phys 2008; 103(4):044509-044501.
D’Andrade BW, Weaver MS, Mackenzie PB, Yamamoto H, Brown JJ, Giebink NC, Forrest SR, Thompson ME. Blue phosphorescent organic light emitting device stability analysis. Proceedings SID, Vol. 39, 2008.
D’Andrade BW, Esler J, Lin C, Weaver MS, Brown J. Extremely long lived white phosphorescent organic light emitting device with minimum organic materials. Proceedings SID, Vol. 39, 2008.
D’Andrade BW, Esler J, Lin C, Adamovich V, Xia S, Weaver MS, Kwong R, Brown JJ. Realizing white phosphorescent 100 lm/W OLED efficacy. Proceedings, SPIE, Vol. 7051, 2008.
D’Andrade B, Adamovich V, Weaver M, Lin C, Ma B, Mackenzie PB, Kwong R, Brown JJ. Phosphorescent OLEDs with saturated colors. Proceedings, SPIE, Vol. 6655, pp. 645–647, 2007.
D’Andrade B, Canzler TW, Hack M. PIN OLEDs—Enhanced performance and lifetime by improved structures and materials. Proceedings, IMDC, 2007.
D'Andrade B. White phosphorescent LEDs offer efficient answer. Nat Photonics 2007; 1(1):33–34.
D’Andrade BW, Tsai J-Y, Lin C, Weaver MS, Mackenzie PB, Brown JJ. Efficient white phosphorescent organic light-Emitting devices. Proceedings, SID, Vol. 38, pp. 1026–1029, 2007.
D’Andrade B, Weaver MS, Brown JJ. White phosphorescent organic light emitting devices. Proceedings, SPIE, Vol. 6655, pp. 6332–6334, 2007.