In the past few years, novel encapsulation technologies have become a hot topic in the thin-film, printed end electronics communities.  Many of the latest materials platforms for displays, lighting and solar panels appear to require higher performance encapsulation technologies.  And in response to this apparent need, new alternatives have appeared in the marketplace; notably multilayer barrier films and conformally deposited coatings.

This sounds like the makings of a good business case.  Unfortunately, recent history seems to be saying otherwise.  The start-up firms that have believed in this business case have not been a happy crew.  Symmorphix and (quite recently) Cambridge Nanotech have gone out of business.  Vitex has been swallowed up by Samsung.  And other startups are confessing that they are no longer sure how they are ever going to make big money out of their clever encapsulation ideas.

So here is the encapsulation paradox.  Some of the most exciting new thin-printed-organic technologies apparently need new kinds of encapsulation.  Yet there is good empirical evidence that firms cannot make money providing these novel species of encapsulation.  What is missing from this picture?

This white paper examines the future challenges that the silver inks and pastes business is facing given the decline of the solar industry as a key customer.  

This is the executive summary from NanoMarkets' latest report on the commercial development of OLED encapsulation.  The report analyzes the latest technical and market developments in the both OLED encapsulation materials and deposition strategies and it also contains granular eight-year forecasts of the revenues that we expect to be generated from this business, along with quantities of materials  shipped.  These in-depth forecasts are broken out by both product type and application within the OLED space.

This is the executive summary from the NanoMarkets report, Advanced Glazing Systems Markets Markets-2012.  In an era of rising real energy prices and uncertainties about future energy supply NanoMarkets believes that a fast growing market for advanced glazing systems can be expected and that this will create profitable business opportunities for a wide variety of companies.  In this new report, NanoMarkets has identified where these opportunities can be found and how much they will be worth.  The report covers the full range of high-performance windows systems that provide thermal, visual and IR management using the latest materials.

This is the exuctive summary from the NanoMarkets report, “Markets for Optically Functional Films and Coatings in Displays”   The purpose of this report is to provide a market analysis of the opportunities and challenges for emerging optically functional films used in displays over the next eight years. In this report, we examine the latest products, strategies, and technical developments of the industry.  For example, we identify where new optical film products are likely to help grow addressable markets for different types of displays versus market-dominant LCDs, and where new films for LCDs may help these struggling displays maintain profitability.

Note that hard coatings and other coatings designed to improve the durability of the displays are also commonly found on the front surface of most displays, but these coatings are not optically functional and so they are excluded from the analysis in this report. (Of course, they must be as optically transparent as possible, but they do not perform a particular optical function.)  In addition, this report also includes NanoMarkets’ assessments of the strategies of leading or influential firms active in the optically functional coating/film space.  And, as always with NanoMarkets reports, this report contains granular, eight-year forecasts of optical films and coatings in volume (by area coated) and value terms, broken out by application.

This is the executive summary from the NanoMarkets report, “BIPV Wall Markets-2012”.  In this report, NanoMarkets identifies the opportunities from  the fastest growing segment of BIPV; BIPV walling products.  For each product type this report contains separate eight-year forecasts with breakouts by value ($ millions), volume (MW) and PV technology.  Other forecasts show which types of buildings and which geographical regions will generate revenues and how this will change over time.

This is the executive summary from the report, ““Transparent Conductor Markets – 2012.”   NanoMarkets has covered TCs for seven years and this 230-page report provides the most thorough analysis and granular forecasts available.   In this report NanoMarkets provides in-depth analysis of the applications from which TC firms will be able to make money in the next few years including touch-screens, OLEDs, e-paper, thin-film and building-integrated PV (BIPV), organic/DSC PV, smart windows, etc. The report examines implications for TCs of the rise of flexible and transparent electronics and provides an in-depth discussion of how non-ITO TCs may be able to break into the LCD market. For each application the report contains separate eight-year forecasts in terms of value ($ millions) and volume (square meters). Each forecast is also broken out by material type.

This is the executive summary from the NanoMarkets report, “Markets for OTFTs, OFETs and Organic Memory – 2012.”   This report provides an analysis and forecast of the OTFT/OFET and ONVM market over the next eight years. Applications covered include smart packaging, brand protection, security, smartcards, distribution tagging and RFID, interactive media, disposable electronics, and (flexible) display backplanes. The report examines some of the latest market strategies, products and technical developments in materials, and it identifies how performance and manufacturing improvements are finally improving the prospects for printed/organic electronics.

As in all NanoMarkets reports, this report contains granular eight-year forecasts of OTFT/OFET and ONVM shipments in both unit and value terms, with breakouts by material type (small molecule vs. polymer) deposition technology (vapor vs. solution processing), and by panel type (rigid vs. flexible). Material categories discussed include organic and/or polymeric semiconductors, ferroelectric materials, dielectrics, and electrodes.
 

This is the executive sumamry from the report, “OLED Materials Markets -2012.”  The goal of this report is to analyze and forecast the prospects for OLED materials in the coming eight years.  Specifically, the objective is to examine the OLED materials sector and analyze what we see as the new directions that OLED materials will be taking in the coming years for both displays and lighting. It is also to identify and quantify the opportunities that are emerging in this space.

This report is the latest update from NanoMarkets on the OLED materials markets. In it, we quantify the opportunities that are emerging from the booming OLED display industry and in the nascent OLED lighting market, where the key determinants of success will be device efficiency, lifetime, and reduction in total cost of ownership.  Finally, the report contains detailed volume and revenue forecasts for materials used for OLEDs broken out by material type and functionality, as well as by application and by deposition method, wherever possible.
 

This is the executive summary from the NanoMarkets report, “Thin-Film and Printed Battery Markets – 2012.”   In this  report we address thin-film/printed battery applications including smartcards, sensors, RFID, smart packaging, disposable electronics/interactive media, cosmetic/pharmaceutical patches, medical implants, and semiconductor industry applications.

For each application the report contains separate forecasts in unit and value terms for thin-film and printed battery shipments.  It also includes forecasts by battery chemistry and of the products containing this specialized form of battery.  Finally, it has strategic profiles leading suppliers of thin-film and printed batteries including Blue Spark, Cymbet, Enfucell, Planar Energy Devices, Rocket Electric, Solicore and Ultralife.  Other organizations discussed include Micross Components, NEC, Oak Ridge National Lab, PARC, Pragmatic Printing, Printed Electronics, Rogers Corporation, RR Donnelley, Sealed Air, Sony, UT-Battelle and VTT.