The most comprehensive

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“Fully printed sensors will reach $7.6bn revenues by 2027”

IDTechEx has closely followed the progress of printed and

flexible sensors for several years.
Save months of research by quickly learning who the key
players are in printed and flexible sensors and the latest
information. Get the complete picture on the various
technologies, their applications and the market sizes.

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 Dr Guillaume Chansin
Senior Technology Analyst

Printed and Flexible Sensors:

From Healthcare to IoT

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Helping you profit from emerging technologies

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IDTechEx Reports

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Conventional vs. Printed Electronics

Conventional “Printed
Electronics Electronics”

Silicon, Ceramics, Organic semiconductors,

Materials Glass Polymers,
Specialty inks

Manufacturing Photolithography, Printed on plastic,

technique micromachining, textile, paper, foil
ablation, etc.

Product feature
Rigid, brittle, Flexible, robust,
miniaturized large area

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 Flexible Hybrid Electronics

The key challenges

Connecting rigid components to
flexible substrates
Connecting flexible components to
flexible substrates
Conductive adhesion between above
Source: PARC and UCSD

Source: Bainisha

Source: MC10

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Market trends for printed sensors
7000

6500

6000
Sensors on TFT array
$ million

Hybrid image sensors

5500
Capacitive touch on flex
Other printed sensors
5000 Printed glucose sensors

4500

4000
2017 2018 2019 2020

Source: report “Printed and Flexible Sensors 2017-2027: Technologies, Players, Forecasts”

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Types of printed sensors

Photos:
IDTechEx

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Biosensors

Over 20 billion glucose test strips

produced annually for diabetes
management
Majority of test strips are based on
screen printed electrodes
Commoditized market with
squeezed profits Source IDTechEx report “Technologies for Diabetes Management 2017-2027:
Forecasts, Players, Opportunities”
New glucose monitoring methods
will further impact printed test strips

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Capacitive sensors
Variety of conductive inks available, based on silver,
copper, PEDOT
Touch sensors can replace mechanical switches
Stretchable inks now enable thermoforming with
minimal loss in conductivity
In-mold electronics (IME) makes it easier to integrate
sensors into injection molded plastic parts Source: DuPont
Trend towards Structural Electronics

In-mold electronics
1. Print conductive ink on in-mold labelling (IML) film
2. Add other components (surface mount)
3. 3D shape the film by thermoforming
4. Combine film with plastic part

Photo: IDTechEx
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Resistive force sensors
Printed force sensors have been used for human-machine interface (HMI) for several decades
Not the same technology as in recent smartphones (eg: Apple Force Touch)
Recent trends have focused on large sensor arrays and integration in textile

Photo: IDTechEx Photo: IDTechEx

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Piezoelectric sensors
Piezoelectric effect can be used for actuators, energy harvesting, and sensors
Some piezoelectric polymers can be directly printed on flexible films
Ideal for measuring flexing/bending actions (eg: PyzoFlex in Austria)

Photo: IDTechEx Photo: IDTechEx

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Optical sensors X-ray imager

Organic photodiode (OPD) technology based on solution-processed materials X-ray

Can detect visible light and near-infrared
Several configurations possible:
o Standalone
o Combined with CMOS backplane Scintillator
o Combined with TFT backplane (converts X-ray to visible light)

Photodiode
(converts light to electrical signal)

TFT array
(electrical readout)

Photo: IDTechEx

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Temperature sensors
Large area sensor enable temperature mapping
Conformable sensor with improved thermal contact
Sensor on resistive heaters

Flexible sensor array Passive UHF sensor tag

Photo: IDTechEx Photo: IDTechEx

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Humidity sensors
Wireless sensor Sensor with carbon nanotube
No IC, no battery Very fast response time (below 10 ms)
Used in building walls to monitor moisture Low-power operation (below 30 pW)
Sensor is an antenna with variable resonant frequency Eg: monitor moisture contamination in sensitive
industrial process

Photo: IDTechEx Photo: IDTechEx

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Gas sensors Environmental Gas Sensors
3500
Growing concern over air quality
Addressable market of $3bn by 2027 3000
for gas sensors

Revenues ($ millions)
Printed sensors exhibit low power 2500
Other technologies include miniaturized Fixed Outdoor Air
metal-oxide sensors 2000 Quality Sensors
Portable Air Quality
1500 Sensors
Indoor Air Quality
Sensors
1000

500

0
2017 2022 2027

Photo: IDTechEx Source: report “Environmental Gas Sensors 2017-2027”

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 Summary for printed and flexible sensors

Mass production by roll to roll Sensing over large area Sensor on plastic substrates

Glucose test strips, biosensors, In-mold electronics with capacitive Organic photodiodes, conformable
humidity sensors, gas sensors touch, force sensing arrays temperature sensors, bend sensor

Source: GSI Technologies Source: TactoTek Source: ISORG

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 Supporting your strategic business
decisions on emerging technologies

Dr Guillaume Chansin
g.chansin@idtechex.com

@GChansin

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