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China Creates World's First Graphene Electronic Paper (techtimes.com)
An anonymous reader writes from a report published on Tech Times: China has developed the world's first graphene electronic paper that can possibly revolutionize the screen displays on electronic gadgets such as wearable devices and e-readers. Developed by Guangzhou OED Technologies in partnership with another company in the Chongqing Province, the material is also the world's lightest and strongest material in prevalence today. It's 0.335 nanometers thick and can be used to create hard or flexible graphene displays. Graphene e-paper comes with the capability to conduct both heat and electricity, and it can supposedly enhance optical displays to a brighter level, owing to its high-light transmittance properties. What about cost? Since it's derived from carbon, graphene-based e-papers can be easily produced cost-effectively. Traditional e-papers use indium metal for their display, which is very expensive and rare to source.
The current e-ink market is heavily controlled thus expensive niche items for products that are very cheap to manufacture. We've missed the boat with e-ink phones despite the technology being available for more than a decade - the patent holders didn't want their IP "cheapened" by ending up in inexpensive phones. Hopefully this will open things up a bit. I've wanted an e-ink monitor ever since the technology has been announced but the closest I've been able to get is an android tablet (Boox) and only in the last year.