Curved electronic pixel arrays using a cut and bend approach

Electronics fabricated on a flat flexible substrate can readily be bent into a cylinder or cone but not into a general three-dimensional curved shape. A solution to this problem is described, in which an electronic device is first fabricated on a flat surface and then shaped to a good approximation of any smooth curved shape, using a cut and bend approach, following the design principles of a geodesic dome. A small additional strain allows the surface to conform to an exact spherical cap. The array is fabricated with amorphous silicon thin film transistors and photodiodes on a plastic substrate.

Citation

Street, R. A.; Wong, W. S.; Lujan, R. A. Curved electronic pixel arrays using a cut and bend approach. Journal of Applied Physics. 2009 May 15; 105 (10): 104504.