Grants and Contributions:

Grant or Award spanning more than one fiscal year (2017-2018 to 2020-2021).

We will design, engineer and integrate flexible logic circuits base on semiconducting organic molecules. The key distinction of these circuits is that they will be flexible for integration into emerging lighting, displays, and visualization technologies and designed with customers of these technologies in mind. The proposed research fits into the NSERC SPG target area Advanced Manufacturing and the research topic Lightweight Materials and Technologies. These areas are expected to grow rapidly over the next 5 years with the widespread adoption of novel lighting and display elements, the internet of things, new types of wearable electronics and personal medical devices (sensors and monitors). Recent advances in the Li group at the University of Waterloo and the Seferos Group at the University of Toronto, as well as their collaborative efforts set the stage for success in the proposed project. Yuning Li and Dwight Seferos have collaborated over the past 3 years developing the chemistry for and proving the function of materials required for flexible logic circuits. This includes the demonstration of both p-channel and n-channel devices based on novel materials developed in their respective fundamental research programs. We will partner with Ontario-based OTI Lumionics to develop flexible logic circuits in the context of novel lighting and visualization elements with flexible form factors. OTI is a manufacturer of organic light emitting diode enabled products, including the AereLight lamp. Part of OTI's future product offerings will include very low cost, flexible, and disposable visualization elements. They have research and manufacturing capability that makes them ideal to receive the proposed technology. x000D